Between starting a new business, the holidays, and a loss in the family- things have been a little crazy. Sequoia is out of the water, with her mast out of the boat. The standing rigging needed replaced (some of it is original from 1988), and the paint on the mast is all but gone on most of it. So we decided we'd get it painted...
First, we got a quote from a company in Annapolis- $12,000.00 for new standing rig, lifelines, strip and repaint the mast... Nope.
Then we got a quote for just strip and repaint the mast from our new yard (and they are great, we've dealt with them before and are excited about our move)- $6,000 to strip and repaint... Nope.
Let's be honest here- $12k just isn't realistic for a boat that is almost 20 years old. The $6k would be better, but still more than we'd like to spend on something that doesn't make the boat go faster or more comfortable.
So with some good advice and some help from people in the "know", I'm going to do it myself via "roll & tip" after I sand off the little bit of paint that is left. It's been suggested to use a 2 part paint rather than the 1 part- since the durability should outweigh any application issues. This whole process has to wait until things warm up a little... So I'm hoping for a nice warm week in March.
In the mean time- I'm buffing out the gel coat, then polish and wax. It's kind of like the old joke, "I just flew in from St. Louis, and boy do my arms hurt."
Then, in my everlasting quest to reduce power draw on the battery bank, I'm changing light bulbs to LED's in the cabin dome lights. Also contemplating that move for the anchor light. Hoping to save at least 50% (I'd like to see 70%) of power draw on the lighting. They currently draw almost 1 amp per bulb that is on. Bulbs are a couple of dollars each- and will be a good test before moving to new LED fixtures down the road.
Also, we're always "shopping" for the next boat. We've decided to stop shopping and just take the things we like from other boats and make them happen on Sequoia and keep her for the long term. She's a great sailing boat, fast, and with a little smart design can be a very comfortable long term cruiser. I know that most readers don't really care, but I think that decision is going to have some major effects on how we deal with the boat over the next several years.
So, sorry for the long pause- let's get back to work--- those winches need a light clean & lube again...
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