Plastic Classic Forum

Tom Young

I had an AR4-s go in just a couple of seasons. They (Balmar) are pretty adamant about not going over the warranty as I'm sure they've had terrible luck with them. I bought and Xantrex (looks like the same AR4-s with a now company name) last year and now on the second season. I have my doubts it'll l...

Tom Young

Our old boat takes a little more work. It has alot of wood that needs preserving. But it's enjoyable stuff to do. I should launch in a week.

Tom Young

It began serving notice a couple of years ago that it needed a possible rebuilding or replacment. Despite new injectors last season, smoking increased to an intolerable point. Looking into a new engine, I quickly decided the cost was more than we needed to make for how we use the boat. Not only that...

Tom Young

Hey y'all, I have what may be a stupid question... If you needed to use a piece soon that you were varnishing or oiling, could you put into an oven at a low temp (200?) to speed the cure? Would it screw up the finish? Anything wrong with doing this to speed up undercoats? Just wondering... I've had...

Tom Young

Alot of similarities below the sole of your boat and the Challengers.

Tom Young

The glass bond to wood fails there first likely due to the sharp turn. I'm with Tim, if you can get it sound and dry, you should be all set. I think the mahogany piece the plywood and cabin sides are attached to, is quite wide so even if some ply has failed at the extreme turn, the bond to the mahog...

Tom Young

In my experience, search out the small local building material suppliers. Most used to deal alot in laminate and many still do to some extent. Mine here in town has many pieces in sizes and finish/color, some stock, some leftover shorts, orders never picked up, etc. You will likely have to ask for i...

Tom Young

Mostly due to our growing family. Living within walking distance of the boat has changed our use as well. For the last few years, we'll get onboard for nearly a dozen weekends a year. We're still exploring the coast of Maine. We haven't really worn out our home waters of Penobscot Bay yet after near...

Tom Young

I don't think we had to pay anything and it was had through a friend that connected us both. When we moved to Camden, someone scalped us 900. for the season to use their mooring. It was just beginning to be a problem then (1999). Illegal but many were doing it. Then another "nice guy" hit ...

Tom Young

As I recall, we rented (borrowed technically) a town mooring from someone. That was back in the early 90's. Sorry that's not much help.

Tom Young

First keeping our boat (then 28') in Casco bay for a season, then Robinhood for a season, then 2 seasons in Boothbay. Driving from Vermont, these locations are not much different in car time. Boothbay was perhaps the easiest and most affordable. There were plentiful seasonal moorings available. We s...

Tom Young

The look on your sons face says it all. Very calm and content.

The light this time of year is breathtaking when the sunsets or rises. And now comes October, even more dramatic.

Tom Young

We find our shoal draft and comfort with anchoring a big plus in the Cape Cod area. Simply, compared to our area of Maine, natural anchorages are few and far between. Moorings are more readily available but you could tear your hair out trying to reserve and secure them in time at the more popular ar...

Tom Young

It's always fun to see things from another boats perspective, especially your home waters. Thanks.

Tom Young

I'd give it a try. I've read varying reports. Marblehead was a great overnight stop as I sailed our boat home. I left my family in Woods Hole to return by road (field hockey schedule!). We found alot of good new finds like Lake Tashmoo and in this photo, the only boat anchored in Head of the Harbor ...

Tom Young

We're headed out thursday for Block Island. I hope to cross the Gulf of Maine on friday and may be in Tenants Harbor (or somewhere else in the mouth of Penobscot Bay) thursday night. As usual, the wind direction appears to be our rhumb line from Monhegan to Provencetown. I expect that and as long as...

Tom Young

taken of our Alden Challenger by a pro and friend who came to Maine to do some sailing. Phil has a great eye and the knowledge and gear to do some great things. Interestingly, he can make even Maine in June look tropical.

Tom Young

a 50 50 mix of Easypoxy gloss and semi gloss. The reason I tried it on the last coat (6 years ago) was because I wanted to dull the gloss just a bit. This seemed like an easy solution. But I realize, how would I know if I don't have a sample of each to compare? Mute point though, I need 2 quarts to ...

Tom Young

I store on the public landing in Rockport Harbor. This year I painted the topsides (6 years since last time) as well as my usual stuff. My launch went without a hitch, tools and brushes are put away (far away!). It will be good to disappear into the Penobscot Bay today for a well earned escape. http...

Tom Young

Having close to a decade of sailing on Penobscot Bay, I'm still amazed at how big and varied a water body it is. It's amazing to me what options we have as I take checks of the wind and weather for a few days of sailing. I've spent alot of time on coastlines from here to the Bahamas, sometimes spend...

Tom Young

There is a heavy swell coming into Rockport Harbor at this moment as the tide goes out. It must have been nasty out there. Are you keeping the boat in Belfast Tim? How did you mooring hunt turn out? I realize now you're in Whitefield which is up 17 from here? I can't find any info on the boat washed...

Tom Young

I'd never done it before on previous boats. If it ran, I figured why bother. Change oil, filters etc. I post this in case anyone else is considering this, here's my experience. My Nissan SD 22 diesel began to smoke an embarassing amount last season(likely built over a few) and was starting slower, s...

Tom Young

I hope you keep the photos coming, hopefully I'll be able to help you a bit if I had to go down the same tunnel with my Challenger. I think your project looks like it's in good shape. I'll be interested in how you go about the cockpit. It could be done many different ways. Mine is still original if ...

Tom Young

I'm still modifying the original Simpson Laurence fireplace in my 61 Challenger. Sailing in Maine, it gets quiite alot of use. (I've shown this before so sorry for boring some) I had to replace an all wood top that of course wanted to catch fire after an hour or so of use. The SS top I had made has ...

Tom Young

I run through the same labors. So I think it might be best to have both onboard. We don't have the heat problem so often use our symetrical spinnaker dead down wind, the only sail that does that efficiently. But I need to cover more than an hours worth of miles to get inspired. Interestingly, someon...

Tom Young

I bought it reconditioned 4 or 5 years ago and really have abused it. It connects to a PC shop vac so I use it alot on the boat and construciton projects. With the handle, it's very easy to control and with the vaccumn, I can't even think of pulling out one that isn't connected to the vac. I just to...

Tom Young

It sounds like your wife sent the one we recieved while on vacation. Sorry to miss you and I hope you had a good time in the area. Your original shower idea sounds like as good as it gets. In a pinch, it's workable. I had friends who lived aboard a Southern Cross 39 that had a shower stall in the he...

Tom Young

It really was nothing more than building a grate over the bilge as a drain in the passage between the head and vee berth. The head on the CD 28 was on the port side, wc with a sliding sink/counter over. You sat on the wc or (if you're short) stand on the grate. Water went everwhere including through...

Tom Young

inside the bilge, that would be the easiest. Be sure you allow room for the nut and or housing to fit. Then you can drill the correct size hole from outside using the small hole you drilled from the inside, for a pilot hole. If you can't, then you would have to do what someone else mentioned. But if...

Tom Young

by the photos. She's a beauty. This may sound drastic, but assuming you're still on your cradle and will be till spring, what about drilling a hole in the bilge to install a garboard plug? It sounds like you may just be fighting moisture all around with winter dampness, no sunlight and little dry ve...

Tom Young

Designed and built in the late 50's and early 60's this group of around 100 boats were the following designs (from largest # built); Alden Challengers, Alden Carravelles, Alden Zephyrs, Alden Mistrals(and maybe others?) Many (but not all) of these Aldens will be identified by the large "double ...

Tom Young

We can't beat inner Blue Hill Harbor for a few days. For several years now, on the winds invitation, we've reached up the bay and anchored for a coulple of days of swimming and shoreside exploration. http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeofej4/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/dinghyblue.jpg Then there'...

Tom Young

This old Herreshoff schooner took a terrible pounding. I'm not sure of the details but it was somehwere in our area and looks to have pounded on steep rocks or docks. The estimate of 5,000 man hours for this restoration and a few other damaged boats will keep most of the work force at Rockport Marin...

Tom Young

I'll post my two cents. Hi George. Having anchored up and down the east coast through the Bahamas, I find Maine as easy as anywhere to get an anchor to set. All the anchors you listed should work fine(they all work fine btw). The few times you may run into kelp, any plow type anchors seem to get thr...

Tom Young

roller furling boom I suspect. That makes sense. My boat came with an old standby of ties on a line with one hook on the end of the boom. I'm getting closer to having new sails built for the boat. Then I plan to decide on an easier handling system. These mains are a handful for one to furl but until...

Tom Young

I remeber one of the last owners name was Heidi. I think they got exasperated. Those are some good investments in the boat, you should reap the benefit of those Jon. She's a beauty and I'm so glad to see you take the paint off the cabinsides! There's almost nothing that can't be repaired under there...

Tom Young

I assume you are Southport on the Challenger website? Tims site is a great place to post your ongoing project. I hope you keep it up, they are gresat boats that require special owners with the right mindset. Tim, I think the Challenger you looked at in Freeport was a different boat. I can't think of...

Tom Young

A boat did break free of it's mooring here in Rockport. It took some fairly heavy damage. The talk was on the mooring having failed below the ball, I'm assuming the swivel or shackle between top and bottom chain. At any rate, the boat was under the full care of the marina and boatyard that does all ...

Tom Young

I spent the entire time, 3 days, dodging the gale in Gilkey Harbor off Islesboro. A 40'er chafed through and went adrift in Cradle Cove saturday night. It went through a small rocky opening at high tide and ended up on the south side of Warren Island. I was in Ames Cove on the other side in the &quo...

Tom Young

He's owned it for more than 20 years and sails the heck out of it. It's built like a tank, I helped him design a dinette conversion onboard. Here's Sunrise rafted up to us up Perrys Creek off Vinalhaven Island Maine. http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeofej4/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/sunrise.j...

Tom Young

It's fun to take a look but has little for sailboat equipment of any value. You may find a few old items but by and large the inventory doesn't turn over. There are several lobster boat transmissions etc. I almost bought a wooden ladder they had this past week, the kind that is used for boarding or ...

Tom Young

We had just come in from Maine on an overnight. Our goal was straight through to the CCCanal. But just as we were well into the bay, the south wind piped up and some of the shortest steepest waves I've ever seen had us falling off for Plymouth. We found a spot just off the channel. Our centerboard m...

Tom Young

And I always get the feeling when I'm in it, October rivals any month for being on the water. If you pick your weather, you can sail warm days with plenty of wind. http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeofej4/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/railpower.jpg We didn't need to go far. I chose to anchor way ...

Tom Young

right now. I will post some(I have to put them on my website for posting) when I go further with the design.

Christmas is a 1961 Alden Challenger, Aldens first glass hull and deck.

Tom Young

Nice shot! October is almost my favorite. We've been lucky the last few years and I'm hoping for more. I'm also in a good position for watching the weather in late Oct., early Nov. here in Rockport. Once most of the boats are hauled, I can usually pick my weather for the haul out. Alas, things are c...

Tom Young

book. I don't have it in front of me but I believe this is the second issue, and he is a good friend. I think it was Rolls Battery data that says: The only danger to the battery is freezing. If the battery is fully charged, I believe the data said it could go more than a year without freezing in our...

Tom Young

I appreciate the feedback. It's all part of the design process. As I go further with the idea, I too am concerned about making this new area fit into the scheme and style of this old boat. The more I sail this old boat, the more I appreciate the original desing and workmanship. I want to retain that...

Tom Young

on our boat Christmas. The original layout below decks was drawn in 1958. With racers and crew in mind, it has served amazingly well for a family of four. It will be 3 years before both are in college but I'm looking into improving the boat for a future of mostly two. Like alot of boats, the Alden C...

Tom Young

rigged on my Alden Challenger. The mizzen sheet goes right to the stern rail from about 2/3 out of the boom. This mizzen is 50 square feet. The staysail is 3/4 oz. nylon and a breeze to fly. Once the wind goes aft of the beam, you'll see the mizzen doused as it begins to blanket the staysail. The st...

Tom Young

With end boom sheeting and presently no vang(the biggest limitation to roller boom furling-I use a strap preventer system to snatch blocks, archaic but fine for long passages-not good for simple main trim though), I'm thinking my lines can run under the boom. I'm thinking through the details and stu...

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