Removal of Interior/Engine/Tar
During the final stages of our Atlantic voyage the future, our sailing future and the future of Eleanor Tarr was discussed. We wanted to have a child, that, along with many other wants and needs had me looking at steel boat designs. A Colvin, 30-36 feet is what i decided i needed to build, and yet as i reviewed what sort of elements we desired and required i began to notice that our Mason 30 had many if not most of these attributes.
However the salt water had been hard on her, having never showed a touch of rust in 29 years of fresh water, 1 year of salt water and she was rust streaked and looking her age. Tankage was a problem , fuel and water, her 1962 gasoline engine was billowing exhaust and blowing water about. We had two bunks, neither a double, and she smelled of bilge… a smell which i grew to love but most others, including my crew find a little off-putting.
Eleanor Tarr’s ballast is made up of scrap steel secured with concrete and painted over with a thick layer of asphalt tar, as was much of the hull plating under the cabin sole. This ballast combination worried me, not only did it raise the centre of gravity, it occupied the entire keel cavity and the risk of corrosion was great. Removal of the 3200 lbs of ballast and all related materials was/is a must.
Good news: there is lots of great things i’m finding as i weigh into this project. The hull to deck joints for example are immaculate, original paint 10/10. I am able to track all interior rust streaking back to it’s source. Like a crime scene investigator I track each streak up to it’s origin. The culprit in every case is a deck attachment BOLTED onto the deck. Stanchions, deck fills, antennae passages are all villains that will be dealt with in the appropriate way… welding.
Please find details on refit progress in order of completion, or rather in or of embarkment, under the REFIT tab
Please note, as I move through this documentation of this refit I am modernizing and upgrading the craft with methods, materials and wisdom which simply did not exist 31 years ago when the vessel was constructed. In no way do I have negative feelings about her construction. The welding and cabin joinery is top notch, and the builder has done me many favours with foresight and materials of the time.
In our journey to bring this vessel of 1946 design up to modern standards, upgrades are plentifull and include:
Aluminum Spars, life raft, diesel engine, Amerlock epoxy paints, Groco through hulls, Racor fuel filtering, increased tankage with metering, AIS, RADAR, Blue Seas breaker board, Harken foresail furling, Sta-Lok swageless fittings
Sailing Vessel Eleanor Tarr 