bottom paint

[PINECONE]

i have a 16' cruiser. 2007 but bought 2008. i am the second owner (this summer) it was a bit much for the 80 year old man that bought it. my question is i see photos of all c-dorys with the bottom having a matching side color or white. ours is a dull black that rubs off. the boat was in salt water 2 summers in a slip with only 10 hours of motor use. is this normal or do i need it painted? BIG boat rookie here but learning. also can anyone offer a hint where i can get a full rear canvas cover for it. a link to info on the hull design would be helpful as i would prefer to install a through the hull transducer. we boat in very tidal and rocky water, an extra 6-7' advance notice would help. love the boat, hate winter. tks for any help. pine

[Montana Kev]

Here is a recent thread on camper backs.

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ZviSfjVRtJsJ:www.c-brats.com/viewtopic.php%3Ft%3D14618+site:c-brats.com+camper+back&cd=3&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

You can look at my album and see how we had the side zippers put in our 16. Sure makes it easy for getting in and out of the boat without un-snapping the canvas.

Kevin

[PINECONE]

tks, lots of goodies on that boat. i'm just looking for a cover to keep out the rain and dirt while in a slip or in my drive.

[JamesTXSD]

Hi Don,

Welcome aboard. Flat black on the bottom probably means you have an ablative bottom paint on there. That's actually a good thing for any boat that spends a lot of time in the water. Our CD-25 is bottom painted; I went with black, also. When it comes out of the water, it does get a flat appearance. While that may not be as pretty when it's sitting on the trailer, it is very helpful when in the water - the ablative quality allows you to scrub or wash the slime and/or critters off. Of course, the best thing for any boat in the water is regular use; movement over about 7 knots will also help keep the bottom cleaner.

Regarding the canvas camperback: many C-Dorys have the King Canvas installed when they were built/shipped. You could order something from them and do your own install, or (better) get with a local canvas shop and have them make something with your boat right there. The camperback adds a lot of comfort to the boat.

Regarding the through the hull transducer: seems that most of us have a transom mounted transducer. The C-Dorys have a cored hull which doesn't work on a through the hull transducer. If you are referring to a transducer that is mounted through the hull (as in: hole drilled though the hull), I am not a big fan of those... why drill a hole though a perfectly good hull? I have had that type on a sailboat in the past, and it is one more thing to be concerned with when putting the boat on a trailer or sling.

Best wishes,
Jim B.

[Sea Wolf]

[thataway]

There are two types of covers for the back--one is the camper back--which has a full bimini top with frame, and then side and back curtains. The other is a slant back cockpit cover, which is more of a storage cover and keeps debris out of the boat.

I am not sure if the full camper back on a 16 allows standing head room, but I suspect that it does not.

I agree that you have bottom paint. I have been using Petit Vivid for over a year now on one of my boats, and it remains a bright color (I choose a bright blue) and seems to have done well in retaining its anti fouling property when stored on the trailer for 3 months and then gone back in the water.

Good comments on shooting thru the hull. The balsa core, acts as a non conductor of sonic waves, and blocks the ultra sound transmission. You have to have a solid conductor---such as solid glass. If you must have a shoot thru the hull, you can go further forward and take out some flotation under the forward "bunk" or shelf. The core material stops in the 22's and 25's about where the dead rise or V starts to be more pronounced. I don't know for certain in the 16 where the core stops. There is a bit more of a job to put the transducer in so that it is parallel to the water surface--but also far forward may be out of the water under way and I would not advise that location.

Most transducers are put well aft, (at least half way aft) for reasons that there is less turbulence than forward. If you must shoot thru the hull: You can cut out the top glass layer, the core, and then reglass this to be solid glass at any point in the boat. This is a lot of work, and unless you are a good fiberglass worker, there is some risk in doing this. You can purchase flush thru the hull (hole in the hull) transducers. To use these in a cored hull (C Dory) you will drill out the hole the size of the transducer stem. Then undercut the core back about 1/2", with a Dremel tool or allen wrench chucked in a drill. Then fill this area with thickened epoxy and finally smooth out the hole, then do the chamber cut to recess the face of a flush depth sounder into the hull (or a very slight mushroom type of outer face).

The forward looking sonars--are better than they used to be, but my feeling is that they are at their best with steep obstructions--such as a rock ledge, and not a sloping bottom. They are good forward only about 6x to 8x the depth--so if in 30 feet about 180 feet forward,3 feet about 20 feet forward. (However these do not work in less than 3 feet depth). Echo pilot is probably the best and then comes Interphase twin scope, a close second. If you are serious about forward looking sonar, then you can spend a great deal of money with Furuno porfessional gear, and have true underwater radar--which shows very good detail at some range: Starting prices in the $12,000 (as a black box if you already have Furuno displays) and up to $16,000 for dual band dual display. The cheaper Furuno FL 7000 did not prove to be a good product and was dropped by Furuno.

[DaveS]

[Montana Kev]

I am 6'2" with my boots on and could stand up just fine in the highest point of our 16 cruiser camperback. Barefooted it felt more roomy. This is not a King camper back though, seems they are all a bit different.



Kevin