Ohana: 1978 Cal 34-III Hull No. 96

[Salty_Jake]

I'm new here, and wanted to say hi to all. I have a lot of projects in store for our new new-to-us boat, Ohana. She's a Chesapeake gal, having never left the Bay as far as I can discern. Original owner was a Baltimore sailor and she's migrated a few rivers south to where I keep her on the West River, Maryland. We are new to cruising and have some ideas of what we'd like to do as far as a refit goes, but advice would surely be appreciated.

All I know (for now) is that you have to eat an elephant one bite at a time.

[rcvesselstyn]

Those 34s' are wonderful boats! You are both in for some truly joyous sailing. I'm sure Mary will have plenty of suggestions as to what you might want to attend to first but I humbly propose my way. Fix those few things that might keep you from leaving the dock and take the boat out sailing. When you're out the boat will tell you what needs to be attended to. You might find that all those things that you thought were important are less so when you're out on the water. Different items may appear on your work list once you've spent more hours with your new boat. Just an old-timers point of view. Congratulations!

[Mary Mac]

Welcome, Jake!

I am sorry I missed this post. I was in training for a new job for a couple months and then got the 'rona so have been away from the group.

I have the same boat, same year. I love mine!

I completely agree with Randy. When I began, I had a long list that was sometimes overwhelming. I made myself a rule that things that get me out on the water get priority.

My boat was in bad shape when I started, so you may have a different list. Ohana looks like she's in great shape. I see some updated hatches.

Things that aren't required for sailing, but are very nice to have while out on the water and in the slip:

I added an electric flush toilet with a Purasan EX treatment system. No smells! My boat did not come with a holding tank.

I upgraded the water hoses to aquapex and then added a dock water connection. It is a lot easier to fill the hard-to-access water tank now, and the aquapex gives me peace of mind for leaks.

I installed 350w of solar after installing a bimini. The battery bank is in that L of the settee by the galley. 4 100ah AGM batteries fit perfectly in there.

I installed a drawer fridge/freezer where the oven once was. It runs off of the solar. Unlimited cold beer and even ice cream! I use an induction hot plate to cook when at the dock. Off the dock, we use the BBQ and a solar oven.

I got a king foam mattress from Ikea and cut it to fit the v-berth. It is the most comfortable place I've ever slept.

I added VHF with AIS in, B&G chartplotter, tri-ducer (speed, temp, depth), bluetooth windvane and a wheel autopilot. Love having all of that.

Have you checked all the necessary stuff? Engine, shaft, prop, bilge pump, compression post and bulkhead etc?

Please post more photos and have fun!

[Mary Mac]

Oh, I saw one thing. I added a pedestal guard. Otherwise there's not much to grab onto.

Do you need a boom vang?

I often sit on the edge above the seat adjacent to the wheel when I'm underway. Its very uncomfortable. I want to design a little removable seat that attaches to the railing somehow to make it a more comfortable place to sit.

[Salty_Jake]

Mary, I apologize for falling off the face of the earth after your generous reply. Thank you for giving some insights into the upgrades you've made to your boat. There are several you've made that are on my to-do list when I find the sweet combo of time + money. Right now I have a lot of time.

In advance I will also apologize that this post is a bit all-over-the-place. I am hanging out with my 5-year-old and writing on the laptop as I can.

You have a sharp eye, I do not have a boom vang and could probably use one. The boat came with two sails, what appeared to be original wire-to-rope halyards, a mainsheet, jib sheets, a furling Genoa and its furling line, and a few fenders. Nothing else, really. I replaced the halyards with new rope (no wire), and replaced all the other running rigging, adding a topping lift as well. I would LOVE a spare halyard and am considering adding a baby forestay (for heavier weather options).

I've done very little to the boat so far, it was as you say in pretty good condition. We have gotten more comfortable using her and intend to do some weekend-long sails including anchoring around the Bay. But I have discovered (by sailing on others' boats) how bare bones she is. Thank goodness for Navionics and a handheld iCom VHF with AIS.

I had her hauled our first winter (2022) and got the bottom repainted, and all through-hulls cleaned, everything inspected from keel to masthead, and feel like she's in pretty good form.

What I definitely need is a reefing system. My boat did not come with one. Some of the hardware is there but no spare/old lines were aboard, and the PO was a complete amateur, so it never occurred to me what that hardware was for. I have been looking at setups on YouTube but they're only partially helpful. Do you have photos of your setup? My main has cringles for two reefs, but no rams horn at the mast or anything.

There are no electronics aside from a dodgy depth finder, no water plumbing hooked up, the original alcohol stove is still installed (still unused), and nothing atop the mast aside from a wind vane (no anchor light). My engine has run fine -- the PO had to install a new starter and an electric fuel pump to get her running for our sea trial, which saved a lot of money and effort on my end!

I have not had to address then engine, but I am starting to feel more vibration, so I just bought new v-belts and a pair of engine mounts to replace the corroding feet on the W-30. I need to nearly fill the oil reservoir each time run the engine -- it leaks so much into the bilge that I am growing a nasty 20-gallon milkshake down there. But it starts and it runs and it doesn't overheat, and it shuts off, as desired.

I have not solved that problem yet, and so I have also just gotten a new 2000 gph Rule pump to address it, having seen your setup. Next week, I will clean up the engine, place absorbent pads under it, add the new belts, replace the oil filter, and tighten everything a little bit, hoping to stem the leak. (I paid $300 for the local mechanic to service the engine and address the leaks. He said, "It's an old engine and it leaks everywhere. It's hard to access.") I have faith that it only leaks some places and those places are findable, if not accessible.

I improved the ground tackle system, which was just a Danforth and a ratty nylon rope, with better hardware and mixed rode including 30 feet of 5/8 HT galvanized chain and 100 feet of static arborist rope I salvaged from an old tree climbing job I had. I don't have a windlass or a bow roller, but I will soon have a nylon snubber to take off some of the shock in a windy anchorage.

Since we are always overnighting at our slip, I have allowed our head to remain untouched. We have a 20-or-30 gallon holding tank under the Port settee, and all has worked well so far. I would like to replace the tank and add a pex plumbing system, but I am pretty sure I cannot install your disposal system which I don't believe is allowed in the Chesapeake as it's protected waters.

As for my compression post, I have found that water leaking in my hatch pools around the point where the post would contact the cabin sole. That indicates that there is a downward force being applied to the mast or that there was once significant downward force applied to the mast and it deformed my sole a bit. That reminds me that I have seen where the bulkhead attached to the hull by the diesel tank and the fiberglass was not attached.

Oh now I have added a huge job to my list, remembering that. Other projects I have in store, near term:

Over the next few weeks, I will be re-bedding all the deck hardware and sealing up the leaks from hatches and windows and portlights. I have a bow pulpit which has bent feet, and the gelcoat is cracked there, but I have no idea how that all could have happened. I can't imagine the forces which bent the steel so that the forward edges of the bases are distorted a bit upward. None of our cleats have backing plates either, so that is also happening with the deck work.

The way I see it, I have to stop the oil leaking into the bilge. I have to get the existing oil/water out of the bilge. And I have to stop water from filling the bilge in the future. So deck sealing work and engine work are priority for now.

Last summer I replaced the shift and throttle cables which were badly corroded. Much better now. Still feels sluggish and slow at times, but will probably add a tachometer so we can motor more consistently.

I am excited about doing the work, which is nice. Let's see how I feel about that in two months, lol....

Jake

[Salty_Jake]

Here are a few photos, particularly of the bow pulpit, boom, and bilge issues I’m working on currently.

[rcvesselstyn]

Hi Jake, welcome back. You've got quite a list there. I'm glad to hear that you've been enjoying the boat first and then tackling the problems.
I can identify with your black bilges. When we bought our boat the bilges were filled to the cabin sole with a combination of oil, head chemicals, and human waste. So consider yourself lucky if you only have oil. We put all that liquid in new 5 gallon plastic Jerry cans and took them to our cities local recycling and toxic waste facility. Thankfully, other than the Jerry cans, there was no cost and that eliminated, so to speak, the biggest part of the problem. For us it turned out to be a hole rusted in the oil pan. Not a terrifically easy fix but a single source. After solving the leak we wiped off the crud in every location we could reach and then sprayed the entire area under the cabin sole with Simple Green. Lots of Simple Green. Then pressure washed it. We set up incandescent light bulbs in the bilges in multiple locations and left it for weeks. This dried everything out. Then finally painting with Bilgekote of everything under the cabin sole.

As far as your reefing, the first thing is to decide how often you are going to reef. For us we were reefing the main regularly because it was old and baggy. I set it up so that all lines ran to the cockpit right next to the main halyard. You already have a cheek block on the boom and it looks like maybe a cleat forward of the cleat for the outhaul. So you would be set for one of the reef cringles on the leech. You would just have to add another cleat on the boom for the luff cringle. That would set you up for cabin top reefing. Which works just fine but it's a real pain if you're doing it frequently. If you're setting everything up I would strongly recommend running as much as you can back to the cockpit. It definitely makes it less exciting when there's a blow.

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[Mary Mac]

Hi Jake, no apologies necessary. I am always falling off the face of the earth over here.

I rigged a reefing system on mine and it works, but I think it could be better. My main sail doesn't slide up and down easily, so it is always a bit of wrestling to get a reef in. I try to reef early because of that. I can send photos next time I'm at the boat. Maybe walk around the marina and see what other people have, too to give you some ideas.

I would be pretty concerned about that much oil usage, and you definitely don't want to pump that overboard. If you're lucky it is just something that needs to be tightened. Check the oil pan drain and oil filter first? Kudos to you for finding the oil dipstick! That took me a minute on mine. It was completely hidden.

In my experience, mechanics don't enjoy crawling around working on old engines. I almost always do better work myself. Did you find the source of the leak?

If your holding tank is working for you, that is great. My boat didn't come with one. As far as the Purasan, I am not familiar with the Chesapeake Bay, but from what I see only Herring Bay is a NDZ. Here's a link to the map: https://www.epa.gov/vessels-marinas-and ... -zones-map

Hopefully the structure is sound with the compression post. Definitely remove the trim pieces around the bulkhead to see what the condition is behind.

Keep us posted!

Mary

[pbnelson]

I have a 1969 CAL-34 (i.e. series 1) and I gotta say I'm having some serious bimini-envy at the moment. Given that my mainsail boom extends waaay further aft, with the mainsheet traveler sited aft of the wheel (yeah, mine was upgraded to wheel-steering) I'm having trouble visualizing a bimini that would give enough shade to be worth the $$$$$ it would cost to fit. This photo pretty well shows what I mean:



p.s. note the original roller-furling boom, and the aftermarket cockpit table/cupholders

[Mary Mac]

I have the 34-III and the bimini extends roughly to the wheel. Is your wheel in the same location? It looks like your wheel is further forward than mine. I think you could move the bimini back a bit from where I have it and still find it useful. I like to stand under mine and it would still provide shade if I moved it aft a foot.

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