Splashed the 72 Seafari - what I learned...

[McGillicuddy]

Fred, Congratulations! That's awesome. The world needs more people like you and your boy has finally got a break! Hang on to the Seafari if you can and in a couple of years your boy will be noting to his pals "my Dad's boat is better than you Dad's boat!" Enjoy! -- Gillie

[htillman]

My anchor setup is similar, my anchor roller is hinge and extends the anchor beyond the bow. I have a Powerwinch windlass that operates the anchor from the helm, maybe overkill but my boat is a Sceptre and I do not want to "crawl" on the bow. I have test operated it "dry" but will be testing it in the water the next couple of days, my friend has the same setup and it works great. Once I test it I will post some pics.

[fdheld34]

Thanks Gillie..this child has been such a blessing to my wife and I and hopefully I can swing keeping the Seafari...Third job won't kill me....would do anything for the little guy!!Gillie when you get a chance post some more pics of your Seafari!!!!I am going to take mine out when I get home and settled...and do some performance checks as well..I too only have a GPS and a tach(that still needs to be hooked up!!). You had a good idea about running on 6 gallons to get your numbers and I will utilize that as well.

et23----definately post pics of your set up with the windlass/ might do that down the road on a smaller scale..hopefully it won't entail me switching to a self launching roller for a free fall windlass...my windline was not cheap!!


-Fred

[seafari25]

Hey Guys,

Some congradulations are in order here.

McGill, I still have my foot in my mouth about your 70's crisis teachings. I was unaware but I wanted to chime in here. How does the saying go? Once you go SeaCraft, you'll never go back...I don't know, something like that but good show gettin' her in. Operating the SeaCraft is like an addiction for me so I assume that you'll be itching to get her out again. I too would like to see some pics.

Fred, congradulations again! That is so great to hear that your baby is coming home and the SeaCraft is still in the driveway. The seafari is a good, safe family boat. It will come in handy on those family vacations.

Guys, I was thinking about adding a bow roller to the seafari. I think one would be handy because i've always tied a bowline on a bite in order to get my bow into the wind. That's a pain cause I usually have to tie it 2 or 3 times to get it right. I have a danforth anchor on the bow. Would that sit in the roller ok or do they only work well with bruce and kingston anchors?

Brandon

[McGillicuddy]

Obviously still needs a lot of attention but here's a few pics of my therapy

[seafari25]

Hey that's lookin sweet McGill. I like the black window frames, they look sharp. How did you get the teak door looking so good? I've put hundreds of coats of oil on and even took everything out a couple of years ago and sanded, cleaned and oiled but it never came out that well.

Brandon

BTW nice on the pipe insulation on the windshield frame. I might steal that idea.

[McGillicuddy]

Hey Super Seafari,
Thanks for those side view & ladder pics. The Teak door is really not as good as it looks. The door frame and seat tops and backs are new and mahogany(teak beats the shi!+ out of saw blades, weighs a ton and is incredibly expensive). Teak oil is for sailors who have a lot of time to kill. I like to fish.

Joey (I fish the keys) has a great finish process. Sand to wood, 2-3 coats of epoxy and then however many coats of quality polyurethane you can motivate yourself to do. Right now I have 2 coats of epoxy on woodwork and I'll probably use 3-4 coats of poly. I think Joey uses 3 coats of epoxy and 6-10 coats of clear Awlgrip. Do a search for Joey in the last year or so. His stuff looks like it belongs in the Smithonian...

The pipe insulation is awesome. Stole that from my fishing partners BW Revenge. Helps with the cold weather grip, and the bruising when your out in small craft advisories. I know that's probably not an issue in your boat...I have yet to find out what my wee boat will take...but if it can't be an endles summer, I'm looking forward to the winter.

-Gillie

[seafari25]

Thanks Gillie, I'll search for those posts. I always keep some teak oil on the boat for when the fish aren't hittin. The rod racks and galley supports are pretty weathered from being uncovered as there was no rear enclosure for quite a few seasons. They still turn out greyish coat after coat.

I was thinking that the pipe insulation was your tarp saver and thats what I was going to steal the idea for but thats a good idea using it for a forehead saver as well. The seafari gets stored in a shed at the local marina but I tarp the rest of the boats and windshields are hard on tarps. Great idea!

Must be nice to be able to boat all year round. We have to store our boats for the winter and go snowmobiling.

Brandon

BTW Those seats of yours...sweet!

[McGillicuddy]

Hey Brandon, You make a good point, the pipe foam really does increase the useful life of the tarps. Those windshield corners are really sharp especially on poly w/bungee pressure. The cold only makes tarps more brittle... Take it easy. And watch for low branches on those snowmobiles. Take it easy - Gillie

[fdheld34]

Gillie...looking very nice!!!
Your custom seat storage project came out excellent (you need to go into production/seriously)..and I love your battery switch wiring job..
Couple questions for you
1)Are you running dual batteries. (looks like switch is off/on...but you have isolator)...where do you store your second battery (in your custom helm storage center) ...I cant seem to find the room for a second battery..I only have the stock(I think its stock... molded in fiberglass battery tray in starboard transom storage area...port side has a fixed compartment///does not have a baitwell type storage like yours and others so battery will not fit??
2) Also...where did you get the boat cover..I was thinking of going to Walmart but I am unsure of size?

Thanks, Fred