Sinn Fein: Long winter affecting long recovery

When Superstorm Sandy devastated the Raritan Yacht Club boat yard in Perth Amboy, NJ on October 29, 2012, one of the many casualties was the Cal 40 Sinn Fein, two-time Newport to Bermuda champion.

Declared a total loss by the insurance company, Pete Rebovich decided to buy the boat back and try to repair it for the 2014 Bermuda Race. With now less than two months to the measurement deadline, here is a progress report by Kelly Robinson…

As anyone in the East can attest to, it’s been a long winter. Even in late March, it’s been too cold on most days to apply filler or paint. Make no mistake; team Sinn Fein is fighting the clock.

The boat is currently housed in a temporary structure consisting of a tubular aluminum frame covered by a synthetic tarp. You may have seen similar structures on farms to house machinery, or in some boatyards. I affectionately call it “the Hilton.” It’s big, allowing a person to walk around (a bit stooped over) on top of the boat while it is on the trailer. There are about two and a half feet of clearance on each side, and maybe five total feet of extra length beyond the hull. Despite our hope that we could heat the space, it has proven impractical (and probably dangerous). But when the sun comes out it warms up significantly.

The Hilton is big enough that it falls under building regulations of the City of Perth Amboy, NJ. Originally, they wanted it down by March 30th, but have kindly extended that a week. If we don’t get the painting completed while the shelter is up, it could be weeks before we get weather warm and dry enough get the topsides done. The forecast is for warming this week. We can only hope.

Fortunately, fiberglass is easier to apply in cold weather than paint. The hole in the hull is completely closed and almost completely faired. It still needs final fairing, barrier coat, and a topcoat. Overall, the patch extends approximately 20 feet along the starboard side. The actual hole was much smaller, but the extensive overlap is done to increase the strength of the patch. In the middle, the patch extends from about two feet below the waterline to about 6 inches below the shear. The port side of the boat is ready for primer and then final painting.

Mark Rebovich has also been busy repairing the deck-to-hull joint. It was only compromised in a few places, but he took the opportunity to improve upon the original construction of the boat. At the transom, the original construction had minimal (as little as one-quarter of an inch) overlap of the deck and hull flange, with much of the strength coming from the toe rail. Mark laid in a lot of fiberglass to create a much stronger connection. Elsewhere he has cleaned out the broken up 50-year old bondo that originally glued the deck to the hull flange. He then re-bonded the seam and doubled the number of bolts through the flange.

The two short bulkheads at the back of the pilot berth and the forward end of the quarter berth on the starboard side have been replaced. They look so nice we may have to re-varnish the rest of the wood in the boat. It could ruin our image! Krista McCaffery, is also working hard painting the interior of the boat, which should really brighten up the inside.

The navigation station and icebox were ruined when the jackstand came through the hull. Tabbing their replacements in will be one of the last fiberglass jobs. We have reduced the size of the ice box to allow more room for the nav area. Crew member Gary Gochal is building the new nav station and promises that we’ll actually be able to sit with our legs underneath. The old seat hung from the overhead something like a trapeze… and required the same amount of skill to master in rough seas!

The very last fiberglass job (we hope!) should be reinstalling the vertical supports on the interior of the hull that hold the decorative mahogany strakes over the main cabin bunks. Once that is done we can start a major cleaning of the boat.

Gary also has milled a new toe rail for the boat that we are hoping to install in the next week or so. Like so many other boats in New Jersey, all the stanchions were destroyed and had to be replaced after Sandy. We mounted the stanchion bases this weekend… well, almost all of them. Typical of dealing with an old boat, we are still looking for one last stanchion base that will match the others. The “new” (i.e., scrounged) bow and stern pulpits have been sent out to the welder to be modified to fit the boat.

The winch pocket on the starboard side of the cockpit had to be reconstructed. This is done, and no, they did not add any drink holders. The new cabin windows have been cut and drilled and are ready to install. We’ve left them out for now so they don’t get scratched up with all the construction going on.

Kevin Le Compte has gone through all the wiring on the boat, checking for breaks and corrosion, cutting and recrimping ends as necessary. Pete had previously tested the electronics and instruments to see if they would power up. They seem to be OK, but we are counting on doing the Stamford-Block Island Race to test everything in racing conditions.

Pete has acquired a used engine for the boat that is identical to the original. It has been tested, but is not yet installed.

A used rudder of more modern design was purchased from Steve Waterloo, a Cal 40 owner in California. It has been installed with new bushings manufactured by Gary Gochal. They need just a bit of tweaking, but this should be a big improvement over the old rudder. We still need to install the pedestal and reconnect the steering.

Perhaps the biggest single job left is to rig the mast – which is still on a truck coming across country. Spar maker Buzz Ballenger has cut the holes for us and provided the spreaders and electrical conduit, but we still need to add the hardware, rigging, and electrical. This is Peter junior’s job.

Well that’s about it. We’ll try to keep everyone posted as our deadlines get closer. Thanks for all your support!