cheoy lee 31 offshore

[rugeley]

does anyone have any experience building or rebuilding spruce spars?

[karsurf]

I just de-masted and will start to rebuild soon. how did you fare?

ken

[FourSeasMilford]

Choey Lee masts are built of four pieces of Sitka spruce- the glue line is the most likely point of failure. If you inspect the mast very carefully, you can usually catch the glue failure early and re-glue easily. Go to West Marine, get some Git Rot, clran out any loose material and let the Git Rot flow into the opening. You may have to go over the glue line a few times before the Git Rot fills the crack level withe surface. For larger cracks, you may need to push some thread down to create a dam so that the Git Rot has a chance to soak in and set up.

I owned a CL Newell Cadet for almost 20 years and never had a problem with a glue line repaired with this method.

[Jeff_H]

I have repaired a number of glued up spars, including a Cheoy Lee boom. I would like to respectfully comment on the post by fourseasonmilford. I would agree that failed glue lines are likely to be the first indication of problems. That said, very often by the time that the glue lines begin to visibly fail moisture has gotten into the hollow in the spar and the wood is rotting from the interior of the mast outward greatly reducing the strength of the spar. Care should be taken to allow the spar to dry out in a protected shed before attempting repairs. I would also suggest that GitRot is a diluted epoxy with mediocre structural characteristics. I would suggest that a better choice would be a structural epoxy like MAS or WEST System.

Jeff

[ehatch]

Hi all...like Jeff I'm "trying to like" Cheoy's too. Are there ANY models made at the Cheoy Lee shipyard that might be worth considering?

[sailordave]

The folks across the dock have a CL 31. Pretty to look at but....

They dunno go to windward at all.

As much as I love wood boats (all wood) the thought of taking care of the varnish work on a CL gives me the willies.

[ehatch]

I'd rather be spending time on the water instead of varnishing, especially as my window for sailing time here is so limited. I initially became interested in these after finding an add for a flyer....then another add for a cadet. Seems like such a well known shipyard would have at least one outstanding model.

So many boats....so little time!!!

[mitiempo]

I agree - a lot of work to maintain. Best to own a lower maintenance boat and get a berth next to a classic so you can look at it, discuss varnish types with the owner, and then go sailing.
Here's the kink to the Cheoy Lee Sailboat Association Cheoy Lee Sailboat Association Page2
Jimmy Buffett used to have one, I believe it was a Clipper 42. Used to keep it in Margaritaville I think.
Brian