Cheoy Lee Luder's 36

[AA3NK]

Greetings All!

It has been a few years since I tailed a wench, in most of the meanings you might take from that. It is time, again, to take to the water and I have just acquired a 36 foot 1974 Cheoy Lee, Luders design, sloop rigged.

The boat is on the hard with mast and rigging down so I will take a couple of weeks to clean her up some, put on a fresh bottom, and maybe make the teak look a smidgeon better. The yard folks will step the mast at launching but to be honest, I will not know if it is done correctly or not.

I don't want to make this boating season into a boat refitting period, the vessel will reveal herself and the needs will become obvious enough so I am receptive of advice on what things ought to take priority in outfitting for sailing in the general area north of Boston and the cape areas.

Are there marinas or boat yards in the Gloucester area that allow DIYs to work on teak, varnish and such? The boat draws 5'3", where is a good place to base out of? What is the bottom paint of choice for sailors in this area?

The Chesapeake is where I learned sailing, it is different around Rockport, MA. I have a lot to learn, open ears to hear and try to keep a good attitude.

The engine is a Westerbeke W40, there is some other nomenclature, but it is about 37 hp with just under 1,500 hours. Any recommendations about maintaining the unit?

As for doing varnish and teak work, does anyone have any ideas or admonishment about using paint strippers, solvents, or recommendations about sandpaper and places to get materials? I am only looking to do the hand rails on the cabin trunk, the teak trim around the trunk and some work on the cockpit area.

It is pleasant to be excited about doing something again. The last time I sailed was about 1987. The years do slip away, 'eh?

Bob in Rockport

[bibomo]

Hi Bob,

We are in much the same position. A year ago last January we bought a Ludders 36 sloop. After getting hung up in the yard for most of the summer when small things became large things (mostly work on the Westerbeke) we were able to cruise for a couple of months at the end of the season and get a feel for the vessel. She is great under sail and comfortable at anchor.

As you probably know the Cheoy Lee website is: ww.cheoyleeassociation.com

While there are many Ludders 36 sloop owners registered, not many seem to participate at the site on a regular basis.

We are bringing Callisto up to snuff one bit at a time.

So far we:
replaced the chain plates (they were a mess),
put on new standing and some new running rigging with halyards lead internally
installed a holding tank and new head.
put on a roller furler
have started to strip the teak with the plan being to use Armada finish. Armada is a compromise between varnish (don't have time for 8 to 12 coats) and oil (easy but minimal protection). We went the oil route on our last boat and never quite found the time to keep up with it during the season as it required.

We are switching to a 3 blade prop this season. What kind of prop is in place on your vessel??? If 3 blade do you know the size and pitch?

Good luck with your Ludders. Hope to hear good things about her from you.

John and Marcia
s/v Callisto

[AA3NK]

Greetings John & Marcia,

I may have seen some of your posts on the Delphi forum while grazing there this morning--yep, there seems to not be much interaction among owners but there are several lively web pages that celebrate various CL projects, Bisous, Invitation and related links from those pages as well.

My prop is a three blade though I cannot tell you the pitch info yet. The boat is new to me and even simple stuff such as where to place the anode on the prop shaft is elusive. Given the very small amount of shaft exposed between the keel and the prop it seems likely that the zinc will have to attached to the end of the prop shaft.

My first order of business is to prepare the bottom for paint and apply two coats of a general purpose product. The teak hand rails and the cabin sole or trunk or however the house part should be described needs a new finish as well but I am not going to be elaborate about it--prep the old surface, fill any stress cracks or crazing, mask, and roll & brush with Topsides or a similar product.

The decks and gunwhale/toe rail were done in Cetol a couple of years back and have pretty much lost all of that finish so I will finish removing the rest with scraping or sanding as is most efficient. I am not committed to any particular product for refinishing the deck but the rails will get varnish as will the rest of the house trim and hatch covers, cockpit coamings cabin door.

This boat has a roller furling rig that is serviceable but has seen a lot of service too. If I can keep it going for a year or two while researching and learning about options, all the better. The standing rigging is well placed on my list of upgrades and I will definitely provide an antenna system associated with the backstay when upgrading the rigging. I would also like to have second forestay for a short jib rather than using the roller furl rig for more wind than required for brisk sailing.

Did you do anything with the fuel filtering system on yours? The Westerbeke in my rig has 1,468 hours on the meter so I expect another few hundred hours of service from it but feel a compelling urge to install some Racor inline filters that are more readily accessible than the original design.

Where are you all sailing out of?

Glad to hear from you and hope to hear from others as well,

Bob
Rockport, MA

[rwa121852]

Please let me know your comments on Luders 36 sailing characteristics.

Thanks

Bob A