J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment concerns with older j30

There is alos the option of re-coring. I had a 3x5 section of the rear starboard quater re-cored of the acquired 2 years ago at a cost of about $4,000. I will probably have to consider re-coring additional sections at some point, but that was the only spot that had bad core (dark wood vs light indicating the begining of rot) and indicated a potential void when sounded with a rubber hammer.

I have some deck spots that will also need to be recored, but I may try to tackle that job myself one winter as they are above the waterline.

If you get the boat at the right price re-coring could make economic sense.

Hi, This is for 'atraxuus':
I might be interested in this cheap chicago boat. i am looking for a project J to refurb over a couple of years while I sail my other boat. I didn't see that one on any of the internet sites. I am in the Detroit area.

I am currently in negociations on a J/30. The boat is a 1979 model. The price has been agreed to and the sea trial, survey and mechanical inspections are pending. I am a littel nervous buying an older boat but it is a great opportunity to get a fast 30 ft racer/cruiser that the whole family will enjoy.

Could you please outline some of the preventative measures you allude to above?

This boat is near the top of my price range so I will not be able to afford any significant fiberglass work (not right away at least). So the questions begs... how wet is too wet?

I have been reading the forums here over the last week or two and I have a hitlist of problem areas for the suveyor to pay particular attention to. Does anyone have anything they think I should add to the list?

1) Check for impending failure at lower spreader - look for loose rivets.
2) Check for moisture/rot all over but especially in the following places: stanchions, chainplates, exhaust, rudder.
3) Check for cracking at engine mounts.
4) Check for cracking near the floor at the mast step.
5) Check rudder pintles and gudgeons for potential failure.
6) Check main sheet traveller for failure.

Too wet is a boat that is still leaking. If there are wet spots but the current owner has taken care of eliminating/minimizing the intrusion you are in ok shape provide the wetness is minor.

Wet spots to check:
Bulkead near chainplates
Cabin top near secondary winches

All in All the J/30 is a very solid boat and they are basically all wet in some fashion but that does not mean they are not sound boats.

Good luck hope to see you here as an owner!

David
#397

Older J/30, isn't that redundant? Is there another kind?

Anyone looking to buy a J/30 should check out Hullaballoo in Chicago. Great condition, fresh water sailed and definitely priced to sell!
http://www.yachtworld.com/co re/lis...oatsales&&ywo=sailboatsales&

[This message has been edited by GONeil (edited 10-15-2007).]

Thanks dbows I will add those places to my list.

GONeil as for the listing. Yes I agreee it is tempting however, it would cost alot of cash to get it to Vancouver, then I would pay more taxes at the border than by private sale in Canada.

[This message has been edited by dlabrosse (edited 10-16-2007).]

Refreshing to see a decent J/30 asking a fair price. While having a class helps maintain value, there always seem to be a number of J/30s languishing on the market for years at inflated prices. I'd like to see them back in action on the race course.

Well the sea trial went reasonbly well today despite lots of rain. Doing over 6 knots to weather was really fun. :-)

I wonder how easy this boat will be to cruise with 2 small children (4 year old and a newborn) and a wife who does not have much sailing experience. Specifically I need to figure out how to be able to leave the tiller for short periods of time. I read that some folks use a peice of shock cord wrapped 3-5 times around the tiller. The boat does have an autohelm as well but in English Bay this may not be very practical. The current owner advises me that his cruising main and furling 140% genoa generate much less power. Under this reduced sailplan and making use of the lazyjacks the boat has more weatherhelm but is more manageable with two people. I guess it will be easier when my oldest son will be old enough to steer.

I will want to lead the cunningham and vang control lines aft and will likely have to replace/add a clutch port side to accomodate these two additional lines. A Boomkicker and a dodger are on the list too.

The current owner claims there has never been any blisters below the waterline and knows of only one wet spot. He figures there is a dinner-plate sized spot around the starboard chainplate. Would this be the kind of thing that could be repaired from below with little cosmetic impact topsides? Should I have this taken care of sooner rather than later?

We will see what the surveyor has to say tomorrow.

Regards,
Dominique

Congrats! I hope this boat works out.

The first thing you need to do, as far as the wet spot is concerned, is figure out precisely how big it is and what the dimensions are. Forward of the stbd chainplate, you can do the work from the bottom and the repair will be hidden by the hanging locker. Aft of it, though, you''ll find that part is above the cabinet that sits against the bulkhead, and part is exposed. It can certainly be done from the bottom, but depending on the extent of the damage, you may need to disassemble some cabinetry and do a careful job with the glasswork as some may be visible in the main cabin.

Fix it sooner, not later and, while you're at it, isolate the chainplate from the new core with thickened epoxy so you're not repeating this project down the road.

As far as going out with your currently non-sailing family goes, I think you'll be in fine shape. I sail often with just the wife or with non-sailing friends and I have little problem. If you have a roller furling headsail, then you'll find it that much easier.

Encourage your wife to be comfortable on the helm for the times when you need to go forward. Also teach her how to depower the main by dropping the traveler. It will help her get a feel for how to keep the boat on its feet and it will probably improve her comfort zone as she learns that she also has some control over the boat.

The boat also sails very well with just the main. I've had friends out for dinner aboard and, despite quite a bit of breeze, well were sailing easily enough to have drinks and food in the cockpit and were occasionally sailing above seven knots.

No problem crusing, these should be on the top of your list:

1. Boom kicker
2. Slugs on the main
3. Cam Cleat on the mast about 1 foot from the exit plate for each halyard.
4. Self-tailing winches
5. Fine-tune for the mainsheet
6. Doubling the purchase of the vang to 8:1 or 12:1
7. Tune the rig for the smaller headsail - this will greatly reduce the weather helm
8. Maybe go to #3 on the roller until your "crew" gets comfortable sailing the boat


All these things helped me get the boat to not be a handful for cruising.

DB
#397