25 Seafari Project

[Blue_Heron]

Hey, all. I thought I would start my restoration thread and kick around some ideas.

First, I'm removing the add-ins that were installed at the helm and on the foward port side of the cockpit during the last restore. (Look at the pics I posted in the Photos forum and you'll know what I'm talking about) Then I'm going to take some measurements and figure out how I want to build it back.

There is a modification I'm thinking of that I want to run by the forum in general and the Seafari 25 owners in particular. I'm not sure I like the aft portion of the cockpit sides in relation to the gunwales. The rodholders are presently outboard of the cockpit sides and it looks like it will be a pain to grab a rod out of a rod holder or to crank the handle while the rod is in the holder. Also, the sloped cockpit side doesn't look particularly inviting if you're stepping off a dock onto the boat. As it's set up now, it looks like this:



What I have in mind is cutting down the cockpit sides to a flat gunwale that runs roughly level back to the transom. This would be more like the transition to a flat gunwale behind the windshield in the Sceptre/Tsunami. I've doctored up the side and top view drawings from the specs section and this is roughly what I have in mind:



I'm interested in opinions, especially about possible unintended consequences. I've never had this boat in the water and I don't want to do something that's going to create a bigger problem than I'm solving.

Dave

[nestorpr]

Looks good to me, I think the 25 was designed to be a runaround boat and not especially for fishing, thus the long side coamings. I like the drawing but don't know if there are any problems with the thought.

[strick]

Congrats on the rare find. I remember seeing that boat on Boat trader several years ago. Mine is still sitting covered with leaves. I agree the cockpit sides are a little on the unfriendly side for getting in and out of the boat however a boarding ladder/step can take care of that problem. Also you could get some SS rod holders that fit into the existing gunwale rod holders that would set the rod and reel out farther thus allowing you to crank on the reel when needed. If it were me I would not destroy the existing lines of the 25 seafari as they are such a rare boat. That said I don't think you would run into any structural problems with the mods you described.

strick

[stumpie2]

blue heron, i also have rod holders in the lower/outboard portion of the gunwales and they arent difficult to use as mine are angled away from the boat and not straight back, my straight back holders are on the higher portion... as for the sloped gunwhale i dont use that as a step for boarding as i step from the dock(floating dock) to the engine box then to the floor... if you where to remove the higher portion of the gunwhale to me it would seem to make the gunwhale very low and take away the feeling of security in the deep cockpit and you would have to figure out how to lower the transom to mold it back to the gunwhale (big pain in the arse) it just and worth modifying the origional lines... i feel a little better with the high gunwales with the little ones on the boat also

[seafari25]

I've never considered boarding to be an issue in over 30 years of doing so. You can just make out the teak step on the outer gunwale in this pic.
[image][/image]
The idea is to step over the sloped gun and on to the top step of a boarding ladder although everyone seems to step on it anyway. When my Gramps was chartering the boat, people stepped on the top so much that it wore through the bolster material. Gramps and I recovered the bolsters when I was about 13 or 14. After that I always told people to step over. I will be getting some pics and dimentions of the factory boarding ladder in a few weeks and I think you will want to go that route.

My views on modifying the lines are the same as Stricks in regards to keeping it original. A few things that I see as potential problems off the top of my head are repositioning your bilge vents... The forward deck drains down both sides. Having not seen the boat since last fall, I don't quite remember how far back water runs before going overboard but you may be inviting water into the boat doing this mod. Also, I use my Seafari primarily for cruising, camping etc.. The camper top snaps in around the high gunwale and keeps the boat dry when its raining. If you wanted to have that option, I cant see how you would keep the water travelling along the gunwale from coming in the cockpit. These pics show what I'm talking about
[image][/image]
[image][/image]

I should have the boat in the water in a couple weeks so I will be working on the boarding ladder project as previously requested(sry its taken so long Gillie) so if there's anything you would like me to look into, let me know.

Brandon

[stumpie2]

seafari 25, are you scupper drains in the transom because i dont see them in the side like mine... if you look closely at the pic below my post, on the light blue stripe almost directly below my shore power connection you can just see the scupper hole that uses a recessed "bowl" in the floor to drain through

[seafari25]

Nuthinfancy,

Mine go out the sides as well, you can see them in my 3rd pic above if you look closely.

Looking at yours closely now...I'd be interested to see some pics of how yours looks from the inside and feedback on how it drains when your bow is up.

Brandon

[McGillicuddy]

Hey guys,
Thanks for th insight on those scuppers. Never noticed that point on the 25. Just a curiosity, but do they (scuppers) drain to their opposite sides?

Blue Heron, regarding the reeling in place, I too, would leave the gunwales alone and use a left-handed retrieve on starboard or if not consider a an out-rodder with vertical and horizontal positions which would place your reel crank 5+ inches above any impedance. You can make 'em yourself for a 20 bucks of alum pipe or stainless tubing and 20 minutes of prep and welding.

Gunwales may be tall to protect against the potential rolling of a 25 deg. dead-rise at the transom. Rogue wave could make it wet inside if height was cut down, but hey, that's just a paranoid thought and I tend to I worry too much...Great find!

[stumpie2]

sorry no pics of inside... im in florida(school) and boat is in virginia... i honestly think the scuppers where put in the sides because the designer knew that the boat will roll quite a bit at rest... there are square recessed "bowls" in the floor that the brass thru hull, drain plug type sleeve taps into... in heavy seas i put the rubber T-handle type drain plugs in the scupper holes on the inside because when the boat rocks and rolls they flood the deck making it slick... there isnt usually any water in the floor when running because it rocks and rolls it way out before the bow gets up, but when i use the washdown i just direct the water into the scupper bowls... it is kind of odd to put scuppers midship...

[seafari25]

It is interesting that your scuppers are midship. I would think that your floor would have to taper from transom towards the bowls whereas mine tapers slightly to the transom.

I was interested in how it drains with the bow up because of a situation I got into last summer. I had 6 adults in the boat, the plugs were in, we were cruising a narrow channel on an overcast day. I had the rear camper top off. Within seconds it seemed, we had a storm cloud over us which dropped about 5 gallons of rain on us in the time it took the 4 ladies to run to the cabin(seconds). Some of the water followed them and dropped into the stepdown. At the same time I was popping the bow up and told my buddy to pull the plugs. The rain continued the same for at least 5 minutes or so before we got through in zero visibility conditions. Upon pulling the plugs, the water took no time to drain and continued to do so for our entire voyage.

So I guess my question is, under those conditions, would yours drain?