Hull 612, built in 1974

dokondr
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:50 am

Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by dokondr »

Hi all!

Thanks for joining me to the forum. I plan to buy Ballad with hull 612, built in 1974. Main questions about possible problems, how probable are these with the boat built in 1974:
- The Mast Truss problem - Ballads Achilles heel?
- As I understand all Ballads, no matter what year, have a sandwiched deck. So de-lamination problem?

I also have questions how to make a reliable ground tackle on the bow, but that probably should into other thread.

Thanks!
MarkRyan1981
Posts: 165
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:47 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by MarkRyan1981 »

Hello there,

Welcome! I wrote that article about the truss, and so long as the boat has always been dry, then it will not be an issue... being that the mast is keel stepped, the chances of that are vanishingly small... My Ballad had standing rainwater in her when I got her, and I think that's what did her in. It is perfectly possible to inspect the truss through an inspection hole with an endoscope, and if there is an issue, the fix is hard work, but not that complex.

My deck was perfect, and I have never seen any cases of delimation or seen anything about them that has made me check that area of the boat. They are made of tough stuff!

You will not regret your purchase, they are wonderful boats. When are you hoping to complete the purchase?
dokondr
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:50 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by dokondr »

MarkRyan1981 wrote: Thu Dec 24, 2020 11:31 am Hello there,

Welcome! I wrote that article about the truss, and so long as the boat has always been dry, then it will not be an issue... being that the mast is keel stepped, the chances of that are vanishingly small... My Ballad had standing rainwater in her when I got her, and I think that's what did her in. It is perfectly possible to inspect the truss through an inspection hole with an endoscope, and if there is an issue, the fix is hard work, but not that complex.

My deck was perfect, and I have never seen any cases of delimation or seen anything about them that has made me check that area of the boat. They are made of tough stuff!

You will not regret your purchase, they are wonderful boats. When are you hoping to complete the purchase?
Thanks, your comments really help!
I plan to buy boat as soon as pandemic will go down and it will be possible to go to France, Brittany where the boat is located. Current owner has her for three years already on the hard, in the boat yard without any tarpaulin cover. May be more things to fix. Hope there won't be problems with standing rigging decking.
I also need to find the best possible arrangement for Ballad ground tackle. I need a reliable single-handed way to anchor from the bow. Not sure that building anchor locker will be a good solution and will not diminish hull strength. Please advise.
When boat is ready I plan to single-handedly sail her from Brittany eventually to Tenerife, Canaries, where I occasionally work as RYA Cruising instructor. Plan to live on the boat there and sail with kids around the islands when they come to visit me on vacation.
MarkRyan1981
Posts: 165
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:47 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by MarkRyan1981 »

Do you know what engine she has? That will be the clincher. The 2GM20 that Triola had was awesome and well preserved. A replacement engine, or a reconditioning of the engine would be the most costly thing. If the engine looks poor, walk away. Same, probably, for sails. The standing rigging I would not worry too much over either - Triolas was over ten years old, and I had a marine surveyor and rigger go over them, and they said they were just fine. Go over every inch of it, and go up the mast, and inspect it all by eye looking out for fractures or frays.

The truss is a cheap fix if you are not afraid of some hard and nasty work. She is a great boat for that kind of live aboard sailing, plenty of space for one or two, and very solid in a seaway.

I wouldn't worry or overthink the anchor situation - we never had a windlass, and so long as you are fit, I found pulling the anchor out of the slop in the morning with my quads a good morning workout. In my new boat, I have an electric windlass... and part of me feels its cheating a bit :lol:
dokondr
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:50 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by dokondr »

MarkRyan1981 wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 6:13 pm Do you know what engine she has? That will be the clincher. The 2GM20 that Triola had was awesome and well preserved. A replacement engine, or a reconditioning of the engine would be the most costly thing. If the engine looks poor, walk away. Same, probably, for sails. The standing rigging I would not worry too much over either - Triolas was over ten years old, and I had a marine surveyor and rigger go over them, and they said they were just fine. Go over every inch of it, and go up the mast, and inspect it all by eye looking out for fractures or frays.

The truss is a cheap fix if you are not afraid of some hard and nasty work. She is a great boat for that kind of live aboard sailing, plenty of space for one or two, and very solid in a seaway.

I wouldn't worry or overthink the anchor situation - we never had a windlass, and so long as you are fit, I found pulling the anchor out of the slop in the morning with my quads a good morning workout. In my new boat, I have an electric windlass... and part of me feels its cheating a bit :lol:
Here is the boat. According to the specs engine is: "Yanmar 2GM20 * 11.8 kW at 3400 RPM Original Volvo Penta MD6A diesel engine was replaced with Yanmar 2GM20. Total running hours is around 500."
And here on the last picture one can see a problem with her mast step.
I love exercise and don't mind pulling the anchor myself. What I don't like is to carry anchor and all chain from cockpit locker to the bow, and most of all finding a place to store all this on a fore-deck when dropping or pulling the anchor in rough weather all by myself! Also deploying it without anchor roller on the bow. How do you handle this?
MarkRyan1981
Posts: 165
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:47 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by MarkRyan1981 »

There is a chain locker in the bows, so worry not, you will not need to carry anchor plus loads of chain to the bows - my Rocna 15 was always ready for launch off the bows and fitted the bow roller perfectly.

That last picture only really shows water comes down the mast, I would not write it off as having a need to have that job done, so that’s good news! She looks great, such a pretty boat. My 2GM20 never missed a beat, a great engine that will outlive you if you look after it right.
dokondr
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:50 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by dokondr »

MarkRyan1981 wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 11:08 pm There is a chain locker in the bows, so worry not, you will not need to carry anchor plus loads of chain to the bows - my Rocna 15 was always ready for launch off the bows and fitted the bow roller perfectly.
As far as I know Ballads do not have chain lockers and rollers on the bow. Some people build them as self-made add-on. On this particular boat there is no chain locker and roller in the bow. You can see this on one of the pictures.
MarkRyan1981 wrote: Mon Dec 28, 2020 11:08 pm That last picture only really shows water comes down the mast, I would not write it off as having a need to have that job done, so that’s good news!
Which means that mast truss most probably has to be rebuilt, correct?
MarkRyan1981
Posts: 165
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:47 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by MarkRyan1981 »

I had always assumed the horse pipe was factory fit on Triola - and the anchor roller. I see now you are correct - looking at the original handbook there is, as standard, no anchor roller.

On this page of my old site you can see the anchor roller as fitted to Triola: http://www.albinballad.co.uk/technology ... -solution/.

The anchor locker basically comprised a horse pipe drilled down into this locker below - with chain fed directly down as you pulled up the anchor.

Image

You can just about make out the horse pipe in the below picture of Triola.

Image

I would not assume that the truss needs replacing - it definitely needs inspecting. If I were to inspect it, I'd use a hole saw to drill an inspection 'hatch' here and have a poke around with a screwdriver.

Image
dokondr
Posts: 8
Joined: Sun Dec 20, 2020 9:50 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by dokondr »

Many thanks, really helpful!
Do I understand right, that to drill inspection hatch I need to remove mast from the step?
MarkRyan1981
Posts: 165
Joined: Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:47 am

Re: Hull 612, built in 1974

Post by MarkRyan1981 »

Nope, you can do it with the mast up, as you are not taking any of the loading weight off - the small amount of saloon sole you are removing is not structural. Most forces are in direct compression, straight down.

I'm not sure I'd like to DIG AROUND too much with the rig up mind you :D. If it looks suspect, then I would drop the rig. It would be a good opportunity to inspect all the rigging also.
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