Katmak...... New member from Singapore

[katmak]

Hi Everyone. Great to discover the AOG.
I have an Albin 28 TE Green Hull, Engine Box. Purchased in 1997. It is driven by a 300hp Turbo Peninsula Engine V8.
It has been a longtime since i surfed for news wrt Albin's. It was a pleasant surprise to find the AOG. As u can imagine, in 1997 there was scant news on the net wrt Albin 28 or albins in general. If i recall Albin themselves did not have their own URL/website, and could only be contacted by fax and phone, which from Singapore turned out to be quite amusing given the time difference.
It is news to hear that the albin as i knew them, has closed their doors but happy to hear that Shamrock has taken over the molds and Name...the Albin 28 TE is an exceptional boat. Over the years I have looked for a possible alternative, such as the Grand Banks Eastbay, Mainship, Legacy, ...and the list goes on....Needless to say, the Albin 28TE is without rival, given the ride quality,for aboat of it's size, and the price point.
I am happy to see that the membership to the AOG is vibrant and look forward to exchanging threads. Over the years i have made numerous modificatiions and alterations .
My current project is the extension of the Transom and modification of the exhaust system and trims tabs to enable a quieter and more efficient ride.
Happy to be a new Member of the AOG Forum!!

[Mariner]

You get the award for "Farthest from the Factory", that's for sure. What do you primarily spend your time doing on your Albin in Singapore?

[jcollins]

Katmak,
Welcome to AOG. Glad to have you aboard.
Extension of the transom? That sounds like an interesting project. Give us some details.

Have you had problems with your Peninsular? I have 945 hours on mine. Next year I'll hit the 1k mark and time for a major checkup.

[katmak]

hi
have tried to attach work in progress photo of transom extension. 2.5mb file using the upload attachment.seems not to load?

WRT to peninsula engine...i am happy with the performance . The weather here in the tropics is very harsh...salt water, heat and humidity...all conspiring to damage your engine.
The part which has needed the most attention has been the raw water pump and impellar...i change the impellar every 3 -6 mths. The water pump has been taken out and overhauled twice. The water pump bracket attachment to the engine block has also needed reinforced welding as it bent under usage which in turn caused misalignment of the belt.
At 600 hrs i replaced all three heat exchangers with BOWMAN parts. I found the original Peninsula replacement parts seemed to have deteriorated in quality build by 2003-2005.
At 600 hrs , i have also replaced one turbo housing and 1 exhaust elbow from the turbo housing due to corrosion by salt.
i could attch more pics on this once i figure out how this works.

I have also replaced the Brass sea star steering cylinder in the transom as the steering started to become stiff as the original cylinder suffered corrosion.



as for boating in spore...singapore currently is playing host to the Volvo round the world racing series.
the weather makes for ideal all yr round boating.
There are plenty of good sea and islands within 1000 nautical miles...we have the diving sites of Malaysia (perhentian, Tioman and Redang) and if one is more adventurous, the superb Adaman sea off the eastern coast of Thailand and its famous island of Phuket.

The Indonesian island of Batam is upgrading its Marina and Singapore has developed 5 new Marinas in the last 5 yrs.

In 2008 i made three trip of 4-5 days per trip to the east coast of Malaysia visiting the islands of Tioman, Tinggi, Sibu, Sri Buat etc.
I had my first family trip of 4 days with my three children aged 6.5yrs and twins of 5 yrs. to the same Malaysian islands some 100 nautical miles NE of singapore.

[jcollins]

Katmak,
You will have to resize those photos to post inline. Or, you can use Photobucket or some other hosting site.
I'm very interested in your project and to see photos of your boating area.
As a last resort you can email them to me and I'll post for you. jcollins @ albinowners.net

[katmak]

jcollins.....
thks will resize and try again...failing which email!!

extension still ongoing. Hav read the threads wrt bowsteer for the flushdeck...FOR my transon extension, i have added a 280 litre fuel tank and a 60 litre freshwater tank...both aluminium tanks made by the same suppliers for the grandbanks Aleutien Models which are made in their Singapore YARD.
The weight of the tanks and their contents should offset the lift so the extension will not instill bowsteer. we have also provided some negative lift by recessing the Bennett Trims tabs when they are fully recessed incase we build to much lift thru the extension. As i usually go off on 3 days trips, I have a heavy transom which has resulted in transom Squat due to full fuel, 2 full igloo ice chests which take up the beam of the aft transom and 2 water filled live bait wells.

The most interesting part of this project is the exhaust decibels....For 10 yrs i have had to live with the blaring of the 6" exhaust on the aft starboard side for my engine box Albin....for some reason although my exhaust elbow and the exhaust exit is 6", the muffler on my albin is smaller than on some other albins here which have a 5" exhaust and are quieter....anyway the albin build quality is known for being "consistently inconsisitent!!!"

The current project allows for the exhaust to run straight thru the transom extenion and exit at the transom on the starbrd end. there is a purpose built sound box...so lets see how well this works.

[katmak]

jcollins.....Update on the Xtension of Transom for 28TE engine box;

1) Hav done first sea trials under the following conditions..... 2 persons 175kgs, Full fuel...3 tanks ...Main...500litres, starbrd tank below Helm Station Amidships....113 liters, New extension Tank in built into transom extension 235 litres....= Totall fuel capacity = 848litres or 224US Gallons
Fresh water a)132 liters (us35gallons)original built port side under Side bunk below passenger station, plus new additional tank built into transom 60 litre (15.8 US gallons) = Total 192 litres or 51 US Gallons......No Ice box/ice...No water in live bait well at transom.
2) Rudder slightly enlarged to aid handling characteristics with the 26" longer Hull
3) Sea conditions 1 meter waves...wind at 14-18knots

Results.......positives

1) Boat gets on semi-plane now at 12.5 knots versus 14.5 knots
2) Fuel efficiency has improved by a whooping 10-20%...eg now burning 38litres per hr at 2950-3050rpm, SOG 17.5-18.5 knots versus 45 litres per hour before extension
3) No more blaring from starbrd exhaust which is now run straight thru and exiting at Transom (same as the Albin 31's)
4) Directional stability at half and full load unchanged and remains excellent
5) Ride quality improved due to the longer hull

Negatives

5) Bow riding slightly lower than before the extension. Less option to adjust with the Trim tabs as Bow is not as high. When main and Tansom tanks were 250 litres and Starbrd amidship Tank fgull 113 liters....Bow was riding slighlty lower at 17knots than when fully loaded and i had the trims tabs fully recessed.
6) If sea conditions were........ 2.5-3m swells/waves and boat running in following seas....i expect a slight deterioration in directional stability should the boat be running light...(.say 10%) given the slight increase in bow steer and the longer Hull

Conclusion thus far
1) Exhaust decibels have dropped so that i can now hear the engine and turbo whine much more, with no exhaust blaring filling the pilot house;
2) The usage of water and Fuel will require the forward tanks to be consumed and fuel transfered aft first ,to maintain the high bow riding position of the albin (which in turn results in its excellent tracking ability),
3) have decided to add to steering fins on hull xtension to aid directional stability in following seas of 2-3m waves/swells........( if the only fuel remaining, is in the main tank, say with 125 litres left and with no water..eg on the run home and boat is running "Light"... i estimate that the hull extension will provide more lift than optimum and induce a slight amount of bow steer and hence a slight deterioration in directional stability)

will email Jcollins some pics so u can get a better idea

katmak

[jcollins]

Very interesting project. Are you in the business? I'm curious to expense involved.
<post moved to TE section>

[katmak]

Ha Ha....excellent questions.

Not in the business.....

wrt expense involved not known yet, but i have outlined a list of major works involved:-
(i hope u will find this informative should one decide to embark on this path:-)

1) building of wooded molds for transom extension and custom tanks for water and fuel...
2) 2 Custom built aluminum tanks
3) Running of new fuel lines , new SS thru hull fittings associated with this and transfer valves using the same transfer pump but adapted for 2 tanks feeding the main fuel tank instead of the original one
4) Enlargement of rudder
5) Running of water lines from aft tank to puppy vane pump in galley under side bunk to integrate into original fresh water system
6) Fibreglass works for hull extension
7) Fibreglass design and fabrication of drainage system to accommodate self draining hull fittings at rear Transom and running draining hoses. U will notice the 8 draining outlets on the original transom has now been reduced to 2 with a bronze stop cock fitting.
Fibreglass works and material for running of exhaust system thru transom and fabrication of sound box within the transom extension
9) Fibreglass touching up of original exhaust hole from starboard side
10) dismantling of OLD and reinstalling of New SS Trim tabs and running of new hydraulic lines
11) Fabrication of 2 new SS Trim Tabs in 318 Stainless
12) Design and Fabrication of new fiberglass Swim Platform with 3 inspection acessses and self draining hatches
13) 2 new Thru hull fittings in Chrome
14)Design and fabrication of new SS ladder and fittings
15)New SS hand rail on Swim Platform
16) Repositioning of 2 of the 3 Batteries to the port side to shift weight and fabrication of Battery Seats
17) Design and Fabrication of new hull fins (not yet fitted)
18) Labour charges in dismantling original swim platform and trim tabs
19) Painting of extension and touched up areas.
20) Sanding and Polishing Hull

Katmak

[Russell]

Katmak, I like that rail going across the stern. Was that an option from Albin or did you get it somewhere else?

[katmak]

hi there
SS Rail across stern was custom ordered in Singapore and not an option at the time in 1997.
I notice Silver Lining is also a 1997 28TE?.....are u running with a Peninsula Engine? wat is yr engine hrs and problems so far ?
I was reading the threads wrt engine block and glow plugs.....I had a set of new glow plugs once which started to bulge at their tips. Fortunately was able to remove the plugs before they were stuck in their thread holes. that would have been a major excercise, if they had been stuck.
For Katmak, the glow plugs are directly wired so that i "Glow" the plugs via pushing a button on my helm console, for 8 secs before engaging starter motor and cranking engine.

[katmak]

FYI....a recent addition to the Albin fraternity in Singapore.
28TE Second hand flush deck by the name of .."Vive Anne" ex Florida recently bought in the US and shipped to Singapore.

[jcollins]

What are you treating/cleaning your running gear with? I think the boat you mention Vive Anne was a member here.

[katmak]

Katmak is Dry Docked on a trailer
No Anti Fouling required
Engine using Castrol Mono Grade 40 as stipulated in the Peninsula owners Manual
Engine Oil change every 50 hrs together with Filter
Genset oil change every 50hrs...multigarde oil
Flushing n cleaning of coolant system only wen temp climbs....after say 500hrs
Transmission...Mobil ATF fluid...have not changed to date
Valtek added into main fuel tank every 600litres of Fuel
Bio treat added every 2000litres of fuel
Mercury 2 stroke cycle oil .4 of a liter/500 litres of fuel to lubricate injectors
Coolant ...Fleetguard
Sea Star Hydraulic oil......Mercury HYDRAULIC STEERING FLUID
.......
Singapore...so no winterizing!!
what about yr Albin?

[jcollins]

Singapore...so no winterizing!!
what about yr Albin?katmak

Winterizing is always a big topic in the Northeast. I use the pink RV antifreeze through the engine and fresh water system. Mine is the 95, same engine as yours. I have had no problems other than the clum relay / glow plug timer issue.(see my other posts about using a cold pack to start the engine) I added the timer switch from Peninsular last year and replaced the glow plugs. Before that I did have the hot starting problem. I have 963 hours. This season I will be following the manual for the 1000 hour maintenance. My black hull is badly oxidized and in need of paint. Every year I talk about new paint and every year something else comes up. Last year added new canvas (I have a convertible) and electronics. This year will probably not be a good year to spend that much so I'll be compounding once again.
The previous owner is a interior designer. She redid the cabin area with a gold/black color theme. Very tastful.

The Chesapeake is a beautiful place to boat. The bay itself is about 200 miles, with thousands of miles of shoreline and tributaries. Average depth is 22 feet with about 25% being less than 6 feet. But the bottom is forgiving and is mostly sand and muck. It is very well marked and I seldom run aground.
You could spend months cruising and never leave the bay itself.