Albin Hull Construction

[scotttaylor]

Can someone shoot me an email who is knowledgeable as to what materials were used in what models. For instance, an Express 36 Trawler.....does the bottom (running surfaces) have core material? Plywood, balsa, foam? Or might it be solid GRP?

Similar question for the 28's?

S.T.

[jcollins]

Check out this article. It may give you some insight.

http://www.albinmarine.com/yachts/Press ... tical.html

[KathyN]

John, when was this article published? Do you have any idea when the different changes were made? I wonder what the material is in our '97 31TE........and how to find out.

Thanks for your--as always--knowledgeable response.

KathyN

[jcollins]

Yes. No date on that article. I found it in 2005 on a very outdated Albin site. My guess is mid to late 90s. I checked date stamps on the article and photos. No luck.

[RicM]

The webpage was generated by Adobe GoLive 6 (view>source), which was introduced around 2002 and was discontinued recently as version 9. Somewhere between 02 and 05 I would guess.

[jcollins]

Thank Ric!

[Pitou]

I was told from Standish that the Air-ex was used from model year '02 forward and thought that was the case with my hull .... no such luck. Drilling a hole for a new transducer this past spring revealed a wood core of approx. 1 1/8 inches. Though my model year is '02 the bottom piece was molded in '01 / I found a hull ID imprint inside behind the port side dinette cushions of June '01, but the hull ID on the transom is January '02 .... oh well .... I don't own what I thought I bought. The upside .... the core was dry as a bone.

[RicM]

Kevin,

The core controversy lives on, but it is largely meaningless to a fastidious boat owner like yourself. If your core is dry and good now and you know how to keep it that way by doing the proper installation procedure when installing or replacing any though hulls there will never be a problem. The issue comes in when buying a used boat from someone who did not follow those guidelines and was not polite enough to inform you of his or her own stupidity. Alas, there are a lot of stupid people in the world. Look on the bright side, Albins are noted for their sturdy construction, sea keeping, and longevity. All that would be reduced with a non cored hull. You would have to give up the rigidity and strength or add thousands of pounds of weight. Its a tradeoff. Myself I'll take the well maintained core.