Making an offer

[TheJudge]

Today we mailed an offer on a 36 ET. Now it is wait and see. I will have to truck it from the east coast to the Tennessee River because we just do not have the time right now to take it by water. That will have to wait until we do the loop. Meanwhile we can enjoy it on the Tennessee until I retire. I hope I am not jinxing it by assuming I will get it. We are still a ways apart.

[jcollins]

Good luck with that. As we all know the market is on your side. Very nice boat.

[TheJudge]

We have a deal. Now on to survey and transport. This is a super well equipped boat. More on that later.

[Mariner]

So, did you get it?

[TheJudge]

Not yet. There were some problems so we are waiting for repairs to be completed. This time of year you have to be patient because these marinas do not want to work around the holidays. I figure the longer it takes the more money I save on winter slip rental etc.

[afrayedknot]

Am new to the forum but have read your previous posts as to your getting a 36ET and possibly moving it to the TN River or maybe Riverwalk at Augusta. Since I am familiar with both areas and have my 36ET on the TN, am interested in your actual location and progress with the boat. I live in the Atlanta area. Bob

[TheJudge]

Bob, I just read your posting and will reply. I now know that the broker is reading this forum which is OK but kind of restrains my comments as we are still in a negotiation posture. The boat is still out of the water and repairs have been in progress since late November. This is not the brokers fault as he has been through hell trying to get someone who knew what they were doing and was willing to do the work. At least three repair services passed on the job or failed to make scheduled appointments. At least one said he was too big to work in that tight engine room. Finally the boat had to be taken to another area on the mainland to have it pulled. They have rebuilt the prop, trued and aligned the shaft and aligned the engine and transmission. Still has a vibration. Now someone who used to be an Albin dealer has told them that the problem is inherent in the keel or skeg design on this model and that turbulance from that design at speed creates a vibration that simulates an alignment problem. They suggest the solution is to grind down the keel to create some sort of taper that reduces the turbulance. I have no idea but certainly have concerns about messing with a factory engineered keel, especially one of that size. If anyone has experienced such a problem with vibration at speed(above 2000rpm) and has been told it is the keel design or had your keel ground down please chime in.

[jcollins]

Was this vibration all the time or when turning to starboard? I have a different boat but the 28s have a vibration when turning. I understand it's very difficult to put into words but can you describe how bad it is? What was/is your previous boat? Inboards or I/Os?

[Mariner]

It would be helpful to know what year the boat is and what engine(s) it has.

On our 2003 with the single Cat 3126B, there was a vibration that occured when we first brough the boat up from California and had it painted and re-zinc'd. It went away after a while, and I think it was caused by the collar zinc used on the prop shaft. I haven't experienced it since. Somewhere I have pictures of the hull and keel. I'm going to have to dig to find them.

[TheJudge]

Yes the vibration is constant from 2000rpm up to wide open throttle. It is there going in a straight line. We did not try turning it at that speed. The boat is a 2000 model with a 450 single Cummins diesel. It has that deep inverted sharkfin keel.

[Brandy1937]

I too Am looking for a 36 ET. Took one for a short ride and it also had a vibration at about 2000 rps. That concernrd me a lot.I find it hard to believe that it is a keel problem.
Does any of the other Albins(with single engines) have this problem???????? If so, then It could have something to do with the keel.
Looking for input!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks
Brandy 1937
lbran1937@yahoo.com

[TheJudge]

Brandy, was the boat you took out located in the Hilton Head/Beaufort area? If so we have probably been on the same boat. I have mostly moved on now to another brand because I am gun shy of a problem like this. I did run across a fellow last week who claimed to be knowledgeable about this(take with a grain of salt). He said that the problem was turbulence created by the rudder being too close to the prop. They moved the rudder back 3 inches and that solved it. Do you know what is involved with moving a rudder 3 inches? I just think that no-one has yet figured out this thing and they may never do it at this rate.

[Brandy1937]

By Brandy
The Judge, Yes this is the same boat at Beaufort,SC I looked at. Taking everything into consideration,and where I plan to cruise(the great loop) I don't want anything
extra on the hull to get caught up in what ever you might encounter.(ie:the stabelizers.) So for now I,m still searching for a 36ET. I prefer not to have a hardtop on the bridge. As far as singles vrs twins there's controversy both ways. Just like politics and religion, it is a personal belief and no one will ever convince the other. So, I am open to either for now. I just know I like this model.

[lpbp]

A couple of things to look at . First undo coupling at the back of the transmission , and notice if any movement when this is done . second have some one with knowlege of this use a set of feeler gauages and check your clearences all the way around between the the engine coupling and the shaft coupling. rule of thumb is no more than 2 -4 thousands of a inch difference between the 2 surfaces - all the away around . If this has been out of line you could have bearing and shaft damage that cause vibration. The other thing is that the propeller could have one blade out of tune with the other 2 0r 3 [ depending on 3 or 4 blade prop ] It might not look damaged but it could be this . I saw this on a 80 ft crew boat ,right of the dry dock after her 5 year inspection . the one prop was taken off and 1 blade needed a little fine tuning, and problem solved . Next is this the right propeller for the boat -size and pitch?
Just a few thoughts here for you to consider . I have worked around commercial boats for over 30 years and seen [and felt ] all kinds of vibration problems and these are the areas that I would look at . These are usually the top of the list at any dry dock . Just another sailors thoughts
LPBP frozen in on L Erie