My 1977 Albin 25 Deluxe rebuild thread

[kerrye]

Mine has the same panel and had the same insulation. It was really disgusting. Removed it and left it off for better access to the engine. I did replace the stuff inside the engine cover.

[hetek]

Thanks WillieC!

To be honest, I have no idea what is true to original or what is not on this boat. I've been looking at images posted to this site, which is a huge help. I've looked for evidence of screw holes and shadows on the bulkheads which might indicate the location of a former frame member, etc. That's basically where I'm at and what I have to go by.

I recall that on the boat I saw in person I was able to remove the boards and look below without removing the engine cover, but what I cant recall is if the cover was down or not. It was quite a while ago. My "Albin engineer" thinking is that if the cover has to be removed to look below the floor, it will most likely not be done and below floor areas will not be inspected as often as they should. Not a good thing on a boat. It should be an easy thing to do.

I did think of the aluminum angle trick to locate the edge of the cover as a track, as you put it. I also thought of the panels to hem in the sound of the engine. I've seen that in the photos.

To add to the questions, I'm not 100% sure those cover hinges are original. I'm pretty sure Albin would have put them on straighter and not use bolts that were over 1" too long. The hinges are located at a height that would imply the box sits on top of the floor. Maybe this was all done when the Westerbeke was installed, but I just can't be sure.

[hetek]

kerrye - I guess your experience with the panels is the same as WillieC's. Duly noted!

I can't believe it is for much more than noise insulation or for keeping stowed gear from moving about. Not like it's a fire block or anything. I'll most likely reserve the panels for a later project, if at all. I'll need all the access I can get at this stage and it may even be quiet enough with the flooring that I won't need it.

[WillieC]

I have done exactly as Kerry has. Removed the cruddy insulation and left it bare, and I like the additional inch of engine side access on each side so I may well leave it alone also. Only so much one can do to quiet the Ancient VP engine. But I DO like the structural support of the floor system provided by these solid panels, especially on the tank side. The batt side is somewhat moot since I have completely rebuilt that floor structure up to the height of the top of the doghouse. And I used much beefier members than the scrap metric 1X2s employed by Albin. I think I will use the starboard panel to support the HX since it is currently supported by engine head bolts and a cosmically tuned bracket designed by The Fifth Dimension that vibrates in synch with Jupiter aligning with Mars. That sucker shakes, no matter how I have tried to dampen it.
My throttle cable, shift cable, starter cable, chassis ground and engine control/monitor wiring all route through its bullkhead in a single hole located at the front of the panel, just above the engine stringer. It was a tight fit so I enlarged it and edge-protected the hole to prevent chafing when I did my rewire. Yours is newer and I suspect your throttle and shift cables route around to the back and attach to their respective points from the rear. Something I will have to figure out when I switch from the older MD3B to the MD17C. Not looking forward to blowing a wad on cables, since mine are likely too short to make the re-route.
As soon as I regain enough mobility to crawl in the boat I will take some pics. (Total hip replacement is slowing me down, but not much. Good doc.)

[hetek]

Question for you 25'ers out there:

What are these two pieces for? I found them in the pile of interior woodwork that was removed prior to my purchase.

The piece on the left looks like it fastens somewhere, perhaps a brace? The piece on the right is finished on both sides and looks to be a filler panel of sorts.

IMG_1388.JPG

Anyone?

[kerrye]

Since the right side of the left piece seems to match the shape of the hull above the waterline, I think it's one of the end pieces of the cabinets on either side above the v-berth.

[hetek]

Some of the interior was left intact such as the v-berth area and the galley. The head and the aft cabin are bare fiberglass. I would guess it came from one or the other... or the cockpit somewhere - also bare.

That piece on the left is made with heavy 3/4" plywood and has the 1x1 cleats fastened along the edge. It is for something requiring sturdiness which contradicts the typical A25 interior construction (aka "Ikea" - like).

That piece on the right, by contrast, is only about 1/4", yet nicely finished on both sides.

Good suggestion though. Maybe if I walk it around the boat and see if the curve matches the hull anywhere I'll have my answer. Like assembling a jig-saw puzzle. Still open to suggestions though.

[DesertAlbin736]

The piece on the right looks like it could be a floor section in the footwell of the aft cabin, similar to the picture of my aft cabin shown here. At least this photo shows what it should look like with all the woodwork in place. I agree with Kerry about the curved piece on the left. If that's the case, the curvature suggests it was mounted vertically somewhere near the flare of the bow, maybe in the anchor locker up in the forepeak? That's just a guess. It doesn't look like anything I'm familiar with on my boat, but mine is a 1971 and they might have made changes in the '77's. I wonder if it could have something to do with those cabinets the later models had up in the bow? Maybe that was a piece from something in the main cabin that was replaced & that's just the old piece since it shows signs of water damage? Next time I'm over to our boat I'll poke around & see if there's a panel like that on our boat.

[hetek]

That does look pretty close there, DA. I'll have to investigate that. Not a deal breaker if I don't find out what it is right away. I have plenty of mechanicals, electrical and plumbing to do before I tackle the woodwork and the pretty stuff.

BTW... Happy Thanksgiving to all!

[kerrye]

On mine there is a shelf in the head. that piece on the left could be the right support for the shelf. the left support is the fore wall of the head compartment itself. I'll see if I can find a picture.

[DesertAlbin736]

The vanity sink in the head on our boat was removed by one of the previous owners, previous to the folks we bought from I think, and was not passed along to us. In its place is a small wall shelving unit. The head compartment is so small it's just as well. Our only sink and faucet is the galley, and it has a foot operated switch for an electrical on demand pump. Sometimes I wish we had the option of a porta potty for weekends. Kind of a pain to have to go through pumping out each time when we're out only one or two nights. I don't dare leave it partially full in the kind of heat we have. On the other hand a marine head with 20 gallon holding tank is more necessity than luxury for extended coastal cruising. Previous owners provided a homemade drain pipe affair of PVC pipe sections that can be hooked up to the overboard head drain through hull when the boat is hauled out, as it is each time for lake boating, and the holding tank can be drained into a bucket or RV dump station via the Y valve. Needless to say a stinky operation, no worse than dumping a porta potty I guess. But pumping out at a marina dock is preferable.

[kerrye]

We can get two weeks out of that porta potti. We're used to managing human waste from many years of western river running where it has to be carried out in canoes or rafts.

[WillieC]

Kerry,

Surely you used some kind of liner or at least canoes and rafts solely dedicated for the purpose?! Especially after many years of stockpiling.

[kerrye]

Nope, just a polyethelyne box about a 12" cube, maybe a little taller, 16 or 18". 120 person days of human waste can fit in it if you burn the toilet paper.

[DesertAlbin736]

120 person days of human waste can fit in it if you burn the toilet paper.

I wanted to try burning the TP in the Magma BBQ, but the Admiral nixed that idea. I said, "But Honey, it'll add a little smokey flavor to the kabobs!?!" She wasn't amused.