My First Albin 28

[JFaberMD]

Hi Everyone! Glad I found this forum, been reading through some threads in my spare time and there's so much knowledge here, I'm glad to be a part of it. I am currently under contract for my first Albin and it's actually my first boat as well. Seems like I'm making a good choice. It's a 1998 28te with the Peninsular Diesel. I have the marine survey next week, anything Albin specific I should look for in particular that the surveyor may not pick up on?

[JFaberMD]

Also, any suggestions on a PM checklist for when I'm going to take the boat out? Thanks in advance!!

[Galene]

We just bought our lovely Galene in June, but before that, had another 28 under contract with a Peninsular, which we ended up not getting, because of multiple issues. We were warned against Peninsular Engines, and I did some research. It is apparently true that some Peninsulars were defective within certain years, mostly before 1998. I suggest you get the serial # of the engine in your boat and then call or e-mail Peninsular (you can get phone # on web and they are helpful) and find out when the engine was made and if this boat has one of the defective engines. The year of the engine does is NOT necessarily the year of the boat. We looked at a '98 with a 1997 engine, and a 1999 boat with a 1998 engine! (Galene has a Yanmar)

[JFaberMD]

Galene - Thanks for the suggestion. I'll call the broker on Monday morning to get that engine serial number and give Peninsular a call. Anybody in particular I should ask for over there?

[Pasteur]

There are many conversations on this board regarding the Peninsular, aka "the Beast". There was also a winterization/PM checklist widely discussed and distributed. You should search a bit.

For example, viewtopic.php?t=8052

The fact that the boat has a 20 year old engine that continues to run suggests it does not have a serious flaw. A good survey, including the engine, is your best tool for identifying any issues. The maintenance records would also be helpful.

We owned a 28TE for 5 seasons before moving up to the 31TE . Yes, I think you're making a great choice.

[JFaberMD]

Pasteur - Thanks for the message and suggestions. I'll try to make sure that I search better before posting questions. Definitely interested in the winterization/PM checklists you mentioned. I'll see if I can find those in a search.

[Pasteur]

Here.is the latest version of the winterization list which includes many PMs. This one contains links to the earlier conversations dating back 10+ years.

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=2050&hilit=Winterize

[Pedro]

I have a 96 28te Peninsular power.Fourth season.
Pay the money and have an engine survey done, by a mechanic,not just a survey.
Before I bought mine the mechanic didn't 6 hrs on that boat and was a Yanmar snob but his remark after running st WOT
For 15 minutes with 6 men aboard at 23 knots was "I hate these engines ...but it runs great"
After four years of use ,I have replacedvwaterpump,rebuilt the starter cleaned the cooling system and replaced every engine hose, I love the boat and could not afford a Yanmar powered boat,
I saved about $20,000, at the time and it runs perfectly and does only smoke at startup vs some tankard that seem
To smoke more,maintenance is very simple and parts are cheap and easy to get by calling Mitch at Peninsular,call them and ask ask questions they are very helpful.
I warn you to have another person to help you dock the first few times as this particular boat takes some getting used to docking,bow thruster makes it easy once you knows how to use it,
I often dock without it (at the end of the season) to practice "just in case",,I dock mine single handed 99 percent of the time so I need to be able to make her dance,,which she can after you learn to dance with her,,,very nice handling boat all around,,

[Pasteur]

Pedro's correct about the bow thruster. With the 28 it can be an important feature.

See RicM's how to dock the boat primer at the top of this forum before you get on board. Once you follow those instructions it's easy to handle. And you may get to the point where the bow thruster is optional.

I was tying up at Champlin's on BI yesterday when I heard the distinctive sound of at 28TE. There was blue hulled engine box version pulling into the marina. There's nothing else that sounds like the bow thruster on that boat.

[JFaberMD]

Pedro - Thank you for the words of wisdom. I got the engine serial number from the broker today and called Peninsular, you were right they are great guys, turns out that even though the boat is a 1998, the motor was made in 1997. Boat has 1400 hours on it, so like the guy at Peninsular said "if there was going to be a block issue it would have happened by now"...lol. He gave some good advice and told me to find out when the last time the timing chain was inspected and/or adjusted (they recommend every 500 hours to inspect it). And to make sure that the glow plugs were updated with the new timer.

[JFaberMD]

Pasteur - thank you for the link, very informative. I did read the docking post and plan on practicing that as much as possible before we go anywhere that I could cause any damage...haha. I was just in Newport RI last month for work for three days. RI is a boaters paradise, hoping next year we can take two week vacation and put on up there in the Albin. Think it would be a fun trip. Have you ever traveled the coast down this way from up there? Any suggestions for that sort of trip?

[JFaberMD]

Had my survey today and needless to say that Peninsular ran like a champ. I cracked up when the surveyor said "I'm not a big fan of these motors but it runs great"...In fact the whole survey went really well. The only negatives were a burned out light bulb, the pump for the bait well wouldn't work, and there's some sort of air leak on the bilge manual hand pump. I need to get under there and take a look, it almost sounds like the hose is disconnected. Anyone know if the manual hand pump needs to be primed first or should it work after a few pumps?

[JFaberMD]

Oh I almost forgot, I'm settling on the boat Saturday morning. Can't wait till she's all mine!!

[Jeremyvmd]

Congrats on your new boat! Glad to hear the survey went well. I love my peninsular, so much that I put a new one in!

Which now thruster does it have? Some have small 25kg thrusters while some have a 50. If it has a smaller one I would consider upgrading it at some point.

[Pedro]

FYI, if you have the tiny 23/25 kg thruster which I do, the Vetus .bow45 is supposed to be the replacement,the tunnel is small so not many bigger thruster motors would fit,