uniflite 26 sedan help
jim
however I am having problems with the bulkheads . The tabbing in the
forward hull has failed and a 6 inch crack at the waterline has
appeared . The entire V-berth will have to be re tabed.Also the
surveyor has recommended reinforcing from the stern all the way to the
V-berth between the stringers as it has 3/4 flex. This boat is a
single engine so the engine room will not be a problem , however under
the cabin floor is a different story . I believe the interior cabinets
will have come out as well as the fuel tank. Once done the boat will be
seaworthy again . I understand the 30 to 40 foot boats mid to late 70's
have the same problems . I urge all to check the tabbing and bulkhead
integrity. The crack occurred with 1 foot waves and lots of chop and
began to take on water while under way . Not many 26 were made and
might be a problem with the 26 . Any thoughts and or suggestions would
be appreciated . Thanks Jim
neptune_trace
What year is you 26? I have a 1978 and have noticed no cracking. I have
also change my fuel tank and everyhing looked fine down in the belly.
Good luck on your repairs and let us know how it goes.
Trace
jim
only one with a 26 . Mine is a 1977 . Only the tabbing in the V-berth
has come apart, however the surveyor has shot down the rest of the hull
because of the thinness and lack of supports between the stringers . I
may have to fix the rest for the insurance . The damage V-berth could
have been due to hard running before I bought the boat. I would like
to talk to you about the fuel tank removal . Could you call me on my
cell at 843-696-8927 . Also would like to hear from anyone with
similar problems on the uniflite. Thanks Jim
Bohn, Steve
Uni 4 Two
its life in the Pacific Northwest so 1 foot waves would be nothing, I
have been through 3 to 4 foot waves (I didn't like it but had no
problems with the boat, only the skipper). I haven't seen any problems
with the hull to date but perhaps I don't know where I should be
looking. There were no issues identified in the survey done prior to
my purchase. The front of my boat does not have a conventional V-berth
but a diagonal berth on the starboard side and cabinets on the port
side. The water tank is under the berth. There are longitudinal
fibreglass stringers and fibreglass bulkheads between the engine
compartment and the cabin and between the cabin and the V-berth. In my
boat you cannot see below the floor in the front, there is only a small
round access panel. The cabinets and berths are constructed of plywood
and I am not sure if they are supposed to contribute to the structural
strength of the hull. I must say I am not an experienced boater so I
don't know what you are refering to when you say tabbing. If you could
explain it would be helpful and I could look at my boat.
My boat had been re-powered with a single Volvo-Penta inboard/outboard
and has a new fuel tank in the rear compartment. I think there is too
much weight at the rear of the boat when the fuel tank is full so I am
contemplating removing the original tank (its still there and
presumably was leaking) and having a replacement tank made. It looks
like it may to possible to just remove the sheet of plywood over the
tank without removing the cabinets, only the storage under the table.
I am most interested in the experience of anyone else who has replaced
a tank on a 26 including how hard it was to do, where they got their
replacement from and what the approximate cost was.
Cheers
Jim Mutrie
jim
or stringer to the hull . If the tabbing comes loose the bulkhead will
grind or in my case puncture the hull. If one bulkhead comes lose the
hull will flex and the rest of the tabbing and or bulkheads could fail
, again my case. I understand from my surveyor This is common not only
in uniflites but any old ,and even newer boats. Most of this
information I have learned in the past week . I will know more in a few
days about removing the fuel tank. Please feel call me if you have any
questions . 843-696-8927 i would be happy to share any info I have . Jim
jim
Uni 4 Two
Which bulkhead punctured the hull?
Jim Mutrie
neptune_trace
I changed out my fuel tank on my 26 last year. It wasn't too tough,
your floor is 3/4 in plywood and if your cabin layout is the same as
mine, which it prbly is, I had to remove the fridge, and the table and
storage compartments underneath.Then pull up all the fasteners around
the edge of the floor and remove the floor. Now comes the toughest part
of the job, getting the tank out. It is in there tight, there was only
less than 1/4 in of clearance around the edge of the tank and the side
of the bilge. Couldn't get even get a finger between the tank to get a
hold of it. So I used a coupla wonder bars and jammed them in the space
and pryed it up. Yea it punctured the tank but it was empty and getting
tossed anyways. The hardest part was that the tank covers the entire
floor area in the salon, so most of the lifting work had to be done
from standing in the v-birth area.
I took the tank to a local tank builder and he copied it, I had him
make the new one 1 inch narrower so I could gently lay the new one back
in the bilge and still have finger room around the edges. After it was
reninstalled I used some of that great stuff foam in a can and sprayed
into the void around the tank to keep it from moving around, not that I
think it would, it is heavy.
If you are gonna keep your boat I would go back to original tankage
just to get her to ride like it was designed. But thats me.
Trace
jim
out or will it come out on it's side ? I think my tank is good so I
hope I don't have the same problem ( I sure I will ) . And also once
the tank is out is there a lot of room to reinforce the hull. Thanks
this has has been a tremendous help. Thanks Jim
jim
hull, the next bulkhead fwd at the curve or the chine (sp?) is where
the crack happened . If you give me your e-mail I can send Photos . I'm
new to this broad so I don't know if I can post photos here . If
someone will tell me how I will be happy to show all the photos. Thanks
JIm
Uni 4 Two
I don't know how to post photos to the site, you may be able be I don't
recall seeing many. I would appreciate it is you were to email them to
me. Goggle blanks out email address contained in postings so I will
have to disguise it, my address is JimDotMutrieAtTelusDotNet where the
dots are periods and at is the ampersand sign. I hope this gets
through.
Thanks very much.
Jim Mutrie
neptune_trace
You can turn the tank on its side and with help can get it out the
door. Theres not a whole lot of room around or under the bilge/tank
compartment. Its almost like they built the boat around the tank. I am
not sure what mean by reinforcing the hull, but if you just wanna lay
some glass in the there I am sure you can. I sealed all exposed wood in
there with epoxy just for the sake of it.
I may have some pics of the tank and the bilge somewhere on my puter if
you send me your email addy I will look and if I have them I will
gladly send them on to you. My addy is homerfa...@tampabay.rr.com
Sorry I didn't call you, we have the grand daughter (3 y/o) and been
busy.
Trace
neptune_trace
homerfantastic-at-tampabay.rr.com, no dashes.
Trace
Hall, Scott R
remember but I think there have been some conversations about ethanol
and fiberglass tanks.
-----Original Message-----
From: jim [mailto:jkiv...@bellsouth.net]
Sent: Thursday, November 09, 2006 6:28 AM
To: UnifliteWorld
ALASKAN UNIFLITE
SORRY TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR CRACK BELOW THE CRASH BULKHEAD--I ACTUALLY
OWN 4 UNIFLITES-AND LOVE MY 26' 1978 SEDAN....
AND AM PUTTING IN TWIN 75 GALLON TANKS IN MINE. EASY DO
AFTER YOU TAKE ALL THE CABIN APART AND PART OF THE FLOOR IN THE
BACK....SHE HANDLES 12FT WAVES HERE IN ALASKA JUST FINE-NOT THAT WE
ENJOY THEM AT ALL, BUT SOMETIMES YOU GET STUCK-....
ON ALL MY 4 UNIFLITES-EVEN MY VIET NAM 28.2 SEDAN-AND THE MEGA I AM
REBUILDING--WE ALLWAYS REBUILD THE CRASH BULK HEADS, REALLY THE MOST
IMPORTANT PART OF THE BOAT. SO SAVE YOURSELF THOUSANDS AND DO IT
YOURSELF....AND ALSO YES-THE BOATS WERE BUILT AROUND THE TANKS....
I AM IN TOUCH WITH THE OLD UNIFLITE CREW STILL WORKING BOATS IN
BELLIHAM WASH. AT ANOTHER MARINA SINCE PADDEN CREEK FOLDED..NOW 5 OF
THE OLD CREW IS AT BLAINES MARINE--TRY CALLING
AL TESHURH AT BLAINES MARINA OR YOU CAN EMAIL ME FOR HIS NO.....AS BOTH
HE AND HIS FATHER WORKED AT UNIFLITE FOR MANY A YEAR AND HE COULD HELP
YOU OUT WITH SOME QUESTIONS BETTER THEN ANYONE I HAVE EVER MET, ON
UNIFLITES.
WHEN WE ARE DONE WITH THE 26 SEDAN NEXT FALL SHE WILL BE BETTER THEN
WHEN SHE CAME OUT OF THE FACTORY-AND WE ARE CHANGING HER OVER FROM A
SINGLE INBOARD-TO TWIN-STERN DRIVES....
ANWAY- AL, CAN HELP YOU-IT WOULD BE IN YOUR BEST INTREST TO GIVE HIM A
CALL......jpezzenti@ptialaska.net
BEST OF LUCK....