I acquired this vessel with the intent of restoring it to glory and sailing it forever. As my restoration was in full swing, I was made an offer I could not refuse on a 34' cruising sloop that has happily taken up almost all my spare time and effort. The Sunbird needs to go.
Trailer:
I sanded the frame, painted a coat of rust-resistant primer and a top coat of Rustoleum enamel. I completely rewired the trailer and installed LCD lights. I took apart, inspected, repacked and re-assembled the hubs, bought and installed new wheels and tires, added a dual wheel trailer tongue jack and a new 2" hitch receiver. Finally, I bolted on three 12" wide keel rollers.
Hull:
Sanded, faired, sealed with WEST epoxy, primed, sanded, reprimed, sanded, 3 coats navy marine enamel. Centerboard removed, assured it was dry inside, filled dings and holes with epoxy putty, coated with WEST epoxy, and finish painted it after installing a new pennant line.
Yet to be done is filling and sanding the topsides, inside the cuddy, and cockpit; priming and painting those surfaces; painting the mast and boom; replacing the wooden parts of the rudder; re-attaching the hardware and supplying the running rigging.
The mast and boom are in good condition and fully usable but the black finish is worn off in places and for appearance sake could take a coat of marine enamel. The sails are in fair condition and fully usable, as is. The rubber molding around the cuddy windows is shrunk from age and inflexible; it should be replaced. There are similar moldings around the cockpit cubby holes in similar condition. The molding is readily available. While the cleats and fair leads are in good condition, the sheaves on the mainsheet block are UV damaged from age and should be replaced.
At $700, I am not getting my money invested back and no compensation for my time, which is fine since it was fun while I was working on it. But now I look at the boat and wish someone was in the cockpit, in the water, going to weather, smiling.
For an additional $100, I will include like new Cruise N Carry outboard motor, and roller bunks for the trailer, which I purchased but not yet installed.
