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If you were wondering what's up front......lots of lead plugs glued in place.

Adam

That's 300 pounds of hard work and sweat!!!

Jim
So......termites! Unbelievable what those little bastards can destroy. It seems they have selectively eaten most of the plywood floor. The upside.....I know the boat about as well as the people that built it as I have had it down to bare bones. The cabin sole is out...nothing but the internal glass unit. Surprisingly, it wasnt that tough to get it out. All of the bulkheads and tabbing are fine. It's a good time to modify the veberth to allow a bigger cushion and lots of storage. Also, now I can remove the fuel tank flange, clean the tank and change out the fittings. The only real "concern" is the main support beam running mid boat under the head wall. Luckily it's only destroyed past the forward bulkhead so I believe I can improve on this as well.
 
I sailed on big British charter yacht in the Caribbean as a young man. she had teak planking and oak ribs and big wooden masts out of what wood I do not know. but the termites were slowly destroying her. they ate everything except the teak. It was so sad.. Several efforts at extermination didn't work. good luck
 
Adam
This is the first time I have ever heard of termites chowing down on the wood inside a boat. Where was she stored that she was exposed to an infestation? What percentage of the wood is damaged? How do you get rid of the bugs before you start rebuilding?

Getting back to the lead ingots. Are you planning on removing them? From what I know, they were put there for one of two reasons. One was that the weight of the engine (Yanmar and Perkins) ended up being heavier then expected and the weights were added to counterbalance that. Two was that Ted Brewer designed a cruising boat that called for heavy ground tackle up forward. Neither Morgan or most owners provided such tackle, so weight was needed to offset the difference. If you are not going to repower with a lighter engine or install a windlass with all chain rode then you might want to leave the lead in place. Although, if you are planning on removing it, you have a golden opportunity to do so with the v-bunk cabinetry not in your way.

Jim
 
Adam
This is the first time I have ever heard of termites chowing down on the wood inside a boat. Where was she stored that she was exposed to an infestation? What percentage of the wood is damaged? How do you get rid of the bugs before you start rebuilding?

Getting back to the lead ingots. Are you planning on removing them? From what I know, they were put there for one of two reasons. One was that the weight of the engine (Yanmar and Perkins) ended up being heavier then expected and the weights were added to counterbalance that. Two was that Ted Brewer designed a cruising boat that called for heavy ground tackle up forward. Neither Morgan or most owners provided such tackle, so weight was needed to offset the difference. If you are not going to repower with a lighter engine or install a windlass with all chain rode then you might want to leave the lead in place. Although, if you are planning on removing it, you have a golden opportunity to do so with the v-bunk cabinetry not in your way.

Jim
Adam
This is the first time I have ever heard of termites chowing down on the wood inside a boat. Where was she stored that she was exposed to an infestation? What percentage of the wood is damaged? How do you get rid of the bugs before you start rebuilding?

Getting back to the lead ingots. Are you planning on removing them? From what I know, they were put there for one of two reasons. One was that the weight of the engine (Yanmar and Perkins) ended up being heavier then expected and the weights were added to counterbalance that. Two was that Ted Brewer designed a cruising boat that called for heavy ground tackle up forward. Neither Morgan or most owners provided such tackle, so weight was needed to offset the difference. If you are not going to repower with a lighter engine or install a windlass with all chain rode then you might want to leave the lead in place. Although, if you are planning on removing it, you have a golden opportunity to do so with the v-bunk cabinetry not in your way.

Jim
I am leaving the lead as is although I will re-bed it. I took the over/under out and will make a nice big storage area after I close in the lead plugs. The lead has been there all along so why mess up what has been working? Also, the original owner bought the boat (79, 382) with a 57' mast. I'm not sure if any mods were made to the keel lead during the build so I dont want to mess that up.

Termites and storage......after looking online I found that termites are common even in boats in the water, although mine was infested on land by a trail that went in through the cabin slides. I have literally gassed and sprayed the boat 7 or 8 times. Luckily the damage is mostly the ply floor and vberth plywood.

The igu......a good idea I guess but I wish the would have used something other than pine for the floor spacers in it..

There is a little damage to the top of the bulkhead at the sink which can be fixed by simply removing 1 inch of height and recapping.

Note.....had I not noticed that the floor was "soft" I wouldn't have known I had termites. They didnt eat to the outer layers. I have removed at least 6, 5 gallon buckets of termite "dust" (crap).

Last, I thought it was interesting that the IGU has the inspection holes cut in it that the factory was doing due to a tabbing issue way back. The sole had no inspection doors so at some point someone had the floor out. The tabbing at the head bulkhead is extra heavy and looks to be done professionally. No settling at the mast step. The "blob" is just that. A blob of resin and glass the was put on top of the lead when the IGU went in. May be a good time for me to add a fuel level sending until after I clean the tank.
 
Adam
It appears you have a major overhaul taking place. As far as thru hull valves are concerned, I have been using the Marlon glass reinforced valves with great success for years. The thru hull fittings themselves you might want to replace with the bronze mushroom head type with back up plates made of G10 or solid glass.

Is the IGU that you refer to the "bucket" that the mast step sits in? Some of the boats built later on don't have the "bucket" at all.

A company called "Electrosense" makes liquid level sensors for fuel and waste that many Morgan owners, myself included, have been rather happy with. You might look them up.

Jim
 
Adam
It appears you have a major overhaul taking place. As far as thru hull valves are concerned, I have been using the Marlon glass reinforced valves with great success for years. The thru hull fittings themselves you might want to replace with the bronze mushroom head type with back up plates made of G10 or solid glass.

Is the IGU that you refer to the "bucket" that the mast step sits in? Some of the boats built later on don't have the "bucket" at all.

A company called "Electrosense" makes liquid level sensors for fuel and waste that many Morgan owners, myself included, have been rather happy with. You might look them up.

Jim
Thanks Jim. The IGU I'm referring to is the fiberglass substructure below the floor that runs from the gally bulkhead to the head bulkhead.
 
Wow ! you are doing a really big refit , you are brave and got a lot of patience ... send some picture of the structure, please ! My hull number is 383 #15 i hope to start my refit on my old lady in the spring soon after all the snow is gone here .St- Paul d'Abbotsford Quebec
 
I use an "air powered" Tank Tender for the fuel tank. not cheap but very easy to install. I dont have a sensor for the holding tank because I was afraid to try to take the existing failed unit out for fear I would then have even more problems with the damn holding tank. I have a Lectra San treatment system so I use the holding tank only in designated no discharge zones and small anchorages. Since the waste is treated when it goes into the holding tank, I discharge it overboard whenever we are in a main channel. But since all of Puget Sound is now a nodischarge zone, I have to go into pumpout stations pretty frequently when there.
 
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