Farrell Trawler Rebuild Project

[PNW Drifter]

So the boat finally got weighed.

Boat and trailer, less tongue weight = 3950kg, or 8710lbs

tongue weight on truck 900lbs
trailer weight 2200lbs

net semi-wet (fuel, but no water) boat weight = 7410lbs With 100gal of diesel on board (700lbs).



Made it to Port Edward -Porpoise Harbour (near Prince Rupert) My buddies 1ton diesel did the towing, but the boat and trailer is less than the 10,100lb capacity of my truck. 1/2 ton truck towable! if only just.....

No, the top tackle isn't mine, it belongs to the boat behind.....



Travel-lift. My wife wants to learn how to drive it.



Yes, Virginia, boats can fly. :lol:


Oooh boy, water gonna get me wet!



Splashdown! Tranquility base. The Farrell has landed.



At the loading dock. Rear weight bias evident. I built "level" to the old water line, but the boat is stern heavy (this was deliberate). Trim would change with less fuel, and a finished interior.



Proud, but shy, boat builder/owner.

 

[PNW Drifter]

Sea trials

Meet the Captain, and first mate. She will be conducting the sea trials today.



Head out of Porpoise Harbour.




So the performance. 13.5kt (25.5km/h) @ 3000rpm



Remember this?



Well, one of the double holes is leaking.....



But hey, the boat trim looks good to me.



Now, who would like to see a video?

 

[Comodave]

Congrats on the launch and not sinking... It looks great. Keep the photos coming and a videso would be nice.

 

[PNW Drifter]

 

[Comodave]

Looks like it moves right along.

 

[Jmk2000]

Great job! That motor sounds real good. Any plans to paint the lower hull to match the pretty silver topsides? You should be proud! How’d the Mate like it?

 

[ben2go]

Awww sweet!

 

[Nomad Willy]

So exciting and all in the best place on the coast!

 

[Wayfarer]

Congratulations on the successful launch and sea trial! She runs like a stabbed rat.

 

[PNW Drifter]

Looks like it moves right along.

Yep, really happy about that, and I think thats as fast as I need to go. 3000rpm is as high as I dare for a short burn. Engine max rpm is 4k, and I have no doubt it will get to 4k, but I haven't tried that yet.

Great job! That motor sounds real good. Any plans to paint the lower hull to match the pretty silver topsides? You should be proud! How’d the Mate like it?

Oh, the mate likes it, alright. She wouldn't let me have the wheel.

Yep, will finish the sides at some point, but in no hurry.

The motor is sounding good.

Awww sweet!

So exciting and all in the best place on the coast!

Such a beautiful place, I am truly fortunate.

Congratulations on the successful launch and sea trial! She runs like a stabbed rat.

Thanks. And yeah, running great. Very happy.

I've fixed the leak with that gray epoxy putty stuff by Starbrite. I hope it holds, but regardless, I'll fix that properly this winter.

Thanks again for your interest! Hope some of my joy in all this finds its way to you.

 

[PNW Drifter]

The leak repair. I waited and waited, and no water seeped out. Hopefully it will continue to hold when under way.


Radar will need to be shimmed so it doesn't aim skyward.



A sweet day, puttering around on the boat.

 

[O C Diver]

Curious if you did any temperature checks while seatrialing? You had some areas where proper airflow was required to cool the exhaust piping and engine room in general. Dry stack engines can generate a lot of heat in enclosed spaces. What sort of temperatures did you see and did all flow plans work out as expected?

Ted

 

[OldDan1943]

Looking good and it floats right side up too.

 

[PNW Drifter]

Curious if you did any temperature checks while seatrialing? You had some areas where proper airflow was required to cool the exhaust piping and engine room in general. Dry stack engines can generate a lot of heat in enclosed spaces. What sort of temperatures did you see and did all flow plans work out as expected?

Ted

I only did a quick (non scientific) check on the first day, and the engine room wasn’t particularly warm. It wasn’t a long run, and I was preoccupied with the stuffing box and the previously mentioned leak concern. I did another longer run today, with a remote temperature sensor, and temps slowly raised to a max of 63 Celsius. Must depend on wind direction or something because the return trip was 45, at same 3000 rpm.

There is the space beside the engine that contains the exhaust elbow, and the resonator, which I think gets warmer. I recall thinking I would wrap that with “header tape” and some insulation, but I didn’t get to that because I was focused on getting it into the water.

I’ll put the temp sensor in there and check that soon. Perhaps not best practice, but I had my nose seeking burning smells, and had several fire extinguishers handy for the sea trials.

Looking good and it floats right side up too.

She hasn’t turtled on me yet! And yes, I do think the lines look right.

And I just gotta say I’m really happy with the performance, she never went that fast (13+ knots) before. I very briefly ran her at 3900 rpms, with a speed of 19.3 knots.

No black smoke from the exhaust at any rpms.

Welcome Harbour, Prince Rupert.










It was a radar day.

 

[OldDan1943]

Hmmmm, the need for a hull painting does add some character. SMILE

 

[O C Diver]

Might be worth investing in a digital thermometer with maximum temperature recording capabilities. A decent one can be had for under $50 with a remote temperature sensor. I use one for my engine room and have another for my geothermal heating system at home to keep track of water temperatures in the ground loop.

Ted

 

[MurrayM]

Awesome! Purrs while planing

I’ve never seen a Farrell scoot along so fast...what hp engine did you put in, and what do they normally have...or do commercial boats normally just putt along at 7 knots to save money on fuel?

 

[ben2go]

The spit shine and finishing touches can happen over winter. It's time to shake out the bugs and make sure everything is ok.

 

[PNW Drifter]

Dan, I agree!

Ted, that’s a good idea. Some boaters here even have remote cameras in the engine space. I was told of a story where someone’s wet exhaust failed , and didn’t notice until they had 3 feet of water in the bilge. The camera went in after that. However, it’s Canadian regulation to have a bilge alarm, so not sure what happened there.


Murray, the boat came with a 200hp Volvo AD41B (turbo,aftercooled). I’m reasonably certain it’s a re-power. Before my rebuild, I could go 12-13 kilometres per hour at 2500rpm, and any more revs would produce black smoke from the exhaust. I’ve shaved off (literally I believe) a ton of weight with the light weight construction. The net increase in rear weight bias (I think) is helping too.

Ben, you are correct, although the purely cosmetic stuff is low on the priority list. Bottom paint (proper prep, w/barrier coat, etc.) is fairly high on the list, and stuff like a table and kitchen counter.

Now that the boat goes fast, I’m reluctant to add anything that adds weight.

The boat is getting lots of positive comments at the dock.

 

[ben2go]

Dan, I agree!

Ted, that’s a good idea. Some boaters here even have remote cameras in the engine space. I was told of a story where someone’s wet exhaust failed , and didn’t notice until they had 3 feet of water in the bilge. The camera went in after that. However, it’s Canadian regulation to have a bilge alarm, so not sure what happened there.


Murray, the boat came with a 200hp Volvo AD41B (turbo,aftercooled). I’m reasonably certain it’s a re-power. Before my rebuild, I could go 12-13 kilometres per hour at 2500rpm, and any more revs would produce black smoke from the exhaust. I’ve shaved off (literally I believe) a ton of weight with the light weight construction. The net increase in rear weight bias (I think) is helping too.

Ben, you are correct, although the purely cosmetic stuff is low on the priority list. Bottom paint (proper prep, w/barrier coat, etc.) is fairly high on the list, and stuff like a table and kitchen counter.

Now that the boat goes fast, I’m reluctant to add anything that adds weight.

The boat is getting lots of positive comments at the dock.

I completely get that. One of the boats I was considering building was very weight sensitive. My idea was to build the interior out of foam with luaun door skins glassed to it and 1 x 2 runners in places where things would need to be attached. I did this in a camper and got excellent results. You could substitute Nida Core or similar to cut weight down even more.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Drifter wrote;
“Murray, the boat came with a 200hp Volvo AD41B (turbo,aftercooled). I’m reasonably certain it’s a re-power. Before my rebuild, I could go 12-13 kilometres per hour at 2500rpm, and any more revs would produce black smoke from the exhaust. I’ve shaved off (literally I believe) a ton of weight with the light weight construction. The net increase in rear weight bias (I think) is helping too.”

The most prominent feature of trawlers is weight. But so many long to go faster. A boat not so fat and heavy is the best route to more speed. But when you buy a boat you’re stuck w what you’ve got unless you buck up and go through the sell and buy another route. But it’s a long and stressful road unless you shed a lot of money.

I don’t have a significant problem w 6 knots but most do. Then there’s wifey B.

 

[OldDan1943]

Hmmm, black smoke not good.
Might consider getting your injectors checked.

 

[Flybull]

Hmmm, black smoke not good.
Might consider getting your injectors checked.

I believe the black smoke was on the previous Volvo power, not the re-power.

OP... I love your build and love the boat, great job!!! With these new pics on the water, was wondering what your thoughts might be on extending the rear overhang further back...? I think it would look good and I've always enjoyed being on the back deck, and with your location and number of "radar days"... might be nice to sit back there with a cup of coffee while a steady NW rain is happening... or in my case, a bourbon and a good "sea-gar".

 

[PNW Drifter]

I believe the black smoke was on the previous Volvo power, not the re-power.

OP... I love your build and love the boat, great job!!! With these new pics on the water, was wondering what your thoughts might be on extending the rear overhang further back...? I think it would look good and I've always enjoyed being on the back deck, and with your location and number of "radar days"... might be nice to sit back there with a cup of coffee while a steady NW rain is happening... or in my case, a bourbon and a good "sea-gar".

Thanks for the compliments. The overhang is enough to sit on the back bench without getting rain (on your head/body, at least!) , and enjoying a fine single malt scotch!

But I agree with your thoughts (even if our preferences on whiskey differ! ) , and I had the idea of a parasol/bimini top thing over the back.

In regards to the comments on black smoke - black smoke can happen when the diesel engine is being asked to work too hard. You can often see it coming from a heavily loaded dump truck trying to accelerate.

Just to be clear, its the same engine, less load = no black smoke.

Thanks again for everyone's continued interest!

 

[PNW Drifter]

The most prominent feature of trawlers is weight. But so many long to go faster. A boat not so fat and heavy is the best route to more speed. But when you buy a boat you’re stuck w what you’ve got unless you buck up and go through the sell and buy another route. But it’s a long and stressful road unless you shed a lot of money.

I don’t have a significant problem w 6 knots but most do. Then there’s wifey B.

Good points. I'm stuck with what I got, but it was entirely unexpected to have the speed that I have now, as I never had that before. I like my boat even more now.

But now that I have speed, well, I want to keep it! Will be very handy in those uncomfortable following seas, or if I have impatient buddies needing to get their fishing fix.

I can still run slow if I'm in the mood.

 

[PNW Drifter]

So exciting and all in the best place on the coast!

Truly, it is.

Humpback whale.



Chatham Sound is like glass..... Halibut fishing.




Ah,yes! Halibut!!!!!!!



31 lb Chinook salmon.



So does your trawler have 4 USB charging ports?
Darn oil pressure gauge stopped working.
The turbo pressure gauge hasn't worked for a while now....

 

[O C Diver]

Darn oil pressure gauge stopped working.
The turbo pressure gauge hasn't worked for a while now....
View attachment 92321

These things happen when you use a boat. Don't want them to happen, put it back in the shed.

Ted

 

[PNW Drifter]

These things happen when you use a boat. Don't want them to happen, put it back in the shed.

Ted

True. And that particular issue certainly not unexpected given the age of the panel. I'll have to figure out if its the sender or the gauge or connection in-between. At least the oil pressure alarm works.

I couldn't be happier with how everything has turned out. I'll enjoy a few more weeks of boating and then do more work on it over the winter.

Lots still to do.

 

[PNW Drifter]

So here is what I was sort of aiming for.....

North Pacific 28


the result......

Barrie Farrell 29



I hope Mr. Farrell likes it.

Links to autobiography of the hull builder.
Harbour Publishing: Boats in My Blood
https://www.amazon.ca/Boats-My-Blood-Life-Boatbuilding/dp/1550177559

 

[Comodave]

Close enough! Looking good.