Nordic tug 26

[Scooby5959]

I have a 1984 Nordic tug 26 sitting in my driveway on a trailer my question is can I modify it without affecting resale I spent a fair amount of my retirement savings on this boat , they do hold their value quite well, owned quite a few boats over the years mostly Taiwanese trawlers I’ve done modifications on all of them without consideration to value it was whatever I liked it worked out OK , last one was a 38 foot single engine with a bow thruster I remove the flybridge and what a difference it made completely different boat after that , when I sold it the guy that bought it loved it never saw another one like it however with this boat I’m a little afraid to make changes , example port and starboard pilot house doors I would like to replace with windows The doors are very small and hard to use plus they are made out of teak which I don’t like having to maintain , another example is the boat has AC I don’t think I would ever use it here in the Northwest that would free up quite a bit of cabinet space I could go on but what do you think I would especially like to hear from Nordic tug owners it’s a whole other story on why I’m going with a trailer trawler thanks Dan

 

[Nomad Willy]

Leave the doors as is.
They are a significant selling feature.

I love to modify things but have held back mostly.
Why change the doors? Curious. I’d view them as a moon roof as in ventilation.

 

[Scooby5959]

I’m sure you are right although I have never liked wooden sliding doors especially ones that you have to be a contortionist to get out of not to mention how they rattled with the vibrations of the engine etc. A window made to fit the existing frame so there would be no structural changes just remove the doors a couple of pieces of trim and screw the new window in place. I would upgrade the doors to the new style on the new Nordic 26s , I suppose I can get a hold of the factory and see if that’s possible or a window that opened from the top down would pretty much look the same as the new sliding doors do Kinda sorta that’s always been my pet peeve on all the Taiwanese trawlers that I have owned Rattle Rattle Rattle

 

[Jeff F]

I would think you could deal with the rattle issue with some creative latching.

 

[Scooby5959]

OK two votes for if’s not broke don’t fix it actually three my wife getting tired of boat projects , OK how about the fake smokestack what should I do with that there’s something that irks me about a fake smoke stack

 

[SteveK]

OK two votes for if’s not broke don’t fix it actually three my wife getting tired of boat projects , OK how about the fake smokestack what should I do with that there’s something that irks me about a fake smoke stack

I saw one without stack, how about a photo so I can see what it looks like

ETA: leave the doors or save them for a re install when you sell

 

[Scooby5959]

I tried to upload photo I doubt it’s going to work I’ll give it a try

 

[SteveK]

It worked. I would not have asked, lose the stack

 

[Bacchus]

I'm not familiar with that boat / layout but I'm another vote for keeping doors.
What other access is there to the bow area?
I love my stbd side helm door and at times mine had port side as well. IMO door is a big plus for visibility and mid- cleat access while docking & locking.
Being yours is easily trailerable I would think AC a positive selling point and opens the market to many that would appreciate AC.

 

[OldDan1943]

I do not see the wooden doors as a selling point but, as said, "save the doors for the next owner." When I see exterior teak my first thought is maintenance and not in a good way.
The stack?
The newer ones have a different stack design. Your stack looks like 'tack on' but it does add a bit of character to your boat. If you remove it w/o a lot of effort, do it, save it and let the next owner decide. I cannot see a profile of your boat with stack so I cannot give an opinion. The pics I have seen, indicate it is houses a dry stack. I will say, the stack looks a bit funky. SMILE

 

[Northern Spy]

The stack has been off of our NT26 for most of it's life. it makes a good storage container upside down in our shed.

I only have one pilot house door. I wish I had two. I wouldn't buy one without a pilothouse door. Way too valuable for singlehanding. No problems getting in or out of the pilothouse door. I often sit on the sill and steer from there. Even might make a sling back chair support so I can hang out the door. No need for AC. But if you close in your pilothouse, you may want it dearly.

I see that your doors have already been modified. If you don't like doing bright work, have a snap-on sunbrella cover made for the doors when not in use.

All NT 26s are semi customized. You wont find two alike. Do whatever you want. But I would image removing the doors would make it hard to sell.

A simple teak or HDPE wedge will stop any rattling.

 

[Scooby5959]

Thank you Northern spy for your reply i was looking for another Nordic 26 owner what do you mean by closing in your pilot house I’m looking for ideas and what other people have done this I’m quite certain will be my last boat I would like for it to be an enjoyable one y’all have convinced me the pilot house doors will stay how about painting them , I would very interested in hearing more about your boat maybe some pics what year etc. whatever help you can give me would be very much appreciated , I will admit I’m having a little trouble getting used to the size of this boat I’m used to a Boat in the 40 foot range it’s is going to take a bit of getting used to

 

[Tom Callan]

I would remove the stack and save it, paint the doors white, think this will add to a larger look dimension.

 

[Porgy]

If you have any concern for resale value, I’d leave as much original as possible, especially the doors and woodwork. The ones I’ve seen that are cared for and get snapped up at a fair price are the ones that are in mostly original condition.

I’ve heard of some owners putting GPS and WiFi antennae inside the stack so it’s not entirely useless. If I removed it, I’d keep it for the next owner. I think the 26 has a deserved cult status and it’s always a pleasure to see nicely kept ones. But if you want to butcher it like your writing, have at it.

If the A/C is reverse cycle and the only source of heat, I’d definitely keep it. I don’t think getting rid of that just for a small bit of storage is worth it. Even though a NW boat for now, they’ve been shipped all over.

 

[Benthic2]

If its your last boat the resale value is your heirs problem. Set it up the way you want it so you enjoy it the most. With that being said however, it would be a shame to make changes that diminish the enjoyability for you. I would be inclined to secure the doors to eliminate the rattle and run the boat for a season or two. If you really never use the doors, lose them. Same with the A/C.

 

[OldDan1943]

My AT34 is my last boat. I tried to leave all the mechanical systems standard so the next owner will have it easy. I will leave my RayMarine nav as is, so long as it works.
I concentrated on increasing the available storage.
IF the next person doest like the improvements find a different boat. SHRUG
I made this boat MY boat.
Your boat should be the way you want your boat, aka for your comfort.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Shouldn’t have fake anything on your boat.
Nix the stack. But a connected thought is that it’s the best looking stack. The later model tapered and/or slanted stacks are even worse.

Last ounce of reality .. if you want a storage container build or buy a storage container.
Northen Spy wrote;
“The stack has been off of our NT26 for most of it's life. it makes a good storage container upside down in our shed.”

Painting the doors white is not a bad idea. But it will de-value your boat.

 

[Northern Spy]

I don't have a lot of profile photos that show the stack removed. Here is one from last summer, and one from the last haul out.

I had the mast off last year as well to rework it as it was looking too busy.

 

[Northern Spy]

...Last ounce of reality .. if you want a storage container build or buy a storage container.
Northen Spy wrote;
“The stack has been off of our NT26 for most of it's life. it makes a good storage container upside down in our shed.”

Hyperbole Eric. Hyperbole. Although I think it has a few fenders in it and maybe a coil of weighted prawn trap line. There it is, behind the coolers and diesel jugs.

 

[Porgy]

The story is the fake stack was added a few years later for storage. I think keeping it original as a tribute to Lynn Senour. He said the design of the NT26 was an homage to working tugs of the ‘30s. So I guess the whole lot of them are fake and should be dismantled.

 

[Frosty]

I see it kind of both ways.

On the one hand, I try never to live my life for re-sale. That's just my personal preference.

On the other hand, if it's at all possible (and it usually is), I will keep all of the original items intact, and then make my mods on new pieces. Like say you want to remove the doors, then you store them and make inserts with no door and just a window. Then in future it can be put back. Win/win.

It does slightly depend on the item. A common, unremarkable item of course I'll just go to town on. I'm not going to remove a brand patch from a Dick's Sporting Goods backpack and save it in climate-controlled storage.

But the NT26 is iconic, and I think a really neat looking (and functioning) boat. So if it were me, I'd make the changes I wanted, but within a framework of "it can be put back." So don't irretrievably mod the doors, for example; but rather remove and store them, then make your own new insert panel. Store the stack and don't make it so it can't be put back. Remove the A/C but keep things so it can be put back, etc.

**************

The other view is it's your last boat, just do what you want and don't worry about it. But if that were your view you probably wouldn't have asked here, so I'm guessing you do have some second thoughts, or wanted to see what other people thought about it.

 

[Northern Spy]

The stack was always there. The original Red Apple had a faux stack. The drawings I have from 1980 include the stack. In late 1980 or early 1981, a Dickinson Bristol stove was installed in Red Apple and they put the day tank in the existing stack.

You are spot on about Senour's inspiration though.

 

[firehoser75]

Rhetorical question, if you find the stack "ugly" (and it is a prominent part of the look) and you don't like the side doors, why purchase that model of boat? Both are a big part of the design and look.

I agree with the others, try to make any changes "reversible".
For me, the pilothouse doors were FANTASTIC. Our NT 37 had them on both sides, and made ventilation easy both at anchor or underway. They also allowed easy access to the foredeck for anchoring, etc. and to the dock from midship for easier single handing. To me, bonuses all around!
However, to each his own.

 

[OldDan1943]

IMO, you do need a pilot house door for line handling !!

 

[Scooby5959]

The reason I bought the boat is fairly simple it checked more boxes than the other boats I looked at Ranger etc. i’m a big fan of Willards as well however I’ve known a couple of people that own them and the full displacement hull has a lot roll If that’s how you say it, like a sailboat without a mask the semi displacement hull would be a little more stable plus Willards are difficult to find and difficult to trailer if at all The Nordic has a Perkins 85 horse I’d probably prefer 50 to 60 hp however extra 20 30 horse isn’t going to kill me Perkins motor is a pretty good motor. There aren’t many pilot house trawlers to choose from my favorite boat out of the many boats I’ve owned from 26 foot to 45 foot is a 34 foot sedan single engine . I live on the Long Beach Peninsula close to the mouth of the Columbia river and the Pacific Ocean. Morage here is very affordable but hard to come by the boat needs to be pulled out of the water every winter as the weather is very harsh During the winter here and it’s hard on your boat , finding a place to store the boat is difficult, running the boat up the Columbia river to a marina there would be a 3 Hour drive and 500 a month so I thought I’d try the trailer trawler thing I can see some big advantages , A trip to the San Juan‘s is now an hour and a half drive not 36 hours etc. I realize making changes to the boat maybe sacrilege to some but with yawls help I hope that whatever changes I make will be good ones

 

[markpierce]

My boat's "stack" is functional as it contains fuel for the stove.

 

[Scooby5959]

Probably what I should do is convert the boat to a dry exhaust that would be a separate thread but I’ve always wanted to do that to my Taiwanese trawlers, keel cooling The boat is sitting in my driveway I suppose I could

 

[Northern Spy]

Probably what I should do is convert the boat to a dry exhaust that would be a separate thread but I’ve always wanted to do that to my Taiwanese trawlers, keel cooling The boat is sitting in my driveway I suppose I could

Might make it tough to trailer. Just a thought. Your pilothouse would be warm enough. Might want to keep that AC...and the opening pilothouse doors.

 

[Scooby5959]

I always liked the idea of dry exhaust this particular boat has a Perkins the exhaust is on the starboard side of the engine exhaust piping hose whatever you call it runs down the starboard side to the cockpit then crosses over to the Portside and exits the boat at the very least I should probably have a straight run Out the back of the boat. Keel cooler should be fine with the trailer a fair bit of work trying to get the exhaust piping out through the top of the boat not so sure I could figure out a good way to do that . Would be interested in looking at somebody else that did it. I also thought about running the exhaust out the side of the boat , there was a new production trawler that does that I don’t quite remember the Manufacturer of it though the shorter run the better as far as I’m concerned. The boatI’m talking about has twin small diesels 50 60 hp Twin keels so if you beached it and let the tide go out it’s stood on its own kind of a cool idea

 

[HuffinandPuffin]

I think it looks fine w/o the stack!