Another new start for Helmsman

Doug_Snider said:

We have a delivery date for “Alba Bella”. The container ship from Shanghai will arrive in Seattle on October 30. We may have her home for Thanksgiving. Now we have a definite answer to the frequent questions about when we’re getting our boat.

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Alright Doug and Patti! We can only imagine how thrilled you are!

Doug and Patti, we are so excited for you. Congratulations!!!!

Nancy and Rick said:

Alright Doug and Patti! We can only imagine how thrilled you are!

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Thanks, we were walking on air all day yesterday.

Doug_Snider said:

We have a delivery date for “Alba Bella”. The container ship from Shanghai will arrive in Seattle on October 30. We may have her home for Thanksgiving. Now we have a definite answer to the frequent questions about when we’re getting our boat.

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Fantastic! Congratulations you two! Can’t wait to meet your new baby!

Nancy n Larry said:

Fantastic! Congratulations you two! Can’t wait to meet your new baby!

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It’s getting so close.

That blue hull looks sharp.

Looks good Doug! Mine is tracking along about how yours is. Still working out a place to drop it. Getting real for this set of boats!

Alba Bella is a real beauty. Thanks for the photo!

Is the hull painted? I thought it was gelcoat?

backinblue said:

Is the hull painted? I thought it was gelcoat?

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It is gel coat

Helmsman said:

It is gel coat

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Thought so, just looked like maybe some painting was going on from the pics. Just curious, do they offer the option of painting and if so, does anyone get that?

backinblue said:

Just curious, do they offer the option of painting and if so, does anyone get that?

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We'll be getting accent stripes painted on when it arrives in Seattle next June. Needs a little bling...

backinblue said:

Thought so, just looked like maybe some painting was going on from the pics. Just curious, do they offer the option of painting and if so, does anyone get that?

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Don’t know. That might be a question for the Helmsman folks.

Doug_Snider said:

It’s getting so close.

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Congratulations Doug, and thank you for posting!

I think we're getting the same hull color as you are in our 38 Sedan - Pastel Blue (though our construction is about 6 months behind you).

I still haven't seen the color in person. Every photo of it I see looks different depending on the light, shadows, etc. A little nerve wracking picking a hull color from tiny images on the internet, and not knowing what it will actually look like until it shows up.

backinblue said:

Thought so, just looked like maybe some painting was going on from the pics. Just curious, do they offer the option of painting and if so, does anyone get that?

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I asked about painting when we ordered our boat. Painting is always an option, but there didn't seem to be any cost advantage to having it painted by the factory vs. afterwards. The cost is the cost, for a 38 ft boat should be somewhere around $15k.

If the gelcoat fades over time on our to the point it needs painting, I'll have it done sometime in the future. Until then, it'll be obsessive waxing.

Nick14 said:

I asked about painting when we ordered our boat. Painting is always an option, but there didn't seem to be any cost advantage to having it painted by the factory vs. afterwards. The cost is the cost, for a 38 ft boat should be somewhere around $15k.

If the gelcoat fades over time on our to the point it needs painting, I'll have it done sometime in the future. Until then, it'll be obsessive waxing.

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Good point Nick, I hadn't thought of that. However, if the colored gelcoat is a cost-add option, some of that could offset doing the painting now. My 10 y.o. boat with a painted hull shines like a irror with minimal maintenace.

Nick14 said:

Congratulations Doug, and thank you for posting!

I think we're getting the same hull color as you are in our 38 Sedan - Pastel Blue (though our construction is about 6 months behind you).

I still haven't seen the color in person. Every photo of it I see looks different depending on the light, shadows, etc. A little nerve wracking picking a hull color from tiny images on the internet, and not knowing what it will actually look like until it shows up.

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Hi Nick, we are also getting the same color, pastel blue and the photos do look a bit deceiving. It appears much brighter than what shows on the internet and color chip. Hoping it is only lighting! We have hull #52 and expect to see our boat in the next few months. Congrats on your new boat!

Nancy n Larry said:

Hi Nick, we are also getting the same color, pastel blue and the photos do look a bit deceiving. It appears much brighter than what shows on the internet and color chip. Hoping it is only lighting! We have hull #52 and expect to see our boat in the next few months. Congrats on your new boat!

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That is a popular color. I think you will all be really happy with it. The idea of painting was not something that I thought about at all. I think putting the Permanon (ceramic) on will make a difference in terms of gel coat wear.

We just received word from Scott and the Helmsman team that our boat should arrive around the end of November. That is subject to the cargo shipping system and the ports, of course. Then another phase of the fun begins!

Helmsman said:

That is a popular color. I think you will all be really happy with it. The idea of painting was not something that I thought about at all. I think putting the Permanon (ceramic) on will make a difference in terms of gel coat wear.

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We have been playing around with the Permanon Marine coating all summer long and have used it on our vehicles. We live on a dusty gravel road, and our farm environment seems harsher than a marine environment. The Permanon has held up well and we rarely have to wash our cars any longer, just a quick hose off. Pretty happy with it. Do you have your boat yet and have you cc'd it? If so what are your impressions?

Helmsman said:

We just received word from Scott and the Helmsman team that our boat should arrive around the end of November. That is subject to the cargo shipping system and the ports, of course. Then another phase of the fun begins!

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Just saw this! Very excited for you!

Nancy n Larry said:

We have been playing around with the Permanon Marine coating all summer long and have used it on our vehicles. We live on a dusty gravel road, and our farm environment seems harsher than a marine environment. The Permanon has held up well and we rarely have to wash our cars any longer, just a quick hose off. Pretty happy with it. Do you have your boat yet and have you cc'd it? If so what are your impressions?

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The boat won’t arrive until the end of November. My plan is to get coated some time in the first month. Will report back what we think. I haven’t found any concerns or complaints from folks yet, so we will see. It is good you have tested it for us. Ease of application is another selling point. It is made for non-professionals to apply, which is a good thing.

Nancy n Larry said:

Just saw this! Very excited for you!

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It is exciting. They make a great boat and it will be fun to stretch its legs across the gulf. It is a well behaved boat in close quarters. It will be so much fun to get the opportunity to skipper it.

Helmsman said:

We just received word from Scott and the Helmsman team that our boat should arrive around the end of November. That is subject to the cargo shipping system and the ports, of course. Then another phase of the fun begins!

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Congratulations!

Helmsman said:

It is exciting. They make a great boat and it will be fun to stretch its legs across the gulf. It is a well behaved boat in close quarters. It will be so much fun to get the opportunity to skipper it.

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We hope you document your journey and will share it with us all. We thought 52 NM to home was an adventure. Keep us posted on your route. We look forward to sharing the arrival and maiden voyage of “Alba Bella” with Trawler Forum.

Doug_Snider said:

We hope you document your journey and will share it with us all. We thought 52 NM to home was an adventure. Keep us posted on your route. We look forward to sharing the arrival and maiden voyage of “Alba Bella” with Trawler Forum.

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We certainly will. The trip will be fun. Certainly a good warmup for future trips.

Here are photos of the two things I have coated with Permanon. The car has been done for 3-4 months, traveling a gravel farm road daily. This photo was taken after hosing off yesterday and then driving it 90 miles. NO DUST!!! The trailer is brand new and we just gave it the first coat. Very pleased with how this product is holding up and ease of cleaning and use. I am definitely going use it on my new Helmsman.Great Product, user friendly and affordable!


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That looks great. The finish on your pictures is what I am hoping for.

Helmsman said:

We just received word from Scott and the Helmsman team that our boat should arrive around the end of November. That is subject to the cargo shipping system and the ports, of course. Then another phase of the fun begins!

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That is pretty exciting news, Helmsman. Congratulations!!! Sounds like it's all coming together and things are starting to become real.

Have any of you veteran Helmsman owners tried to apply a ceramic coat after years of ownership? We did this on our Ranger Tug and it was both expensive (lots of wet sanding of the hull to restore the faded color) and fantastic. The boat looked brand new when we sold it.

We have the Kingston gray hull. It has some minor scuffs and marks, but is in good shape (3 years old). Still, it would take some work to buff things out. Thinking about hiring a specialist to do this on the hull.