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List Price: $17.95Amazon.com's Price: $12.21 You Save: $5.74 (32%)as of 11/22/2009 04:29 EST
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 797
EAN: 9780070442481
Edition: 1
ISBN: 0070442487
Label: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press
Manufacturer: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 139
Publication Date: January 01, 1994
Publisher: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press
Studio: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press
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Editorial Review:
Product Description: Since the late 1950s, when the first "plastic" sailboat shocked the New York Boat Show, fiberglass boatbuilding has gone through classic growing pains. Longtime yacht broker and marine surveyor Henry Mustin has seen it all: the slow acceptance of those early, heavy boats; the market boom of the lighter boats of the 1970s; the "boat pox" scare of the 1980s; and the continued lack of industry standards that makes buying and owning a fiberglass boat an adventure. In Surveying Fiberglass Sailboats Mustin explains what to watch for in a used sailboat from each era, and how to ferret out the hidden defects in any boat. He shows how to estimate the cost of repairs and the value of a boat. And he addresses the question: When is a fiberglass boat too used up to save?
Mustin's part-by-part look at hull, deck, rig, and machinery is both a minicourse for transforming used-boat shopping from a game of craps to a science, and the first step in a holistic boat maintenance program. His discussion of the significance of cracks found in aging hulls and decks is the most thorough in print. He is not shy in assessing the lack of regulation of professional surveyors, nor does he shrink from pointing a finger at shoddy building practices.
Having a used boat surveyed is a critical prelude to buying it. Yet a professional survey is expensive--several hundred dollars. Surveying Fiberglass Sailboats will enable you to conduct your own surveys while narrowing the field, then monitor a professional surveyor's performance when selecting your target boat.
Average Rating: 
Rating: -
Books like this are great for scaring one away from the idea of boat ownership. Much alarm is raised regarding blisters, osmotic or otherwise. It's not clear to me why they're considered an emergency, so perhaps they're more of a resale cosmetic / FUD issue than anything else. This book is perhaps most useful for the rarified crowd of people already surveying other types of boats, or with heaps of experience with fiberglass laminates. Much here is above and beyond what a typical boat owner/buyer ... Read More
Rating: -
Read this book and you can evaluate boats and surveyors. This in turn will make you feel more comfortable when you hire a surveyor to meet an insurance requirement or to evaluate things you don't feel competent to do yourself.
This book does a great job explaining how glass is laid up, the different types of glass, mat, roving, etc, and where they should be used. Common problems found in fiberglass boats such as blistering are discussed with lots of surprising information.
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I used this and another, more detailed book, to complete my own survey on an inexpensive boat with a measure of confidence. I felt that I could gauge the safety and useability of all the major systems of the boat within reason..is it safe, does it work properly, etc.
I didn't always understand the why behind some analyses, but the average person can easily use the book to a) perform a basic survey on an inexpensive boat, or b) winnow the acceptable from the unaccptable before paying a ... Read More
Rating: -
Henry does it in one 3 1/2 hour setting - completely. I now feel confident in my search for 'Das Boot'. I drove a 27 foot Tartan for years, decided it was time for a 40 and didn't know how to proceed in my next move. Now I do. Well written, factual and even mentions, not-unfavorably, some names. I do not believe you could go wrong with this purchase, if, you are on the same quest as I. Retirement, with dive charters in the Caribbe... Buenas Suertes, y'all.
Rating: -
Mr. Mustin explains fiberglass boat construction in very detailed laymans terms. His real world experience dealing with the problems of fiberglass boats and his discuss of what is a real problem and what is something you can live with/expect was informative. The last chapters on the trade of surveying boats for a living were excellent.
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