Trip to Barcelona... To look at a Pogo 40

 I (not so) recently went to Barcelona, in Spain, to look at a boat.  A Pogo 40, because as the avid reader (and I am sure that there is at least three, and one of whom cares about boats) should know, I am besotted with the fiberglass and spectra smorgasbord that is the Pogo 40.
I first found out about this kind of boat several years ago, and wanted one, but only two years ago when I was boat visiting while anchored out at Punta Mita (aboard my stout Altair) I came across a woman who knew someone that actually had one!  So then I managed to see and sail on that boat shortly afterwards, and since then I've been very hotly looking.  But they are a pricey sort, and mostly far far away.  So when I found this one online in September, I began the process of emailing the guy and setting up the visit, and figured I'd do a real good look over, and it would be worth my time, and the money.

Here is a picture of me doing a comprehensive look

And more of a look...

Sadly, I did not fall head over heels in love with this boat.  I did a very comprehensive look, and took pictures of all the faults, and (for the price) this one did not impress me as much as the one in Long Beach.  So lets talk about the faults...  I couldn't get a very clear picture from the owner about what exactly he had done in maintenance, and I suspect that he did a little, but left a lot of the war scars from the boat's racing history un-mended.  What a history, by the way, this boat has crossed the atlantic racing at least 25 times, and has more than 35,000 miles under its keel. 

So first off, there is corrosion at different places.  In this picture you can see the rivet points that connect the black boom to the grey gooseneck and many of the rivets are corroded away.  Same for the other side and the other end as well.  Not a huge deal, but not a great sign.  Then look at the mast track, the vertical part above the gooseneck, going up the mast, it is aluminum, touching carbon, and there is corrosion seeping out from that.  What shape are the screws that hold it together in?  what happens if the mast track pulls off in the middle of the ocean? 

 In fact, Pixel Flyer, a class 40 that was attempting an around the world nonstop record, had just that happen, and abandoned the attempt, and is now for sale (for a lot of money)
So what else was wrong with this boat? 

 I was quite surprised to find that lots of the lines that run around on the deck, to sails and things, the "running rigging" was in really nice shape, despite being left out in the sun all the time, but there was a few things with a lot of sun damage.  The two running backstays, which hold up the mast when you are going downwind, were in bad shape.  Not broken or parted, but visibly scorched and ragged.  There is no cable for the back of the boat, so these are pretty important.  But the cables that run up and down are all very old, and have never been replaced, so they might be considered suspect for ocean crossings.

 The engine, which started and ran well, probably has lots of life in it yet, but since I had just come over from the Pogo in Long beach with the same motor, I could compare the two by sound and smell.  This one had more of a used rattle and the smell was not great.  Like it was old.
I could trust this to cross the atlantic with, but it didn't charm my socks off.

 And the sails!  There were lots of sails in the ad, but several of them were not present on the boat and I was a bit surprised that he didn't bring them down before I got there, he had a month to prepare.  Also maybe he could have cleaned the boat and the bottom...? 
So the sails are old race sails that were sailed to their death, or nearly so.  The main is in bad condition, especially on the top, and that is the most important part, since it is always being used.  The bottom can be put away when you reef the sail, but not the top.

 
The jib wasn't torn but wasn't pretty, and the other sails we didn't look at too carefully, just rolling them out a little on the sidewalk, so I didn't get to see the shape.  I wanted to run them up and roll them out but the guy didn't want to.  (he didn't use them, so figured I wouldn't need to see them)

So I spent two days looking at the boat and the first day was inspecting, climbing the mast, and diving the bottom, the second we looked at the sails and then went out on the water.  It was a bit telling that when he let loose all the lines, the motor wouldn't shift into reverse (the cables were rusty) and we had to fend off the other boats for a while until he got that working, and then we ended up backing all the way out of the harbor...

 I think the backing out of the harbor was partly because he wasn't sure if it would shift into forward, and wanted space.  But also the harbor is small and shallow and the boat is deep. 

So here is a shot of the marina while I was flying away.  You can spot the boat barely if you zoom in, its the second one from the end on the bottom row, touching the breakwater. 

Now these are the faults, but I was really impressed with the hull and I'm still seriously considering this boat as a purchase, but the price has to be low enough to make all the improvements within my modest budget.  So stay tuned for future possible developments here.  Or elsewhere...