Conference unifix::sailing

    As my crew says; "with a chainsaw and a bottle of Mount Gay, all things
    are possible".
    
    Benefits:
    
    C&C 25's really do shortchange you on cockpit space.
    
    Your boat IS paid for and not worth a lot in today's market.
    
    It will keep you busy.
    
    
    Potential Problems:
    
    Your center of effort will be changed in relationship to your
    waterline.
    
    You will be adding wetted surface and weight, making your boat slower
    without additional sail area.
    
    You will have to lengthen and move your backstay to your new transom.
    
    Your already short boom will be really out of proportion.  You'll look
    like a folkboat unless you add length to it.
    
    You will need somebody GOOD to help you do the work in glass. 
    Especially the finished surfaces.
    
    You will need to repaint you boat.
    
    You will need to put your rudder under the stern unless you plan to
    hang it off the transom again, eliminating the traditional looking
    transom.  That could be considerable work.
    
    Cost.  Will you do the work yourself?  Will you hire experts along the
    way?
    
    The boat will most likely be worth less on the open market than before
    you started.
    
    three feet is an awful lot to add to a 25 footer.  I was involved in
    making a Tartan 41 a 43 footer by adding two feet to the stern.  That
    was marginally acceptable.  I'd say no more than 18" will look okay on
    a 25 footer.
    
    Dave
    
    

    
    not a marine architect, but it seems like that would move the center
    of lateral resistance way aft, and unless you plan on moving your keel
    and changing your sailplan too I'd think that you'd be creating a
    rather nasty lee helm.
    
    { unless you wanted to glue a new bow on, too  ;)  }
    
    I've never heard of this being done before, is this really a common
    thing to do on Lake Champlain?
    
       /Jim
    

    
    btw, it might be fun to figure out all the dimensions and see what VPP
    predicts for its sailing ability in various wind conditions.

    I suggest taking your old boat and the money it would cost to do the
    work and trading up to a Catalina or Oday 27.
    
    If you really want a lot of cockpit, trade even for a Pearson 26
    one-design.
    
    While the hull portion of the mod may be do-able, it'll be hard to get
    the cockpit cosmetic details right.  On a wooden boat you can cover
    anything with canvas, paint, and teak trim.  But on a glass boat it's
    hard to duplicate the molded in look.
    
    - gene

Quality fiberglass work is difficult to do and is therefore expensive in 
time (learing to do it yourself) or in money (having it done). Modifying 
your boat as you describe would reduce (I would expect) its resale value 
to virtually nothing and would be horrendously expensive and difficult. 
I agree with Gene -- sell your current boat and buy a bigger one. It'll
be cheaper and vastly less frustrating and time-consuming. 

Cutting boats apart to add a section is quite common, though it is 
usually done only on large (power) ships and yachts. The added length is
almost always between the bow and stern and very rarely at the stern. I 
don't recall ever hearing of more than minor lengthening/shortening 
being done to a sailboat and then only to fit some racing rule (like 
whacking 6 inches off the bow with a single vertical slice, which made 
the boat look vaguely like an overgrown pram dinghy). 

    I have a Morris 36 which could use a bit more lazzaret (sp) which
    could be accomplished by adding 2 feet onto the stern. Since Tom
    Morris dosen't build a 38 footer I asked about what would be involved.
    
    Tom suggested that if I would build a plug, which is where the real
    expense for this type of change is, he would be happy to add the two
    feet for a very reasonable fee. Tom didn't give me a firm quote, but
    it didn't sound like it would be a major outlay.
    
    I think the issue is whether you are happy with your boat and willing
    to loose the resale value as a C&C25. 
    
    The issue around extending the cockpit, and related glass work, is
    quite correct. However, you might be able to salvage the aft end of
    your cockpit and just have to add a filler in the middle. This might
    not be to difficult.
    
      

    To answer some of the replies.....
    
    Yes, on Lake Champlain (back in the 50's, when a fiberglass
    boat was like my dad's 1890's friendship he hand laid fiberglass
    over (groan!!)) it wasn't a huge undertaking to add a couple of
    feet.  I remember seeing one boat that had this wonderful cockpit
    that must have been a 3 foot addition.  As to how it sailed...who
    knows!
    
    What is VPP, and how does it work?  It sounds like software.
    BTW...now that MIT has that 9000 for the cup, maybe I could 
    get them to toss in my measurements and size the job..whacha
    think??
    
    My thought on how to take care of the moved keel....how about
    adding a modern bowsprit, like on the world racers?  In theory
    this would balance the rig pretty well.   could use a new genny,
    so there wouldn't be a great loss there. There is, of course,
    the problem of getting the sprit to stay in place...I guess
    run it under the deck and chain it down.
    
    Does anyone know of a nice 28 footer owner that wants to trade DOWN?
    
    Beau