I did it!

[islander16]

After years of thinking about it and months of searching for it, I finally did it! I bought a 2005 Parker 2520 XL. I look forward to talking to you all and am more than willing to listen to any advice you might have for me. We live on an island off the coast of Maine and the boat will be used primarily for transportation and recreation.

 

[TWOBOATER]

You chose a great boat for Downeast. That pilot house is key for cool spring and fall, and moist summers. There's plenty of room up top for a radar, which I'm sure you plan to add. People put radar on their cars in Maine don't they? Good luck with your Parker.

 

[islander16]

Thank you TWOBOATER. You are right. It is a rare day that we go out that it does not get cold at some point. Especially as we do a lot of our boating after work in the late afternoon and early evening. We have been running around the coast for 20 years in an 18' center console and we are long overdue for some comfort. The radar might not happen this year but it is definitely in this boat's future.

 

[miky2884]

Very cool Love Maine! And nice Rig it will suit you well!

 

[DaleH]

Ayuh, welcome to Classic Parker!

My twin bro lives down Maine, used to be on the Damariscotta River, now inland by Pohrtlin (Portland for the rest of you ... )

Pull up a chair, grab a beverage of your choice and read here for hours.

 

[Megabyte]

Welcome aboard brother!
The cabin of that boat will keep you much more comfortable than a CC ever would.
Check out the 'Projects' forum for members who have even added heat. :wink:

BTW - Adding a photo of your new ride gets you extra karma points.

 

[Skorcher]

Nice Ride - Congrats!

 

[sydngoose]

Congratulations! what a great vessel for your area: I grew up in Camden/ Rockport until I was 17 and now I live in Jacksonville, Florida. Any specific questions, feel free to post here. As mentioned, radar is nice. Are you planning to add a cockpit second station?
Aaron

 

[islander16]

Thank you all for welcoming me! I'll post more pictures later when the boat gets delivered.
Kevin, I'm glad I didn't start out on the wrong side of Karma.
Aaron, we are about 30 miles east of Camden/Rockport in Burnt Coat Harbor on Swan's Island.
I'm looking for suggestions for an anchor suitable for the Penobscot Bay/Mount Desert Island area of the coast of the Maine coast.
Also, does anyone have any experience mooring a Parker with a bow pulpit? Is the pulpit strong enough to stand up to one of our noreasters? Are the cleats strong enough? I'm already thinking of adding a mooring bitt.

Thank you for all the help. The boat gets picked up in Florida at the end of this week to start it's trip North.

Charlie

 

[TWOBOATER]

Having just installed a bow sprit on my 93 2520 I'd say it can handle just about anything. The sprit is secured with the cleat bolts which are 3/8" by approx 6" ss screws. And 2 lags aft of that. That's some serious shear strength! You'll need to see how the line rides either through the bow roller or directly over the side from the cleat.

As for an anchor, I'm trying to find a used 20# CQR which IMHO is the best all-around anchor there is. I think it will fit nicely in the bow roller too.

 

[Surface Interval]

Islander16,

A belated congrats, best boat around.

Everyone talks about anchors from which ones best, size, shape, color, weight, ect. Obviously, you have to get the right anchor for the bottom composition you will be anchoring on, but I believe an anchor is only as good as the hardware that goes with it. So whatever anchor you choice just make sure you have plenty of chain rode to go with it. I always go for every foot of boat, I put one foot of chain. Some guys at the boating club ask me if I'm anchoring a cruise ship, when they just see chain coming out, but every time I anchor I set.

I also believe the bow pulpit is strong enough for a northeastern or a hurricane as well.
Happy boating.

 

[Ludicrous40]

Congrats and Welcome!

This will be my first full year with my 2003 2520XL, I can't wait. I don't have to tell you about this extended winter………but thankfully it appears to be over.

In my opinion, this site is top notch. I've found the best information and support that I've ever experienced. There is great knowledge here, everything from fabrication to seamanship. Read on….

Have a great year!

 

[POGE]

Did I miss the back story. That looks like Florida and the reg# is FLA. How did you get it up to Maine ? if this is the case.
Thats is the boat for Maine, enjoy !!!!

 

[islander16]

Poge,
You have a good eye. The picture is during sea trials in Florida in early January. The boat was trucked to Maine in February and has been under a tarp ever since. My goal was to have it in the water by the beginning of May but, if it doesn't warm up soon and stop blowing easterly the launch date might be pushed back. It was under two inches of snow again two days ago. It's time for Old Man Winter to get his flabby old a** below the equator.
Charlie

 

[Gobbler66]

Sweet boat Charlie! Welcome to the group.

 

[islander16]

Okay, everybody,
The Florida boat is now in the boatshop. The new batteries are in, the Garmin is being installed, the old name is being scraped off, ( as per the wife's instruction ) the bottom will get it's first coat of paint ever. Looking for a splash later next week. This is suppose to be terrifying, for the new boat owner right? I'm working on the inflatable dinghy tomorrow. Let me just express how nice it is to have total confidence in the boatyard. My boatyard guy has been nothing but helpful during this process as well as recommishining a boat for a customer last season. It doesn't hurt that his new right hand man is a brother to a friend of mine from another nearby island. I've always said, as a local building contractor, that you are only as strong as your weakest link. I'd like to think that I, as the owner, am the weakest link towards getting this boat from Florida to Maine and into the water safely. Hopefully, I am selling myself short.

 

[TWOBOATER]

Make sure that bottom is de-waxed, sanded, and primed properly so your paint doesn't flake off in a couple years. It's a real shame to see a new bottom done incorrectly the first time it's painted, and have it start to fail prematurely.

 

[Skorcher]

Make sure that bottom is de-waxed, sanded, and primed properly so your paint doesn't flake off in a couple years. It's a real shame to see a new bottom done incorrectly the first time it's painted, and have it start to fail prematurely.

Absolutely True - I had my brand new 2510 bottom painted and when I pulled her out at end of first season I was horrified by what I found - the paint was coming off in sheets and I had some growth on the hull because of it. Then comes the expensive strip sand repaint....
Do it right the first time!

 

[Megabyte]

Do it right the first time!

So true.
My 2520 spent the first 7 years of it's life on a trailer. You would think with that many years under her that she would have been wax free.

The yard where I wet slip put the initial bottom on my boat. Again, you would tend to think they would know what they were doing.
About 85% of their business is sail, and they cater to the racing crowd. Still...

For the first 3 seasons, every time my boat was pulled for the winter and power washed, the bottom came off of some sections in sheets.
Time to get the local Interlux man involved...

The rep inspected the bottom, and gave the new yard a plan and a list of products.
The entire bottom was sanded off, solvent washed, taped up, and 2 coats of barrier coat primer applied, each within 12 hours of each other.
Within the next 12 hours, the first coat of 'Grady blue' ablative paint was applied, and then a second coat of black ablative.

It worked because this time the paint has stayed on.
Now when I begin to see the blue coming through, I know it is time for a re-coat (just performed this spring).
This year I had her painted with one of the new(er) non copper biocide coatings by Petitt.

Proper prep and application of product are the keys to success.
Don't assume (as I did) that every yard knows what they are doing.

 

[islander16]

Okay Gang, I'm sorry for the lack of an update. The IT specialist/first mate/wife has been busy with other stuff and I have been too busy grinning and drooling to post an update.
She got her bottom wet on May 9th. We brought her home to our island that evening. It was 48 degrees and raining lightly but we were nice and warm in out pilothouse. We've put 20 hours on her since then. Did our first nighttime crossing from the mainland last Saturday night. Took a trip to another island last Sunday. The only other boat anchored in the cove was, wait for it, a 2004 2520XL with a Yamaha F225 on a full bracket. Some friends of ours who landed on the other side of the island and hiked to the cove thought the first boat was us until we showed up. Small world!