Bertram 630 Sportfish Sinks?

If you notice the lack of space between the prop and the strut it appears that the hull has lost integrity. I would think if the bouy was struck by the prop there would be a series of slashes.

That indeed is the fascinating bit to this whole thing, and none of the scenarios bode particularly well for the manufacturer.

"Attached is a photograph of the buoy shortly after the incident occurred. The paint on the buoy has since washed away but we were able to gather samples of the paint from what was obviously a fresh strike on the buoy. Independent laboratory results confirmed that the paint type on the vessel hull was found to match the paint transfer from the buoy to a high degree of scientific certainty. Also attached is the buoy manufacturer’s sketch of the full buoy and a description of its construction."


The above is a quote from Mikes letter..... Whats your take on that? Are you guys saying the boat did not hit anything?

*Any* boat sitting on the sand doesn't bode well for any manufacture! Equipment failure or not.

OnThePins, I would be surprised if your still on anybodies Christmas list after this Bertram thing finishes up... chill ! Unless financial advisors know more than naval architects, marine engineers, captains, etc. This is also Mr Y/F site, it’s great source of information, and far better than any magazine or other forums that your fine, hands down… that’s why you joined right , moving on.

I think the boat’s been up on the hard and blocked incorrectly, and it’s broken some major structures in the boat. I was reading that this happens to this type of construction (core vacuum bagged). Please note everything that is solid glass is still intact, everything else with a core… well its not there. It’s a demo boat that’s been sitting at this dealer for a long time, which means there was something wrong with it. You can always pickup a demo on the cheap, but they struggled with this one…. I also read that the skipper said the bow of the boat just ripped off… thought it was a bit of bull****… well.
If your travelling at 25+kts in a decent swell and hit a wave incorrectly I wouldn’t be surprised that its done that damage, with possible major damage before hand. You hear of yachts all the time delaminating hulls and having major hull failures by simply hitting a wave incorrectly (of the same construction) watch the Sydney – Hobart race.

Also, the buoy’s chain starts approximately 5’ under water, which is what the boat draws. It would be a heavy 3/8” – ½” L grade chain. So I think it’s to deep and to heavy to move on to the running gear.

IMO

far

I don't think there's any question as to the boat hitting the buoy. That's certainly feasible, and there is evidence that the buoy was hit by something. The question is, did the buoy and said impact cause the boat to sink from the damage it incurred by the impact, or are there other issues with regards to the integrity and quality of the boats fiberglass / lamination, sea conditions, etc. etc..

8 pages into this.... I'm sure you can gather this is quite a hornets nest!

I'm not a Betram owner, but we do own several other glass hulled boats boat big and small, so it's fascinating to understand how a boat like this comes apart. More importantly, what's taken from it in future boat building techniques and materials.

Okay guys i just looked at this one for 5 min.... Whats the ansewer for this one.......


Carl, what did the hard top look like? was it intact? I would love to see a forward pic of it if you can...Thanks

it looks like someone cut the whole helm pod out of the boat with a sawzall!!

Has it been established where the anchor and chain ended up? Could the anchor have snagged something in a rough sea state; say a buoy chain and and then had the force to rip the bow off of the boat going at whatever speed?

To quote from YF picture #6.

"Zooming in on this section, this was the anchor locker. The PVC pipe sticking up was part of the chain guide... "

I don't see evidence of an anchor or any chain in the locker. not certain where the bitter end of the chain would attach, but I do see what might have been a place for the chain to attach to the right of the PVC tube.

The anchor could have fallen off with the bow section or the anchor could have pulled off the bow section. Or maybe the chain was never attached to the boat and just played out as the boat went down.

I'm sure there must be a simple answer.

Just curious.

I thought i heard that early on in this thread

i think the skipper has ripped off the helm/pod. the boats stopped, but the skipper is still moving forward... ouch

far

Only one thing (besides a sawzall) can blow that pod out like that…….and that’s water!! AND LOTS OF IT!!!

Even worse. I still can't understand how the radar reflector on the buoy has no visible damage. Considering what the reflector is made of, I can't imagine that it didn't sustain any damage after getting hit by a 63' SF.

Which means that the bulkheads would have had to fail unless it dove so hard that the transom was sheered on the way going under.

the entire console had been torn off. look how close the helm seat is to the consol Vs the built in foot rest the chair and helm pod are where they belong the console had dislodged and moved aft. Lots of water to do this!!!

One thing nobody thought of or mentioned, is maybe the coring had water in it and if the boat was winterized the freezing and thawing seperated or delaminated the core from the inside out.

An anchor getting loose usually flops on top of the water, water ski's and bangs into the hull-side. I've seen them cause serious gelcoat damage, but not nearly this type of damage.....

I also don't think a 250lb buoy would sustain that little bit of impact damage from a 35 knot sportfish hitting it. I also don't think a buoy that size would cause this much delamination. Remember the buoy moves and is not THAT heavy. I could see a full size container doing this, not a 250lb buoy. There also would be marks from the radar reflectors, I would think.

I saw a 34' Trojan that hit a real full size sea buoy (much larger then this) marking Hillsboro Inlet, the Trojan was doing 20 knots...... it's hull fully intact, deck mostly intact. Along the rubrail area for about 10' there was a hole about a foot high and a foot deep. Nothing like this......

Console has not moved, the hinged portion of the console with the electronics has come "unhinged" and partially obscured the pod that contains the wheel and the control levers.