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My name is Ed and I've raced small one-design sailboats for about 20 yrs. I just introduced the sport to my 8 yr old son, but I'm quickly realizing that we need a small chase boat. I've been around Whalers for years as most clubs use them for safety or mark boats, also tons of coaches. Now that I'm in the market and doing research I'm starting to notice that my sailboat knowledge isn't carrying over to these boats. I've done some fiberglassing, some epoxy work, some woodwork and a TON of sanding and buffing. More recently I've been playing with gelcoat finishes of older boats. I've taken four 90's boats and wet sanded them up thru 400,600,800,1000,1500,2000,2500 & 3000. Then compounding twice, polished & waxed. The results blow my mind each time and the accuracy of the reflections rival sports cars on the road. That's where my knowledge stops.

When buying racing sailboats there are a ton of tricks to check the quality of used boats. There are certain years and styles that you want to avoid. Is there a cheat sheet I can find for 13' Whalers? My hope was to buy an older beat up hull only, fix, fill, sand and paint similar to the Jamestown Dist videos on Total Boat Wet Edge. But how do you ensure that you're not buying a hull with a water logged core? Buyers selling a dirt cheap hull won't exactly be thrilled to help you hoist and weigh the hull. Also is there a way to remove the 95% of the water? I saw a brief article by a guy who drilled holes in low areas and then sat the boat on an incline for days, but then I've seen counter articles saying that the water tends to cling to the core material. Are there moisture meters that work on boats with foam cores? Lastly, I'd like a boat with a steering wheel low on the bench as we will be double deck trailering with sailboats above. Can any 13' be converted to have the wheel over stick steer?

Thanks for reading and I look forward to hearing your feedback.