From: Roy Hodges all >
To: , Jeffrey Epstein <jeevacationggmail.eorn>
Subject: Fat Cat
Date: Sat, 09 Mar 2013 22:34:35 +0000
Attachments: Fat_Cat.zip
Good Afternoon,
Carlos and I had a look at the Fat Cat. It is in extremely bad condition. For starters, there has
been water leaking through the deck into both engine rooms. We pumped out several thousand
gallons of water while we were there. This water intrusion has caused a great deal of damage.
Both turbo chargers were seized, along with the linkage on the port engine. I was able to free
up the starboard turbo but I would not advise running it. If the turbo goes and pieces of the
blade go through the intake it can completely ruin the engine. The bulkheads that separate the
engine rooms from the cabin are both extremely rotten, to the point that you can see through
them in places. There were also some wiring harnesses that had been submerged. Luckily we
went today, as the water was less than a half inch from going over the dipsticks.
On the running gear, all of the cutlass bearings have excessive clearance. Normally you need a
feeler gauge to determine this but these are bad enough that you can see it visually. The
propellers are both badly corroded. The Starboard prop is slipping on its shaft. When the helm
is centered the port rudder is out to port about 10 to 15 degrees.
On the hull and deck, I'm afraid that there is some significant core saturation. On boats of this
vintage the cores were normally plywood and subject to rot. When I bang on the hull with my
fist its a very dull sound and you can visibly see flex. A surveyor would use a hammer to
determine the strength of the hull but in most places I would not suggest hitting this hull with a
hammer (as it will probably go through). There also seems to be a lot of sponginess when walking
on the decks.
I could easily keep going but the end result is, I believe any money spent on trying to save this
boat would be a waste. If we have a buyer at any price, I would say take it. I would not
recommend launching it and I'm afraid it would cost great deal of money just to get it in a state
where it was safe to move it. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Photos attached.
Roy & Stephanie Hodges
EFTA00692438