Now I am getting down to work on the boat and am having the
time of my life. It almost seems I enjoy working on boats
more than I do sailing them. After I sold the Siren I
built a stitch and glue Kayak (CLC) and had a ball building
it -- but really didn't get too much out of paddling around
on the local lakes. I even put an electric outboard on it
(heresy to the local purists, but only before I passed them
on a hot afternoon after a pleasant morning of paddling
around the swamps) ...so this 19 will give me something to
do before I put it on the Potomac here near Washington DC in
spring.
The boat is a 1990 HMS and appears to have been out of the
water since about '92 (last registration sticker). Not a
scratch on the hull -- not even on the bow from beaching or
hitting docks. Rumor has it that the owner got scared and
just decided to forget about the boat -- so it sat and was
ultimately donated to a charity where it was auctioned off
and then sold to me. Nice Shoreline trailer (the lights
even still work!)
The wood (dare I call it brightwork) was totally
deteriorated (rails, hatch etc.). In the past few weeks
have made (and varnished and varnished...) a new cabin hatch
and replaced the teak rails. The inside mahogany cabinet
doors were in fine shape and cleaned up well.
The inside was clean but full of hornets nests and odd
spiders (what's that little hour glass shape or the spiders
belly mean?) --- all of which now happily reside inside my
shop vac. It needs new quarter berth cushions and I have to
think up some clever way to make my own as I am pretty handy
that way. Any thoughts?
Probably the most interesting problem is the sails. The
fellow who bought the boat at auction managed to find a set
of brand new West Wight Potter sails. A yellow and white
Horizon 2000 main by Gaastra and a blue Jib by Odyssey. I
thought that was a pretty nice deal for an old boat and
didn't bother to fit the sails before I bought it -- turns
out the sails are for a 15 not a 19. It was an honest
mistake by the fellow who sold me the boat and we are
working on some sort of a way to solve it in a mutually
beneficial way (I learned that term in negotiation school).
Does anybody out there have any experience with making
SailRite sails? I did a bit of sewing years back and think
it would be fun to try making a new main (around $230 as a
kit). Any feedback would be appreciated.
Also, can anybody give me a thumbnail of the various rigging
configurations for the 19. Mine is rigged "masthead
style" (Stays go to the top of the mast) and I see that
newer ones are fractionally rigged (Stays go about three
feet down from the masthead). Are the masts on the new
boats longer or are the stays just repositioned?
Should I re-rig the boat to the new (current) configuration
for performance or leave it alone? (that will get a rise
out of 'em!)
What's a gunter rig?
I needed a Trailer hitch for my Subaru Outback wagon and
just have to put in a plug for Drawtite and Miley Truck. I
ordered the Hitch from Miley on the internet last Monday and
received it on Wednesday. I wondered how they would pack
such a big heavy thing. Turns out that packing involves
putting a label on the hitch and giving it to the UPS man --
dam clever. Miley was about twenty percent cheaper than
anywhere else I could find and the shipping was included in
the cost. Nice people up there. Last time I put a hitch on
my car I had bloody knuckles for a month --- this thing (a
class II 3500 lb) went on in less than a half an hour. Gotta
give the engineers up at DrawTite credit for doing a
thoughtful job. (I am in no way connected to either firm --
its just nice to have something work the first time).
This is starting to approach the length of a GIF so I had
better stifle myself.
You've not heard the last of me......Aaaarg!
Cheers
Rye Gewalt
Springfield, VA