UK-Cherub Forum
Cherub Chat => Sailing Stories => Topic started by: Tim Noyce on October 25, 2009, 08:38:35 PM
-
This weekend I collected Cherub Number 2303. It is currently named "The Other Woman" and we believe is a Forman 4c (g). It is a glass boat with a wooden daggerboard box, internal structure and gunwhale ( so should hopefully be relatively low maintenance). It has been moved straight into my Grandads garage for a week of intensive repairs and then it should be back on the water soon.
The boat came complete with a Needlespar mast, a ridiculously long spinni pole, 3 kites of various sizes, 2 daggerboards (long and short) and a suit of excellent white sails made by Holt!
I took some photos using my digital camera but don't seem to have a mini usb lead to download them (staying at my parents for the week) but have a couple taken using my phone. I will hopefully be able to put together a bit of a diary of the work we're doing this week.
-
Had a good day at it today. Have managed to remove the offending gunwhale strip and prep it ready for attaching the new piece of mahogony. Have also had a poke around and removed as much damp wood at the front of the daggerboard case as possible and painted it with wood preservative so that should extend its life a bit.
The main problem area is the floor where the side tanks meet as this joint is completely shot. This needs to be cleaned up and sanded back so that I can bond the join back together and then lay some glass over to strengthen it. Once that is made a bit more solid the new floor brace can be put in and glassed in.
Couple more photos...
-
The main problem area is the floor where the side tanks meet as this joint is completely shot.
It was probably like that from about a week after the boat was first launched. Always trouble that joint with the technology available at the time. It ought to be possible to do something superior with the facilities we have these days. Basically what happens is that as you jump around the floor the join just peels off... Ideas on a postcard... Have you vac bag kit handy? I wonder about first taping over the join in a conventional way (in itself not enough) and then bagging on a triangle of foam and bagging more glass over that to make a combined extra strong join/come super fillet and floor stringer and stabilise the whole area... What do other folk think?
-
Love the self bailers!
Hmm, I think Jim's 'Super fillet' is a good idea. Cut/sand/hotwire Some light foam into a cockpit length triangle and bog into place. Then glass over the top.
-
It is good to see some more of the older boats getting back on the water.
Provided the normal failure is for the tape to peel from the inside of the joint then a foam fillet would help, however it will add a lot of extra stiffeness around the joint which will cause the floor to crack near the edge of the foam fillet.
Also if the joint does start to break up again with the foam fillet in place it is likely to trap water next to the decks.
By going to Epoxy (rather than the polyester that was probably originally used( the tape will stick better to the floor which may be enough.
-
I think that I have a day of sanding and prepping ahead of me today before I get round to doing any laminating so I have time to ponder the situation.
My plan was to build up a nice bog fillet over the joint to make it a standard shape the whole way down (at the moment there is a flange in some places, and not in others) and then laminate over that by about 2 inches up the side tank and onto the floor. The cross beam that is going in will butt up against the side tank and so will give some rigidity at the mid point which I think will be good news, and then I could possibly build in some little ribs at the other mid points. I guess that I could also laminate over the joint from the inside of the tank as well (for what I can reach anyway, I don't fancy cutting more hatches into the boat at this stage for access).
Ross, I agree, the self bailers are bad ass. I'm yet to give them enough beans to try and open them as I fear I might just push the whole unit through the floor! Think that I'll ease them up with some penetrating oil first as they haven't been opened for a while!
-
The intersection between the tank and the floor is as you suggest a good opportunity to add strength and stiffness. But i take the point that you can make the joint to stiff that the floor beside the joint will crack. having effectively reduced the span of the floor pannel this risk of cracking may be reduced. As an attempt to reduce the likely hood of this occuring i would suggest using two layers of thin glass over your bog fillet with the second layer being wider than the first. The stress concentration near the joint will be reduced.
Many wooden boats of various classes cope with structural discontinuities and I'm sure there are others to look out for.
-
I have spent the day with the angle grinder removing many years of paint and have finally got back to solid boat! It seems that at some point the joint has been 'repaired' but a strip of glass was simply bonded to the paint rather than it being prepped up properly so that was just ripped straight off.
I finished the day today by putting in a nice bog radius round the edges, and I bogged the wooden cross piece into the hull with a nice fillet of bog round it so that should be ready for lamination tomorrow.
The rubbing strip is cut and drilled ready to be attached to the boat also.
Fingers crossed that friday can be painting day, saturday packing away, and then back down to devon with it on Sunday!
-
Well since my last post a month has passed but I have now got the boat back to Devon. I didn't manage to get the boat back last month but it stayed another month in my Grandads garage where he kindly finished the rubbing strip and varnished it. This weekend I painted painted the floor with an agricultural paint and sand grippy mix and refitted most of the parts with a nice dose of silicone sealant. Fingers crossed it should be watertight now to some degree!
I'll have to take some more photos at the weekend. I am hoping for a dry spell so that I can get the mast up and see what is what in the rigging department. Overall though its looking great in comparison to when I picked it up, The outside of the hull needs some aesthetic touching up but that can wait for now.
-
Just popped up to the boat as the weather was fair. Managed to get the rig up, got the jib up and it looks good! I am most pleased!
(http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs068.snc3/13539_570958804048_222700417_4672444_5804059_n.jpg)
(http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs068.snc3/13539_570958809038_222700417_4672445_7955522_n.jpg)
bit of an improvement to a few weeks ago...
(http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs048.snc3/13539_570958579498_222700417_4672436_938544_n.jpg)
Funky levers for pulling on the rig tension, no faffing with boat breakers required! The forestay is tied at the bow, then these levers are used on each shroud to pull on the rig tension. There is also a highfield lever on the jib halyard. Pulled them all on and it looked pretty good!
(http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs068.snc3/13539_570958814028_222700417_4672446_5676824_n.jpg)
Then one final one with the jib up. I tried to get the main up but the halyard popped out of the block at the mast tip so I only got it half way up... then it started raining so thought I had better get it packed up again.
(http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs048.snc3/13539_570958824008_222700417_4672448_4844588_n.jpg)
Put her back to bed under her recycled cover!
(http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs048.snc3/13539_570958828998_222700417_4672449_6687859_n.jpg)
Total cost of the project to date... £75. That was for the trolley from JimC! REALLY looking forward to getting it on the water and setting that beastly 9 foot pole!
-
REALLY looking forward to getting it on the water and setting that beastly 9 foot pole!
Don't worry, setting it isn't realy that big a deal. Dropping is rather more trouble - its very easy to drop the sheet over the bow. I like to keep the guy in the pole until the pole is on the boom. But gybing is where the fun is...
(http://www.sailingsource.com/cherub/test/lib/exe/fetch.php/boats/2452-1976xxxx-worlds-nz.jpg)
-
Have just got back from the boat and have spent a day tinkering. Managed to get all 3 sails up today to check them out. All in all it is working fine, need to make some minor adjustments and add a new kite halyard cleat but otherwise it is good to go for next weekend.
(http://photos-e.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs363.snc3/23429_577398748348_222700417_4990606_1755699_n.jpg)
(http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs363.snc3/23429_577398743358_222700417_4990605_7239564_n.jpg)
(http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs423.ash1/23429_577398768308_222700417_4990610_4776322_n.jpg)
(http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs383.snc3/23429_577398753338_222700417_4990607_4932618_n.jpg)
(http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs383.snc3/23429_577398763318_222700417_4990609_5037328_n.jpg)
-
Looking good, weather looks nice too
-
The weather has been amazing today. Gutted not to be out sailing as it was blowing a leisurely 3-4! Temperature was well into double figures down in sunny devon. Roll on the summer!
-
The old girl received a good rubbing down and a lick of paint today. I will update with some pictures when I get back from my holiday in Wales next week!
-
Tim i have a 25 second video from Draycote of your first sail it's not very good and my fingers in the shot for a bit but it's there if you want it.
-
Cool, I do want it please! ;D
-
it has been emailed to MK who said he would forward it to you
-
i sent it to your @aol account timmy
-
it's nothing special but i think it's your first launch
-
Awesome, thanks very much. I will forward it to the former owners as they have requested to be kept updated with the progress (who in turn were asked by the previous owner to be kept in the loop!) Hopefully someone will be about to take some more pictures this coming weekend at the vintage boat event.
-
I have a couple of photos from a windy weekends sailing at Roadford sailing club last weekend.
(http://www.sailingsource.com/cherub/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=690.0;attach=1136;image)
(http://www.sailingsource.com/cherub/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=690.0;attach=1138;image)
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash1/hs512.ash1/30189_580804418358_222700417_5152272_8235592_n.jpg)
and one which shows off the delightful new paint job!
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-sjc1/hs532.snc3/30189_580804413368_222700417_5152271_5230102_n.jpg)
Wind varied from force 3 - 6 which made for some exciting sailing and racing. Despite opting not to use the spinnaker it was still amazing fun (my girlfriends 4th time in a boat of any sort so went for safety!) Really looking forward to getting back out there this weekend and continuing the training!
The boat will also be attending the nationals with a crack team of Kate and my Dad sailing it! Excellent!
-
Looks good Tim, but I have to ask. What is that 'thing'?! It looks like a fat scow moth, and is that a trapeze harness next to it?
-
Looks good Tim, but I have to ask. What is that 'thing'?! It looks like a fat scow moth, and is that a trapeze harness next to it?
I was going to ask the exact same thing.
-
It is a Scow Moth. No trapeze. Was built in 1976 (i think) it won an aussie nationals and then came over for the worlds in the UK in '82. The guy has recently re-decked it with 1.5mm ply. Was a cool boat! He also used to crew a cherub and came 4th at the nationals at Grafham many years ago! Quite interestingly I also met sailors who had previously owned 2305 and 2333. They now sail Finns though!
-
Sailed The Cats Whiskers for the final shake down before the nationals on Saturday which was most excellent, blowing 4-5, short chop, fair bit of spray... all was well with the world! Unfortunately, the boat started to feel a bit sluggish and we ended up dicking it in on a gybe when a squall came through, when the boat was over I could hear it hissing quite loudly so I knew there was water getting in somewhere... and a lot of it! Got the boat up and then got a tow in as the boat was sitting really low in the water by this point... 30 mins later we had finished scooping and sponging water out of the boat and it was time to investigate!
Anyway, after removing one of the gunwale strips it was evident that there was a big split between the skins on the gunwale...
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs134.ash2/40059_589292188798_222700417_5594651_6297627_n.jpg)
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs133.ash2/39967_589292168838_222700417_5594650_3440094_n.jpg)
As you can see, this was sanded down and cleaned up as best as I could in the boat yard, then this was bogged into place and glassed (one layer of 300g biax and a layer of tight weave 200g 0-90) then peel ply. Then packaged up ready for a night under the stars... and rain clouds!
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs385.snc4/44870_589292228718_222700417_5594652_7708551_n.jpg)
This was the result once that had been removed...
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs395.snc4/45827_589292243688_222700417_5594653_5300807_n.jpg)
We then attached a nice new piece of hardwood rubbing strip on the gunwale as the previous one was starting to look a bit rotten.
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs194.ash2/45739_589292268638_222700417_5594654_3242249_n.jpg)
Then, a nice lick of paint was added to cover up the evidence! (Note the rain shelter constructed using a windbreak between the car and a couple of boats!)
(http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash2/hs184.ash2/44717_589292413348_222700417_5594656_5447210_n.jpg)
All that is left to do tonight is put the fittings back on and tie her up ready for the road on tomorrow!
-
Those are some great pics.
Keep them coming.
-
Had 2303 back out on the water last weekend after spending the winter in the dinghy park down in Roadford where it seems to have faired quite well. Had a couple of sails at Roadford in light airs before packing it up and heading back to its new home at Netley SC. This weekend we rigged up and took part in the 2nd race of the day (a 'Police Incident' on the A3 delayed us in making the first start!) but by then the breeze had freshened to a nice force 3-4.
The starting sequence was Cats first and then a mixed handicap fleet 5 mins after which consisted of Supernova, Laser Radial, Wayfarer, RS Vareo, RS800, Contender etc so we had a pretty good mix of boats to compete against (most of which faster than our PY 1115) After 4 laps without using the spinnaker (thought we'd take it easy and just ensure the boat was still firing on all cylinders) we managed to stay ahead of the Wayfarer, Byte, RSVareo and Radial which we were quite pleased with. We were met by the Race Officer who wanted to chat PY with us as soon as we landed so we assume we must have done ok ;-)