Conference unifix::sailing

The year of manufacture of the boat is the last two digits of the hull serial
number on the transom. Usually on the right side of the transom visible from
outside the boat.

--RS

>                                                   <<< Note 2216.1 by WRKSYS::SCHUMANN "Never tested on vegetables" >>>
>                                                                -< Serial number has year of manufacture >-
>
>The year of manufacture of the boat is the last two digits of the hull serial
>number on the transom. Usually on the right side of the transom visible from
>outside the boat.
>
>--RS

Thanks a million - that makes it a 1979.

I sewed the ripped sail a bit and I had one batten missing and one
broken so I have created two battens and they are being urathaned
now.  If the mosquitoes let up a bit I hope to repack the wheel bearings
of the trailer.  Needs new dust caps tho.

Next question.

Does anybody know the capsize characteristics of this boat.
It has some foam under the seating area.  I assume if I added
more foam it would make it more likely to turtle than just lay
flat.  Will it turn turtle?

Along those same lines - I've read of foam filled masts.  I have a basement
full of foam and foam cutting wire for my other hobbies.  Would filling
the mast with foam prevent turning turtle?
Would a foam filled mast all by itself (not attached to any boat) float?

Bye          --+--
Kay R. Fisher  |
---------------O---------------
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    re .0
    
    
       If it's a hylander (or shoreline, the same company)., the year of
    the boat has nothing to do with the trailer. Hylander
    uses a metalic stick-on decal with the serial number on it. Look
    on the tounge for it.
    
        Most these trailers are galvenized, so if it has a lot of rust, I
    wonder if it realy is a hylander, though they are famous for small boat
    trailers.
    
       If it's been painted over or something like that, you could try
    calling Hylander. Their number is in here somewhere. If not under
    trailers, check under the Hobie notes. When I bought a Hobie many years
    ago(1987 I think), the dealer went belly up. I did get my boat and trailer, 
    but the decal was lost, so Hylander printed me a new one. [hylander ships
    the sticker with the bill of origin (ie title) and lets the dealer
    put it on when they sell it].  Check if you can
    find the original buyer. If you fax a sales bill to them, they will be
    happy to give you another emblem/bill of origin. 
    
       Otherwise, you could register it as a homebuilt, though you will
    need show it to the DMV. If it is rusty, I'd suggest cleaning it up a
    bit and making sure the lights are working.
    
      john

    rather than trying to fill the mast with foam, you may be able to seal
    all the orfices and make it air tight. Hobies are like this. They will
    will turtle in a good wind, so it is not worth the effort to screw
    around.
    
    Instead, you can get these giant balls that hang from the mast to 
    keep the mast from turtling. some attach the mast, while some 
    will allow you to raise them via a halyard. I believe Murry's Marine
    in Capatino Cal has em (phone number is in this notes file).
    
    Best thing is to get a boat with lots of apes near you,  and go out and
    flip it on purpose and practice righting the boat. Practice makes
    perfect.  I used to be able to right a boat in less than a minute, less
    than 20 seconds if sharks were known to be in the vicinty.
                                                            
    john

    I bought a small sail boat about a year ago and the seller "threw in"
    the trailer.  I had no problem in registering and insuring it (with
    Metpay) as homebuilt.  As far as I remember I gave no year.
    
    Axel

Years ago, I had a vintage 79, 20 foot sloop.  It also had a trailer that I
registered as home made.  It came with the Luger, but the heritage was unknown.
No one, including Mass, gave it a second thought.  It was valued at several
hundred dollars.  The tags were around $15.00.

Doug 
dtn 592-7487

    Rather than dust caps for the trailer, consider investing in
    "Bearing Buddies" that let you keep the bearings under slight grease
    pressure.
    
    Wheel bearings, which get immersed when you launch can be a major pain
    if you don't keep the water out. In salt water, the problem is even
    worse. A few weeks ago, an old boat mechanic told me that 1 time in
    salt water for the bearings is like 10 times in fresh.
    
    You give a squirt or two on the grease fitting on the bearing buddies
    just before you launch and you should get years from the bearings.
    
    Bill
    

    I suggest that you get several one-gallon milk jugs (with caps) and
    tie them to the top of the mast, then go out and practise capsizing
    in fairly shallow water a few times. The milk jugs will give a lot
    of buoyancy to the mast to keep it from going completely under until
    you're familiar with the boat's characteristics
    
    Before that, you might want to try submerging the boat just to make
    sure that it actually floats when full of water. Almost every modern
    boat does, but just to make sure...
    
    Doug.

>                  <<< Note 2216.7 by UNIFIX::FRENCH "Bill French 381-1859" >>>
>                        -< Consider Bearing Buddies for the trailer >-
>
>    Rather than dust caps for the trailer, consider investing in
>    "Bearing Buddies" that let you keep the bearings under slight grease
>    pressure.

Sounds great Bill, where do I find Bearing Buddies?
If you say any marine supply store then could somebody please
tell me a good store near where I work or where I live or between?

I live in Orange MA, and work in Maynard.

Now saving milk jugs for the mast!

Bye          --+--
Kay R. Fisher  |
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################################################################################


    

Your Chrysler is a bit large to practice capsizing just for fun.
If you expect to sail this in the summer on lakes, don't worry about
capsize. Capsize is not too likely unless you have way too much sail
up and you go sailing in a strong breeze.

I have an O'day Javelin, which is similar in size and weight, and probably
similar in sailing characteristics. It's only been capsized once in
twelve years on our lake, and that was when my 13 year old daughter
took it out in a wild wind, without bothering to reef the mainsail.
I guess she didn't think it was possible to capsize it at all.
When she flipped it a bad thing happened: the rudder fell off and went
to the bottom! I had to go buy a new one, sigh. So make sure your rudder
is securely attached!

If your boat flips, the foam will be adequate to float the boat. This
is a legal (quasi-legal?) requirement for this class of boats. When you
get it righted, it will be full of water, so it's good to carry something
to bail with, e.g. a medium sized Tupperware bowl. Hopefully, your boat
has some provision for stowage for this sort of thing.


As suggested in an earlier reply, you can add some flotation at the top of the
mast to keep the mast from going down and sticking in the mud. Usually this
won't happen anyway, since the mainsail will be laying on the surface of the
water, and it takes a long time for the water to flow around the sail.

If you take your boat out initially in 5-15 knots of wind on a lake
that's warm enough to swim in, you will learn quickly at virtually
zero risk. Your major potential problem will be getting too far from
the launch point and then losing all wind. For the most pleasant
experience, sail upwind first!

The best general recreational boating store in Eastern Mass is Boat
U.S. in Waltham. They want you to join for $12.50 a year. They are
a national association of small boat owners, and they operate a mail
order business and several retail stores around the country. Get one
of their catalogs. They're at 411 Waverly Oaks Rd. In Waltham.

You can also go to E&B Bliss Marine in Dedham. They're just off 128,
and you can see their sign from the highway.

Closer to home, try Goodhue Marine at 190 Central Leominster. It's a
sleepy place, but they probably have most of what you'd need.

--RS

    I'm sure you can find them at West Marine (on Rte 1) in Peabody.
    If you don't know where that is (just a couple miles north of 128
    in the northbound lane of Rt 1) you should find the place. Their
    prices are good, the service excellent and they have a great catalog
    that is sprinkled with "West Advisor" how-to tips, as well as an easy
    way to armchair shop.
    
    Just be sure to bring a grease cap or carefully measure the inside
    diameter of the hubs to make sure you get the right size.
    
    Bill

    Tri-city Marine in Lunenberg will have them as will most any shop that
    sells power boats.  There should be some in the Oragen area or Southern
    NH near you.  
    
    Brian

Well - Saturday and Sunday I had to boat in the water for the first time.
Saturday went pretty well but Sunday I got hung up twice because I forgot
to drop the center boards and when I finally quit I got the boat
hung up in the trailer big time because I forgot to raise one center board.

Anyway - now I have a few more questions.

1.  I have a kinda deck, kinda grating that appears to be made out of
    redwood.  It has been setting for many years and is really dried out
    and cracked.  Actually getting it wet the last couple of days has really
    seemed to help but I feel like I should soak it in something like linseed
    oil or something.  But I don't wanna try and remove any slats so I won't be
    able to get to the bottom of the boards.  Any suggestion for something that
    I can put on this wood to make it more healthy looking.  Also the area
    around the base of the mast is all dried out redwood.

2.  I built (well hacked up) a simple 2x4 frame for the purpose of holding
    a cheap cover up so it wouldn't fill with rain water.  As it turns out
    I have been also using this for mounting the mast for trailering.  But
    it is real rinky dink and I would like a much more secure way of mounting
    the mast for trailering.  My trailer has no section sticking up in the
    front to hold the mast.  Also there is nothing in the read but the smooth
    part of the transom to attach the aft end of the mast.  I think there
    is an optional bracket that can be added to the front of the trailer
    for sail boats and I'll consider that (what is is called) but I really
    don't want to put any money into this rusty junkie trailer.  So the question
    is what do you folks with small (13ft) sailboats use to hold the mast
    when trailering.

3.  I've been looking for some Naval Jelly for rust removal in K-Marts,
    local stores etc.,  anyone know where I can find some?

4.  What kinda tape/lettering should I get to put a name on this boat?

Bye          --+--
Kay R. Fisher  |
---------------O---------------
################################################################################

    To secure the mast for trailering, I used to tie the mast to the stern
    by running a small peice of line around the mast and through the rudder
    gudgeon.  A life jacket served as pad between the rear deck and the
    mast.  To support the front of the mast high enough to clear the rear
    of the tow vehicle, I bolted a 2X6 to the front post on the trailer on
    which the winch was mounted.  A V shaped notch was cut in the 2X6 to
    hold the mast.  A line passing through a hole drilled lower down the
    2X6 held the mast in the notch.  If there is no front post on the
    trailer, the mast can be tied to the bow of the boat although that cna
    leave a lot of mast sticking out the stern.  Or just carrry the mast on
    the roof of the car.
    
    If your rusty trailer is like my rusty trailer, it will take a
    swimming pool of naval jelly to de-rust it.  I suggest using an
    electric sander followed by a coat of rusty metal primer.
    
    - gene

Basically I did the same thing for my old boat.  It had a pulpit, so I lashed
the mast to that and the puspit in the rear.  I could go down the highway as
fast as I wanted to (~50 mph).  

One thing that I did was make certain that my mast did not stick out behind the
trailor by more than a couple of inches.  This avoided the problem of red flag
or no red flag.

I have little experience with naval jelly.  But what I have, indicates that it
should be used only to get the very last of the rust.  Otherwise you may never 
finish.

I have had good luch using a wire brush on a drill.  Said circular wire brush
can be bought at a hardware store for just a couple of dollars.  There are a
copule of VERY important things to remember.  

1.	Wear goggles.  Between rust particles and the ocasional wire bristle,
	this is an eye hostilevniroment.

2. 	The brush will tend to catch and jomp at places like corners of metal.
	Be prepared for the jerk, but do not fight it.  You can minimize this 		
	effect by having the circular motion of the brush make contact on the 
	smooth section of the metal and trail off at the edge.

3.	Play with how much pressure you want to apply.  Most of the work can
	be done with light pressure on the brush.  This makes the drill easier 
	to control, and extends the life of the brush.  If you use a wire brush
	on a Dremel then only very light pressure is called for.

For wha it is worth, I opened up my drill once to repair the trigger.  At that
time I checked out the shaft of the motor.  The design of a drill is such that
the shaft does not make contact with the chuck.  There is an group of offset
gears which protect the motor shaft from forces applied to the tool in the
chcuk.  In short even cheap drills are built pretty well.

Doug

>                       <<< Note 2216.14 by POWDML::HO >>>
>
>    To secure the mast for trailering, I used to tie the mast to the stern
>    by running a small peice of line around the mast and through the rudder
>    gudgeon.  A life jacket served as pad between the rear deck and the
>    mast.  To support the front of the mast high enough to clear the rear
>    of the tow vehicle, I bolted a 2X6 to the front post on the trailer on
>    which the winch was mounted.  A V shaped notch was cut in the 2X6 to
>    hold the mast.  A line passing through a hole drilled lower down the
>    2X6 held the mast in the notch.  If there is no front post on the
>    trailer, the mast can be tied to the bow of the boat although that cna
>    leave a lot of mast sticking out the stern.  Or just carrry the mast on
>    the roof of the car.

Sounds like a good plan.
Is there any standard on how high I should clear the tow vehicle?
I don't know how much to allow for driving over ditches and stuff
where the rear of the tow vehicle will drop and the mast will start
approaching the roof.

I thought about the mast on the roof rack but it would hang way out the front
and way out the back and I think from the normal bouncing it would flex
more than I really want it to.
    
>    If your rusty trailer is like my rusty trailer, it will take a
>    swimming pool of naval jelly to de-rust it.  I suggest using an
>    electric sander followed by a coat of rusty metal primer.

I guess I said too much with one breath.
The Naval Jelly isn't planned for the trailer.  Just some tools
and I figured you boat guys would know where I could get some.

    Most boat trailers I've seen are pretty junky. I think that's because
    it takes so much work to keep even the smallest boat looking nice!
    
    Doug.
    

re .13

1) Are you sure the "redwood" isn't teak? Teak is widely used on boats
   because it is very oily and doesn't absorb moisture. There are a
   million different products for improving the look of old teak.
   This topic is discussed extensively elsewhere in this notes file.

4) Four possibilities: 1) live without a name. 2) get some vinyl letters.
   I'm not sure whether the boat store vinyl letters are any better than
   WalMart vinyl letters. 3) Get fancy custom vinyl letters and/or graphics.
   You can order these from Boat US and several other companies, typically
   advertised in the back of sailing magazines. This will cost $20 and
   up depending on how fancy you want it to be. 4) Have a sign painter
   paint it on for $$, or do it yourself with stencils or following a
   penciled pattern.

   You don't need a name. You don't need numbers unless it has a motor,
   in which case you need to register it and you must also meet
   minimum height requirements for the numbers. I think the height
   requirement for small boats is 3".

    You can get cursive script letters from the M&E catalog. They are
    someplace in N.J. - Can look them up if you want. These are black or
    Gold, 2-3" high and available in upper & lower case. Not very
    expensive.
    
    Bill
    

    Ahoy Maties,
    My trailer is a poster child for rustoleum.
    Yes sir if it wasnt for the rust the boat would just sit on the ground.
    I have been working on it now for two weeks, I am using a grinder with
    cutting wheels.  I have used up two of these wheels so far.  I have 
    cleaned much of the rust off the trailer, and have primered and painted
    most of the beast.  I now have the whole boat and trailer up on mobile
    home jacks so I can get to the lower sections.  I had to cut off the 
    rollers as they were rusted clean through and had split open from the
    rust.  I am having to replace all the, bed boards, rollers, the Lights, 
    and all the wires.  I even had to replace the trailer jack on the front
    og the boat as it was rusted also.
      
    I though that I might use a sand blaster, but since the rust was so bad I
    though that it might place a bigger hole in the metal than I wanted, so
    I changed my mind.  The boat is in good shape as I have redone all the 
    teak, and replaced any worn rigging.
    
    Before you think bad of me please note that the culprit responsible
    for this mess was an old sea cow with whom I was once enamoured.  The
    Ole albatross ran off with the boat, and I was only able to recover it
    after six months of negotiations.  The trailer was used in salt water 
    often, and was not washed afterwards.  I lost the Motor as the bottom end
    rusted out, and I couldnt get parts to replace the pump and prop.
    I also  had a heck of a time getting off the crud that can grow on a hull 
    which has no care.   
    
    Since I have been on the Digital "See The Americas Plan", for Three Years,
    I have not had the time to do the work needed.  This is the year of the 
    boat here in California, Water everywhere!.  
    
    BTW if you happen to see Noah please tell him The Ark should be ready
    by the end of the month as the snow is melting fast!
    
    Well heres wishing you, Fair winds and following Sea's.
    
    Joe Capt. Sloop Day Dream out of China Lake.
     

    Joe
    
    
       Sounds like a lot of work. Now are you sure the trailer is still
    capabile of doing it's job? There is more than just a scratch boat
    bottom at stake here. When you are driving down the highway and the
    trailer fails, it has a real nasty habit of taking the tow mule along
    for an unexpected nasty ride.
    
       Suggest you really look carefully at the structural members of the
    trailer including the welds, the thickness of the members, and any
    connection hardware. Sounds like you may have done this as you went
    along, but now is the time for a "systems test" rather than a module
    debug.  You should also keep a real close check on the trailer for the
    first couple of uses for stress cracks at welds and intersections where
    there are loads. If caught in time, you may be able to bolt in extra
    bracing to alleviate the problem.

Yup, I have been making the fixes as I find them.
I am welding 1/4 inch plate in the places where the
metal has gon thin, and I have also ground out and
rewelded a few joints that were bad.

I remembered after I entered the note about why I
entered it to begin with.

On the mast I use a cradle system which is made of three
sections.  The bow is a cradle that looks like a two
prong fork, it is shaped much like a set of Mickey Mouse
ears at the top, and has a 90 degree piece of wood at the
bottom which I bolt to the fore stay mount.  I have a
leather strap in the cradle between the ears. The second
cradle is made of a block with the same mouse ears it is
in two sectionsand is bolted to the attachment point of
the mast.  The third section is a 2X4 with a cradle at
the top.  It has a connection point made of bolts that
fits the rudder attachment points.  This also has an
extension with a cradle which can be added to allow
a single person to raise the mast. These are kind of
poor quality but here is the general layout of the setup.



         IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII  mast


    O       O         O         O       O       O        O       O      O
   O O     O O        O        O O     O O      O       O OBBBBBO O     O
   O  O   O  O        O        O  O   O  O      O       O  O   O  O     O
   O   0OO   O        O        O   OOO   O      O       O   OOO   O     O
   O         O        O        O         O      O       O         O     O
    O       O         O         O       O       O        O       O      O24
     O     O          O          O     O        O         O     O       O24
      O   O           O           O   O         O          OOOOO        O24
      O   O           O           O   O         O          X2/4X        2B4
      O   O           O           O   O         O          X   X        2B4
      O   O           O           O   O         O          X   X        2B4__
    XXXXXXXXX    XXXXXO          O     O      XXO          ZZZZZ        ZZZ I
    XXXXXXXXX    X0XX0O          O     O     XXXO          XXXXX        2B4__
    XXXXXXXXX    XXXXXO          OOOOOOO    XX0XO          XXXXX        2B4 I
        MAIN MAST CRADLE        FORE STAY CRADLE        TRANSON CRADLE




JUST MEASURE TO GET ALL EVEN AND BOLT THEM ON.
THE BBBBB ON THE TRANSOM CRADLE IS A BOLT WITH AN PIPE USED AS A BEARING.
THIS IS AN EXTRA THAT WHEN INSTALLED ON A SEPARTATE 2/4 WILL ALLOW YOU TO
RAISE THE MAST BY RUNNING IT UP THE CRADLE AND SEATING THE FOOT AND THEN
PULLING ON THE FORE STAY.  THE EXTENSION IS CUT SO THAT IT WILL CONNECT TO
THE TOP OF THE TRANSON CRADLE AND IS HELD IN PLACE BY TWO METAL STRAPS.

I KNOW THIS IS NOT REALLY A CLEAR VIEW BUT I HOPE IT HELPS.
BTW THIS CAN BE MADE FOR JUST A FEW BUCKS...
FAIR WIND AND A FOLLOWING SEA
JOE