Daggerboard box, cover, marina

I keep forgetting to take photos, but here are some.

I whittled the port board thinner where it was sticking, and widened the trunk as well. The next two photos show my favourite tools. First, the grinder, which I just discovered during this project:

And then, 40-grit paper. I think it may be meant for floor sanders or something. It comes in sheets or rolls (I got pieces from John, so I'm not sure), and it has a very firm backing. It stays together and sharp for ages. It makes a great shaping tool when it's wrapped around a small piece of wood.

This is what I went inside the trunk with. Also, John rigged up a grinder backwards for me, so it would fit in the slot and against the cabin side, and that did the outer side of the box, which was the most warped. My piece of sandpaper was already folded for another reason, so it didn't cover the whole side of the aluminum bar I used. It worked okay anyway.

The photo below shows the hand stitching on the cockpit cover. I used regular whipping thread and a round needle and I measured and marked for each hole except for the Xs on the nylon webbing that I used for the attachment points. (I think the webbing is better than grommets.)

I'm doing a simple boom tent. The shape with the hoops is too complicated for me right now. Maybe I'll figure it out later. Next step is to make a triangular piece to close in the back. I used another tarp to start with, which I realized was not as good quality, so I used it as a pattern, to see if it could come out of the original tarp that I'd already cut, which it did. So I have a pattern now in case I need to make another like this.

About That Marina

It ends up that Hidden Harbour doesn't have a spot for Firefly, so I decided to keep her at Oak Bay. I had to do a mental shift away from the idea that I could just walk along the water and step into my boat. Oak Bay is only 7 km, so I can cycle there once I've got everything straightened away with the boat that needs a car to carry.

Firefly's new berth is B-9. She should be there by the 16th of September.

I realized, after watching Victoria harbour all summer, that it's not the best place to sail, anyway. Oak Bay is way better: it's more interesting, as there are many islands; it's not as choppy, as there's more shelter from the land; and there are more people who actually sail there, people who go out every day, like "Everyday Phil". I didn't see people day-sailing out of Vic harbour.

There's a webcam pointed at this area from Willows Beach, which is the shoreline to the north on this chart. It's at bigwavedave.ca, in "webcams" look for Willows Beach. You might see me out there one day.

First sail!

Went for a sail today, to check everything out. Sorry, no sailing pics; too busy.

The bow is high, as I didn't ship the ballast, which sits forward. And, because it was so windy when we arrived at the ramp, I didn't step the mizzen, either. When we got out into it, the water was lumpy from wind but the wind softened as we sailed. She definitely has lee helm in this configuration; needs the mizzen. Went along okay considering the conditions. The rudder blade needs lead but otherwise worked fine. The port daggerboard would not go into its slot, so a bit more work is needed.

 Back to John's.

Most of the work is done, though (notice the painted boom), so now I can rest while waiting for a response from the marina. And have poutine.

Looking forward to sailing in a nice breeze with all sails set, no chop.

Dreaming?

 

Passed!

Bottom done!

Finally! 

I think Starchy & I eyeballed it well. Not perfect, but good enough for her. I expect the waterline is way high, but I'd rather it high than low.

Boom paint, making things

The boom got its second coat of paint today.

The photo is from yesterday, with the first coat on, in the shade on a hot late afternoon. I'm using the "sand" colour that I started painting the mast with. Hopefully I have enough of the buff paint left for the last coat tomorrow. The mast paint scheme was the same; I found the buff after not liking this sand colour on the mast after two coats.

I did end up taking the blocks off the boom, as you can see in the photo above. Now I need to make sure I can put them back together!

 

* * *

I made an extension tiller from the oak trim left over from doubling the cabin beams.

It reminds me of one I used in my youth. Was it on Firecracker?

It will be attached to the tiller with elastic cord. You'll see.

 

Not too much to do until Starchy shows up, so I followed John's suggestion and made a push stick to aid in lifting the mast:

The mast is raised while standing in the cockpit at the aft end of the cabin. The first few feet are the hardest on the lifting rig (A-frame), so I hand it up as far as I can reach to start. Now I'll be able to reach it up farther. This won't get painted unless and until it's proven its worth. Notice the apostrophes in the right places. Don't get me started!

Lots of rope work is happening. Tomorrow Starchy and I will figure out the cockpit cover.

More rigging

All sails set!

The luff of the mainsail is a bit long for the mast/gooseneck configuration, so I decided to tie the halyard to the peak in a way that takes up as little height as possible. I believe this will hold fine:

It's a simple overhand stopper knot on the end of the line and the same around the peak plate. The braided line binds well on itself. The gooseneck is fixed, so tightening with a down-haul is out.

I replaced the over-sized sheave for the jib halyard with a smaller store-bought one, which allows me to tighten the bolt that pins the bottom of the mast in the tabernacle:

The white plastic 'donut' is standing in for a sheave for the topping lift. It's attached to the mast with nylon webbing and an over-sized screw through holes that were melted into the webbing with a hot nail. The topping lift for the mizzen boom got a similar treatment, with the donut higher up the mast:

The topping lift on the mizzen will keep the boom from trailing in the water when the sail comes down. It also allows me to pull the mizzen boom right up against the mast to de-power it if I want, or to roll up the mizzen to tie it to the mast.

On the main boom in the photo above (note the square corners), the top line is the topping lift, the next down is the main outhaul, the lines underneath are the main sheet:

The dock line cleats are being used as fairleads for the mizzen sheets.

 Reefing

 

Checking out the reefing, I realized it needed jiffy reefing capability.

 Not a huge reef, but...

...tying up the reef lines while sitting on the cabin top in big seas will not be easy!

Again I used plastic donuts and nylon webbing for sheaves. Works fine in the yard; we'll see how it goes at sea.

 I bought the cam cleats at the mariner's flea market in the spring. The reefing out-haul donut is attached under the boom so it won't interfere with the boom tent.

Donut at the reef tack:

Painting & whipping centre:

Finally installed the ladder!

It doesn't interfere with the mizzen sheets, thankfully.

The little cleat beside the rudder gudgeon is a quick-release cleat for the rudder blade down-haul. When there's too much force on it, it snaps open, allowing the blade to float up. Works fine in testing.

As per Godfrey's instructions I've been rounding corners off. Well, it suits my aesthetic, certainly. Now I'm working on the boom. Its age and lack of care have meant that splinters are everywhere. Hopefully, sanding and painting will cure that.

Not finished! The boom had to go back on for the night before it was done. Hopefully today I'll finish sanding and get the first coat of paint on it. I'm debating whether to re-do the block attachment lines. It would be nice if I could round the corners of those holes...

Rudder together, friggin with the riggin

Super tiller catch!

Work on the rudder is done. Down-haul & up-haul lines are next, to swing the blade.

Work on the rigging proceeds. On the mizzen, the halyard and topping lift are done; new stays were made from Amsteel Blue, new turnbuckles bought. I learned how to splice the Amsteel Blue from a fellow at Trotac, and got good at it.

On the main, a new pulley for the jib halyard on the mast means the bolt that goes through the bottom of the top part of the mast can be tightened properly. New stainless bolts, top and bottom:

The marina manager is away until the end of the month, so launch won't happen until then.

I took the battens out of the mizzen so that it could be rolled up. I'll keep them but probably won't use them, as I don't think they're necessary. I'm waiting for a calm day to hoist all sails together.