msueirro

Jim, I read your article in SWA about the No Frills 15. I even found the boat in the picture of the BEER 2007 rally! At least, I think I found it. At any rate, now that you've had the boat on the water for awhile. what are your thoughts on the boat's sailing qualities? Where would you be willing to take the boat to, and where would you be unwilling to sail it? How was it as a cruiser in terms of comfort and habitability? Mike

Brent, I have a Spindrift 12 that I keep on a Harbor Freight boat trailer. It's about the same size as the 4X8 trailer, but it is built for a boat, with a bow post and bumper, a keel roller, and bunk boards. It cost me about $300 on sale, and was delivered in three boxes. Took most of a day to assemble. It has worked just fine for the Spindrift. Tows nicely and never been ill mannered. My only concern is the 8" wheels. I worry the bearings will overheat on long trips, but it hasn't been an issue so far. Never towed more than half an hour in one direction. Here's a picture, or at least, I hope there's a picture. My first post with this new software. Mike

I think the BOM calls for 6 sheets of 1/4", plus a bit of 1/2" for a temporary frame, though you can make it with dimensioned lumber. I did use 6 sheets, though I may have been able to squeeze it out of 5 if I hadn't had to remake a few bits. Important bits, like the side panels, etc. Mike

I'd say the boat weighs between 100-150 pounds. It's not really a car topper, but then it's 12 feet long. It is actually a cat rig plan. I know the mast seems set back some, but that's what's shown on the plans. And she's been updated a bit. A little stencil work by my wife added a bit of interest! Mike

Thanks! The trailer is from Harbor Freight. It was about $300. It comes in three boxes! Fortunately I ordered it early since it took a good month or more to get to me. It was back ordered. Mike

Attached are a couple of pics of my Spindrift 12, #535, sitting proudly on its trailer as of today. I still need to put together the sailing bits, though the daggerboard and rudder are mostly finished. But it's a boat, and following another thread here, I have an ancient, 1955 Firestone 5 hp outboard for it. There's also a picture of that. The Firestone motor is apparently an rebranded Scott Atwater motor. She looks rough, but after I cleaned and gapped the plugs, and drained and refilled the lower end, she started up on the third pull and runs like a champ. I'm shocked. Mike Sueirro

Things have been moving along pretty well. The hull is wired and tack-welded and knees are fitted and installed at the transom, but I'm having some difficulty with the next step. I've scarfed up two pairs of 1X2's into two long boards for use as gunwales. I've had them pre-fitted to the hull to set in the proper bends in advance of actually attaching them, but when I do that the boards curve up as I go to the stem. I know that they are supposed to do this, but they curve up to the extent that they meet each other at a point above the sides. I find that I can force them down so that they maintain a rate of curvature that matches the top of the side panels, but then there is a large gap at the underside of the gunwales. They just won't make the compound bend, which is no real surprise. The question is, what have I done wrong, and how do I fix it? The dimensions of the side and bottom panels are correct to the plans, at least within a sixteenth or so. Nothing that should account for this discrepancy. Any suggestions? Mike

Well, I could only find 17 guage steel wire at my Home Depot, but that worked well. As you can see from the pictures, I was able to pull the bow and keel line together just fine with the wire. I had already put some ties on the bow before I got the replies to this question, so I just left them in place. Belt and suspenders approach, doncha know. So, I'm back in the game. Larry, Joe, Kidd and Graham, thanks for the advice. I do appreicate it. Mike Sueirro

I'm finally getting my Spindrift 12 together. Or at least, I'm trying too. I've got the bottom and side panels cut, and the left and right sides glassed at the bow to make the "butterfly." But when I unfold the sides, I have a devil of a time closing the large gap along the keel. On my first attempt, the pieces of the bottom overlapped at teh sharp curve of the bow. Trying to get them to line up properly resulted in one of the glassed joints between side and bottom panels breaking. The second try went better. I laced the curve at the bow up tight all the way around the curve and up the stem. I was able to get the boat laced all the way to the transom along the keel and along both sides. Really looked promising, but there was a two inch gap along the keel aft of the sharp turn of the bow. I tried to close that gap by tightening the ties, but it was like trying to mold steel. Really stressed hard! I thought that I could relieve some of the stress by removing the ties up the stem. That would allow the bow to open a bit, relieving the stress aft of the bend. It helped, but as I cut the third or fourth tie, the next two just popped. The stem was now gaping open. As I tried to pull the sides together to retie the stem, the same joint that broke before broke again. And as I screwed around seeing if I could still salvage it, the other joint broke as well!!!!!! So, the two panels have been reglassed and are curing as I write this. Do you all have any advice that will permit me to bend this thing together? Below are a couple of pictures, one of the bow from the front, another of the inside showing the gap along the keel I was trying to close.