Joe

Some of you know of the recent launch of my cs17 and subsquent illness. Unfortunately, my cancer is terminal therefore the boat is for sale. It is fully rigged, and ready to use. There are no problems to solve, and it sails beautifully. Pictures are posted in the picture gallery. If interested, please respond by phone in the evenings as I rarely get to the computer anymore. The price is $3000.00, which is about half my cost. Boat was built with the very best materials as specified in Graham's plans. Results are exceptional. I will not take less money as a matter of principle, I will donate the boat to the Boy Scouts instead. The boat is located in Virginia Beach, VA. Thank you, and count every day as precious. Joe Wiseman 757 497-4554 [attachment over 4 years old deleted by admin]

Friends, Thanks to many of you for your warm remarks following my post regarding my medical problem and the Mary Edith. It is a with a heavy heart that I report my supposed rotator cup problem was a misdiagnosis. I today learned, that after lengthy tests, that I have an advanced case of bone cancer. My brief love affair with Mary Edith is over. I am placing her for sale immediately. I would like to recover my costs if possible. Pictures are posted on the photo gallery. If anyone is interested, please email me privately. Best of luck to everyone. Graham, she is a sweetheart of a boat.

Not all news is good all the time. Followers of this board know that I launched my CS-17 this spring, and looked forward to a wonderful summer of sailing. Murphy has interveined. Last week I took Mary Edith to my favorite sailing site and proceeded to rig up for a day on the bay. The wind was fifteen, gusting to twenty. unfortuntely, one of those gust occurred as I was stepping my main mast, calling on me to exirt more than usual effort. Snap, crackle and pop, and my sixty four year old left rotor cup gave way. I am having a MRI in the morning with surgery schudled the following week. ##@$%$###$ anyway. Old men need to be more careful about such things. If I ever get old, I certainly will! Meanwhile you will forgive me if I am ticked off.

I followed the recent posts on reefing with sprit rigs and am a bit confused. To rig, do you drop the sail down the mast and then gather the bottom portion of the sail to be reefed, or do you leave the sail in place and gather from the bottom? How do you compensate for the change in the placement of the sprit at the lower corner of the sail? Do you need to change the placement of the snotter on the mast? I chose lace on sails with reefing points so I could reef when needed. Any help or suggestions appreciated. Also, re: sails moving up and down the masts, no one has suggested hoops. Any reason they are not applicable, especially if a transition between mast sections has been provided. Thanks,

What is the Gordy Hall rotating reef system?

Rounded corners were laminated from three pieces totaling 1/2 inch thickness. Thanks for your comments, I needed that!

I have posted some pictures of the Mary Edith to the picture gallery. Those interested can check them out.

In my humble opinion, there is no reason not to remove the screws and use them another day. If you have a good epoxy joint, the boat will rip apart on each side of the joint before the joint fails.

I have just finished my first two weeks with my new CS 17, (see my post earlier) and testify that the boat is not at all tender. As has been said, anything can be capsized, but some boats are more prone than others. The CS is not at all proned. Alone with the natural tendency towards stability is the matter of predictability. If you know what a boat is about to do before it happens, you can take appropiate measures. Some boats are full of surprises, the CS is not. It talks to you via the tiller all the time and you feel very confident of your situation. I have owned a number of boats and sailed in many, many more. The CS is the best unballasted boat I have yet sailed. You will be more than pleased, so go for it.

Just back from not so sunny Florida with my CS 17. Did manage to get in some sailing and results are SUPER! The CS is all I could have wanted and much more. I was very impressed with every aspect of the boat, from it's total predictibility to the ease with which it sails. Graham has a real winner here, no doubt about it. Sure, there are a few things that I will tweak a bit, but none relate to the design of the boat, that is without fault. I have never had a maiden voyage on a new boat that went smoothly, and this was no different. I drove in six hours of heavy rain to jacksonvile but launched in clear skys the next day. All went well until time to put the centerboard down - it would not move. I removed the top of the centerboard case, which was calked and painted, and tried to force the board down, no luck. The rain had caused the board to swell. Even though the board was built to specs, covered with cloth and epoxy per the plans, it still swelled and would not drop. I pulled the pin, and managed to get the board out from the top. A quick trip to Home Depot where I bought a small belt sander I had been wanting and I went to work on the board. It took several trial fits, but I got the board down to the size needed and reinstalled it. From there on, everything went great. I tried the boat with my 8 HP Yamaha, it flew. It quickly got up on a plane even though it squatted a bit and threw some water from about midships, but it ran under perfect control at an estimated 12-15 mph. At hull speed, it was quiet, mannerly and will make an excellent picnic launch . The weather was mostly gloomy for pictures, but I am attaching one just to prove the "Mary Edith" really exists. The next month will be spent resurfacing my board, painting my masts, and putting the final color coat and varnish on the boat. All ready for the season to begin... [attachment over 4 years old deleted by admin]

I just came up from the shop, and my CS 17 is finally completed. It still lacks the final coat of paint and varnish on the bright work, but that is by design. There will no doubt be some tweaking and minor changes after some usage, and it is easier hide the results of that tinkering before the final finish is applied. I am very excited to say the least. Saturday I will hook up and take off from my home in Virginia Beach, for the Florida Gulf Coast. "Mary Edith," (named for my mother) will have plenty of space to strut her stuff. After I return, I plan on posting build and sailing pictures on the net for any that are interested. I will keep you posted...

I am putting the final touches and last coat of paint (weather permitting) on my CS 17 this week. With a prayer in my heart, I drilled the mast hole in the 7/8 " thick mahagony center thwart, with five coats of spar varnish, yesterday. The diety must have been in an exceptionally good mood, as I nailed the position dead on. I have always thought the CS 17 could serve as a displacement picnic boat as well as a sailboat, and I plan on using it as such. I have a long shaft Yamaha 8 which I planned on using on it. The more I think about it, the more I believe this to be gross overkill. I am considering buying a Nissan 3.3 long shaft instead. I do want the motor to push the boat at hull speed with two adults aboard, at a moderate throttle setting. Anyone out there have an opinion on this option? I'm sure Graham has long ago done the math, so his thoughts would be welcome also.

Hey guys! Not a single reply to my earlier post asking for suggestions on rigging my 17. What's the deal? I haven't been in the forum long enough to make anyone mad. Any help appreciated. Joe

I would like suggestions for the placement of blocks, cleats, etc. on my 17, which in spite of the work of the devil is about to be completed. Having read what I just wrote, I may very well name my boat Devil's Work! Ha, wouldn't that be a kick! Rigging hints are solicited from those who have been there and dont that. Joe