Randy Jones

Greendane, Kids and sailing could be a whole separate thread. Back when the wife and three kids used to pile into the CS17 I had thoughts of a larger boat. The reality is that the window of time where you can sell sailing to the whole family is all too brief, and then you 'd be stuck with a 20 foot boat that is more challenging to row. When they're little they fit into the bow compartment.

Hey, that looks familiar. Are you the guy selling the CS17mk3 in Florida and moving to Port Townsend? Please crash a traditional small craft association (www.TSCApuget.org) messabout or Port Townsend Pocket Yachters event and introduce yourself - no boat necessary. I'm sure a boat will find you quickly in Port Townsend.

Thanks, that's what I'll do. After last year's $500 carburetor rebuild on the 3.5hp 2 stroke I'm not taking chances with old fuel.

Is there a general consensus on how to dispose of last season's gas/oil mix for my two stroke outboard? I don't have an ancient automobile with a carburetor. Considering dumping it into the 25 gallon gas tank of my truck for some serious dilution but not sure what it would do to a modern fuel injected engine. Curious what does everyone else does?

What's the fuel mix on those things; 16:1? I get the "evil eye" for using my 2007 (26lb) 3.5hp two stroke that burns 50:1 gas/oil fuel ratio. I can only imagine the reaction the cloud of blue smoke from a Seagull would receive. Of course, the old motor looks cool and if you don't run it the mileage and emissions are pretty good.

My CS17 has laced sails and two horizontal rows of reef points. You can certainly reef laced sails but the lacing makes reefing much slower. My snotter goes around the mast which means I have to redo the lacing around the snotter when reefing. I probably reefed the boat 20 times in the driveway until I felt I could manage the process in heavy weather. The whole thing is slow and fussy but it works. The only positive is that the lacing looks very traditional against a solid wooden mast. Whatever the method, the ability to reef is absolutely essential if you hope to make progress to windward in strong winds. I would want at least two rows. Also, moving a mast in any kind of heavy weather is practical only for superhuman young bucks, and even then you may need to reef that single sail. My wildest ride to date was 10 knots boat speed with one sail single reefed in perhaps 35 knots of wind. It was a foolish trip and I don't think we could have made it upwind back to the ramp without that reef. Sail track is easiest, but whatever you do give yourself a way to reef while on the water.

Anyone know if they fly the staysail and spinnaker at the same time?

Fats, Congratulations on a screaming deal. I had only basic sailing experience when I bought a Coresound 17 in 2008. Figuring everything out was fun but I wish I had been near enough to go out for a ride with experienced CS17 sailors. Sometimes boats that have "only been sailed a few times" don't have all the sheets, blocks, and reefing worked out and if you haven't got the plans it can be difficult to figure out.

the "Small Craft Advisor" magazine has a free classified section that gets a lot of looks. smallcraftadvisor.com

I understand completely. Good to see that boat heading back into action in our local waters. CS17 is an ideal boat for Puget Sound and San Juan Islands.

Painful memories of cabin leaks, moldy gear, and bad smells came flooding back to me so I'm going with the well proven single panel hatch with garage. thanks

I'm guessing there are perhaps three Coresound 17's in western Washington, so finding a mast is indeed a long shot. If you decide to build, On-line Metals in Seattle will have the aluminum tubing you'll need. Good luck.

That's the one - both slide forward into a garage, sea hood, or whatever it gets called.

I like the sliding hatch with garage on the CS17 Mk3. Is there a similar design with two sliding sections? I have 68 inches of available cabin top length and would like to maximize the hatch opening by using a two section sliding hatch. Seems I've seen it somewhere but can't find it.

A motor would be rather handy for reaching the San Juan Islands from Bellingham Washington, which I'm guessing might be her agenda. Our summer conditions of dead calm frequently occur simultaneously with 6 knot tidal currents and 21 knot cargo ships. You can plan around the currents but getting where you want to go gets complicated. CS15 is a great choice for Bellingham.

The 6hp has more power than needed and is a little heavy for the CS15, but if she is easy on the throttle there would be no harm in trying it out. Based on experience with my CS17 I'd recommend either of the smaller motors and anticipate even the 2.5 would plane the boat.

Regarding the hybrid discussion earlier in the thread. I like the concept of an electric drive married to a small diesel generator and modest AGM battery bank. For short periods of operation or even motor sailing you could run on battery power. Longer and full speed runs would require generator run as would recharging the batteries. I suspect the combined efficiencies of a Diesel engine and high torque low-speed prop would be good enough to make up for the additional steps of generating electrical power and running the DC motor. Generator speed could be automatically modulated to maintain voltage offering good part load efficiency, propeller and charging could occur simultaneously, and AGM batteries can be rapidly recharged to near full capacity with the generator and later floated when you get back to the dock. Overall system would be quiet, safe, efficient, and expensive. I toyed with it for a little while and stopped at the expensive part. It will be interesting if someone develops a packaged hybrid solution for sail boats.

Avoid installing the bailer in the turbulence that occurs after the board. An Anderson Bailer located there (like mine) won't function as a bailer but still makes a good drain.

Dave, I have no experience with those particular lights but can pass along some things learned with my similar rectangular lights. 1. Check placement to make sure those knobs don't hit you in the back of the head when sitting. 2. A port like this installed in the sloped front of the cabin will trap water, and if it doesn't seal well it will drip on your sleeping bag. 3. On my Belhaven the forward port needs to be opened and the main boom stuck through it in order to work the boom into the cabin. Now that I've changed it to a fixed port I can't put the boom into the cabin. Just some things to consider. Would love to see photos of your progress. The world needs more Belhaven's

I've had a Belhaven 19 for about two seasons. While I beach the boat often a dingy would be nice once you've got the anchor out and have settled in. My thought is to build a very inexpensive dingy that I wouldn't feel badly about if I had to cut it loose in rough weather. Most likely it will be so ugly that I'll want to cut it loose. I also wonder if there is a unsinkable self bailing dingy design that would be less worry.

I'm guessing we have the topic to ourselves while everyone else builds mark 3's. After sailing a Belhaven for two seasons I don't see room for making the cabin longer without loosing important working space and a good sitting spot on the foredeck. A quick comparison of the two boats shows quite a difference in displacement/length ratios which I think explains why the more slender P22 better looks better. My future plans for the Belhaven include a second rub rail to trick the eye into seeing more shear and probably some contrasting paint to break-up the side profile similar to your idea of bright coamings. Other than looks, I think the big difference is interior headroom, motor well in the P-22, and size in general. As a tall guy I'd like a little more sitting head room in the B19, but otherwise very comfortable and don't think I would change anything significant. I'm sure the P22 is even more comfortable. Guess you just need to figure out how much boat you want.

I've played with the staysail on both the Belhaven 19 and CS17 this summer and love it. I've been cautious, but beginning now to use the staysail in slightly stronger winds with good results. One thing I stumbled across is that I can fly the staysail on either the inside or outside of the mainsail. This means you can tack the main without having to crawl forward and move the tack of the staysail (pretty handy when solo).

That would be Edward - Ed, please step up and share your plans. This race seems ideal for a CS17 or 20mark3 along with an iron crew of three. They would be competitive with the right combination of beating to wind under ballast and rowing unballasted in during calm weather. Race starts June 23rd.

Davo, I have sailed my CS17 many times on mizzen only. Oddly enough it seems to be better behaved left in the mizzen step instead of moved forward. It took me some time to figure out how to adjust the centerboard depth to get things balanced. Pointing is adequate but not as good as with two sails. When you test sail mizzen only make sure you test out pointing ability and decide if it is adequate.

I have the same boat and believe it comes down to how well the hatches are constructed and your expectations for how long you want to be watertight. For me, the solution was to make the bow storage area absolutely watertight and accept that the seat hatches (not built to plan) will leak some if the boat remained on its side or was somehow swamped. Adding foam may create problems with rot but inflated bags that can be removed for inspection seem reasonable if you want some extra confidence. If you poke around on the forum I think you'll find examples of capsize testing that demonstrate things are fine if the hatches are properly built.