Chick Ludwig Posted June 16, 2018 Report Share Posted June 16, 2018 Beautiful job, Amos! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick Ludwig Posted June 16, 2018 Report Share Posted June 16, 2018 Beautiful job, Amos! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt Bones Posted June 17, 2018 Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 Beautiful boat sir, beautiful. Good job! Nice looking trailer also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmosSwogger Posted June 17, 2018 Author Report Share Posted June 17, 2018 14 hours ago, Capt Bones said: Beautiful boat sir, beautiful. Good job! Nice looking trailer also. Thank you, I've been following your build as well. Drew, I agree on reinforcing the tabernacle: I fiberglassed the entire tabernacle before installing it and then fiberglassed it in place to join it to the deck. Overkill, I'm sure, but it helps me sleep at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul356 Posted June 19, 2018 Report Share Posted June 19, 2018 Wonderful, Amos. I can envision many happy hours afloat for you and yours. It won't be long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve W Posted June 20, 2018 Report Share Posted June 20, 2018 Looks fantastic. You can't be far from launch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmosSwogger Posted July 9, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 Riveting on the mast track. I borrowed two rivet guns, one from each of my immediate neighbors, and ended up breaking both of them. Neither could be fixed. When I went to replace them I discovered they are very cheap rivet guns (costing $20-25). Basically the spring loaded wedge that separates the jaws that clamp onto the rivet shaft fail easily on these light duty guns. This gun wouldn't release the shaft and completely jammed; couldn't free it even after disassembly. When I purchased two new rivet guns to replace the one I broke, I found out why they broke. According to the back of the package they are not heavy duty enough to handle SS rivets. I opened the package on the of the new replacement guns I bought and it did finish the job without breaking, so there is that. Long story short, if you end up having to use one of these light duty guns for SS rivets dissemble it before you start and lube up the wedge and spring, and don't count it to be able to complete the job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmosSwogger Posted July 9, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 Splashed the boat for the first time today in motor boat mode (still working on the masts and rigging). Everything went well. We put in on the George Washington Canal right off Route 17 (close to the Dismal Swamp and just a few miles from our house) and motored down to the North Carolina border and back. The boat rolled easily off the keel rollers; glad I mounted 5 rollers on the trailer (thanks Joe Anderson for that tip). We had a toast on the water with sparkling apple cider and grape juice. The kids enjoyed the cabin. The motor performed well; impressed with how it pushed the boat even at idle speeds; a testament to how light this boat is. Thank you to everyone on the forum and Alan and Graham for helping me get this far. Now I need to get back to work so we can go for a real sail! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve W Posted July 9, 2018 Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 Wow.....nice job. Your family looks so happy. I'm looking forward to that! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Action Tiger Posted July 9, 2018 Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 Glorious. Peace, Robert 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul356 Posted July 9, 2018 Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 Way to go, Amos. What fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Anderson Posted July 9, 2018 Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 I will lift a glass of grape juice to that. Many happy adventures for you and your family. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Stewart Posted July 9, 2018 Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 A very sharp looking boat and quite the sharp looking group as well. Thanks for the pictures. The paint really makes it pop. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick Ludwig Posted July 9, 2018 Report Share Posted July 9, 2018 Welcome to the B&B fleet of happy boat owners. I'd love to go for a sail with ya at the messabout. By-the-way, I've always wanted to cruise the canal, but haven't made it yet. Maybe with Lost Cove. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmosSwogger Posted July 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 Topping Lifts: Do I need to rig up topping lifts? For those that don't use topping lifts, how are the ends of the sprits supported when the sails are lowered? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chick Ludwig Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 Amos, I always rig topping lifts. I can adjust them from the cockpit. I use them to hold the sprits up when the sails are down, and raise them out of the way when anchored for the night. When trailering, I unclip the sheet block from the end of the sprit, loosen the snotter, raise the sprits all the way up against the mast, tighten the snotter, lower the masts, and then use bungees to strap the sprits against the mast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete McCrary Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 I consider them essential and use them for same purposes mentioned by Chick. I think that Graham doesn't use them -- wanting to keep weight aloft and windage at a minimum. I don't know how he copes with controlling the sprit ends when not sailing. For a while I used 1/4" line for the main, but it was too "stiff" for my liking. Switched to 3/16", which is much better. I also use the main topping lift to hold the mast up while putting the nut on the mast bolt inside bulkhead #1. The shackle end is looped over my anchor roller (and belayed to itself) with the bitter end belayed to a cleat on the garage coaming within my reach while holding the mast upright. The bitter end also has a jam cleat at the cockpit above Blk 3. Note that the cheek block (at the mast head) should be a bit down from the very top. That's because if it's near the top, it can easily flip over to the "wrong" side of the sail. Mine's about 4" lower than the head of the sail (when fully raised). That seems to have solved the problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmosSwogger Posted July 19, 2018 Author Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 Thank you for the replies. I'm still curious concerning how people get by without using topping lifts. They seem essential to me, but they aren't shown on the rigging diagrams which makes me think that Alan and Graham don't use them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul356 Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 I haven't rigged topping lifts, although I saw Chick's setup at the messabout and it is pretty slick for masts in tabernacles. But my masts are freestanding. That is, I pick 'em up and drop 'em in the hole. This is on a regular 17, not a 20 or a mark 3. A topping lift would be one more piece of string to untangle. So, I let the sprit ends fall into the cockpit when the sails come down, and it's not a big issue. I have used the halyards a couple of times to hold the sprit ends up and make room in the cockpit, as in the photo. One issue there was sprits swinging kind of wildly in a chop. How do the topping lift guys control that swinging? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Vacanti Posted July 19, 2018 Report Share Posted July 19, 2018 53 minutes ago, Paul356 said: I haven't rigged topping lifts, although I saw Chick's setup at the messabout and it is pretty slick for masts in tabernacles. But my masts are freestanding. That is, I pick 'em up and drop 'em in the hole. This is on a regular 17, not a 20 or a mark 3. A topping lift would be one more piece of string to untangle. So, I let the sprit ends fall into the cockpit when the sails come down, and it's not a big issue. I have used the halyards a couple of times to hold the sprit ends up and make room in the cockpit, as in the photo. One issue there was sprits swinging kind of wildly in a chop. How do the topping lift guys control that swinging? Man, that is a really good looking boat... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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