So heres a thing.......(to any Junkrig corribee entrants)

[Blueboatman]

You ain't going to make it.. without my advice!! I am sorry (and perplexed)that you are all too proud to ask for advice. ......This must read like sour grapes or sommat..but actually having ....,based on being out there,..I have worked up a heavy weatther junk rig that will realisticaly deliver you and yours to the States...

 

[Blueboatman]

Some boring details that might require attention before you lot all head off next year...As I understand there are potentially quite a few hybrid Corribee/Junk riggers participating.
The following modifications could be considered;
1. The mast foot really needs to sit in a solid wooden socket glassed and bolted to the hull/liner.The standard throughbolt and s/steel bracket flexes and fatigues..
2.The mast aperture hatch through the cabintop should really be glassed to the cabintop and glass be laid over all nuts and bolts-flexure at sea exceeds the waterproofing properties of the standard silicone bedding.
3.If you break a tiller,it is as well to have already made a 40mm hole through the aft edge of the rudder,A lashing can then be quickly rigged to regain control.
4.The standard wooden battens are subject to stress fractures.Carry spares made from something like douglas fir which is stress crack resistant.At a pinch pvc waterpipe works well as a batten too.
5.Similarly a stout sculling oar can double up as a spare yard for the sail.
6.In calm conditions with a swell running the sail will beat itself to pieces as the rig jars back and forth....and battens will fracture.The solution is to lower the sail and hoist a triangular stormsail with a continuous lashing around the mast..Ditto in bad weather of course or whilst repairing the main sail.
7.The cockpit holds a lot of water when flooded -And it drains very slowly..Better to cover it in part or wholly with plywood,lashed down.This creates an enormoud storage area for dinghy,water jugs,juice cartons etc .The boat will carry 200l of liquids fine.
8. Well worth reinforcing the standard companionway hatch with channels of alloy or stainless steel let into the exisiting wood trim. 18mm plywood wash boards can now be fitted and these should rally be tied(tethered) to the boat at all times...
9.The alloy stemhead fitting is pretty weak.Replacement with a s/steel and additional glass underneath will greatly improve security for anchoring,lying to a drogue or being offered a tow.
10.Compartmentalising and glassing each storage compartment beneath the bunks,right up to bunk height, will improve ones chances of quickly locating and sealing any leak or breach of the hull.And a sponge in the bottom of each will indicate and absorb small deck leaks.
11.The aft deck hatch really needs 2 or 4 ubolts and lashings across it to secure it at sea.
12.A hatch garage will keep a lot of water out of the cabin...
13.The stainless steel yard bracket that attaches the main halliard is not man enough for the job-if it fails you will be left with the halliard stuck at the mast top.Replace with something using 10mm stainless bar instead of 4mm,and increase the welding area. It is good to put a lashing from the halliard block around the yard itself so that if the fitting does fail,you can retrieve the halliard.
14.The standard halliard double blocks are in my opinion better replaced with bigger,roller bearing double blocks set 'over' rather than side by side.There will be less chaff of the block cheek walls.And up the halliard size from 10 to 12mm.
15.And it is worth wrapping leather around the top 6 inches of the mast to protect it too against chaff.
16.The battens,yard and boom can be wrapped in soft rope for perhaps 2 feet in length where they come in to contact with the mast-chaff,friction and noise reduction.
.........Er thats it. All the stuff I have described I did,or was forced to do before or during sailing. With good detail any small boat should arrive at the end of such a trip in better condition than when it started, so there! Good luck guys.

 

[Jake]

Great advice!

Hi Tim

Wow - that's quite a list! I know it's hard won experience as you 've sailed your Corribee acoss Biscay already, and trans Atlantic.

Some of your ideas I'm already starting to incorporate. In terms of the rig - do you rate the hinged batons? These are supposed to give another 15% performance, and it is a race, after all.

My own rig is made from wooden batons, but I know that Mudskipper ( a home built blue water boat) uses plastic water pipe instead. The secret is to have a thinner pipe within a thicker one. This gives added strength, provides a good camber, but stops the pipe kinking. It's also much lighter than wood, so less weight aloft.

The advice about the cockpit is also useful. I've added two large drains, but also intend to install a removeable 'infill' section to minimise the sea-water (!) capacity of the cockpit. Roger Taylor modified Ming Ming to have no hatchboards. Instead, he accesses his cabin from his glassed in main hatch, with a Houdini attached.

I'm compartmentalising the inner moulding with watertight hatches. First I'm cutting the bunks out to get at the inner hull, to lay up some extra glass and foam stringers. Was your hull beefed up for trans Atlantic?

Then bulkheads are going in (on 3M adhesive sealant) with watertight hatches on the underside of the bunks. I'm also reinforcing the forefoot against a container strike, and adding extra ballast to the fin keel so I can carry more sail. The Corribbee skeg is very flat, so I'm shaping mine for better water flow. I'm also semi-balancing the rudder, as the original was far too small, and even my extended one is marginal.

In the galley, I'm opting for a fully gimballed single burner stove. Did you use gas, or spirit?

I may be building in a weakness here, but I've dropped in a large anchor locker under the starboard fordeck. A problem with the Mark 2 Corribbee is that the forward hatch is sealed up to take the mast. This makes ventilation difficult. The idea is that the anchor locker can be opened, and a watertight hatch on the inside removed to get a through draft into the cabin. I've also added Vetus opening ports (port side) and Vetus mushroom S/S vents on the cabin top.

My main hatch (with dome) is a bit vulnerable to a green one, so I'm looking at a garage arrangement, but the design won't really allow it. I'm hoping a wave break will have the same effect.

The stem head is a beast, and now has a double roller. The main deck cleat is also huge, with a supporting post going in underneath. I'm adding so much weight I wonder if I'l still have positive buoyancy at the end!

Thanks for the great advice. I'll post some pix here as progress continues.

 

[Blueboatman]

Re: Great advice!

That sounds great Jake.I like the watertight compartmentalisation.
I fitted a small Goiot hatch on the foredeck for increased ventilation(once I was in the Windies).My first garagehatch was just a stout canvas affair but once I had made the proper mold and built one in GRP I was able to fit a small Sunbrella dodger on a folding pvc tube frame,whose width was slightly narrower than that of the folded boom crutch-this made a superb and dry sitting/lookout area
I fitted a second set of washboards-the standard ones in 18mm mahogany and a second 10mm ply pair that sat over them spanning across and beyond the wooden companionway sides.These were hinged together horizontally using rubber to effect a waterproof seal/hinge and it meant that whilst the lower one was always in place, the top one could quickly be flipped open or shut,an idea which I used on my next boat too with success.
I really dont know about plastic battens,they can develop a fixed curve or sag I would think?
The second mast sounds interesting..I tried a narrow jib or 'blade' which was rigged on a stout bamboo pole as a sort of rigid forestay,and set between the stemhead and the mast head-Because the bamboo gives the sail a straight luff without putting the mast in excessive tension,it was pretty effective but made the boat rather wet and heeled over when going to windward-but I could get 4.5 knots with a bit more leeway,quite a dramatic increase for a junk rigged boat! It foulded the yard when tacking though and I never really dared to use it except day sailing.
I used an Optimus parafin and later a 2 burner camping Gaz stove and made alloy potclamps rather than gimballing,the gas bottle was tied on the floor and turned off at the bottle between sessions(probably illegal now).
I also tried a small spinnaker in light airs but it didn't really do much.
The weight carrying ability of the boat ws amazing..and I think made it far steadier and less prone to pitch and stop when going upwind.
And yes you can climb the mast without fear of the boat tipping over or the mast bending!
Not sure that any of this is of much interest to the general ybw readers but if you need any specifics or piccies to help with your fitout, pm me.
It sounds like you are really doing a thorough preparation.Quite envious really!

 

[Superflid]

Re: Great advice!

With less than a year's sailing behind me, I'm a long way off doing the Jester Challenge!
I have, though, just taken over ownership of a Coromandel. Some of the modifications sound like good sense for any owner to consider, the mast foot and rigging mods in particular.

Best of luck to anyone heading out on the crossing.

One day, maybe......

 

[Jake]

Re: Great advice!

Thanks Tim!

I think the envy is mutual - so far my Corribee has only taken me to France and the Channel islands, and a delivery from London to Poole, but her shallow draught means she can tuck in almost anywhere, and I take great pleasure in anchoring where other yachts fear to tread.

What outboard did you use? My Tohatsu 5hp longshaft 4-stroke gives about 15mpg, but is quite a heavy old lump. When my partrner and I sailed to France, the boat seemed a bit sluggish until we stocked up with cheap wine. (She is a bit of a wine buff) We shoved dozens of boxes of the stuff forward, down came the bow, and she went like a train on the way back.

I've since modified the trim to put a lot more weight forward, but am bringing the anchor chain back to give more buoyancy at the bow. It's all a compromise! (I even modified her so she can be rowed, and the oars will double as an emergency mast or yard.)

I too tried a spinnaker arrangement, but the mast would bend alarmingly in anything over a gentle breeze!

Appreciate the good advice. I'll keep you posted on the refit. Time, Tide and the Jester start wait for no man!

 

[Jake]

Re: Great advice!

Hi Ken

Welcome to the Forum. Checked your biog and you have a veritable fleet! The Coramandel is a good boat - lots more room than the Corribee for the hull size - even a proper loo.

If you really get bitten by the bug, there's always the Jester 2010 trans-Atlantic. I'm hoping to enter that too - but will have to be especially nice to my employers.

 

[Superflid]

Re: Great advice!

Thanks Jake, I'll try to keep up with myself! The Waarschip has now gone, too many boats at home! Fortunately/unfortunately (still not sure.....) I'm also half-owner of a Debutante (21ft ply triple keel) but that one is safely tucked up in Lincolnshire.
The fishing boat will be finished soon and sold to fund fitting the Coromandel out properly.

As for 2010, well maybe! I've definitely got the "sailing bug" and the boat is certainly up to it.....

I'll be watching this forum carefully.

 

[2nd_apprentice]

Re: Great advice!

Hi all,

some great hints here, thanks for sharing! I'm considering the Jester challenge myself and also looked at Coromandels in particular. Quite a lot of boat for the money. Definetly have a reputation for seaworthiness too! You probably all know about this but there's an interesting site about taking a Corro to the Azores here: http://members.aol.com/michaeljspring/private/AZORES.HTM (slow loading, lots of pictures).

I'll probably go for a slightly bigger boat though, will see.

 

[mikeauton]

Very interesting info, particularly the bit about mast footing refix - very aware this is not as strong as it should be and we have this on the jobs list for this year. Our plan was to use the same material we machined the batten hinges from - Acetal, it is amazingly durable and of course will not rot. My mast does have some corrosion around the bolt holes and wondered if it was sat in a socket will it not suffer further as there will no doubt be some water in there?

Can I invite your wisdom and possibly some pics of the jobs you have carried out onto the corribee/coromandel discussion group - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CorribeeCoromandel/

We have a 15 year boy on here (Jonny Moore) who is setting off in his Bermudian rigged Corribee June 2008 to sail around the UK (doc on the site in the files section detailing his exact plans). Your experience would be a great help to him. He will be moored up next to my Junk Corribee this summer in North Wales, where he is planning to clock up some more miles.

He is looking for sponsors by the way - so any willing parites please email him or me.


Kind regards and happy sailing to all



Mike Auton

 

[Jake]

Hi Mike

Thanks for the lead about the young sailor. Always keen to hear about such adventures here at PBO. Could you ask him to drop our news ed robert_melotti@ipcmedia a line? Also, is he going fully north to get round? We'll have a look at his doc with interest.

Thanks also for the invite to contribute to the site. The boat is virtually being rebuilt for this Challenge, so lots of pix (and a few mistakes) to tell you about.

Incidentally, my mast base is also suspect, and corroding nicely. The bolts have effervesed themselves in nice and tight, and the alloy base is gradually dissolving as well, so the Acetal tip is a good one. The mast has to come out anyway for foam inserts to be added. I have to stop the electrical wires clanking inside it, and to rework a modifed masthead fitting.

Hoping to launch soon, but the jobs are endless.

Give Jonny Moore our regards!

Fair winds

 

[Guest]

[ QUOTE ]

Our plan was to use the same material we machined the batten hinges from - Acetal, it is amazingly durable and of course will not rot. My mast does have some corrosion around the bolt holes and wondered if it was sat in a socket will it not suffer further as there will no doubt be some water in there?
Mike Auton

[/ QUOTE ]

Hi Mike
One answer to this is to drill an angled drainage hole through the fitting so that any drips will find their way into the bilge rather than accumulate around the mast foot.

My second boat has been fitted with an aluminium cup-fitting through-bolted to a block of hardwood glassed to the hull - but with NO drainage hole (!) - so drilling one is on the list ....

'best

Colin

 

[Bajansailor]

Just for background reference, there was an excellent article in the February 2000 PBO about the junk rigged 'Glory II' and her indefatigable skipper Henry Pigott.

Glory is based on a standard 19' 6" Colvic Watson hull - her displacement is 4.5 tonnes (!), with 2.5 tonnes of that as ballast, draft 3' 6", sail area 165 sq feet.

I know that she is very different to a Corribee, but I am sure that many of the ideas incorporated into her design and build could be useful for Jester sailors with junk rigged vessels.

Henry and Glory have been around the world together, across the Atlantic 6 times, sailed to San Francisco for a birthday party and then back home again, both times via Panama, and they go on their annual summer cruise from Poole to the Shetlands every year to visit Henry;s daughter, who lives up there.

Oh, and Henry is now 80.

If anybody would like a copy of the article from PBO, I have it scanned, and can email it to you, no worries.

 

[Superflid]

I think I've got a copy of your scan through a certain Devon based sailor....

It's well worth a read, quite a guy!

 

[Bajansailor]

Yes, Geoff kindly scanned and emailed it to me as well - he also sent me an article about Henry's previous boat. This was a Mirror Offshore called 'Simba', in which Henry did a singlehanded circumnavigation of the Atlantic in the early '70's.
Glory must have seemed to be palatial luxury in comparison to Simba!
Henry is quite a lad for sure!

 

[Superflid]

Yes, got the offshore article as well.

If I get to do 10% of what Henry has achieved I'll be a happy man.

 

[Superflid]

[ QUOTE ]
Geoff

[/ QUOTE ]

Ah!, I got them from Charlie.....

 

[Bajansailor]

And I had sent them to Charlie after Geoff sent them to me.... well travelled reports re crossing the Atlantic a couple of times - they are starting to catch up on Glory!

 

[rptb1]

13.The stainless steel yard bracket that attaches the main halliard is not man enough for the job-if it fails you will be left with the halliard stuck at the mast top.Replace with something using 10mm stainless bar instead of 4mm,and increase the welding area. It is good to put a lashing from the halliard block around the yard itself so that if the fitting does fail,you can retrieve the halliard.

Seconded!

I just crossed the North Sea in my Coromandel https://tammynorie.wordpress.com/2015/08/31/landfall/

Then noticed this.

There's some discussion in the comments at https://tammynorie.wordpress.com/2015/08/31/whats-wrong-with-this-picture/

The rest of the OP's list corresponds very closely with that I've observed after two years with my Coromandel thinking about the Jester Challenge. I've only just found this thread, and it's great to have some confirmation as well as a few things I've missed.

 

[co256]

Maybe a soft dyneema lashing would be a better option and remove the stainless steel altogether?!

Just a thought...