Dauntless gaffer

NUTMEG

NUTMEG

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www.theblindsailor.co.uk
I may get over this but am suffering from 'trad envy'. I have a greyting beard, a faded smock and a Breton cap, and keep dreaming of a wooden boat.

Has anyone any hands on experiance of Dauntless 21/22 gaffers?

Some tell me they are great coastal/estuary boats, whilst others say they are no good in a short chop of the kind we get around here. Any views most appreciated.
 
Sophie19 said:
I may get over this but am suffering from 'trad envy'. I have a greyting beard, a faded smock and a Breton cap, and keep dreaming of a wooden boat.

Has anyone any hands on experiance of Dauntless 21/22 gaffers?

Some tell me they are great coastal/estuary boats, whilst others say they are no good in a short chop of the kind we get around here. Any views most appreciated.
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Yes, had two of 'em many years ago now. It's true they didn't seem to like short steep seas, they slam and bang a bit, they are really what I would call a typical east coast boat. Ideal for poodling around the creeks and estuaries in that area. I restored one of mine, I burned the other!....don't ask! I would say that if you can find a really good one, like one that has been restored properly then it could be worth consideration, if you feel she is suitable for your style of sailing and the area in which you are going to sail.

I know that some may not agree with me, but I feel that they were built down to a price really, and sometimes the build quality or lack of it shows in spades. Having said that, they got quite a lot of folk afloat, when anything of comparable size was still quite a lot more expensive.

If you are neither rich nor skilled in looking after tired old wooden boats, I should think long and hard about buying an old Dauntless. all just IMHO of course.:)
 
Oooh, wood effect paint. Might be the answer. But I do find a clinker hull very pretty. I will ponder further. Mind you a wooden boat will always provide plenty to do when tide or wind prevent sailing. Sanding, filling, painting etc.
 
Sophie19 said:
I may get over this but am suffering from 'trad envy'. I have a greyting beard, a faded smock and a Breton cap, and keep dreaming of a wooden boat.

Has anyone any hands on experiance of Dauntless 21/22 gaffers?

Some tell me they are great coastal/estuary boats, whilst others say they are no good in a short chop of the kind we get around here. Any views most appreciated.
Click to expand...

How about something like this... snapped at the yard yesterday

 
Sophie19 said:
That is a thing of beauty VicS, will add to my file of boat porn!
What is she, Folkboat'ish. Would the owner accept £500?
Thought not:(
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Harrison Butler ?

Sophie 19,

stand by for real boat porn !

Salcombe Yawl;

syawl09.jpg


Rustler 24;

rustler_24_web.jpg


You'd think the photographer would have yelled at him to tension the jib halliard - or just shot him...
 
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here is a plan

Keep the plastic boat for sailing

buy a wooden one that will fit in your garage

then you can fiddle and fettle to your heart's content

get that warm feeling every time you go into the garage

and not lose out on any sailing

I am amazed at how many wooden boats are still in the yard in June

they have been wating for it to warm up enough to varnish and paint

or you could buy a plastic gaffer

D
 
No garage Dylan, but take your point. Plastic gaffer? I think the CC pilot cutter looks lovely but waaay beyond my reach.

I guess not many peeps on this forum have sailed a Dauntless, only one, very useful, reply.
 
Sophie19 said:
Oooh, wood effect paint. Might be the answer. But I do find a clinker hull very pretty. I will ponder further. Mind you a wooden boat will always provide plenty to do when tide or wind prevent sailing. Sanding, filling, painting etc.
Click to expand...

It would be much less effort (and cheaper) to apply fake clinker planking to your current boat than to maintain a tired wooden boat.:-)

I think the key question is do you want to sail, or do you want to do boat maintenance?
 
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dylanwinter said:
they have been wating for it to warm up enough to varnish and paint
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Shrug.

I don't have a wooden boat, but I do have two wooden sets of mast, gaff and boom (plus one bowsprit and one bumkin) that I varnish every year. I don't have a garage to do them in, and I have no means of transporting the mainmast away from the boat anyway. The spars have never held me back from launching in the spring.

I reckon your yard-dwellers just prefer boat maintenance followed by going to the pub, to actual sailing :D

Pete
 
prv said:
Shrug.

I don't have a wooden boat, but I do have two wooden sets of mast, gaff and boom (plus one bowsprit and one bumkin) that I varnish every year. I don't have a garage to do them in, and I have no means of transporting the mainmast away from the boat anyway. The spars have never held me back from launching in the spring.

I reckon your yard-dwellers just prefer boat maintenance followed by going to the pub, to actual sailing :D

Pete
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There is undoubtedly a breed of boat owners who will use any excuse to avoid actually launching or perish the thought sailing their boats but I have a suspiocion that the OP isnt one of those .

If I was retired and had few other commitments possibly I would return to wooden boats. Possibly.
 
Steer clear of the Dauntless and look at the far more attractive and performing Finesse.
Take a look at Nick Ardley's web page for inspiration http://www.nickardley.com/
I would be surprised if you could still find a Dauntless in any kind of condition that would not be akin to the proverbial hole in the water into which you throw money - lots and lots of it.
Not to mention they sail about as well as Southend Pier!
 
graham said:
There is undoubtedly a breed of boat owners who will use any excuse to avoid actually launching or perish the thought sailing their boats but I have a suspiocion that the OP isnt one of those .
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Sure - I wasn't talking about the OP, but about Dylan's wooden-boat people. That's why I quoted him and referred to them directly in my post.

Pete
 
I think Yantlet is right. My yard have certainly cut up two Dauntlesses in recent years because they were beyond the most passionate owner. Finesse's are better performing. My first boat was a 25 clinker centreboarder that went like a train when everything was right. Needed to be launched early in the year before the spring sun dried her out; even then the first 4 hours required some bold pumping. But she gave me the best fun every - see ECS07

Have you thought about a Blackwater Sloop. Not usually clinker but a great handy little boat.
 
Finesse

Yantlet said:
Steer clear of the Dauntless and look at the far more attractive and performing Finesse.
Take a look at Nick Ardley's web page for inspiration http://www.nickardley.com/
I would be surprised if you could still find a Dauntless in any kind of condition that would not be akin to the proverbial hole in the water into which you throw money - lots and lots of it.
Not to mention they sail about as well as Southend Pier!
Click to expand...

+1

A Finesse may be a better option as they are potentially decades newer but the OP particularly mentioned wanting a gaffer and not many Finesses left the builders rigged thus.
 
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