Fantasy boat

[Mark-1]

I once sailed on a 52’ wooden yacht whose owner put the boat in the yard every winter with his job list and the date he wanted the boat back. That seems to me the perfect way to own a wooden yacht. My fantasy has for very many years a 43’ ex RN Morgan Giles with the money to pay for all the maintenance in a similar manner.

Agree. Of course, if it's outside, many items on the jobs list simply won't be possible unless there's a warm autumn/spring.

 

[potentillaCO32]

So what happens to the ones that just disappear then? Just for clarity, the issue I describe is particular to the very modern wide beam monos, and shallower bilge keels will make it even more stable inverted. Clearly this is why our intrepid ocean voyaging members advocate another style of boat, a less beamy, deeper keeled sort. My point is, if ypu’re going to go for a boat that is stable inverted, itks better to lose the ballast. That way, you get a headline of being rescued, not one of ‘what happened’.

True dat

 

[winch2]

Something like a mini pilot cutter....35ft, yard built...Spars and fittings dripping in varnish. The rest of the boat dripping in bronze, enamel and teak, and with a certificate saying Im only to be approached by men in white coats......

 

[Frogmogman]

I once sailed on a 52’ wooden yacht whose owner put the boat in the yard every winter with his job list and the date he wanted the boat back. That seems to me the perfect way to own a wooden yacht. My fantasy has for very many years a 43’ ex RN Morgan Giles with the money to pay for all the maintenance in a similar manner.

Nice. If we’re going with that sort of fantasy, then this boat tugs at my heart strings. Partly because it is so beautiful, partly because of the George Millar history.

AMOKURA | Fred Shepherd/ Moody 50 ft Classic Yacht 1939/2025 | Classic Yacht For Sale

 

[flaming]

Fantasy boat: afloat on a mooring it would look like an Open 40, but with twin wheels instead of a tiller. It would have twin 5-6 ft keels and twin skeg-hung rudders on which it could dry out. Possibly some pumpable water ballast. Also twin 40 hp diesels with feathering props in the skegs. Shallow self-draining 'garage' under cockpit in which a inflated dinghy could stow. Quite a big rig with fully battened main and gooseneck low. Self-draining hatch in foredeck for stowage of Code 0 sail. Retractable bow thruster. Four berths only, forward main double cabin, two seaberths tucked away aft outboard. Singlehanding easily possible, maybe 20+ knots offwind, 10 to windward.

You're very close to describing an RM1180.

RM 1180

 

[potentillaCO32]

You're very close to describing an RM1180.

RM 1180

Be careful. UK sailors have no knowledge of the true boat market outside the uk.

 

[Blueboatman]

Be careful. UK sailors have no knowledge of the true boat market outside the uk.

If they ever build one with an inert core instead of wood?

 

[potentillaCO32]

If they ever build one with an inert core instead of wood?

Rearrange these words into an order that might make sense.

 

[Mark-1]

Rearrange these words into an order that might make sense.

Makes sense to me. He's saying they have a wood core but they'd be a good bet at some point in the future if they swapped to something better.

 

[potentillaCO32]

Makes sense to me. He's saying they have a wood core but they'd be a good bet at some point in the future if they swapped to something better.

Good shot at a probable meaning.

He was asking a question. "If they ever build one with an inert core instead of wood?"

What would he do if they ever built one with an inert core ? Buy one? Set fire to one? Never buy one?
And his question was in response to me talking about the difference between continental and uk markets. I didn't even mention the RM.
If he had added some context and a few more words his post would probably have made perfect sense.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

I once sailed on a 52’ wooden yacht whose owner put the boat in the yard every winter with his job list and the date he wanted the boat back. That seems to me the perfect way to own a wooden yacht. My fantasy has for very many years a 43’ ex RN Morgan Giles with the money to pay for all the maintenance in a similar manner.

That would be marvellous. My neighbour has his fantasy boat, a 57ft gaff cutter, plus another 8ft of bowsprit. Fortunately he seems to like varnishing. Others seem to enjoy helping him, the boat being quite well known. The payment is a ride. She needs a fair few crew, they are hard to find too, or at any rate, people who can sail her without breaking her or themselves. I think it is wiser to fantasize about boats that require less varnish, and less crew.

 

[Blueboatman]

Good shot at a probable meaning.

He was asking a question. "If they ever build one with an inert core instead of wood?"

What would he do if they ever built one with an inert core ? Buy one? Set fire to one? Never buy one?
And his question was in response to me talking about the difference between continental and uk markets. I didn't even mention the RM.
If he had added some context and a few more words his post would probably have made perfect sense.

Not quite
It’s not about any differences between markets per se.

I love RMs and their design and features and continuous product development and their sheer fun to sail.

And they have created a successful niche and lots of loyal happy buyers

And these days of rip off deep water moorings and anchoring surely encourage another look at boats capable of sitting upright on a drying or shallow creek ( or Caribbean lagoon) yet cross oceans superbly too.

But. In my years of boat ownership I have never yet managed to keep a boat free from untoward bangs, scratches and bumps, or worse.
And it’s not always my fault Sometimes you come back to your expensive marina berth and someone has taken a gouge out of the stern whilst visiting an unfamiliar harbour for the night ( etc. I could go on but I’m sure yiu get the drift).
So. Fixing grp, easy . Drying out plywood core or decking or sprung deck/ topside, no thanks.
Leaky fittings or port lights? No problem until you have organic cores and start chasing the salt water out..

Equally I don’t favour steel for the endless chasing scratches and rust.
Nor aluminium for the electrolysis and painting challenges..

But in fantasy land perhaps we can allow a return to god old Victorian yachting where ‘ The Hand’ lived in the foc’sle amd was responsible for all that pesky maintenance, vigilance and touch ups, as well as lighting the ships stove and drying the sails and scrubbing the deck and polishing the brass.

Hang on, that sounds rather good to me. I’m in

 

[potentillaCO32]

Perfectly explained.

 

[Mark-1]

Good shot at a probable meaning.

He was asking a question. "If they ever build one with an inert core instead of wood?"

What would he do if they ever built one with an inert core ? Buy one? Set fire to one? Never buy one?
And his question was in response to me talking about the difference between continental and uk markets. I didn't even mention the RM.
If he had added some context and a few more words his post would probably have made perfect sense.

He's just making the point that a wooden core is a bad idea.

 

[Blueboatman]

The wonderful and scary thing about this thread is that there is always, always another boat in most of us, just waiting to launch!

 

[potentillaCO32]

Not me having spent 18 months rebuilding my current boat.

 

[Bajansailor]

Nice. If we’re going with that sort of fantasy, then this boat tugs at my heart strings. Partly because it is so beautiful, partly because of the George Millar history.

AMOKURA | Fred Shepherd/ Moody 50 ft Classic Yacht 1939/2025 | Classic Yacht For Sale

She is lovely, but if money is not a constraint I would like to build a cold moulded replica of Stormy Weather please.
Stormy Weather

Stormy Weather

MarineTraffic: Global Ship Tracking Intelligence | AIS Marine Traffic

Here is Stormy sailing in the Bequia Easter regatta in 1993. I am one of the scruffy mob sitting on the windward side.

 

[Fr J Hackett]

She is lovely, but if money is not a constraint I would like to build a cold moulded replica of Stormy Weather please.
Stormy Weather

Stormy Weather

MarineTraffic: Global Ship Tracking Intelligence | AIS Marine Traffic

Here is Stormy sailing in the Bequia Easter regatta in 1993. I am one of the scruffy mob sitting on the windward side.

View attachment 209539

I have walked past her on a couple of occasions and spent a few minutes drooling over her. Absolutely beautiful lines.

 

[Bajansailor]

I have walked past her on a couple of occasions and spent a few minutes drooling over her. Absolutely beautiful lines.

Here is a photo I took of her during the Classics Regatta in 2011 - I had gone to Antigua on a survey job, and as Classics was on at the time (it is happening again this weekend), I stayed a couple of days extra.
Antigua Classic Yacht Regatta | Serious racing, laid-back Antiguan hospitality, plenty of rum
Stormy had sailed out in December 2010 (I think they took part in the ARC). I started chatting to the owner, and told him what she was like 15 years earlier when I last sailed on her, and he invited me to come sailing with them the next day, on the last day of Classics.
After Paul (who I had sailed with) had sold her (he has the website www.stormy.ca) her new owner shipped her from Lake Ontario to Italy to give her a massive refit. Paul had found her looking very sad in the BVIs in the early 80's and slowly refitted her then on a proverbial shoestring, including replacing every steamed white oak frame with new laminated frames.
Stormy then proceeded to terrorize the Classic regattas on both sides of the Atlantic, along with Bequia Easter Regatta every year and some Fastnet races thrown in along the way - I think they did something like 40 transatlantics over 20 years.
Her current owner bought her from the gentleman who had her refitted in Italy, and I think she has been based in Antibes ever since.



I took the above photo from Rosa the day before I sailed on Stormy - Rosa was the complete opposite, an old English gaff ketch who had also been restored on a shoe string by her skipper Spike. I cannot remember if she had an engine - maybe she didn't, or it was not working, as Spike would scull her in and out of her marina berth with a long sweep on the stern.
Below is a photo I took of her from Stormy.



Edit - and here is a photo of Spike sculling Rosa out of her berth.

 

[14K478]

I once sailed on a 52’ wooden yacht whose owner put the boat in the yard every winter with his job list and the date he wanted the boat back. That seems to me the perfect way to own a wooden yacht. My fantasy has for very many years a 43’ ex RN Morgan Giles with the money to pay for all the maintenance in a similar manner.

I remember the very lovely JF Jones / Stanilands “Sephine II” at Walton-on-Naze; Ron Wyatt had a second covered slip built to take her at Bedwells and she spent each winter in it. She was always bang up to date and spotless. My definition of “proper yachting”!