Oops

[JumbleDuck]

I seem to have acquired another boat. She's a very nice Drascombe Longboat (well, actually a Devon, but let's not quibble) and has been sitting in the yard since her original owner died about four or five years ago. His heirs initially had a rather optimistic view of her value, but accepted a very modest offer from me this week.

She comes with a very nice breakback trailer, but the brake cables were seized, one suspension unit (Peak) was shot and the tyres looked very iffy, so I spent a day on my back fitting her with nice new, and much more substantial, Indespension stuff. Big shout out to th every helpful staff in their Glasgow shop.

After that a couple of hours with Godzilla the Diesel Powered Pressure Washer changed her back from green to cream and she has just done the 100 mile to her new home in SW Scotland.

Tomorrow: getting the teak looking nice and polishing the GRP. Sunday: Grand Launch renaming and fun.

Yippee!

 

[Sybarite]

I seem to have acquired another boat. She's a very nice Drascombe Longboat (well, actually a Devon, but let's not quibble) and has been sitting in the yard since her original owner died about four or five years ago. His heirs initially had a rather optimistic view of her value, but accepted a very modest offer from me this week.

She comes with a very nice breakback trailer, but the brake cables were seized, one suspension unit (Peak) was shot and the tyres looked very iffy, so I spent a day on my back fitting her with nice new, and much more substantial, Indespension stuff. Big shout out to th every helpful staff in their Glasgow shop.

After that a couple of hours with Godzilla the Diesel Powered Pressure Washer changed her back from green to cream and she has just done the 100 mile to her new home in SW Scotland.

Tomorrow: getting the teak looking nice and polishing the GRP. Sunday: Grand Launch renaming and fun.

Yippee!

Great. Enjoy.

 

[Corribee Boy]

Post us some before and after pictures?

 

[Babylon]

Congratulations! Piccies necessary!
?

 

[sarabande]

good to hear that a fine boat has gone to a loving and active home. Two masts to play with

Pix please !

 

[Sticky Fingers]

I seem to have acquired another boat. She's a very nice Drascombe Longboat (well, actually a Devon, but let's not quibble) ... Tomorrow: getting the teak looking nice and polishing the GRP. Sunday: Grand Launch renaming and fun.
Yippee!

Photos......?

 

[aquaplane]

Is this one for Loch Ken? Sounds like fun.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Is this one for Loch Ken? Sounds like fun.

She is indeed going into Loch Ken. I'm not quite sure how I'll use her as well as my Hunter 490, which also lives there, but isn't yet launched pending a repair to the keel lifting mechanism, but doubtless some solution will present itself.

I'll do some piccies today and tomorrow. I didn't think of doing any "befores" so you'll all have to use your imagination. Wood covered with green foostiness, thick mulch of rotten leaves inside, cream deck covered with black yeugh with a light blue sheen from a nearby antifoul stripper.

The forecast is for heavy rain tomorrow afternoon. I shall have to get my skates on.

 

[Serin]

I seem to have acquired another boat. She's a very nice Drascombe Longboat

Yippee!

Used to have a Scaffie. The simplicity was delightful. One friend remarked when I took her sailing in it "Biblical, isn't she?" Different sailing technique of course (from conventional rig) but lots and lots of fun. Enjoy!

 

[JumbleDuck]

Used to have a Scaffie. The simplicity was delightful. One friend remarked when I took her sailing in it "Biblical, isn't she?" Different sailing technique of course (from conventional rig) but lots and lots of fun. Enjoy!

Thanks. There are rather a lot of pieces of rope and string to understand, and she coes without an instruction manual, but luckily the sailing centre where she'll be based has (a) a Longboat Cruiser (tabernacle and boom, but otherwise similar) and (b) two instructors who know Drascombes very well, so with charm and bribery I hope to get some help.

I have never owned parrel beads before!

 

[snowleopard]

We have had a Longboat for our disability centre for about 7 years now. She sails as well as you'd expect for a gunter rig and boomless main. A few experiences from our use-

The boomkin is vulnerable so expect to snap a few.

Don't beach the boat without lifting the rudder right out. If the shaft gets bent it's difficult to remove.

Get a wood turner to make you some spare belaying pins.

I don't like the standard triple block thrashing around on the clew. Too big a risk of mashing heads.

Remember it's a gunter rig so hoist the gaff all the way up leaving just enough slack in the halyard for it to pivot, then haul the tack down tight.

Experiment with the location of the bilge suction. In front of the centreboard leaves several inches of water when the pump sucks dry.

She sails OK under jib & mizzen in strong winds but won't make off a lee shore. Once you have a bit of way on she will go to windward but not very well.

Put lengths of plastic pipe over the shrouds to save chafing through the sheets.

 

[JumbleDuck]

We have had a Longboat for our disability centre for about 7 years now. She sails as well as you'd expect for a gunter rig and boomless main. A few experiences from our use ...

Thank you very much indeed. That's extremely helpful. I shall order a new bumkin or two, and I am about to appeal in "Wanted" for belaying pins, as both mine have distorted after years out in the open. I took her out in very gusty conditions today under jib and mizzen only and she performed beautifully. She didn't exactly fly to windward, but was definitely getting there. The bilge suction on mine really has to be just aft of the centreplate box, as there are several stringers with limber hole in them across the full width in front of that. A side entry strum box, if I can find one low enough, should help.

I was very pleased to discover that the almost-unused (they said) Mariner 5 four-stroke outboard which came with her started literally first pull and ran beautifully.

Three questions, if I may:

1. How do you stop the tiller flailing around when moored? There are no obvious places for ropes to each side, so for the moment I have turned it through 175^o and lashed it to the mizzen mast.
2. Do you leave the mainsail on the mast? My jib is hanked on and I gather that standard practice is to wrap the mizzen sail round the mast and then put the mast inside the boat.
3. To what do you belay the mizzen halyard? There is no cleat on the mast, and the mooring cleats by the outboard well are too big and in an odd position for that use.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Post us some before and after pictures?

Congratulations! Piccies necessary!

Pix please !

Photos......?

 

[Corribee Boy]

Looks nice - we got rid of our Drascombe Lugger a long time ago, but still have fond memories. (I've also still got the parrell beads decorating the wall of the beach hut, though I don't know how or why)

 

[Deleted member 36384]

Congratulations, it looks as if it was a great bargain. I have always liked open boat sailing and love sailing about on my Wayfarer but I have hankered after something with more room. I cant justify it though. Well done, hope you get plenty of enjoyment out of it.

 

[steve yates]

She looks gorgeous jumbleduck, thats going to be a lot of fun, congratulations

 

[snowleopard]

Three questions, if I may:

1. How do you stop the tiller flailing around when moored? There are no obvious places for ropes to each side, so for the moment I have turned it through 175^o and lashed it to the mizzen mast.
2. Do you leave the mainsail on the mast? My jib is hanked on and I gather that standard practice is to wrap the mizzen sail round the mast and then put the mast inside the boat.
3. To what do you belay the mizzen halyard? There is no cleat on the mast, and the mooring cleats by the outboard well are too big and in an odd position for that use.

We have various additional bits of hardware to lash the tiller to. From your pic I suggest various possibilities - the ends of the sheet track, A single line forward to the plate case or to a stowed spar.

Sail stowage:
Jib is on a roller-reefing spar so stays up like a cruising boat.
Mizzen is laced permanently to the mast - no halyard, just a lanyard. When not in use it rolls round the mast and stows inside the boat.
Main is lowered, left attached to the gaff; the main halyard is tied to the gaff jaws and hoisted about 6" above the deck to form a ridge for the cover.

This is the standard cover...

I find the gaff works better than the ropes from the mast to support the centre.

If you can't get belaying pins, get back to me. I turned my own.

 

[snowleopard]

Congratulations, it looks as if it was a great bargain. I have always liked open boat sailing and love sailing about on my Wayfarer but I have hankered after something with more room. I cant justify it though. Well done, hope you get plenty of enjoyment out of it.

There's certainly bags of room. we normally sail with 7 aboard! There is even room to secure a wheelchair.

 

[JumbleDuck]

Congratulations, it looks as if it was a great bargain. I have always liked open boat sailing and love sailing about on my Wayfarer but I have hankered after something with more room. I cant justify it though. Well done, hope you get plenty of enjoyment out of it.

She looks gorgeous jumbleduck, thats going to be a lot of fun, congratulations

Many thanks, both. I sailed her with the mainsail up for the first time today. Quite stately in the F2 in which I went out, quite lively in the ferocious gusts which came in with a front. RS400s capsizing all around me, but the Longboat just ploughed on with the helmsman grinning like a loon. It's like having an adult-scale dinghy!

We have various additional bits of hardware to lash the tiller to. From your pic I suggest various possibilities - the ends of the sheet track, A single line forward to the plate case or to a stowed spar.

I shall investigate ... there is a decided lack of attachment points for fenders and the like, so I shall probably be adding some eyes in various places.

Sail stowage:
Jib is on a roller-reefing spar so stays up like a cruising boat.
Mizzen is laced permanently to the mast - no halyard, just a lanyard. When not in use it rolls round the mast and stows inside the boat.
Main is lowered, left attached to the gaff; the main halyard is tied to the gaff jaws and hoisted about 6" above the deck to form a ridge for the cover.

Many thanks - that's all extremely helpful. I may get a furler for next year, but for the moment hanking the jib on is no great hardship. I shall lose the mizzen halyard, and tomorrow I shall phone Honnor Marine in the hope that they have a cockpit cover in stock.

 

[wully1]

That looks like a lot of pleasant fun.