Relaunch day!

[jamie N]

My wooden Folkboat was craned in this morning with the usual stoical expression of 'knowing' she'll be OK.
However, over winter I'd recaulked a great deal, and was (truly) bricking it with ill concealed nervousness. She was OK when I left her a few hours ago with the pump kicking in every 12-14 minutes, which doesn't alarm me given the volume of water involved. There's a mains operated, high volume pump in place to kick in if it does all start to go bad as well, so I reckon to be able to sleep easily enough.
Anyone else have these emotions?

 

[DownWest]

Yep!
I occasionally help out a friend with a 50s Swedish M/Sailer. Close seamed, so no caulking and if out of the water for any time, needs a fire pump on launch.
So, the last time she was out for a winter, after replacing all the aft frames ( eight a side) we used Seam Slick to fill the seams, as it eases out as the wood takes up. I had built a 'yard trailer' to get her to the winter storage (errrm about 3km from the slip, so done when things are 'quiet' At 4 odd tonnes, one needs to be a bit careful). The launch welt well and the ingress was minimal, well within the little Rule pump. Next day, even better. It spent the last winter on it's riverside mooring with only a battery for the whole time.

 

[Romeo]

The advantage of a boat with no engine or electrics..... leave it to sink and take up from inside and our. Pump out after say 3 days.

 

[PhillM]

Sounds like a good job, done well.

 

[Capt Popeye]

My wooden Folkboat was craned in this morning with the usual stoical expression of 'knowing' she'll be OK.
However, over winter I'd recaulked a great deal, and was (truly) bricking it with ill concealed nervousness. She was OK when I left her a few hours ago with the pump kicking in every 12-14 minutes, which doesn't alarm me given the volume of water involved. There's a mains operated, high volume pump in place to kick in if it does all start to go bad as well, so I reckon to be able to sleep easily enough.
Anyone else have these emotions?

Humm, a great job done then, you could sleep on board just in case she took too much water though
Ready to turn additional pumps on etc, or leave her to 'take up' where she would dry out when the tide goes out ?

 

[Sniper]

My wooden Folkboat was craned in this morning with the usual stoical expression of 'knowing' she'll be OK.
However, over winter I'd recaulked a great deal, and was (truly) bricking it with ill concealed nervousness. She was OK when I left her a few hours ago with the pump kicking in every 12-14 minutes, which doesn't alarm me given the volume of water involved. There's a mains operated, high volume pump in place to kick in if it does all start to go bad as well, so I reckon to be able to sleep easily enough.
Anyone else have these emotions?

Sounds like my annual routine. After 24 hours the auto pump is only kicking in every couple of hours or so and after 2 weeks she's hardly making a drop.

 

[Redwing228]

Yes,
I too have pre-launch worries... Our Finesse has been out of the water since November last year after spending the previous 4 winters in a mud berth - so first time 'dry' for a while. Over the winter I've stripped all her anti foul back to bare wood and built up new coats of primer and just re-antifouled her ready for a lift in next Wednesday. The iroko planking fortunately has shown little sign of opening up but I am concerned about the centreplate casing which had previously always been weeping slightly all the time, from various joints, so it is this that worries me. The boat has no auto bilge pump installed - I have just invested in one and am installing it tomorrow, just in case!

 

[jamie N]

Your auto pump is a good investment. Good luck with this. Do you have a 'big' pump available though, should things go 'Pete tong'?

 

[Redwing228]

Your auto pump is a good investment. Good luck with this. Do you have a 'big' pump available though, should things go 'Pete tong'?

Er, no, but from launch place to our mooring is a short hop - in Saundersfoot harbour - and she only floats for 2 hours either side of HW. If she's badly leaking - and she's not been bad in the past - I'll stay on board ( or get her craned out again!)

 

[jamie N]

I took the boat from the reassuring pontoon of Inverness Marina yesterday, up to the wilderness of the Cromarty Firth and a mooring there for a week or so. So simple a step, but this time it was with the engine that I'd fitted myself, on an engine bed that I'd made myself, along with an internal heater that I'd fitted my self; a Gypsy stove.
What could possibly go wrong?
The engine; all the might of an RC8D Renault, worked really well, and had to as the wind kept on dying before changing to 30kts on a repeated basis. Sailing in sleet won't catch on as a 'must-do' pastime y'know. The Gypsy stove was modded to Bio-Ethanol as the wood burning aspect of it was terrifying, but needs refinement in the manner of a drip feeding fuel arrangement. Presently, as soon as the fuel's used, it then needs a refill from the fuel canister; say, every 45 minutes, which is fine for the 1st couple of times, but then the wine begins to take a hand in the events....!
The leaks have now (virtually) ceased as well, so the present terror is just having her on an open mooring, albeit in the lee of some fairly serious Jack-Ups.

 

[jamie N]

A small continuation as a mate of mine, with a very similar wooden Folkboat, launched yesterday at Caley Marine. Why should this be exciting? The boat hasn't been in the water since the 1990's! I helped with the launch, as well as loaning him a pump, and left them to it. This morning when I revisited, he said that he'd only had to use the pump about 3 times overnight, as the water got above the cabin floorboards.
Crikey!
I've never seen a guy as happy and proud to be on a boat, and quite rightly, as he's done all the work on her to get her back into proper shape, as well as having a serious long term illness himself. Some things just make one happy, and this one does to me, as well as making me think that my relaunch day will never be so daunting again.

 

[Seajet]

Well done to all concerned !

 

[Redwing228]

A small continuation as a mate of mine, with a very similar wooden Folkboat, launched yesterday at Caley Marine. Why should this be exciting? The boat hasn't been in the water since the 1990's! I helped with the launch, as well as loaning him a pump, and left them to it. This morning when I revisited, he said that he'd only had to use the pump about 3 times overnight, as the water got above the cabin floorboards.
Crikey!
I've never seen a guy as happy and proud to be on a boat, and quite rightly, as he's done all the work on her to get her back into proper shape, as well as having a serious long term illness himself. Some things just make one happy, and this one does to me, as well as making me think that my relaunch day will never be so daunting again.

A nice bit of news - it is great to read about proper boats being refurbished and put back in their element. Thanks for sharing.
Bill