Robert Tucker Caprice 19

[bentravla]

The Caprice owners' website has been republished as www.capriceowners.info and contains a list of known Caprice 19 (and one 20 ft version) boats along with some archive material from the Owners' Association days.

Please get in touch if your's isn't listed and I'll add it.

This is not an owners' association, just a focal point. Do visit, we'll be pleased to see you.

 

[Fantasie 19]

Well done.. I moderate the Fantasie 19 website with the same aim.. he certainly designed nice looking boats!

 

[Seajet]

I'm pretty sure Reginaldon on here has a Caprice; I'll try to find him & send a PM.

 

[Jemimah]

Hi, I’m looking for help on the running rigging having just bought my Caprice 19.

For starters, I’d like to know how you’ve set up your mainsheet rig - mine looks like it had a bridle but it’s not clear if she had the mainsheet run forward to the mid-boom then down to the cockpit floor or had the block at the boom end.

Secondly, I’m trying to work out which halyard goes in the front of the mast at the masthead & out the rear. The shackle is on the end of the sheet coming out the front but it’s not for the genoa. Has it been rigged back-to-front or is it used for a genoa pole?

Finally, does anyone have a drawing that shows where the cockpit drain exits? Mine’s blocked with muck and I’d like to know how long it is to clear it out.

Thanks in advance.

J

 

[maby]

We had a Caprice for a while - many years ago! My memory is not too good, but I do remember that the mainsheet was run through to a block on a bridle that spanned the transom - rather like the setup of many sailing dinghies. I'm pretty sure that the sheet attached to the end of the boom via a two or three power block and tackle if I remember correctly.

I don't immediately remember the answers to your other questions - but it may come back to me if I could see the boat - where is she? We are based in Gosport.

 

[Jemimah]

Thanks Maby.

She’s at Bosham (but I’m not!). I’ll try to attach a photo or two.

 

[oldharry]

Re the halyard, on a standard masthead rig the main halyard is neatly always rigged through the masthead so that the rope doesn't foul the luff of the main. A second halyard usually rigged to a block at the masthead hoists the jib. However the job haggard may be integral with theno jib roller feeding gear so only the main halyard goes to the masthead. The popular Plastimo rollers have masthead halyards The commonly fitted but now obsolete. Colnbrooks do not. If the main halyard eye is fwd of the mast it has been threaded the wrong way.

Check whether your bilge keeps are causing the hull to flex at the aft end of the keel. One grp builder did not put sufficient strength in, causing the hull to flex at the aft end. Its Not serious, but needs some stiffening glassed in to provide more support. If the boat grounds and pounds heavily, it could fail, turning a survivable incident into a full scale disaster!

I had a wooden mk2 30 ++ years ago. Great little boat! Have fun

 

[maby]

Thanks Maby.

She’s at Bosham (but I’m not!). I’ll try to attach a photo or two.

well, that's not so far away from us - if you can't find anyone with more recent knowledge of Caprices, ping me a message and we'll find time to wander round and see if we remember more of the detail face-to-face... What is she called? Do you know anything of her history? Ours was Cirrus and I've often wondered what became of her!

 

[TQA]

I am sure you know this but just in case a Mk1 Caprice was sailed around the world by Shane Acton. The story is told in 2 books Shrimpy and Shrimpy sails again. They are both good reads and are required reading when you have some testing times when you feel you don't have enough boat or enough experience.

 

[stu9000]

Loved my Caprice. Read Shrimpy and sailed to Alderney. Nice to see they are still going

 

[maby]

I am sure you know this but just in case a Mk1 Caprice was sailed around the world by Shane Acton. The story is told in 2 books Shrimpy and Shrimpy sails again. They are both good reads and are required reading when you have some testing times when you feel you don't have enough boat or enough experience.

We slept on ours just once. Sometime around 3am, I woke up, looked up at the ceiling which seemed about a foot above me, looked round at the walls - not much further from me on either side - and wondered how on earth anyone could live in that space for eight years!

We were very fond of that little boat - it was our first boat - but also very pleased to move up to larger things! Quite coincidentally, after we bought her and I was researching her history I discovered that we were living in the next road to where Robert Tucker's house and offices had been. His son was still there (this is about ten years ago now) and was also in naval architecture. He still had many of the original plans for the Caprice.

 

[jwilson]

Enjoy your Caprice Jemimah: in the 1970s I had a plywood "Mk 1.5 Caprice" - a Mk I hull and deck with Mk II keels, built by a shipwright. Mk I a much smaller coachroof so nicer looking though a smaller cabin. Almost every piece of interior woodwork came to pieces like a 3-dimensional jigsaw puzzle (no screws) so in winter you could have a totally empty shell to get everywhere inside, clean and paint if needed. Loved the boat, sailed her everywhere from upper end of Bristol channel to Cornwall and Pembrokeshire. Can't help with Jemimah's mast rigging or cockpit drains as older ply boats had wooden masts and non-self-draining cockpits.

 

[Jemimah]

Thanks everyone for your comments and help.

I’ve got Sail #864 which originally had what I think was a Gaelic name and built by G McKenzie in 1972.

I can’t post any photos yet as I’m still on my forum ‘P’ plates!!

I’ve established that with the rolling reefer boom I’ve got that I’ll need to set up a boom-end mainsheet block. What baffles me is the two anchor points forward end of the cockpit - one on the floor & the other on the cabin step.

I’ll also need to rethreax the mains halyard - anyone got any experience doing that with the mast up?

I’m also looking for help to service the Seagull long shaft outboard. Is it better to get it going or sell it for a modern motor?

J

 

[maby]

Thanks everyone for your comments and help.

...

I’ll also need to rethreax the mains halyard - anyone got any experience doing that with the mast up?

...

J

It's not a very tall mast, so I would be tempted to prop a ladder up against it rather than use the more traditional bosun's chair. Is the jib halyard or topping lift still in place? If so, secure one or the other to the top rung of the ladder to give you some protection against the ladder falling. The rigging on our Caprice was all fairly light weight and I would not be too happy about letting either the jib halyard or topping lift take my full weight.

Seagulls have a reputation for being a bit temperamental - personally I would go for a new motor.

 

[Tranona]

Probably easier to drop the mast as it will also give you a chance to check the rigging over. The boom end would normally have a rotating mounting plate for the topping lift and mainsheet attachment. Mainsheet would go down to a horse or bridle on the aft deck, not along the boom if the roller reefing is used.

Seagull will be perfect for the job. Clean fuel and a good spark are what they need.

 

[jwilson]

Don't try and go up the mast with a bosuns chair - rigging won't be designed for that, also Caprices are quite initially tender ( heel easily at first ). I came to the Caprice after a similar sized centreboarder that was quite stiff initially, and was worried at first at how easily the Caprice heeled. Soon discovered that once the initial heel was on she stiffened up nicely. The exact opposite to the previous boat that would stay little heeled for a long time and then quite suddenly go right over in a gust - a couple of times to spreaders in the water.

 

[Jemimah]

Seagull will be perfect for the job. Clean fuel and a good spark are what they need.

I haven’t got a service manual so any idea what spark plug I should get?

@jwilson - thanks.

My latest thought is rather than rethread the main halyard, I might leave it as-is, knot a bowline on the (currently) loose end to connect with the main’s head with a shackle leaving the other end with locked brummel attached (until the winter maintenance period).

J

 

[Tranona]

I haven’t got a service manual so any idea what spark plug I should get?

@jwilson - thanks.

J

Sheridan Marine hold the stock of Seagull spares and will be able to supply a plug - not sure of the latest type available as the last time I fitted one was over 30 years ago and it still works! Another useful source of information on Seagulls is the Saving Old Seagulls website.

 

[Fantasie 19]

Hi, I’m looking for help on the running rigging having just bought my Caprice 19.

For starters, I’d like to know how you’ve set up your mainsheet rig - mine looks like it had a bridle but it’s not clear if she had the mainsheet run forward to the mid-boom then down to the cockpit floor or had the block at the boom end.

Boom end according to this...

http://sailboatdata.com/viewrecord.asp?class_id=5348

...you mentioned roller reefing - if you want to continue to use that and have a kicker you'll also need a boom claw...