sails and info

[maltybob]

ive just bought a caprice grp yacht and wish to know more about the caprice class
mine is a bilge keel with skeg any help out there ?
also im looking for a mainsail for her
and if anyone is interested ive got 2 3.5 hp longshaft yamaha outboards for sale or swap for a decent main

 

[rex_seadog]

A plywood Mk1 Caprice was the boat used by Shane Acton for his circumvavigation in the seventies - so very capable in the right hands! Take a look at www.thunderbirdsailing.org/articles/shrimpy.html

 

[oldharry]

Many years ago (oh dear...!) I owned a nice Mk2 Plywood Caprice,, and remember it as one of the better boats of the many i have owned/sailed.

The Mk3 was built by Glen Ridge and Co, at Yachthaven, and was modified from the original plywood design by being around 6" longer with a correspondigly longer waterline, and having rounded bilges, as opposed to the plywood hard bilge. There used to be - and probably still is - an active Owners association, and some quite major offshore passages have been made, including trans Atlantics in them.

Specs: Loa 19'0, LWL 16'0, Beam 6'3", Draft 2'62 (Bilge keel) Total Sail area 135 sqft, including 60 sq ft working jib with a 90 sqft Genoa option, Ballast 600lbs (272 K, displacement 1680 lbs (762K). Designer: Robert Tucker. (RT's son carries on his fathers business still somewhere in Hertfordshire I think, and can provide working drawings and assistance for any RT design, though I dont have an address, and he doesnt have a web site)

There was a fin keel version with slightly larger sail area.

One structural fault to watch for on the Mk3, the GRP lay up at the aft end of the bilge keels is not adequate, and the keel moulding can drive up into the hull at the aft end causing distortion and eventual cracking of the hull. The hull just behind the aft end of the keels should appear fair without any 'dishing' of the hull round the aft end of the keel. In severe cases (like the last one I saw) the hull begins to crack as the keel pushes further up into it, and leaks develop as the lamination fails.

As long as things have not gone that far, beefing it all up to spread the load around is straightforward enough. If there is evidence of stress failure however things are not so straightforward as the cracks have to be ground out, refilled, and then adequate reinforcement put in to bring the hull up to strength.

I know you will now be rushing off to have a look at yours - dont panic! Even if it has cracked, it is a reasonably straightforward job to deal with - and I have only ever heard of 2 of them suffering this particular fault.

Even if yours is number 3 - which is MOST unlikely - dont despair. You have otherwise a tough, reliable and practical small boat with an impressive pedigree, and which will look after you far better than most when the going gets rough!