After an hour of rubbing and scrubbing Harriet looks almost
presentable. Hey, it's an old boat that was probably owned or used by
kids. I am not too concerned about cosmetics, I will be happy, if it
sails. It seems to hold water; so I assume that it won't leak, when it
is in the water. There is some crazing of the fiberglass, but over all,
no structural damage or breaks. All of the deck and hull hardware is in
place and functional, jamb cleats, sheaves, blocks, etc. The mast and
boom have scuffs and dings but otherwise are straight and have no
missing hardware. I made a T skateboard of sorts to help me move Harriet
around the driveway.
The
sheets and halyards are stiff and weathered, but are not frayed and
seem strong enough to use. After indentfing the standing rigging stays,
I stepped the mast. I was accustomed to stepping a wooden mast, so the
aluminum is incredibly light and easier to work with. I shackled the
stays to their respective chain plates. Next attachment was the boom, a
perfect slide in fit to the mast. I shackled the main halyard to the
clew outhaul attachment point. That supported the boom in about the
correct sailing orientation.
I went to work on re-stylizing the path of the main sheet to suit my
preference.
Speaking of sails: This is a photo of the main sail from my original
1970's boat. It measures about 17' along the luff, and 9' along the
foot. I presumed that the Kingfisher sail is close to 13'6" along the
luff and approx 8' along the foot. Chris had offered to supply me with
dimensions. I am counting on advice from the Toms River Seaport Museum
staff, for their suggestions, as to finding someone who will tailor the
original sail down to the new size.
The 70's sails were originally made by Rockall International, a UK company.
You will notice the grommets along the luff and foot. Those grommets
were to accommodate the attachment of sail track slides. I removed the
slides, in order to try inserting the sewn rope edge, of the foot, into
the track or slot of the aluminum boom. It was a perfect fit. As you
can see the sail is about 12+ inches oversize.
The caption here should be that insightful quote from George Eastman. All we get to keep are the memories.
These pics were taken circa 1970 on the Toms River. Featured are my
bearded bro, Albert, and my childhood sweetheart, Rosemary. (I am in
the middle) The only remaining members of that original cast are me, the sails the
rudder and the centerboard. I suspect that those will outlast me too.
The boat that made those, misty, water colored, memories possible was my home built Petrel sailboat.
Petrel Plans
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Click to continue, there's MORE!!
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Walt'z Kingfisher Project Page 3