Friday, 8th July

'Electron', a classic East Coast Smack

Last Friday was for me a remarkable day, as time seemed to stand still, enabling me to cram a lot into it without feeling strained or hassled. In fact, the whole time was one of relaxation.


I rose early and enjoyed a leisurely breakfast, packed myself a picnic lunch and drove the car to Tollesbury Marina. En route I reacquainted myself with the beautiful countryside through which the meandering road passed - a road that I frequently drove along when I kept a small yacht at West Mersea, by the Yacht Club.


The weather was not the most suitable for antifouling, because it was blustery with heavy showers. I came prepared for scrubbing the smack’s hull as the tide receded, and I expected to find her at the scrubbing posts, but instead, CK 36 was on the Marina’s slipway, slung between frames of a large launching trolley. All the hard work of scraping off weeds and barnacles had been done by her owner. She lay there chocked up, high enough for easy access to her hull.


Her owner was nowhere to be seen. While I waited for him, I took a few photos of the 32 foot ‘Electron’. This sleek classic workboat was built in 1909 by Aldous of Brightlingsea; more recently she was completely rebuilt. Structurally, I noted that she was in excellent condition with all her seams in tact and a fair hull.


Within minutes her skipper appeared, and we set about applying antifouling to the drier, leeward side of the boat. Between showers we managed to do the windward side, with hours to spare before the incoming tide would be high enough for launching the boat.

A pretty, simulated clinker dinghy seen at the Blackwater Sailing Club

After eating my packed lunch I took my leave and motored to Heybridge Basin, there to look at the yachts and to walk beside the canal, also along the path to the Blackwater Sailing Club which overlooks the tidal Blackwater, mostly mud at low water – but a glorious playground for local yachtsmen, either side of high water.


After a leisurely stroll and a chat with visiting yachtsmen I made my way home. Then it was time for a cup of tea and a session sorting ‘Talitha’s’ reefing gear, plus setting up her anchoring system.


Well before nightfall, and not in the least fatigued, I retired to my room where I keep my computer. There I prepared my Blog for the day.



Links


Sailing Smack Association
http://www.ssa-uk.org/


Photos of ‘Electron’ CK 36
http://www.ssa-uk.org/Smack_files/electron.html


Electron at Smack Dock, Brightlingsea
http://www.smackdock.co.uk/c3.htm


Blackwater Sailing Club
http://blackwatersailingclub.org.uk/


Heybridge Basin
http://www.seylec.com/id6.html


West Mersea Yacht Club
http://www.wmyc.org.uk/

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 141

Gap between infill and keel

Gap filled with putty

This must be the last lap of the race to make ‘Talitha’ ready for sailing this season. I think the boat is finished, but there may be a few minor adjustments - in light of experience gained from sailing her.

Chain fitted

The last two days I’ve been working on her trailer to make it roadworthy. I’ve probably achieved this, now that it has been fitted with a security chain. The lighting board, with its extension cable, clips onto the rudder fittings, and it is kept in place by ropes tied to the trailer frame.

Lighting board

Theoretically, all systems are ‘go’ for being on the road, except for checking that my car insurance covers me for towing a trailer.


Because I have a busy week, I can’t see myself getting away for the first sail until this coming Saturday, but if I can find an opportunity before then, I’ll take it.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 140

Almost ready to go

My fears about the trailer coupling were unfounded. Today I had no trouble in linking the trailer to the car, but I noted that it lacked a security chain, which I believe is mandatory. Therefore I’ll rectify the matter and purchase one at the same time as I buy a lighting board. Attaching the board to the stern of the boat should be easy, because I can make a fitting that will latch onto her skeg.

Gear stowed, ready for the road

This is a better place than beside the keel box for the anchor and warp in its waterproof bag.

I tried a couple of straps for securing the boat to her trailer, and they worked well. In fact, apart from the lighting board, I’m ready to take ‘Talitha’ for her first sail. I shall be looking for suitable weather on a day when I shall be free for the sail.

Building ‘Sharpy’ 139

'Talitha' on her trailer back to front

I made good progress with the trailer by removing rotten wood and replacing it with pieces that have been hanging around since I built my Paradox. In fact, I recycled wood taken from ‘Faith’s’ mobile cradle. I found a piece of carpet in the loft, and cut two pieces to size for covering the wooden crossbeams upon which ‘Talitha’ will rest. Somewhere tucked away, I have straps for holding the boat in place. It’s a matter of finding them.

When I next have the boat outside, I'll turn her around so the her bow will face the way she will be going. I shall have the centre of gravity over the axle.

Altogether, the trailer has cost me absolutely nothing! However, I may need to get hold of a new or second-hand coupling to fit my car’s tow bar. The one on the trailer cannot be opened, despite being twice drenched with WD 40. That magic liquid normally shifts any rusted components. I’ll give it another day, before deciding whether to search for a replacement.


I shall also have to get hold of a lighting board for mounting a number plate and illuminating the trailer. I’ll spruce the trailer up a bit by painting the metal parts. The fact that the trailer is nothing special to look at is a good thing, because a thief on the lookout for one would not be interested it. The resale value would be zilch.


Finding a way of having ‘Talitha’ on her trailer with her keel in place, so far has defeated me. If such a system can be devised, it must take the weight of the keel. If her keel were not supported, the loading on her hull would be so severe that damage to the hull would be inevitable. Meanwhile, I shall use the trailer as it is, and transport the keel in the boot of the car. Sliding the boat off her trailer to the edge of the slipway will be far easier than taking her off my roof rack and getting her to the water.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 138

Downhaul for pulling in a reef

Reef pendent - Note use of milk carton tops on each side of the cringle for securing the pendent

There are only a few minor things left to do to make ‘Talitha’ completely finished. Today I set up her reefing system so that I can put a reef in within seconds by pulling a single line and making it fast to a cleat on the boom. I can lower the sail if need be by easing the halyard, and if it is necessary, I can tie the other reefing lines at my leisure.

The anchor, chain and warp are stowed in a waterproof bag

This shows how the anchor is deployed, via its warp through a thimble attached to the painter

I also sorted out the anchor so that it can be deployed and retrieved without too much effort. This is done by passing the end of the anchor warp through a thimble which is permanently attached to the painter; then the warp is tied to the anchor chain which is already joined to the anchor. The anchor and chain are lowered over the side; then the warp is paid out until there is sufficient length for the depth of water, at which point the warp is tied to the thimble. Finally, the painter is paid out until the boat is lying to her anchor by the bow. The tail end of the painter is then tied or cleated to a fixture within reach of the cockpit.

To retrieve the anchor, the process is reversed. As the warp is taken in, it is flaked into a waterproof bag, and after the anchor has been scrubbed clean, it is stowed on top of the warp, along with its chain. The bag and contents are then tightly lashed to the starboard side of the keel box, to effectively become internal ballast.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 137

Changing the bearings

As good as his word, my friend turned up this morning and replaced the bearings of ‘Talitha’s’ trailer. Furthermore, he gave me a 3.2 kilogram folding anchor and a length of galvanised chain for it. He also let me have two wide wheels, an axel and two narrow wheels for a trolley that will clamp onto ‘Talitha’s’ skeg. The wide wheels would be better for use on sand or pebbles, but they are quite large. The narrow ones look neater; however, they would not be suitable for use on soft surfaces such as sand or gravel. I’ll have to make up my mind, which ones to go for.

The anchor after cleaning

I tried the spray cover and it looked as if it will be O.K. I think I shall fit into it quite snugly and it should protect me from the wind, rain and spray.

Spray cover

Tie for spray cover

This afternoon I removed a rusted shackle from the anchor and I cleaned the anchor. I must set up an anchoring system and find a place for stowing it. Most probably I’ll put the anchor and warp in one of the side bins. I’ll also have a sponge and a small scrubbing brush for getting rid of mud and weed on the anchor and warp. One of my daughters gave me a folding canvas bucket that may be a suitable container for the anchoring gear.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 136

Prep for bonding the sleeve to the weight with Araldite

Araldite left to set with weight in place

After epoxy was dribbled into the gaps. The bottom of the hole was sealed with putty.


The building side of my ‘Sharpy’ project is almost finished. Today I aligned the keel weights by enlarging a hole for the aft retaining pin and inserting an aluminium sleeve. To fix the sleeve before filling gaps with epoxy, I bonded it to the lead with Araldite. I may consider adding a sleeve to the forward hole, because then the removable weight can more easily slide on and off the retaining pins – as the threads of the pins run smoothly within a sleeve. Without sleeves, there is a tendency for the threads of the retaining pins to snag on the edges of the laminations of lead that comprise the weight.

Boat name

My boat has been given a name. She now has vinyl lettering either side of her bow. I have named her ‘Talitha’, after one of the words spoken by Jesus when he raised Jairus’s daughter from the dead.* ‘Talitha’ is Aramaic for the feminine form of ‘lamb’ or ‘youth’. He held the dead girl by her hand and said, “Talitha cumi,” which Mark, the writer of the gospel, translated as, “Little girl. I say to you, arise.” Immediately afterward, the girl got to her feet and walked!


In a metaphorical sense, my ‘Talitha’ has been raised from the dead, because now she has been brought to life as a viable creature. In her previous state she was a miscellany of inanimate bits of unrelated matter, without shape or form. She has become a harmonious entity, with a heart and spirit, looking forward to a relationship with her owner, the one who raised her to life for the prime purpose of shared adventures.


*Mark 5:41

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 135

Close-up of the keyhole retainer for the keel haul line

Today I could not find time to do anything on the boat, not that there is a lot to do, except for realigning the keel weights and attaching vinyl cut-out letters for ‘Sharpy’s’ name. I shall also try adapting a cycle cape to act as a spray apron for the boat. I shall have to make a hem for a bungee that will stretch around the coamings to keep the apron in place. Such an arrangement should be pretty watertight. I have the cape which is made of yellow waterproofed, reflective nylon – highly visible at sea. I bought the largest size I could, so that it would be long enough to fit the cockpit and to enable me to wear my buoyancy vest. I may find myself a bit hot when using the apron, but it has a ventilation flap at the rear.

A couple of days ago I had too many photographs for uploading, and I mentioned that I would publish the remaining four. Each has an explanatory caption.

Temporary stowage for the paddle, which may become permanent

I have since attached a line to the brass loop for retaining the mast in the unlikely event of a total capsize

The sheet would appear to work well, but I'll see how it goes when the boat is out on the water

The weather is not going to be too bright for the next few days, but I’ll endeavour to make some progress on getting ‘Sharpy’s’ trailer working. My friend who has promised to do the bearings should be able to fix them soon. I’m still trying to work out how I can get the boat on her trailer without having to remove her keel.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 134

Bow shoe

Stern shoe

I’m going to leave you with a few photos without adding too much text. This is an exciting time because I’m testing the rig and keel. I was surprised how easy it was to insert the keel and add the second weight. Perhaps this was due in part to spraying the keel with silicone wax.

Inserting keel

I shall have to make adjustments to the lining up of the keel weights. How they came to be out of line, I cannot imagine. I feel sure they were in line when I was making the keel. A friend has suggested how I can get the weights to line up. That could be number one priority for tomorrow - if I can find time for boat building.

Full sail

Reefed

As far as I can tell, I’ve finished the boat, with the exception of sorting out a better reefing system and lining up the keel weights. I’ll probably opt for a leach downhaul plus independent sail ties through cringles along the reefing line.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 133

Handles

The order of the day was ‘attention to detail’. I fitted the chandlery bits and pieces. These are crucial for making the boat work. I have selected four photos that illustrate some of them. I’m keeping four more in reserve, perhaps for tomorrow.

Keel haul line

The boat is more or less finished. Her keel haul system is in place; all her rigging bits are there; the rudder is operational, including the bungee downhaul, and I’ve even found temporary stowage for the paddle. The boat has a bow painter that will be part of an anchoring system. I shall not be fitting a stern painter; instead, I shall have a line that I can attach to a point in the cockpit. This will be useful when coming alongside a pontoon for quickly making the boat fast to it.

Keel retaining line fitted to aft end of keel box

If circumstances allow me to take ‘Sharpy’ outside tomorrow, I shall set everything up, including stepping her mast and inserting her keel.

Rudder bungee under tension

After that, I’ll concentrate on making the trailer roadworthy.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 132

Topcoat

Final adjustments to the rudder

As I had hoped, I finished painting the deck. Apart from touching up, there’s no more painting to do. I also did the last varnishing of the keel weights. To make the weights more streamlined, I’ll fill the gap between the aft edge of the keel and the plywood infill with household putty. Anything more substantial would make it difficult to remove, which may be necessary in two or three year’s time for renewing the keel wire.

Hatch cover tie

Split pin for retaining the rudder

Toggle

So that I shall not lose the inspection hatch covers I have attached thin cords to them which I’ll tie to screw eyes within their relative compartments. Likewise I tied a small split pin to the rudder stock for retaining the rudder, by passing the pin through a transverse hole in the lower pintle. Another small job done today was tying on the toggle to the stem head.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 131

Bungee attached. Will it be powerful enough to hold the rudder down?

A good sunny, almost windless day helped me to move forward by painting the final coating of paint on the bottom of the boat, varnishing the keel weights, fixing the rudder bungee and attaching the sail to the spars.

Sail fitted to spars

I tested ‘Sharpy’s’ reefing system which consists of one reef that can be lashed to the boom. I’ll have to experiment when on the water to discover the easiest way of reefing the sail. At the moment I have a continuous reefing line, but it may be better to have two or three, or even have individual ties through each cringle. There is no facility for reefing the sail on the original boat; therefore the plans do not show how it can be done. Consequently, I have to experiment to discover the most efficient method.

Sail reefed.

The bungee that will hold the rudder down in the water may not be powerful enough to keep the blade totally submerged, especially when the boat is at full pelt. The only way to find out is to try it on the water. If it should fail, I can fit a thicker and more powerful bungee.


If the paint on the bottom of the boat has fully hardened by tomorrow, I’ll be able to set up her rig properly and attach cleats for the mast retaining line and one for the halyard. I may have to devise a fairlead for the main halyard where it passes over the port hand coaming. In practice it may be better to run the halyard through a hole in the coaming. On the prototype the halyard runs through a slot beside the keel wire pulley. I did not incorporate a gap at that position, but no doubt I’ll come up with a satisfactory solution.


I only have to paint the deck once more for her to be nearly finished. I must find a place for the paddle and perhaps add short lengths of brass strips to the foot of the stem post and the skeg. These strips will minimize damage when the boat comes into contact with a beach or slipway.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 130

She is actually pale lemon yellow in colour

Close-up

This is a better rendering of the colour


After sanding the bottom of the boat I painted it with the first of the upper coats. I’ll definitely do one more coat of paint, and another on the deck. The photo of the keel box slot depicts a better rendering of the true colour than the photo showing the bottom, which for some reason looks like off-white, but in fact is a pale, lemon yellow. That colour will be visible at sea from a fair distance – hence my choice. I’d rather the boat was seen by those in other vessels, particularly by watch officers of large ships, as I intend crossing the River Thames from Leigh-on-Sea to the Medway. This will involve cutting across dredged channels for incoming and outgoing shipping.

Toggle

In addition to painting the boat and varnishing the keel weights, I made a toggle that will be attached to the bow with a thin piece of rope for when I want to pull the boat along when she is on her purpose-built trolley (yet to be made). The toggle could also be part of an anchoring system, since the anchor line will be attached to it via the painter.


I have now decided on a name for the boat and I have ordered the appropriate stick-on vinyl lettering from Fred Walton at Ebay.co.uk.


Tomorrow I may paint ’Sharpy’s’ bottom again, perhaps for the final time; that would leave me with just one coat of paint to do on the deck, after which the boat would be almost ready to use.

Building ‘Sharpy’ Part 129

Undercoat on bottom

The undercoat has been applied to the bottom of the boat. If I’m able to paint the bottom with a second coat tomorrow, only one more layer will be necessary, but I may do a fourth coating to make sure the hull is properly protected for when she comes into contact with a beach or when she grounds on an unfriendly surface. The keel weights should take quite a pit of the impact when beaching. If there’s any amount of surf, things could get awkward, because with the keel in place she will be heavy for me to haul up a beach. Getting her on her side to extract the keel could be problematical. From that point of view, she will not be as easy to beach and secure out of harm’s way as a lightweight canoe such as my ‘Caleb’.

Stem post varnished



In addition to painting ‘Sharpy’s’ hull, I once again epoxied the inside of her keel box. I want to make sure water does not penetrate the surface of the plywood with in the box. To that end, I’ll apply yet another coating of epoxy. Before I try the keel in earnest I’ll spray both the inside of the keel box and the keel with silicone wax to reduce friction between them.

Varnished keel weight

I also gave the seat another coating of varnish, and at the same time I varnished the upper and side surfaces of the keel weights and the stem post. Tomorrow, I’m hoping to have time for varnishing the lower surfaces of the weights.


At this stage, when the boat is almost finished, I am occupied with a number of small jobs that are necessary for her completion. Setting up her rig and her steering will be like topping out a building, but I’m not into parties and celebrations when launching a new boat. I much prefer a boat’s baptism to be a quiet and private event, a time for reflection, and a moment for checking her out. If all goes well, I shall be thankful and satisfied with the fruit of my labour; I shall look forward to learning more about her when we shall share adventures together.


Link


Topping out

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topping_out