I retrieved Margherita from her winter barn storage at Easter. I was able to do the odd maintenance task and varnish removable items, but as I have to work on the hull in the open, the varnishing of cabin sides and bulkwarks was frustrated by awfully variable weather during April. One minute too hot, then too cold; or a day with a 10 minute shower in the middle! Anyway, it all got done in the end. The hull white paintwork is still in pretty good nick, as is the cream of the superstructure. I gave most of it a light T-cut and polish, which livened it up again. There is some fading and dulling of the light cream paint used, most evident when I touch up the odd ding. It is all Epifanes two pack polyurethane, which is very nice to use.
One interior addition this year was to make and install a small rack for the tea and coffee making materials. It was an interesting exercise in spiling to get the components to match the compound curves of the hull. The piece of foam is to stop it all going walk about while being towed to Poole. Not sure if it will be needed when sailing.
I launched Margherita into Poole Harbour on May 6th, which was warm and sunny. My first trip out was over the weekend of 13-16 May. Three cold nights on board, huddled in my sleeping bag with most of my clothes on. I did get some good sails though, and bedded everything into place ready for the season. Here are a few pictures taken while moored at Shiptall point in Poole Harbour.
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| all neat and tidy |
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| sunset over the nature reserve |
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| Looking SW towards Corfe |
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Sunrise at 04.30
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I hope everthing is OK with you as you have not posted for so long. I have always enjoyed your posts as they feature a part of the country and cruising area very close to my heart.
ReplyDeleteHello Chris. Kind of you to ask. All is well with me, it is just that I rather lost momentum on the Blog as I tend to do the same stuff each year, and it gets a bit repetitive. It started out as a way of showing everybody what a great little boat the Shilling was and how I used it. I never really intended it to be a blow-by-blow account of every trip etc. I will put up some more stuff when I have something unusual or new. Best wishes, Jeremy
ReplyDeleteI intend to buy a shilling in partial build with a view to completing the project. I have a question related to the scupper openings in the bulwarks. Do you think it is necessary to have these running the entire length of the deck? Wouldn't one or perhaps two - say one at the lowest point of the beam when the boat is on its waterline, and perhaps one aft of that suffice to drain water that makes its way onboard, either from waves or rain? Note that my boat will live on a trailer, not on a mooring, when not actually sailing. Previously I owned a 26 foot cold molded sloop, with just two scuppers through the toerails on each side, and this was enough to keep water from pooling on the deck
ReplyDeleteDr. Bruce Bolster
Clandeboye, Manitoba
Hello Bruce. I am seeing Phil swift the designer tomorrow at a boat show. I will ask him, but I think you could get away with fewer slots. I use them to attach fenders and straps on my cockpit tent too. Doing this on my phone. More when I have spoken to Phil and get home next week. Jeremy
DeleteHello Bruce. I am seeing Phil swift the designer tomorrow at a boat show. I will ask him, but I think you could get away with fewer slots. I use them to attach fenders and straps on my cockpit tent too. Doing this on my phone. More when I have spoken to Phil and get home next week. Jeremy
DeleteHello Bruce. I talked to Phil Swift about this. The Bulwark slots are positioned so as to allow water to drain away, rather than pool on the deck in the dead corners around the frame tops. You could do away with some slots, but if you wanted to drain the deck fully you would have to drill limber holes in the bottom of the frames, close to the deck. This may be hard to do now and it would also weaken the frames supporting the bulwark. We presume this is the boat started by Courtney and Tara? If I can help with any practical suggestions please ask. mine is boat 9 and both Phil and I have made a number of changes/improvements since your drawings were made. Jeremy
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