A long winter, with no skiing and plenty of time led us to consider abandoned projects from the previous year and how to make her sail better.
David Carne of Riggers UK had, over the four years he and his team have been checking her rigging for us, had come up with several suggestions. With the spars being repaired and overhauled, now was the time to put some of them into practice. As with so many projects by the time we returned to "Susan J" after Easter, a good start had been made but the gaff saddle remained un galvanised, let alone releathered. This gave another month for contemplation of the re fitting of the spars and rigging!
The steel running backstays, requiring two heavy wooden blocks at head height to tension, were replaced with single, Dynema covered with braid, lines and tensioned just with the staysail winches, as at present. The possibility of a jamming cleat, instead of , or as well s, the winches, was considered but this would be difficult to release if the stay was adequately tensioned on the winch, so was abandoned.
The double block with jamming cleat, lead from a block on the jib halyard at the mast head and sited on the, already narrow, side deck by the shrouds, while effective in ensuring a straight jib luff against the, handy billy tightened, bobstay, was adding weight aloft and complexity, which we agreed to try without. A similar arrangement on the starboard side deck, for the original duplicate staysail halyard, was only used to haul the dinghy aboard when laid up and, possibly, a MOB. Both have been removed and retained ashore.
The twin topping lifts had already been, successfully, terminated on Dynema soft shackles further forward at the front of the reefing combs, rather than at the boom end to keep the flailing end of the gaff within their grasp. I had already created a purchase at the mast to lift the heavy boom and gaff off the boom gantry at the aft end of the cabin. These were revised with an extra run of Dynema and the original three strand topping lifts and lazy jacks themselves, which were as stiff as pokers with grime and age. have been replaced with 6 and 4 mm, braid on braid, respectively.
With new soft braid on braid peak and throat halyards, a releathered gaff saddle(or bucket as it is known as locally), the main should go up and down more easily and in more control, while she rolls less in a seaway because of less weight aloft.
While waiting for the crane, the coach roof trim was stripped and varnished in Woodskin, as was that around the bow bulwarks and the lazarette hatches. at the same time, Julie sanded and re painted all of the deck in preparation for the re galvanised mast collar support and the replacement solar panel. The mast was restepped and the nine hard wood chocks were trimmed, where necessary and numbered for future reference.
With Graham at the yard keen to get us off the car park before G7, the spars were eventually craned back in early May and all the ideas came together in a matter of days. The new stainless steel fore aft and cap shrouds fitted flawlessly, as did the, largely new and traditionally coloured, running rigging.
After much internet research and costings, I had worked out how to replace the radar and multifunction device (chart plotter) with modern equivalents (it was not possible to do one without the other), which would talk to each other through a newer NMEA 2000 network and, only marginally, use less battery power and be lighter. While feasible, it would be a major project and cost many £1,000's. It seemed pointless refitting the radome and it's large heavy cable, given that we had only been able to use the radar on shore power. It also did not enhance "Susan J"'s appearance. So, for the time being, we would forego radar and rely on active AIS, which does integrate with the old C120 plotter.
Finally the question of topsail ahs been discussed on several occasions but the relative tall mainsail, leaves little room for anything substantial and, again adds extra complication and a lower handicap! we do now have plenty of cleats on the pin rail band, if we change our minds.
Cleaning the mooring buoy and pick up buoy in anticipation of re launch!
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