Hey Ramona check this out

Rigging check done!!!

Couple of little things to do but not much.
Sail list
1 main sheet (will keep an eye out for a spare)
3 jibs
3 kites.

Well made some good progress this weekend.
Tested the jib out. Seems to work....
put some quick release pins for the swing out draw bar.
And put the fridge on runners.

The tack on that jib needs to be as low as possible.

Cheers Ramona

Its adjustable length to make sitting at the front more comfortable whilst casually cruising.


Any advice and best ways to clean the sails? other than warm soapy water?

Truck wash and a soft broom to scrub it on your lawn will get rid of the grime. You could try some oxallic acid on the rust stains but I'm afraid they look like they are going to stay.

The jib will have to be a lot lower to get a decent jib sheet angle.

Ramonas spot on with the jib sheet angle .........if you run it that high , you will need to move the block back , the sheet should point to half way up the luff .

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Ramona said..
Truck wash and a soft broom to scrub it on your lawn will get rid of the grime. You could try some oxallic acid on the rust stains but I'm afraid they look like they are going to stay.

The jib will have to be a lot lower to get a decent jib sheet angle.

Cheers Ramona
Wheres best for oxallic? Bunnings?

It can adjust from where it is to all the way down to the bow chain plate. plus the blocks are on running tracks which makes life easier too for swapping setups.

Cheapest and easiest way for oxalic acid is patio cleaner from ALDI or Bunnings.

Having the jib tack low as possible will reduce the heeling and provide the correct slot for the mainsail. It will also look normal!

Cheers theres an ALDI opening near me in a few weeks

Yeah i think we can all move along from the jib now it was temporarily at full height for ease of climbing on the boat from the ladder, i can assure you i wont be sailing like that hahaha :)

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Stuman92 said..
Well made some good progress this weekend.
Tested the jib out. Seems to work....
put some quick release pins for the swing out draw bar.
And put the fridge on runners.

I think you'll find the draw bar extension will not be long enough unless you have a very steep launching ramp. We had a few Witches at my club and they launched them using a rope and letting the trailer going in the water by it self. You should have a 3rd wheel close to the trailer hitch and only let the yacht attache to the trailer go when floating or you risk to lose it on the concrete (have seen it happen) and it will be a total write off. Some of the guys have a connecting pin that can be pulled of with a long rope from the water edge of the launching ramp. Hope this will help. PS. you are welcome to come and have a look at how they launch Etchells as it is a similar process and we do not have Witches sailing there any more. My club is ORSSC at Ocean Reef. PM me if interested to look.

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felixdcat said..

Stuman92 said..
Well made some good progress this weekend.
Tested the jib out. Seems to work....
put some quick release pins for the swing out draw bar.
And put the fridge on runners.

I think you'll find the draw bar extension will not be long enough unless you have a very steep launching ramp. We had a few Witches at my club and they launched them using a rope and letting the trailer going in the water by it self. You should have a 3rd wheel close to the trailer hitch and only let the yacht attache to the trailer go when floating or you risk to lose it on the concrete (have seen it happen) and it will be a total write off. Some of the guys have a connecting pin that can be pulled of with a long rope from the water edge of the launching ramp. Hope this will help. PS. you are welcome to come and have a look at how they launch Etchells as it is a similar process and we do not have Witches sailing there any more. My club is ORSSC at Ocean Reef. PM me if interested to look.

Cheers for the Offer Felix
Might take you up on that.

yeah the swing out draw bar will only be used when practicable otherwise i will differ to a long rope.
there's some ramps down near point Peron that should work with the draw bar as they are pretty steep.

with the third wheel ive got a complete spare wheel hub and axle i was going to build a drop down wheel.
That way my spare also has a spare hub and bearings ready to go.

Also here's a pic of a swing out in use.

Mine adds an additional 2m to the trailer length giving me a launching ratio of 5.5m/0.9m making it just ander a 10° ramp required to launch the boat without getting the cars wheels wet.

Also are you sure that jib belongs to a Witch???? Having a full mast rigging you need a bigger jib to move well as you main is smaller due to the backward position of the mast. I am not an expert on Witches so do not shoot me if i am wrong just comparing with what I remember from the witch that was at my club.

The jib in the pic is my smaller sized ones.
so yes you are correct.

The three ive got are small medium and large.

slighlty overkill for a day sailer but hey the more the merrier

Looks great. I hope you have a lot of fun on her.

Well i think im as ready as ill ever be.
This weekend will begin the challenge of moving the boat back out the front into its permanent parking spot!!!!
and from there its off to licensing and trailer rego.

Got my license sorted couple of weeks ago, nothing to it. As you're already in the system from the time you changed ownership just pay the 200 bucks and you'll get a shiny new sticker to go with the old numbers. Then is time to butcher the nice red stripes to make room for all that.

Well done Stuman ! Happy sailing !

Hey Stuman,

Can you please tell me what size are your sail battens and if they are tappered or not.
The ones I have now are 25x2 and 20x2 mm but look a bit rough and undersized plus the lower one is missing so was thinking to replace all of them them with 30x3mm and a 20x2 for the top one

Thanks.

Hey Harb

ill check tonight :)

Sorry Harb Completely forgot will check tonight.

on a side note, turns out i need to remove the boat from the trailer to get it licensed....
trailer place needs a weigh bridge certificate.

So looks ill be pulling the boat back off, AGAIN!!!!!!!! UGHHH

No rush Stuman, still plodding along on the spars. Had to make a new masthead and foot as the old one were stuffed then I have to swage some new stays as the old one are too short. I did put up the mast to try the new foot but had to use extra turnbuckles and a few shackles to make up the length of the side stays.

May as well visit the weighbridge with the boat on as well and see what the boat weighs if you haven't done so yet. Why did they ask for the weighbridge certificate, did you tell them you modified the trailer ? Oh well, at least you'll get to practice taking the boat off the trailer although it would have been better to do it in the water.

I must have took it off the trailer at least 2 dozen times while I adjusted and modified the trailer guides and rollers, but is a lot easier when you have to keels. I ended up fitting a manual winch set up to pull it off the trailer and drop it on the lawn as I got sick of trying to push it off, electric winch to load it up and motorized jockey wheel to move the trailer around. Now I can get if off the trailer and back on the trailer in less then 5 minutes with almost no effort .

Sounds like you have plenty to do harb.

yeah i said to them i have the original number plate but i could never find the a vin number on the trailer itself so they are assuming it probably isn't the original trailer, which im pretty sure it is.

WOW im very jealous of your ability to do it that quick!!!
I had to build a lifting frame and a rear frame to support the stern, in saying that i can get it off in about 15 mins safely, but with ought the frames i have no chance.

Well trailer is booked in for Saturday and Hull is booked for Monday

Its all Go here finally :)

All my luck too you mate. ...awesome project ...inspiration from this thread to me. Amazing rebuild. ...great boats never die....they just choose more talented owner's

Thanks for sharing

Thanks ChopesBro

Tested the trailer out this evening, made sure everything is tight and good to go.
All the lights worked great, tracked perfect.

So fingers crossed it passes first time.

I'm pretty sure yours was the original trailer, had the same rusty Duratorque axles as mine and no VIN number and I know for sure mine was the original trailer.
Back in the 60's and 70's they probably didn't need a VIN just as they did not need brakes for the boat and trailer. The drum brakes in the old Holdens, Fords and Valiants were apparently providing enough stopping power.

What do you mean the hull is booked for Monday, do you have to take that in to have it licensed ?

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Harb said..
What do you mean the hull is booked for Monday, do you have to take that in to have it licensed ?

No HIN on your hull?

Yes, I had that on when I bought the boat because since around 2008 you wouldn't be able to transfer the boat without it.