What would the panel recommend?

[ACB]

Allow me to explain:

I have a not-particularly sailing, but non un-keen wife and two sons, aged 6 and 13.

I have been owned for the past 24 years by a 73 year old 37ft gaff cutter. Nothing is going to change there. In 1991 I built her a 9ft dinghy. Four years ago I rescued a Firefly and presented it to my elder son, who is now very keen on it.

My wife and small son now want to go dinghy sailing too.

I am quite happy to rebuild and repair, but very skint* and short of storage.

(On aesthetic grounds, I refuse to contemplate anything that is not round bilge and varnished, so no GP 14 or Wayfarer...)

What does the panel recommend?

* see "37ft gaff cutter"

[Garry R]

Albacore? There are some nice ones around.

[Rupert]

Fairey Falcon, if you can find one! If not, an Albacore. Or a Jollyboat?

[ACB]

Falcon would be top of the pops, as it offers some outstanding cruising potential -m better than a Wayfarer (mind you, one can cruise in a Firefly...) but they are scarce as hens' teeth.

I know what an Albacore is, as there is one made of what LF Herreshoff called frozen snot parked next to the Firefly, but tell me more about the Jollyboat?

[jpa_wfsc]

http://www.cvrda.org/jollyboat/

[ACB]

http://www.cvrda.org/jollyboat/

A question. Uffa the Great talks about stowing buckets and spades and going prawning in it.

However, it appears to have a double trapeze...

Can a boat really have such a Jekyll and Hyde personality?

[davidh]

Well, there IS a view that the Uffa boats may not be the best thing since sliced bread, beauty is truely in the eye of the beholder.

So - you want wood, varnished, do you want something that will also qualify for 'classic' status? I have to say that I was really impressed with the Mercury that sailed at Netley - now there is a boat that could be raced or cruised very easily.

If you could find one, the very first Kestrels were cold moulded by Jack Chippendale - all his boats have had the class of strength and good looks.

But a Fairey boat does have that 'bullet proof' hull - so how about a Swordfish. I' have said a Gannet but they are even rarer than hens teeth.

BUT - if you could live with a painted hull and wooden decks, the Mirror 16 is one heck of a boat. Opps, sorry, it has chines, forget that!

D

[Garry R]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Classic-Albacore- ... .m14.l1318

This is a possibility? It was sold for £150 but the buyer did not pay and collect. Looks good value with a trailer even with the repair job which wouln't be difficult in my experience.

[ACB]

Just the ticket! Thanks very much, Garry! (I now have to speak nicely to Martin and Wan who are about to set off for a camping holiday in Scotland in a towbar fitted 4x4...)

This IS an impressive organisation!

[Michael Brigg]

Not sure what your family are after here...

The 6year old need something that will get him the boating bug and not cause him distress. Heavy low powered, low aspect uncomplicated rig seems sensible as does fun, sorry FUN!

Mrs will continue to aquire her sailing interest and possibly skills as well through enjoyment of seeing the strapping sons aquire theirs. Anyway somebody needs to stay on shore to retrieve the launching trolleys and dry the kit etc!

You have a Firefly in which you can give Mrs plenty of sailing experience and for the six year old you need something more along the lines of a Duckling which will compliment both the firefly and the 37ft (?inclusive of Bowsprit?) gaffer, as they are designed as ideal on deck or tow along tenders. On deck you can cruise to france and the amaze the old enemy with your little tender while the rest of the family prepare supper.

An Albacore is surely far too powerful for a 6yr old with developing interest and tender motivation. It is a boat to sail 3-up by yourself with Mrs and older son, but I think one unfortunate capsize could put off a 6yr old for life.

For the moment be content to let him splash around in a Duckling or a wooden Scow with a simple lug rig, or even an inflatable avon redcrest.

Don't let prejudice against plastic or chine drive your youngest into the arms of his gameboy! He needs the sailing bug first before he learns about wood (although if both can be satisfied so much the better!)

[JB9]

I think the Jollyboat is excellent and in F1 to 2 would be fine for picnics. Anything over that amd the baskets might be getting wet. Still, with a set of firefly sails I will not go out to F5/6 and Uffa raced with full sails at those wind speeds so it can be done.

[ACB]

Not sure what your family are after here...

Sorry, need to explain better

The 6year old need something that will get him the boating bug and not cause him distress. Heavy low powered, low aspect uncomplicated rig seems sensible as does fun, sorry

He's got one. The 9ft clinker stem dinghy that I built as a tender for the big boat is "his" = she has a daggerboard and rudder and a lugsail, with built in bouyancy fore and aft and side airbags

Mrs will continue to aquire her sailing interest and possibly skills as well through enjoyment of seeing the strapping sons aquire theirs. Anyway somebody needs to stay on shore to retrieve the launching trolleys and dry the kit etc!

She;s got past that stage and wants to learn properly

You have a Firefly in which you can give Mrs plenty of sailing experience and for the six year old you need something more along the lines of a Duckling which will compliment both the firefly and the 37ft (?inclusive of Bowsprit?) gaffer, as they are designed as ideal on deck or tow along tenders. On deck you can cruise to france and the amaze the old enemy with your little tender while the rest of the family prepare supper.

It's my elder son's Firefly - not his mother's! He races it with his friends. If his parents were to climb aboard that would be an invasion of his territory - he does the maintenance, checks the cover in the dark of winter gales, etc.

Exclusive of bowsprit - tender astern:



An Albacore is surely far too powerful for a 6yr old with developing interest and tender motivation. It is a boat to sail 3-up by yourself with Mrs and older son, but I think one unfortunate capsize could put off a 6yr old for life.

For the moment be content to let him splash around in a Duckling or a wooden Scow with a simple lug rig, or even an inflatable avon redcrest.

Don't let prejudice against plastic or chine drive your youngest into the arms of his gameboy! He needs the sailing bug first before he learns about wood (although if both can be satisfied so much the better!)

Oh, I quite agree. The putative Albacore / Swordfish / Falcon / AN Other is for me to go round the Club cans with my wife!

Actually, never, ever, take a child cruising without a Gameboy! They take up no space, don't use the boat's batteries and keep small people occupied for hours!

[ACB]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Classic-Albacore- ... .m14.l1318

This is a possibility? It was sold for £150 but the buyer did not pay and collect. Looks good value with a trailer even with the repair job which wouln't be difficult in my experience.

THanks; I'm on to it - have got a tow down South sorted out - fingers crossed that it does not go for a silly price...

[Michael Brigg]

Well now we're talking!!

But if its going round the cans with Mrs ACB, are we talking about with dignity or panache, or preferably both?

I cant think of many round bilged varnished hulls outside Fairey marine but an alternative to an Albacore on this very site would be Ed's Iolanthe, a Fairey International14. from the days when they were designed to be sailed by grown ups.

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=1497

OK it hasn't got the ribs but the construction is bulletproof, the pedigree impeccable and past ownership is illustrious. She would surely offer a combination of both of the above qualities of dignity and panache and a genuine slice of maritime history that the firefly sailor will probably be happy to crew in or even take his mates out in (if you'll allow him to) on windy days when he wants to look cool.

Take a look over on the "Boats for sale"

By the way, I love the 37ft and the tender and I kind of agree about the gameboy as long as you have a good hiding place or a believable reason for not being able to find the battery charger. (The rechargeable batteries only last about 1/5th as long as duracells and cost sooo much less.

[ACB]

I think we may be towards the "dignified" end of the scale, but not to the point of an RNSA 14 or a YW Dayboat!

"Iolanthe" is really lovely but I rather agree with her distinguished owner that she would be best on the upper Thames, rather than bashing around a coastal estuary, and I think one needs more panache than I possess to sail an I14 in front of an expert and critical audience on the Club balcony! Still, one to keep under review!

Very good point about the battery charger! The other great standby, using no milliamps at all, is "UNO", which we were introduced to by an Australian friend who keeps his boat in Patagonia and wont leave port without a pack!