Europa Moth, wooden mast wanted

[solentgal]

Hi all,

I will be looking for a wooden mast for my Europa Moth at some point over the next few months (it came with an ali one). I travel to Scotland (from Portsmouth area) a couple of times each year, so collection should be possible.......next trip in mid January (when I also collect the Toy and Europe ) so if you know of one............?
many thanks, Sami.

[PeterV]

You may find getting a wooden mast in the UK very difficult as I beleive the first Europes came into the UK in the late 70s by which time alloy masts were well established.

[solentgal]

Hi Peter,

Thanks for replying........The mast is actually for a Europa (International) Moth (built around '64), the Moth design from which the Europe eventually became a breakaway class. There were quite a few Europa Moths in this country in the early/mid '60's, (I have quite a few old "Light Craft" magazines with photos/reports) and I owned one in the early'70's with a slightly older sail number than my current one, and that had a wooden mast (Collar, I'm 99% sure). I know it's a long shot to find one now, but I'm hopeful, as masts often outlast hulls.
Anyway, I would have included a pic of my Europa Moth (K2539) as it arrived a few weeks ago, but I can't get the pic to load (wrong number of pixels?). The main difference is that the Moth has a swinging c.plate, whereas Europes went with a dagger-board.
If anyone's interested (?) I'll take some more pics of this (and the rest of my fleet?) and try and load them (in the correct section, which would be??)

Sami.

[JimC]

a wooden mast (Collar, I'm 99% sure)

Collar are still in business http://www.collars.co.uk/site/scripts/d ... umentID=66 and would doubtless do a new spar for you if all else fails. To my utter astonishment prices appear to be considerably cheaper than new carbon spars!

[solentgal]

To my utter astonishment prices appear to be considerably cheaper than new carbon spars!

Thanks Jim.......doubt I'll have the budget available, but you never know

Sami

[Nessa]

I want to see all the pictures! I had an ok once with a wooden mast. It weighed an absolute ton and I'm afraid I was glad to be rid of it when I sold the boat.

Your moth has the same sail number as my contender....I knew it looked familiar.

[chris]

I found Collars prices for a tailor made wooden mast much closer to an ordinary new metal mast than any where near a new carbon mast.
A 25' merlin mast was around 600 pounds a couple of years ago. this was in an unrigged state. I had to fit all the diamonds, sheaves etc and varnish it. (they had put two coats of primer on.) I thought this was very good value. Probably a third of the price of a carbon one.

[solentgal]

Chris.....ouch re price, for I am just a poor girl

And Nessa, I have pics of K2539 (are there really that many Contenders??, last time I looked they were in the low hundreds) but I can't load them, and even using photobucket was a prob......unless this works?
http://s1177.photobucket.com/albums/x34 ... AG0108.jpg

Let me know if you can find it from this please (she said, very hopefully )

[Nessa]

2359 is the plaque number for contenders - some register under this international number rather than the UK sail number. Numbers in this country are now around 720 I think.

I saw the photo! She looks awfully like a Europe, but I guess that's no surprise. There was one for sale over this way last year. I was tempted by it, but I'm too fat/tall for it to be as comfortable as I now prefer. I had a Europe when I was thin and flexible and thought it a great boat.

[Nessa]

to post the pic you have to copy the direct url linky thing, then click on Img at the top of the reply box, then paste the url linky thing in between the two bits in the square brackets. To post here I find it easiest to store in photobucket then copy to here.

[Nessa]

and that floor paint looks joyously easy to pull off...

[solentgal]

Ah, I did wonder if that was the explanation re Contender nos.
The Europa Moth I had before was also a swing keel, and that seems to be pretty much the only difference.......not sure if all E. Moths had that, or some were daggerboard? I have only ever seen the ones I've owned (which is quite surprising considering my activity over the years).
I know what you mean re height....I'm 5'9" and-a-bit but I used to race a Europe with no problems, but that was a long time ago so I think it will test my fitness a bit.......good motivation though.
I'm also collecting the Europe from World of Boats when I collect the ToY (too good to miss as I was committed to the trip anyway).........I have a rig from my other Europe that is also on the project list.......hedging my bets....surely I'll be able to sail one of them asap.
I did as you suggested re the pic initially, but it was blocked with a lil red cross in a box.....I'll try again with another pic or 2 soon.

Oh, and yes, the paint does come off easily.....she was ringing wet from thawed snow when I collected her, and I have been drying her out in the garage........she sounds a bit less sodden now, but there is no nice echo when tapped.....a lot of damp/delamination etc going on there I think. We have just turned her back upright (when I took the pic) and I think next job when I get time is to have the foredeck off.....there will be pics in the appropriate topic.

[LASERTOURIST]

This boat looks very much like an Europe...except that europes are equipped wih daggerboards, not pivoting centreboards.

You might find a second hand Europe wooden mast in some scrap pile in France...but not so easily as they generally have rotten away or been converted into tent poles...

Some hollow masts by scandinavian makers were rather sophisticated and light with for or five glue joints...and a combination of different woods, but run of the mill Lanaverres generally used a simple one glue joint pine mast and a crude wedge style kicker

[solentgal]

Hmm, that's a possible I suppose.......I do get abroad once in a while, so it may be worth a look.
Yes, it is basically the same boat.......I actually prefer the pivoting plate too. I think Europes (under their break-away rules) seem to have been established abroad a lot earlier than in the UK, (date anyone?) It appears that the Europa Moth in the UK became less popular as IM development progressed, meaning a gap in the UK before the Europe became established I think. I am not sure when the last UK Europa Moth was registered, or when the first UK Europe was registered......it would be interesting to know though.

[Rupert]

Before it became the International Europe, it was called the European Moth. Was 75 or 76 before the 1st boats were imported into the UK. I assume it was already out of date before the rules changed for the IM, being a 1960 design?