Those of you following this blog know I get reflective at Yuletide and this year is no different. I was going to title this entry 'the beginning of the end' given the position we are in with the build but then that seems to completely negate all that we plan to do with the boat once launched so really the completion of the build is just the start. I have looked back to the Christmas entry from last year and see that the main structure of the boat was then complete but during 2017 the teak deck was added, the cockpit fitted out, the rudder built, all the electrics and engine stuff completed, boom and gaff built and all the painting and varnishing done and the rigging created. A couple of weeks ago we had a survey completed for insurance purposes, this went well (only one recommendation to add an extra clip to secure the intake hose for the engine) and the surveyor departed having thanked us for allowing her to survey our boat (!). We area now at the stage where we need to get her out of the tent to set up the rig to finalise the shroud and forestay lengths and check where various fittings should be fixed. In the meantime, D has been adjusting parts of the trailer and building the mast support for towing. We managed to get the boom and mainsail into the dining room and had a merry couple of hours sorting out what fittings were required for the boom and where they should go. More bits than you would imagine and trying not to get them in the way of each other takes a bit of thought. We now just need to order the fittings for the boom and attach them.
Just some of the rigging !
On the inside, D has built a couple of small cupboards into the forward compartment, useful for stopping stuff escaping.
Also, fitted on the aft bulkhead of the main cabin and within easy reach of the companion way is a fire extinguisher. This is a nano-particle fire extinguisher which has the advantages of being small and lightweight and the contents do not 'settle' like powder fire extinguishers and, God forbid we every have to use it but if we do, then it is kind to engines as well. See
In order to be thoroughly ship-shape and to keep standards up, D has cannibalised an old flagstaff and it is now ready for its flag.
Ah yes, and she now has a name which is 'Satellite'. Why 'Satelilite' ? I hear you ask, well bit of family history really tied up with the famous T.E.Davis who owned the schooner 'Westward' build by Nathaniel Herreshoff and raced against King George V's yacht 'Britannia' between 1925 and 1935. T.E Davis's first trip to sea was on board a vessel named 'Satellite' on which D's forebear was master. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Benjamin_Frederick_Davis
That's all for now, Merry Christmas.
Two updates and I just had a kitten because it seemed to me (sillily) that "Satellite" should have another 't'. When I write it I can see that it doesn't. Is the fire extinguisher automatic? I have one outside as well on the basis that, if engine on fire, I don't want to go in to get it. And look at that sail. Mine is still in its bag because I don't dare disturb the beautiful flaking.
ReplyDeleteAnd I was going to ask if you know that poem, 'I am not yet born' but it's a bit spooky and I'm not sure when a boat is born. When it's launched maybe?
ReplyDeleteThank you Breezy1 for proof reading ! Fire extinguisher is not automatic but is in easy reach of companion way and opposite side to stove. I expect to see your new sail soon. Also, if you want good story about not being born yet, read Ian McEwan's 'Nutshell'.....
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