Let's get these sails on

Today was the day I thought I'd figure out these sails. The previous owner is on his way to Spain so there won't be much in the way of advice on this.   Remember - I'm a rookie.  I could put the sails on a 16.5' Catalina no problem.  But this is a little bigger boat.  And I've never put a sail on a roller furler before.  

One of the old slides

Step one - figure out this rigging.  The main sail has these sail slides on them.  Some of them are missing.  Some of them are cracked.  You know what that means, yep - an excuse to go to West Marine!  Hey it's Christmas time - other people get to shop.  This is where I like to go.  A little pack of like 4 slides is $9.   They are just plastic right?  Oh wait I forgot - they have that it's for sailors so let's tack on some more money on that price!

The new one looks better

So I replace some of the missing ones, and one of the cracked slides.   I still need another trip to West Marine (I get the feeling there are going to be many trips in the future) to pick up a pack of plastic shackles (right term?) to connect the slide to the sail.

With the new slides in place all that is left is to hook the sail up to the halyard, and feed the slides into the mast.






The roller furling was a little more fun, but in the end I got it up.   It doesn't look as nice as the other boats,  But I think that's because I don't have the proper sun protection on my sail to protect it when it's rolled up.   Something to research on how to attach to the sail.

Sail is fed into the furler track

This sail was a bit more fun.  I had to raise it all the way (feeding it through the track in the furler) so that I could then furl it up.  It's kind of a fun process to try when the wind is blowing a bit and you are doing it by yourself.   But hey - that's part of the joy of owning a boat!

Not super pretty - but I'm just learning :)

Dream Meets Reality

Well the day is finally here.  It's mostly here anyways.  Paperwork in hand, but need to go make it all official like with the government and all the fun that entails.   But the S/V .........  is mine.  Actually, now that I think about it, there is no name on the boat, or the paperwork I have.  Does this mean I get to name it what I want?  How does that all work? That's one thing I definitely didn't look into how to do.

Did anybody else have a sense of what do I do now when the signed the paperwork?   I'd love to just take it sailing, but there's a new head gasket I need to put on the engine (part of the deal - don't worry - I did know about the status of the engine).  An older gentleman owned the boat and lived on the hook, so there is a bit of cleaning to do (you know us bachelor types).

The cushions are a bit dirty, and used, and honestly the whole boat could use a nice cleaning.   But I wasn't looking for spotless, I was looking for a solid boat, and that I think I got.  It's a 1977 Chrysler 30'.  I really love the layout of the boat too.  So while it's not really pretty to look at, a nice cleaning, and some cushions replaced and it'll look pretty good.



I'll have it down at Cut's Edge Marina in Palmetto, FL until I get at least the head gasket replaced (part is on the boat) should be ready to roll next week.   Then I have to decide whether to keep it there or bring it up closer (probably Harborage Marina in St Pete).  It'll probably get moved because I want my new baby near me :)

Now the work begins.  I'm a bit overwhelmed at the list I'm compiling, but that's the joy of boat ownership right? :)  

More updates to follow on my progress making this boat truly mine!