finally a maiden voyage .

[matt195583]

Finally , after weeks or even months of working on my boat in my spare time i think i am ready to put her in the water and raise a sail . I have done the projects i had mentioned on here + fitted a 2000 gph bilge pump, fixed all the dodgy connections in the wiring, fitted a 100 amphour deep cycle battery, re-riveted any fittings on the mast that needed it, fitted new LED running lights, purchased a new jib halyard after trying to splice on myself (my temper got the better of me there) and last but not least i spent six hours underneath her removing a broken bolt SS 5/16th bolt that was snapped off. It wasn't too important thats why the PO just put silicone over it . IT WAS ONLY THE KEEL PIVOT ASSEMBLY.  And all these things are what i saw as the bare minimum to put her in a safe state for a test sail .
 
     This winter when i can actually stay in  my boat for more than 20 minutes without being drenched in sweat (35 degrees Celsius) I will rewire the whole boat , and i would like to build a new trailer to wards the end of this year as the Great Barrier Reef is only 6 hours drive away and I'd like to drag my boat up there next year . I'm also considering repainting the topsides as there is a fair amount of crazing in the gelcoat, resealing all the deck fittings will go hand in hand with that job . and also i want to get all my sails reconditioned . that and fit a VHF and a GPS chart plotter .

       So i know where the majority of my spare cash is being put in the next 6 months . any way hopefully tomorrow i will have a tale of success for all of you and some pic's to post I will also endeavor to post some of the pics of the jobs i have done  ;D

     
   

[s/v Faith]

Matt,

  Congrats! Man that is a nice feeling.  ;D  No boat is ever 'done'  but there is a point when they are 'doneenough'.

Here is a grog on me to enjoy while you get ready for the adventure to come.  ;)

[matt195583]

Thanks it should be a good day , and inspiration to hook in to some of the other jobs that seem abit over whelming at the moment .  ;)

[Frank]

Have fun. It always feels so good to get out for a sail after finishing jobs.  Enjoy yourself.

[mrb]

Enjoy your rewards  :)

[matt195583]

Well, she doesn't sink  ;D

At about 9:30 this morning myself my little brother Luke and a mate Dean were ready to go, trailer hitched to the four wheel drive, boat properly secured and gas tank full. The drive to the boat ramp took about 45 minutes, most of the road there is highway so it was pretty easy going. arriving at the boat ramp there was approximately a 10-12 knot south easterly wind the water was pretty well flat and the temperature was around 30 degrees Celsius.
          After about 20 minutes setting the mast and attaching the out board we backed her in the water, slid her off the trailer then i idled around in circles on the outboard while my little brother parked the 4x4 and trailer 5 minutes later they were aboard and we were motoring away into more open water. As we got away from the other boats in the area I started setting the sails. First I put the Genoa up, as soon as we had some power generated by that the engine was switched off and lifted out of the water. That was a really cool feeling. 10 minutes later I had the main up to, I applied some of what i had learned on my 12ft cat and trimmed the sails up a little. My 22 footer was hiking the keel cable was singing its tune and we were healing over nicely.
           We continued to sail around for about 2-3 hours then the wind dropped right off to about 5-6 knots. so we persevered for a little while then decided to motor sail back to the ramp and call it a day . I think one conclusion I have come to is that I might just be hooked on sailing I'm already planing in my mind a over nighter in the bay to a small well sheltered anchorage that i have been to in power boats before .
      The only word that i can think of right now to describe today is pure brilliance !!  ;D

         

[Oldrig]

Enjoy it, you're already hooked!

We've still got more than a foot of snow here in central Massachusetts--but the temperature hit 50 (F) today. It's coming!

--Joe

[jotruk]

Glad to hear that you had a great sail, may this be just the first of many many more to come. Here's grog to ya

[Marc]

Great job Matt!!!  Can't wait for my maiden voyage.  Marc

[matt195583]

It truly is a great feeling to see something that you have put allot (not as much as some) of work into come together. I have to  admit that at one stage i was in despair. But that was because i couldn't do it all in one weekend, so patience and determination won in the end and i got on the water .

  The weather here is terrible average 25-35 c in the summer and around 20 c in the winter. I cant wait for winter time  ;D ( I'm not a fan of the heat ) 

[Amgine]

Congratulations Matt!!

I think for me absolute best time is the morning of the first over-night aboard. I wake up super early - new boat, new noises, and I've probably checked the anchor a half-dozen times through the night - and make a cup of coffee and go drink it in the cockpit. Watching the day begin from a new boat, with something warm to drink and something to munch on... that's my idea of paradise.

(I'm on my fourth boat, but that first morning has become so important to me that I bought a coffee maker just for this boat and that first sunrise, and my last trip ashore before heading out was to the bakery so I'd have something fresh and tasty to go with it.)

[okawbow]

I enjoy "first time sailing" stories. I remember our first sail on a new to us Mac 25. The wind was blowing about 25 knots, but we just thought the more wind, the better! We couldn't understand why the boat kept rounding up after we got the jib and main up. We were out of control most of the time, but what fun!

[CharlieJ]

Tehani's maiden voyage as our boat was a bit exciting

After her total rebuild, we launched on Tuesday. Tuesday evening Laura made the pattern for the bimini, Weds morning she sewed up the fabric and we went to the boat to install the bimini, bought the final groceries and supplies, and spent the night aboard.

On Thursday AM we left for Florida for a 6 week trip. We'd never had the sails up the mast and had no running lights or radio wired up- I did that as we traveled.

Tiurned out to be a pretty good trip, other than crapping out two engines. We returned with the third one, a brand new one bought in Louisiana. It still runs just fine :D

[AdriftAtSea]

Congrats Matt... but we won't believe you without photos... ;)

[matt195583]

These pics are pretty much all i have on the water, next ime i will try to get some more action shots   ;D

[matt195583]

got some more pics figured this was as good a place as any for them   ;D

[Mario G]

Hey Matt  nice pictures
It looks like a great place to sail

, You did far more then I did to get my boat ready for its first splash. I built my trailer and hope to take it to the coast soon.
I've sailed mine for months and now going to do what you did in the beginning.


I have a set of 3cm thick pads for my cockpit, thay make sitting and laying on the cockpit seats nice, you should look into them.

[matt195583]

Mario I know the pads you are talking about , I have been meaning to get some but every time i go to the chandlery for a few things i walk out with a receipt for several hundred. so the padding for the cockpit seats is put off till next time  :(    a must though, i normally end up sitting on a towel or something.

[Navyvet]

Great looking pics looks like you cleaned her up well be proud of what you have done.