Videos about small boats, sailing, rowing, paddling, repair and restoration. Focus on Sunfish sailboats.
The Sunfish Owners Manual: www.amazon.com/Sunfish-Owners-Manual-Maintain-Repair/dp/1484987217
For More Information: Small Boat Restoration Log: smallboatrestoration.blogspot.com/ Small Boat Restoration Facebook page: facebook.com/smallboatrestoration/
If you have a question, please post a comment on one of the videos.
Fuller IMO makes the best Counter Sink Drills I have some in my Tool Boxes that are over 35 Years Old and I used them everyday in a Professional Manner Installing Architectual Woodworking fYI. I did however sharpen them using a Jewlers set of Files and a small Wooden Jig. I attached to the lid of my Tool Boxes to hold the Countersink steady
Thanks for another great video! I got some 1/8" aluminum rivets and I drilled a hole in a scrap piece of aluminum trim with a 1/8" drill bit and the rivet would not insert into the hole. Should I gently hammer the rivet in, or should I try a #30 or a 9/64" drill bit? Thanks!
I'm looking into purchasing an early 50s sunfish. Seems a little different than one in video. The combing seems longer with mast step just behind and up against inner side of combing. The cockpit quite small and square. The cockpit also has a short combing like trim around it. The plywood also seems a little higher grade. There is a round hole cut in the cockpit floor for drainage . Has the elephant ear rudder. Any ideas on this one?
Have you seen Roger Barnes’ soft shackle attachments to a right or left cleat, with the sheet and single purchase to the helmsman? ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-52Cv71VB0Vs.htmlsi=lbOV9UuufRfF23tD
@@kentblairl Thanks very much for replying. Unfortunately, when I follow your suggestion (that is, turn on then press again), the only thing that happens is the light gets brighter. There are actually four levels of brightness. It does not change from solid to flashing light. I suppose this could indicate that my light does not flash, but it’s supposed to. It’s supposed to have four solid and two flashing modes.
Thank you for the support and we look forward to learning more about how to transition from the epoxy based repair to a polyester based gelcoat finish. It can be done if the proper primer bridge is applied after fairing, and the primer has plenty of time to be dry dry dry...
The THIXO that is in the screw on mixing tube will harden towards the tip, creating a nice seal for the reast of the unmixed resin and hardener in the caulk tube. We just leave the tip in place until it is time for another project, then we take the old tip off and put on a new tip. Or the shipping cap could be put back on. The THIXO tube is usually shipped with several mixing tips, or call the JD Tech Team to get more.
Thanks for your videos! I enjoy small dinghies. Your videos are valuable to those who are thinking about or have started building the Nutshell Pram. It would be very useful for viewers if you would use the "Play List" and make a folder for every one of your specific boats, Sunfish, Nutshell Pram, etc. That way viewers, including me, would not have to "hunt and fetch". And you might very well increase your viewership! Thanks again for your videos!
Thanks for the idea we'll look into it. In the meantime if you visit our blog and look on the right side, all of our boats have their own page. Those pages have links to these videos. Here's the Nutshell page: smallboatrestoration.blogspot.com/p/nutshell-pram.html
Astral Camino and I think they still make a variation. More info on our blog: smallboatrestoration.blogspot.com/2018/04/personal-flotation-device-tips.html
Thanks for another great video. The parts diagram you showed has part number 43501 for the "sheet snap". Do you now if this part can still be found, or has it been superceded by another part number? I see SunfishDirect has one with part number 91208 but I wasn't sure if it's the same size. Thanks!
That Sunfish Direct part will work. I'm not sure who sells the brass snap shackle, maybe check The Dinghy Shop or Intensity Sails. You can find them on ebay from time to time. If we come across a spare we'll let you know.
Yes Sir, Aileen Shields Bryan, daughter of Cornelius Shields and married to ALex Bryan of AlCort, was a champion yachtswoman of her own and suggested the widening of the Sailfish and addition of the cockpit to make the "Sunfish." Carl Meinelt drew it up on the shop floor and 20 prototypes were built for family and friends in 1953, along with the Patented rudder releasing mechanism making its debut. Our boat ZIP is number 13 of those first 20. FMI: smallboatrestoration.blogspot.com/p/alcort-sunfish.html
Thanks for anothre great video! I received my Dynamic Dolly yesterday and will put it together today. What psi do you recommend for the dolly tires when using it in an asphalt parking lot and concrete boat ramp? Thanks!
Great, we love our dollies, we have 7. For hard surface and hard pack sand we run 30 psi. For soft sand going uphill we deflate down to 15 or so. The dolly rolls easily, so park it sideways vs downhill if needed. If you plan to trailer the assembled dolly, we recommend replacing the wingnuts on the tongue/axle bracket with appropriate size marine stainless nylon lock nuts, because the wingnuts can vibrate loose. Or check the wing nuts periodically, and have a spare or two. Have fun, Clark and Skipper
@@kentblairlWe got the boat to the lake today with no problems. It will stay there on the dolly until Fall. I'll be sure the wing nuts are tight and get some spares. Great idea. Thank you!
I have a "new to me" 1982 Sunfish which looks like it has some salt water corrosion. The rudder is very stiff. I can raise and lower it by hand, but it is too stiff to raise and lower it with the tiller. Is this normal? Should I take steps to try to reduce the stiffness (oil; take apart and clean; loosen bolts, replace any hardware?) Thank you!
Ours are usually too stiff to raise with the tiller without a lot of exertion. You can check tiller bolt nut tension. And there is supposed to be a plastic washer between the wood and the metal cheek, on both sides of the rudder
Great Video Captain! I've learned a lot about my Lugger from watching your videos. I like your style and I really appreciate all you've contributed through your curation of this content. Fair winds to you.
Thanks for the very interesting video. I'm looking to buy my first Sunfish in the near future. I have a 6' x 10' utility trailer. Do you think it would be just as good to get a dolly and use the utility trailer, or would it be preferable if I could find a Sunfish for sale that comes with a boat trailer designed for the Sunfish. Thanks again!
Either way works. It is a tight fit on the 10 foot trailer, we now have a 12 foot for some of our boats and also a dedicated small boat trailer for one Sunfish and a kayak/canoe. The 6x12 we have now is made by Carry On and the Microsport trailer is sold by Malone Auto Racks. The Dynamic Dolly is the key, whether you leave the boat on it or carry the dolly along, it makes getting the boat from trailer to water very easy, and opens up access to a lot of launch spots that do not have ramps. The dolly breaks down into five pieces that will fit in the trunk of a compact car.
@@kentblairl Thanks for the quick reply. Do you think a 5'2" 125 lady could get a Sunfish down a concrete boat ramp and back up using the dolly? Or would it make more sense for someone my size to use a boat trailer on my car? I've read it's kind of tricky to maneuver a Sunfish trailer down a boat ramp with and without the boat.
@@abgates56 That all depends on your fitness level, and if you are fit enough to sail a Sunfish then you should be good. We want a system where we have to lift the boat as little as possible, and for us that involves using a dolly. FWIW we have never launched a Sunfish from a trailer in the water, we have used the trailer to get the boat close to a launch spot, then either carried (when we were younger) or dollied the boat the rest of the way in and out of the water.
@@kentblairl Thanks again. I'm fit, just not very big. My utility trailer has higher sides than yours. I think my sides are 24" tall. So the dolly front and Sunfish bow would be propped up higher in the front. Do you think this would be a problem? Thanks for all your help. I really appreciate it so much!
Ahh... good old Drascombe. One of best boats ever. After 2 years I at last found time to make my drascombe afloat and tommorow will try have some sailing.
I have just been given a fiberglass sailfish from my elder friend It has been in her barn for over 30 years. I have been watching every video I can but I can’t find one on setting a sailfish up A lot of sunfish videos and I know they use a lot of the same stuff but I would imagine that they are setup a little different. I know I have to have all new lines and would like to know how to set it a up properly. If you know of any videos please let me know Thanks PS your sailfish is very beautiful!!!
Check out our other video. The halyard ties to the upper boom about 60 inches from the top of the boom. And we set the gooseneck about 21 inches back from the forward end of the lower boom. The main difference from the Sunfish is that the Sunfish has a halyard block and halyard cleat, while the Sailfish only has the halyard cleat. If you were to take a properly rigged Sunfish sail and booms off of a Sunfish it would fit properly onto a Super Sailfish MKII (Fiberglass), they have the exact same size sail, booms and mast. Video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-U9z8xYzHkEs.htmlsi=W8rL6ym7DDJaeaFr
@@leftycut1 You're welcome. Keep an eye on this page, we are taking the boat out over the Summer and we'll post a video on the set up. And if you have questions in the meantime, just ask them here. Cheers, Kent and Skipper
Hi, all of the info we currently have is on our blog. Take a look and see if that is helpful, and we can also answer specific questions when they arise. Our blog: smallboatrestoration.blogspot.com/p/o.html
My problem is its too tight and i can't release the new trailer i bought. Old trailer but new ball coupler assembly. Will loosening this nut allow me to finally remove the coupler?
Hi! My name is Nahuel, and I own a sprit-sailed boat (a 12-footer I built myself). I'm having some trouble with reefing and sprit trimming. Could you show me in a video how you manage it? Or could you send me pictures of your rigging system? Thanks !!!
You can look though our blog, maybe some photos there can help. The sprit rig is not a high performance system, but it will get you there with simplicity. Don't overthink it, or overcomplicate. You could send us photos to lewis dot kent gmail so we can see what issues you might be having.
Hi, got a link to you from a Facebook Old Town canoe Group saying you can mix custom colors. I'm trying an Old Town Tripper to it's original color. Can you help with this? Your videos are very informative.
Hello, the paint company you want is George Kirby out of New Bedfoed Mass. They've been mixing paint since 1856, and if anyone knows if that yellow is an Old Town color... FMI: kirbypaint.com/
Don't know if you are still monitoring this channel or not, but wanted you to know I appreciate you posting this video. I am thinking of buying a Capri 18 and this helped answer one of my questions. One more question: The boat has a hose going from the low point near the keel and battery back under the cockpit all the way to the stern. It looks like a line for a bilge pump, however, there is no opening for the water to be pumped out. The current owner said he never had a bilge pump and did not know what the hose was supposed to do. Can you tell me if this hose is meant for a bilge pump, and so how is it intended to be setup to pump water overboard? Thanks!
I cannot get the drain plug to unscrew on my sunfish. The screw is so old and I stripped it with barely any pressure. Do you have any advice on how I can get it off? I can hear water splashing around when I move the hull 😢. Also, do you have any videos on how to fix leaks?
You'll probably have to remove the entire housing/plug and put in a new one if the head is stripped. And we have a lot of repair videos on our channel, use the search function first to find "Air Leak Test" or post a question on specific repair areas
@@kentblairl thank you. If I put a new one in, won’t the hole that I cut to get the old one out be too big to hold the new one? I’m just wondering if I’m going to have to cut it out, repair the fiberglass, and then put the plug in a different spot.
@@blippityblop2012 No. Buy a new nylon drain plug with housing, Ronstan makes one and there are many brands. Some Sunfish dealers have them. Get good marine sealant. As for the old plug housing, it is usually held with 2 small pins and you can gently pry out the entire housing. Then the remaining hole can be filed a little larger to accept the new plug/housing. Secure it with marine sealant/adhesive and 2 marine stainless sheet metal screws. Drill a small pilot hole for the screws.
Just found your channel. I owned a Daysailor like this, similar color hull even, many years ago. This would have been a great tip. Also, like the idea of the furling jib already attached saves some setup and take down time. I looking to sell the 23' cutter I currently own, and go back to Daysailor as soon as I can find one. Easy to launch and retrieve, and a lot of fun to sail. Will be looking through your channel hoping for more great tips. Subscribed. Hope you are still enjoying the O'Day. Thanks for posting.
That ring got squished years ago by something, so it is more oval than round. It looks worse than it is, comes off easily, which Skipper should keep in mind :)
I just bought a sprit rigged dinghy and am thinking about converting it to a standard gaff rig. Would you happen to know, which rig performs better to windward?
Gaff rig with boom. You might consider a gunter rig, which is basically a high peaked gaff. We like the sprit because this boat's main purpose is rowing, and if there is a nice beam wind or aft, the sprit rig is very easy to rig and enjoy a nice run. Every rig performs better, but none is simpler than a boomless sprit, which has been used for centuries.
@@kentblairl thank you for answering so quickly and so thoroughly. My main reason for wanting to change it to a gaff with boom, as immature as it may be, is that I love the visual effect of hoisting a gaff with a topsail. But I definitely agree that simplicity has its own value. ☺️.
