Ever wonder what's really inside the CP 16?

[bro t]

Hi Rick,
perhaps the forestay is not properly adjusted?  If the mast is raked aft even slightly, it would have an exaggerated effect in dropping the aft end of the boom.  If you haven't already checked, try bending on the main again, then stand back abeam and see what you think of the mast rake.  Maybe you have a simple fix, somebody maybe monkeyed with the forestay tension to step and unstep the mast.  Fair winds, as always.
bro. t. from Upwest Maine

[Craig]

Rick,

My boat is all buttoned up for the winter so I can't measure, but the boom definately goes below the cut out on the mast.  I'm trying to figure out how you got the boom in the track above the cut out if there is a stop in the way?  My stop is a a few inches from the tabernacle end of the mast and with the main fully raised I have to tighten the downhaul to get the boom to touch it.

Also, if the main is not too badly stained or not ripped, it may be worth sending it to SailCare for reconditioning.  You can find them at:
http://www.sailcare.com/

Crraig

[Rick Evans]

Thanks so much for your help in determining the size of the sail.  It seem that the P measurement must be around 15'3".  I have no idea why the old mainsail the cowboy gave me measured 14.4  but maybe the bolt rope shrunk or something.  The luff certainly seems compressed to the point of almost being scalloped.  

For those of you interested in seeing Sweet Laraine, I have posted pictures in the owners gallery now.  They should be up by tonight or tomorrow.  What a mess!

Two quick questions.

First, in getting a new mainsail made, should I have the luff attach to the mast with a bolt rope or with sail slugs?  The original was with a bolt rope but I think Dale had sail slugs put on his new sail.  Which works better?  I would think slugs would allow for easier flaking of the main at day's end but I worry that the less than tight fit to the mast would further impair the already impaired pointing ability of the CP 16.

Second, where in the world does the battery go in these boats?  I see that they have running lights and other electrical components like a cabin light.  My forepeak area is flat with no anchor locker.  There is a little hatch cut into the forepeack but it only provides about 8 inches clearance from hull to top which isn't enough room for the battery.  It would stick out of the hole.  

Thanks again for holding my hand as I go through this project.

Rick

[Craig]

Rick,

Slugs or bolt rope?  I think it is all a matter of personal preference.  I have the bolt rope and it works fine.  Gil has slugs and he seems happy with those.

The battery when installed by the factory goes in the "anchor locker" and I use that description with a smile!    The originals did not have an electrical system, and the anchor locker was a small area forward of a short bulkhead in the forepeak.  I installed an electrical system in my 1980.  I used a group 24 battery box placed in the center of the anchor locker forward of the bulkhead.

I have a PDF file of the last CP 16 brochure.  It shows an interior shot with the last version of the anchor locker.  It looks like Com-Pac attached a U shaped plywood cover to the bulkhead.  The battery box is visible (barely) in the center behind the compression post.  If you send me your email address I will forward the PDF file to you.

Craig

[CaptK]

Craig -

send it to kurt AT com-pacownersDOT com also, I'll rip it to an image we can post on the Gallery.

[multimedia_smith]

Slugs V/S Rope?
The slugs go up and down the slot easy.  If you put enough tension on the halyard, you get a straight luff line.  It also makes reefing easier.  Also if you are coming into port just to pick up or drop off you can leave the sail stop in and just lower and fold the main and have it ready to go back up without rethreading the rope up.

Battery:
Definitely up front... you want to offset the weight of the passengers and motor etc in the stern.  Some people like to place it as low as possible, so they put them on the cabin sole.  I like having the porta potty under the hatch at the rear of the sole and I need the floor clear to step on for lowering the main or fooling with other sail related stuff (clearing a hung jib line or setting and taking down the whisker pole etc) I mounted a battery frame instead of a box.  It has two bolts from the base and a frame piece on the top that holds the battery firmly in place... also... you will want to go with an AGM battery as it will not leak when you heel over... it will also not emit hydrogen gas when you charge it (especially nice in a confined area like the bow).

Here is the link to the restoration job I mentioned earlier

http://intranet.quigley.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=restoration

As Craig mentioned, he didn't actually remove the deck, but it shows a little of what is involved.   Also in the compac manual there is a drawing of a cross section of the hull/deck joint.  I'll try scanning or shooting it and sending it along so you can see what is in between... it's not much.. just some microballoon filler and the wood strip screwed in from the inside.

The measurement on the sail is definitely 15'4".  I've been through this with the factory and a sailmaker.  The boom slides down from the slot but not all the way down.

After going through what you're about to do... you owe yourself a present and you owe the boat a new set of sails... (keep the others for your "B" rig)

Fair winds in the future

Dale

[Dan Hill]

Rick,  All four of my boats had slugs so I can't compare performance with a standard bolt rope, but they work fine.  My only issue is when attempting to flake the sail on the boom the slugs fall out the sail track cutout.  

As far as the battery is concerned, I have a big deep-cycle for the trolling motor in the hatch under the tiller and use screw-terminal 6 volt batteries in the compartment in front of the compression post for the running lights.  I mostly sail during the day, but they work well when I need them.

[Gil Weiss]

You can buy, or make up, a bolt like fitting that slides into your sail track after all the slugs are in place that locks down. This keeps the slugs from sliding our when you stow your sail.

The device is like a 1/4 inch bolt about 3/4 of an inch long. The head portion slides into the sail track and a 1" round threaded "nut" tightens on to close up the bottom of the track.

I bought one made out of stainless steel for about 8 bucks at my local sailmaker's shop.

[CaptK]

I'm with Dale on the slugs/bolt rope question. I have slugs on Epiphany, and used to sail Hobie 16's a lot, which had bolt ropes.

One thing not mentioned yet is that slugs, besides being easier to hoist and drop, also make your sail last longer - you don't get abrasion from the fabric against the sail track. On the Hobies that was a big problem - every couple of years, you'd need to fix up the fabric in the area of the tack, it would always wear out first. Something to keep in mind...

[Gil Weiss]

My last boat used a rope. It made a beautiful seal between the mast and the sail, but is was nowhere as easy to take the sail up and down. The rope stretches over time and you will need to have a sailmaker stretch and remove a short section or else the sail will jam everytime you raise it.

If you are a serious racer (most CP sailors are not) you would want the rope, otherwise go withe slugs as they are much easier to deal with. Typically, the act of raising and lowering sail can have some safety issues and the easier the sails go up and down, the better I like it.

I have found the CP16 to be a lazy crew's best boat to sail. My wife and I can perform just about all the required sailing functions without ever leaving our seats.

[Rick Evans]

I've been keeping a daily journal of what's entailed in the restoration of Sweet Laraine.  If anybody's interested, I'll put it on a web site for review.  Lots of editorial comments such as what happened today.  Trying to lay new carpet inside Sweet Laraine was interrupted when the toilet violently overflowed.  My wife was less than understanding when I wanted to go to West Marine for some electrical wiring.  After two hours of trying to unplug whatever plugged the plumbing, I declared the problem unsolvable and plan on summoning the plumber in the morning.  My frazzled wife (the original Sweet Laraine by the way), was at wits end, in part due to the toilet and in part due to one my sons who recently graduated from Columbia and is en route to San Francisco to begin life but not before cleaning his room per Mom's instructions.  Anyway, I told her to join me in the garage with a glass of wine while I worked on her namesake.  She complied and, just as she was relaxing with a nice red Spanish wine, a huge Texas snake made it's appearance.  Of course, her chair took the opportunity to collapse although, to her credit, she held her wineglass all the way down.  My son appeared and we tried to salvage the snake to be taken far from home.  Having other plans, the snake bolted into the garage behinds years of accumulated junk.  We pushed aside coolers, gas cans and the like and, lo and behold, the snake appeared. Our original charitable intentions having faded, we pounded it to death with blood pouring onto the garage floors (Texas snakes are large).  I'm not sure my wife will want to participate further in the restoration of Sweet Laraine.

[bro t]

Rick, I think perhaps the snake was intended to solve your plumbing problems!  I've heard that many people use snakes to clear a clogged toilet... maybe you have to bait it with a rat or something?  Should we properly assume you DID NOT attempt to clear the toilet by flushing the poor pummelled snake? :cry:
Also, thanks for posting your pics, it looks like a great boat, and you're doing some nice work!  Do you have a bowsprit?  I couldn't tell from the photos.  ttfn
bro t. from Upwest Maine

[Rick Evans]

We've recovered from the snake incident although I can't say I'm looking forward to laying down on the garage floor again while putting on the bottom paint.  At least I was able to scrub the snake blood away last night.  Ironically, I had used a metal snake in my effort to open the clogged plumbing and had set it outside the garage to dry.  It was there that the real snake appeared?  Maybe some kind of misguided love interest between the two.

Anyway, Sweet Laraine does not have a bowsprit.  She's hull number 546 which was apparently some time before that was added.  Because I tend to nose into docks bow first to offload passengers, I'm hesitant to add one.   Do they make that big a difference?  To cure the anticipated weather helm, I ordered the Idasailor foiled rudder and have a 150% genoa.  I'm hoping that will do the trick.  

BTW, I was able to purchase a brand new, fully battened main (complete with slugs and one set of reef points), a 150% genoa with CDI roller furling and protective sun strip on the leech for a grand total of about $800.00.  Obvoiusly, the roller furling & protective cover drove the price up.  If anybody is just interested in a new main & genoa, they can be had from National Sail for something in the ballpark of $450.00.  

I'll be posting new pics soon showing the status of the restoration.  The entire interior was gutted and has now been rebuilt.  The old gray paint was removed and three coats of West Marine's best topside linear polyurethane applied.  I made the mistake of using white paint which makes the cabin bright but cheap looking.  So, after the first coat, I had it tinted to an off white (not quite almond) and the result was so much more pleasing to the eye.  I'm not using cushions since, at my size, I can't afford to lose any more headroom by sitting on an extra inch of padding.  Instead, I've all but finished cutting and laying a Navy blue ribbed indoor/outdoor carpeting in the forepeak and both berths.  When you see the pictures, I hope you all agree it looks great.  I'm just finishing up on some wiring which I'm running under the berths to a bus mounted near the companionway entrance along with a stereo system.  She's gonna look good.

[multimedia_smith]

Hi Rick...
I know that you aren't planning to lift the deck.. but I said that I'd send this image from the manual about what's in the joint.  

http://www.com-pacowners.com/4images/details.php?image_id=212

Best of luck... you've got the winter to work now... it's actually bearable to be in a garage (New Orleans summers rival Texas or Fla. or so I'm told)

Dale

[Rick Evans]

Dale, thanks for the cut out diagram on the deck.  I was sorely tempted to remove the entire deck since it would have made crawling around so much easier.  However, I just didn't have it in me.  I figured the weight of the deck would have made lifting it hard or, worse yet, that I might break it if lifted improperly.  But, although it took a lot more time, I think I've just about got the cabin done.  It's amazing to me just how much time I spent refurbishing such a tiny space.  I haven't spent that many hours working on my house in the last year.

Anyway, for those of you interested, I have a web site with more photos.  You can see it under the Sweet Laraine section at www.evanssailing.com.  Don't mind the other goofy stuff there.