If anyone ever tells you that sailboat racing is not a contact sport then they don’t race. Being on a cruising sailboat during a starting sequence with any wind near 20 knots can be a harrowing experience. Especially if you happen to allide with your competition after a poorly planned tack. As they say in the marine insurance business: ship happens.
This will be my attempt to document the process of fixing the damage you see below. In this picture I had barely started to grind away at the crack when I realized I needed a “Before” photo.
Looks a bit like a shark bite, or sharks mouth, eh? Another angle.
From the inside:
Ok, so one more from the inside.
The above picture shows the small pinkish spot where some laminate did chip off after the collision with mild persuasion. I am not certain about the mass or blob above that spot though which makes me think that the entire stem may need redoing.
Given this intuition I’m thinking that Bill’s idea from ##sailing of making a mold of the exterior shape at this point is not a bad idea after all.
This picture is about what I accomplished the hours I spent with adequate lung protection but inadequate eye protection. I see a Tyvek suit in my future along with real goggles and new dust mask ($40 at home despot).
looks like some work ahead good luck
I used to own an identical 1967 Tartan model which was named Odalisque and which I bought from an owner in Green Bay, Wisconsin in the mid 1970’s. We sailed it through Sturgeon Bay onto Lake Michigan, and stopped at various ports on the way to Chicago. On approaching the entrance to Milwaukee Harbor, we were thankful that we had heeded the previous owner’s suggestion that we get a Radio Direction Finder, for it was only through that, that we were able to get into the harbor. We kept Odalisque in Chicago’s Montrose Harbor for several years afterward. Our Tartan apparently had had a bow repair similar to yours, and I believe she might have sunk at one point, since I found the Atomic 4 water passages contained a lot of fine sand which we eventually flushed out. Anyway, it was nice to reminisce a bit about an boat which I believed was an excellent sailer.
I believe it is the same boat. Odalisque is such a good boat name, why would anyone want to change it? I’ll bet you sold Odalisque to a family named Murphy who sailed her on the Great Lakes for a number of years before moving to the salt water of East Hampton, NY, where we bought her from a James Murphy, perhaps the son of her 2nd owner. I am her steward now and she needs some work.
Great boat though.
Watching your efforts on Odalisque heartens me that I may not be any more foolish than I thought for wanting to do this. As a kid, we used to get our posteriors handed to us by a trio of T27s in PHRF racing(Bristol 27) and have always had a thing for that doghouse and C/B. I am seriously considering this boat as a trailer sailor. Yes, I am a little dim.
You left me chewing my nails and popping anxiety meds after the collision post. It was two years ago, man! Did you fix her? Surely a sailboat-cum-submarine deserves a third shot! Most importantly, any pictures of the other guy?
-roger
Roger,
Yes, it has been forever since I have posted to my Odalisque blog.
To answer your question, the other boat was a Tartan 30′ that suffered only minor damage to the to rail, some polyester work. My insurance covered the $1200 or so cost of that.
Odalisque also chafed her mooring pendants last fall and met the Tappan Zee bridge. A bridge worker rescued her but not after a considerable amount of deck damage from the stern rail being stove in along with a stanchion or two and some nice dock rash. Nevertheless I intend to haul her out early this year for major repairs despite however foolhardy a financial decision that may be. She has become an old friend after 12+ years of ownership.
Pictures & updates to follow but don’t hold your breath. I’ve grown old and lazy.