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New to list - Hello! #8156
06/24/02 12:17 AM
06/24/02 12:17 AM

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Hi All,

I used to sail years ago in my youth with a friend on a 16' Hobie and now decades later I chanced on a Sea Spray 15' for $200. It needs some TLC but appears basically sound. I am certain I am not nearly as serious as many on this list, but would like to learn as much as possible about this little craft and on the subject of sailing cats in general.



One thing occured to me when I was trying to raise the mast in a dry run in the yard was that it has been a very long time since I did anything like this and it was on a different boat way back when and I mostly helped my friend who was the one who knew what he was doing ...anyway, I'm sure you get the picture. I vaguely recalll starting with the mast base tied down and laying off to one side with the jib and one sidestay connected then pulling the mast up by the other stay while someone else lifted it , but I couldn't seem to get this going in a way that rang a bell and decided to stop for a bit before I poked someone's eye out.



Well, I've faced my ignorance and ordered a videotape on 'catamaran sailing' that seems to be sold around the net, but thought that in addition I'd introduce myself on this list and get some feedback.



Another thing I'm real curious about is the reputation of the Sea Spray 15. At $200, I'm not concerned about it being great or not, but it really looks like a good boat, at least from my shallow knowledge of boats. But from a general design and quality point of view it seems to be fairly elegant. Anyway, I'd appreciate any and all feedback.



Thanks in advance,

Marty


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Re: New to list - Hello! #8157
06/24/02 07:36 PM
06/24/02 07:36 PM
Joined: Jun 2001
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South Carolina
Jake Offline
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Marty,



Congrats on the purchase! I hope we can help in any way.



I must appologize for I am not that familiar with the sea spray mast base setup. However, the large majority of us step the mast by leaving both sidestays connected but the forestay (the cable that the jib slides up on) loose. Most cats now also have a captive mast base that eliminates the need to tie the base down during stepping. Whether you have a captive base or a tied down base, the stepping procedure is pretty much the same:



Have the mast on the ball and someone holding up the rear of the mast that should be pointed straight out to the back of the boat. You (or whoever the strongbody is) are standing on the trampoline as your assistant walks the mast up to you. Once they've reached the limit of their reach, you give it a good heave - trying to keep some downward pressure on the mast base - and you should find it needs very little forward stability once you have it on the ball, raised, both sidestays still attached. While you hold the mast upright, your assistant should attach the forestay. There are ways to do this by yourself but I recommend you try this several times with assistance before considering trying.



There are still a few sea sprays out there but I imagine parts would be difficult to come by. Good luck and happy sailing!


Jake Kohl
Re: New to list - Hello! [Re: Jake] #8158
06/25/02 12:44 AM
06/25/02 12:44 AM

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Jake, thanks for the welcome and the advice. I have found Sea Spray parts and rigging help are available from www.glenmoresailboats.com



Your description of raising the mast from the stern is not how I nearly learned it so my friend must have had his own way of doing things. What you describe sounds better if only because you can stand on the tramp sooner as you walk forward lifting. The base does need to be tied down to step.



As it turns out I have a 'newer' Sea Spray (post '75). Looking at the price list for parts at the site in the link above I think I got a very good deal and look forward to getting in the water with it (after a thorough going over of course).



Thanks again,

Marty


Last edited by catapult; 06/25/02 12:46 AM.
Re: New to list - Hello! #8159
06/25/02 09:56 AM
06/25/02 09:56 AM
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Posts: 74
Reno, NV
pschmalz Offline
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Real Sea Spray sailors don't buy their parts from no stinking catalogue! The mast and crossbars are made from aluminum irrigation pipe, the foils are wood, and the rest of the boat is made from spit and baling twine. If the boat stays in one piece throughout a day of racing, it's way to heavy to be competitive.



C'mon. Now that you have the boat, you've got to develop the Sea Spray attitude. There's a few Sea Spray wackos in Northern California who race - they're all old farts who've given up on finding crew who can put up with them. So they get a Sea Spray, sand down the hulls till you can see daylight through them, buy all thier parts from the local hardware store, take pride in the fact that they haven't spent more than $30 on their boat, and complain that their portsmouth number is less than 100. They're also all damn fine sailors, and a lot of fun to be around.

Re: New to list - Hello! [Re: pschmalz] #8160
06/25/02 05:56 PM
06/25/02 05:56 PM
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 74
Reno, NV
pschmalz Offline
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I just looked at the site you linked to. Now that I think about it, I do remember hearing that there are some folks in the Great White North who take Sea Sprays a little more seriously than the Northern California gang.



I was serious when I said that the masts and crossbars were originally made out of aluminum irrigation pipe. Some booms are high tech though - they're made from cut-down windsurfer masts. I think the whole purpose of the Sea Spray was that it could be constructed out of commonly available parts.



I don't know where you live, but the Sea Spray North Americans are going to be held at Huntington Lake, near Fresno CA, in late August. If you live in that part of the world, you should check it out. It's a helluva nice lake, up at about 7000' in the Sierra, and you'd probably learn a good bit.

Re: New to list - Hello! [Re: pschmalz] #8161
06/25/02 09:42 PM
06/25/02 09:42 PM

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Thanks for the irrigation pipe info. I thought they looked fairly simple. When the crosstubes get bent I'll know what to do! But this spray's mast has a channel in it (sorry for mangling any terminology) so a typical pipe wouldn't replace it without more work than I care for.



There is no chance I could make the event at Huntington lake though it sounds like a blast. Is it a yearly thing? It's about 500 miles from me in the sailing paradise known as Idaho [Linked Image]



Marty




Re: New to list - Hello! #8162
06/26/02 10:04 AM
06/26/02 10:04 AM
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 74
Reno, NV
pschmalz Offline
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The sea sprays I've seen don't use the standard bolt-rope in a sail track method - they have a "sock" sewn on to the luff which slips over the mast. I believe Lasers use the same method.



The point I was trying to get across is this isn't a boat that you have to spend a lot of money on (though please feel free to do so if you like).



The site below has a couple of pictures of Sea Sprays, but is about a year out of date.



home.earthlink.net/~soapysails/



IIRC the North Americans are held every year, and alternates between the US and Canada. But 500 miles aint too far to drive for an event like that! I drove almost 300 miles to get there last weekend, and that was just for a weekend series.

Re: New to list - Hello! #8163
06/26/02 11:42 AM
06/26/02 11:42 AM
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 123
Syracuse, NY
deq204 Offline
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Just a test - thanks

Re: New to list - Hello! #8164
06/26/02 11:50 AM
06/26/02 11:50 AM
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 123
Syracuse, NY
deq204 Offline
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Oops - Thanks - test ok now

Re: New to list - Hello! [Re: pschmalz] #8165
06/26/02 06:28 PM
06/26/02 06:28 PM
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 12,310
South Carolina
Jake Offline
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Ohhhh, O.K....I see why the previous owner stepped it with the forestay and one sidestay attached - stepped it just like a dingy. If your sail must be attached to the mast before you raise the mast (i.e. like the 'sock' refered to earlier), you might have some difficulty raising it how I described. Maybe not? I dunno.



You said that you have a track in the mast - most cats have an inset track that the rope luff of the main sail would slide up the mast in. If this is so, then you should be able to easily raise the main after the mast is in place.


Jake Kohl
Re: New to list - Hello! [Re: pschmalz] #8166
06/26/02 10:28 PM
06/26/02 10:28 PM

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Well, its either a later model of sea spray than you've ever seen or a previous owner has put a different mast into the mix. This mast definitely has a track and the sails do not have socks' on the leading edge. I'll call Glenmore tomorrow and find out if they sold any this way.



The bigger of the mains measures about 18'x9' along the leading and lower edges. So given the approximate right angle I figure around 85 ft^2 of SA, but I really would need to measure more accurately than just pacing it off. Does that seem the right neighborhood for a 15' cat that displaces 210 lbs?



Marty










Re: New to list - Hello! [Re: pschmalz] #8167
06/28/02 12:38 AM
06/28/02 12:38 AM

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For the curious, just got a note back from Glenmore:



Quote:

"There are three types of sails [on sea sprays]. Old style track riveted to the mast, new style track as part of the extrusion and sock style."



Apparently you've (pschmalz) seen the third style and I have the second.



Thanks for bringing it up, I learned something.



Marty





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