When I was younger, my father used to race sailboats out in the Corpus Christi Bay and occasionally I would get to ride along. Ever since then, I’ve always wanted to try my hand at sailing and so I figured now is as good a time as any. After keeping my eye on Craigslist and eBay for a few weeks, I’ve finally found the perfect project sailboat for me to restore over the next few months and hopefully have ready by next spring. It’s a 1975 Alcort Sunfish that’s in fairly decent condition.
So far I have everyting sitting in the garage but in the next few days I hope to get a better gameplan established so that I can work on getting this project moving forward.
I finally made time to start getting my Sunfish Restoration project in order! I’ve done quite a bit of research on how to tackle this endeavor and so I was ready to put this project in motion. First, I purchased the materials to build two saw horses at Lowes and constructed them in my garage. I also removed all the hardware from the boat so that I could clean and restore the surface. Afterwards, Sarah and I carried the boat into the driveway behind the garage to spray it down and give it a quick wash to remove all the surface dirt and grime it still had on it. Once the boat had dried we carried it back into the garage and set it upside down on the saw horses so that I would be able to start work on the hull. I carefully laid out all the parts in different areas of the garage and noted exactly what would need to be replaced and what could be salvaged. I plan on keeping an eye on eBay to hopefully get some great deals on some of the parts I need throughout the restoration process. More details as they come!
Today I finally made time to grind out the old bailer that had frozen in place. It was the last piece of hardware needing to be removed and unfortunately it had to be cut out of the boat. Much to my dismay, my Dremel Tool burned out in the process but thankfully it made it far enough so that I could finish the job. I also went ahead and ordered several important components needed from Jamestown Distributors. I was able to get some Marine Tex for repairs, some Interlux Paint and Thinner, an inspection port, and some varnish for the daggerboard, tiller, and rudder.
The Sunfish Project is currently on hold as the hull sits in Corpus and my race car sits in its place. Race season starts in only a few months and I have more work than I can get done on the occasional weekend road trip down to the Scheidt Racing Garage in Corpus. I anticipate finishing my 2013 Race Car by mid-spring and hope to resume work on the Sunfish in time for a late spring, early summer maiden voyage!
Today I took the “almost” finished race car back to the race shop in Corpus and brought back both the Sunfish as well as my old twelve foot fishing boat and its trailer. I organized the garage so that I could work on both boats and laid everything out around the trailer in the middle. I know it sounds complicated but it works really well. I anticipate working on the sailboat a little bit each day and hope to complete it soon!
Well there are simply no excuses this time. The sailboat has been sitting in my garage untouched for several months. Today I finally got tired of letting the summer slip away and started to make some headway again. I began varnishing the wooden bits and hope to continue to apply additional coats throughout the next week or two. Tomorrow I plan to order the remaining pieces needed to finish the fish and get her out on the water!
I worked long and hard over the past two weeks and finally finished the Sunfish Project! I must note that I ordered a new Jeep Wrangler two months ago and its coming in tomorrow so I guess I can thank that for motivating me to get the boat finished and garage cleaned up! Nonetheless, everything is complete and I hope to set sail soon! Unfortunately the fall weather has cooled things down dramatically so that may not be until next spring . . .
While contemplating what to do with ourselves on a lazy Sunday, Sarah and I decided that today would be the perfect day for the Sunfish’s maiden voyage. We loaded up and headed out to Boerne City Lake where we met up with my sister Megan and a few members of Sarah’s family for some afternoon sailing and grilling. After putting on the new sail and using google to teach ourselves how to rig up the Sunfish, we set her in the water and I hopped onboard with a rough idea of how things should work. I used to watch my father race sunfish and other small sailboats when I was a young child so I did my best to recollect those memories and put those practices into play as I harnessed the power of the wind and began to glide across the water. After a few rough tacks I seemed to have grasped the basic concepts and was sailing along like a seasoned pro. I spent a few hours on the water, continuing to improve as time wore on, and even took Sarah along for a ride around the lake. The day was a great success and the Sunfish performed marvelously. I look forward to the next time I can get her out on the water and to a lifetime of sailing to come!
