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[AlexOg]

So here's the story:

I've just turned 20, I'm a student and I'm about as broke as a student can be. I sold my ancient Laser in January because I'd grown far, far too big for it (and I was bored of wondering why someone had put a sail on a surfboard). I bought 829 thinking it was a cheap woody that would let me get on the water quickly. Foolishly I jumped on the boat and agreed to buy on the strength of only a few pictures but as I'm broke just trying to pay the rent 99 days out of 100 anything is better than nothing.

So I started to do a few repairs on the boat, a few touch ups here and there etc. and started to wonder why on earth I ever thought it was a good idea to buy a wooden boat. Every time I start a repair I find that the fabric of the boat is wet and soggy. Every time I try to gently remove a piece of wood the fibreglass tape and many layers of paint (which the previous owner seems to have applied in excess to every surface he could find) attached to that piece of wood pull off all of the plies around it. At the moment I'm looking at having to replace most of the transom, a large strip of the hull at the transom, the thwart (the original was an ali tube held in place by epoxy that served almost no structural function at all), the deck from about 4 feet back to a foot in front of the shrouds and all of the paint and varnish inside the cockpit as well as having to resurface both of the foils. I don't have a dry warm place to do this in so there's no way to dry out the fabric of the boat.

I'm pretty much at my wits end at the moment. If I had the time and the money I'd strip everything off, dispose of the hull and start again. Unfortunately I only have a few hours every week to work on the boat and I cant see anyway I can get the project complete before I have to go back to university unless there's a miracle! Any thoughts gratefully recieved!

[jamesd20]

Pretty unfortunate for you, but it is one reason why plastic boats are so popular.

I had a similar story on mine (although less extreme), but I had a helpful & handy dad and his garage!

I stripped off all the paintwork & varnish, the top layer of the self draining floor was delaminated, some of the transom was rotten & the shroud terminal points were also rotten. In my favour the actual hull was pretty solid & most of the top deck veneer was in pretty decent nick.

Not much you can do really though without spending money & time. Bodging it up would most likely end in an early season & more money having to be spent.

[GAv]

Hi Alex, sorry to hear all this, at least my mate* hasnt charged me(you) for the post of that stock you bought off me and I sent you.
Gawd it wouldnt go through the post office window with the tiller etc, ha.
I had trailered his* Mirror home for him but that had a hole in it beforehand ( a replacement hull he had bought from a so called repairer, and dealer in (Plastic Mirrors)but it was rotten as a pear, having stood untouched a couple of years, as was my own Phantom(I took in exchange for my last Fireball).
Before we left the club I tried to tell him his best bet was to make it a garden feature in his Cottage Garden, and when we tried to get it off my trailer it had gone through the supports, I twisted my chest trying to lift it and warding off an irritable Beemer driver trying to squeeze past in that narrow lane, and my mate was  annoyed over the damage, at first but then presented me with the site of a big bit of basically cardboard, so he agreed with my original analaysis. I already told him i did not want payment for moving it either.
Maybe if I dare say as when i was your age impetuousness was the order but have'nt changed since thence back in the day.
My advice, cut your losses, advertise all the good bits on this very excellent site, and find someone to crew for(in Cowes-surely you will get some takers)-Merlin Rockets are good. However my Mirror man is one of many yacht owners I get to crew for also...
I actually finished up with another Streaker, so much more rewarding than Lasers, but have only sailed it the once- Easter Saturday and helmed on another old MR that Sunday-I I was however back in hospital with more ticker troubles. Now awaiting an appointment for possible remedial attention-had 3 stents repaired at Papworth so have 6 but they might have failed-all affecting my sailing opertunities but best to get right.
Personally i love wooden things but concede Plastic is easier.
The woman who bought what was described hereabouts as a Briant and May job from oop narth, is still supposed to be collecting my mast boom and a couple of sails for that, (she has another Phantom)however she says  she got it for a friend who doesnt now want it now-she also reckons the repair isnt too onerous and I am really tempted to see what she wants for the hull, as I am well known as a rescue boat person.
That said some (like my PX ed woody Phantom was really beyond repair and again my humble sympathies as you were straight with me etc, and visa versa but dont keep throwing good cash after bad, sometimes you can get more for the spares than a complete boat.
http://www.phantomclass.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=1784.msg12462#msg12462
My kind regards GAVin

[AlexOg]

Speaking of helpful and handy daddies he's just given me a lifeline! I'm now assured that if I buy the wood and about ten metres of sand paper it's all fixable with abit of time, I just have to wait for a space in the workshop. It's nice to hear so I'll keep everyone informed.

Gav I'm sorry to hear about that Mirror (although it's not like you won't find a replacement ) As for ditching the boat and crewing for someone I've been there and done that. Almost all my sailing in the past decade has been crewing on other people's boats and I've gotten pretty sick of it. I'd much rather spend the time fixing a boat and be able to sail on my own time than someone else's.

I'm going to plough on with this one chaps, I might even post some pictures if things don't get too horrendous!

[GAv]

Hi Alex the Mirror was one i was helping move but he had already bought that hull as a replacement, from someone who should have known better.
I took my Phantom in exchange for a refurbished Fireball, to speed up delivery, as the buyer had no towbar so had to rely on a friend.
When it turned out he had a Phantom an exchange was muted, so I agreed to deliver and collect. I finished up with a load of bits effectively as the hull is too far gone, (the stock etc)and a perfectly good Combi base.

I don't like crewing as most folk turn into Captain Blyes at the tangled drop of a spinacker, and even when I've tought people(one became OK junior champ)and on my Fireballs and when I still had my Vivacity, they also seemed to think they had some right to assume control-which when you have experience spanning 5 decades, inclusive of some much bigger vessels, then i am with you on that score.
I do still crew on mates yachts but I am much happier sailing single handed, even on my old Merlin Rocket.
However health glitches probably rule out a Phantom now?