Restoration

After eight weeks, Angie has turned out a truly magnificent Lugger, totally rebuilt and with modifications to suit her new life in the Med including full Bimini sun shade and picnic set. It will be a pleasure to have her moored on the apartment jetty at Geni Garden Apartments, awaiting one’s desire and time to sail her.

Let’s just recap on what has been achieved in the last pieces of the fitting out process.

The screws and fittings on Drascombes were mainly Bronze, an alloy comprising of the elements Copper (Cu) 88% and Tin (Sn) 12%, a much stronger material than Brass, which is an alloy of Copper and Zinc. Therefore my aim is to to reuse as much of the original fitting as I can, with cleaning and a refurb. This includes the screws that secure the Gunwale rail, where there are some 26, and it is a labour of love to clean and re-cut the slots in the head of the screw, but well worth the effort.

You will have already noted that I have only four hatches in the cockpit sides, when originally it had six. The Luggers that preceded this early model did only have four. I have blanked off the two aft cut-outs and fitted additional buoyancy bags into their cavities.

Noted also are my floor boards which are made in four sections, with the centre aft section available to bail or sponge out, all much easier to get out if need be. Yes, for bare feet after swimming the finished coating is an anti slip paint, so no accidents with children slipping on the boards.

The sun in the Med is not kind to certain surfaces and finishes, in particular the applied graphics. Each year the stern name plate is removed and brought back to Wales so we can clean it and apply the new graphics. These are ready to pack for the road trip on 26 June.

Both the main and Mizen masts that came with the Lugger were original. Whilst superficially looking in very poor condition, they needed a total refurb which involved a complete removal of all varnish and then a hand scraping back with a Cabinet scraper back down to the wood. I then spray the spars by rotating between centres with a high quality oil based Yacht Varnish, starting with a few very thin coats that are absorbed into the wood and prepping between further build up coats. Around 10 coats in total.

The Gaff and Bumpkin were not with the boat at the time of purchase – the piece of timber that was called the Gaff, as you will remember, was very short and not useable. Angie’s new Gaff and Bumpkin we made from scratch at Dragon Design, with the S/S claw and beads on the Gaff.

I mentioned in a previous blog that Angie did not have a main sheet traveller, and this is now fitted with a sliding ‘O’ ring to take the main sheet jammer. This can be tensioned from either side by using the red line, which runs through a cleated jammer. So good to be able to jam the main sheet when on a long tack or passage, then when necessary it’s just a quick flick and you’re back in control again of the main sheet.

My favoured bow anchor for Luggers in the Med is a 6 kg Delta anchor. It’s self setting and brilliant in sand, weed and mud sea beds. To have good access to its warp and chain I use these deck bags for storage, and keep blocks and ties for securing the blade, otherwise the  anchor is left in the bottom of the boat, causing damage, not acceptable and the likelihood of causing injury to one’s feet.

We also need to have a stern Kedge anchor. When approaching a beach, the sea shelves away very steeply, so only the bow is on the sand. It’s necessary to throw the kedge out as one approaches the beach, then tension it after securing the bow, which stops the boat blowing beam-on to the beach and causing damage.

Last but not least, we have a new rudder and centre plate, all fully galvanised and ready to fit.
My cabinetmaking company Dragon Design has had these made to the original spec locally in Wales. These along with our range of joinery, swimming ladders and fittings for Drascombes and for Luggers in particular, will be available through the company.

We offer a unique complete Lugger and marine service, you will I’m sure note from the high spec rebuild of Angie, that we know our stuff when it comes to marine work, presentation and finish. Call Phil for help and advice, or email dragondesigns@btconnect.com.

You will have read so much about the navigation pros and cons, i.e. GPS units, one’s mobile phones, Google Earth etc? Issues with signals and other technical problems, let alone charging a battery. All so difficult to work out.

However, what’s so difficult with using the basic Imray chart in a bag and Pilot book? Yes, eventually they get damaged, creased seams, but so easy to use. For children in the evening at the table in the Taverna they can get around it and go through what they have seen in the day, then plan a route for the following day. This along with the small hand-held Silva compass they learn how to navigate from the concept and principle of ‘Line of sight’. It’s bomb proof!

The most fundamental and important issue for my 1600 mile  drive to the Ionian on 26June is the road worthiness of the trailer. I have check every ‘U’ bolt on the frame, replaced the original damaged wheel rims and fitted new tyres. But most important is the stripping down of the wheel hubs from the stub axles and attending to the tapered roller bearing units.

The hubs that came with Angie’s trailer did not have grease nipples, a MUST to be able to pump grease into the bearing. These hubs came off and new hub units with the fully assembled bearings fitted. Before leaving I will have taken the trailer and boat out on a road trip of at least 60 miles, and on return she will be jacked up, grease cap removed and a check made on the castellated nut that holds the hub onto the axle. It will have now bedded in and can be tweaked up to the required level of tightness, not too tight so causing the wheel to be stiff to turn and not slack when the whole rim assembly is rocking.

So we are just about there. All the kit and spars will be bubble wrapped and loaded into the boat. She is now fully rigged and ready to launch, since I have only 3 days from getting off the ferry at Igeomenitsa on 30 June to my first couple from Kentucky in the US arriving for their 2 weeks of “LUGGERING ABOUT IN THE SUN”

Please keep reading my blog. My next will be on launch day and the first crew to arrive in Nidri.

The very best from Bengy and myself.  Bengy cannot wait to be swimming again in the warm Ionian Sea!

So at last, Friday 28 May 2021! Angie is rolled out into the sunshine in Wales, a very exciting day to see the endeavours of the past 7 weeks come to fruition. You will note that I have managed to straighten and clean up the original 1967 builder’s plate.

She is now completed with just minor bits to add, and to change the trailer hubs and bearings; she came with hubs without grease nipples, and with 1600 miles of driving in 4 days it’s vital to be able to top up the grease in the hub daily.

So, I will take you back a few days to when she was still laying on her Gunwhale awaiting having a new keel band and beaching rails made and fitted.

You will have noted from previous pictures of the keel band that the sides of the centre plate area had collapsed and restricted the gap that the centre plate swings through, with no side fixings to hold the sides apart. On later Luggers they bolted at an angle to secure the sides and then glassed over the bolt nuts and stems. So, this band had to be removed. It’s not structural, just lays in a moulded recess of the hull and bolted through, it’s purely sacrificial to take the wear. So with a lever and multi tool I cut it out along with the bolts and odd screws that had been added. Now the hull is fully prepped, spray primed and two coats of finish colour, and you can see the keel band channel.

I have once fitted a keel band whilst the boat was on its trailer. This was done in my Greek boat yard where they had plenty of tyres and one had to raise the boat up to clear the trailer, it’s not easy! But with intervals to get into the shade and ponder the next step with a large glass of ice cold Mythos it was done successfully.

Getting back to Angie, we have machined the new keel band out of Iroko. It’s a little different in terms of the cut-outs to the later models, with the rudder slot a little further forward. Getting it sprung into place on top of a marine sealant bedding and bolted down is quite straightforward. The keel bands that we produce are 40 mm thickness, while the originals were about 32 mm, although there was not much standardisation in the early days of the Drascombe building procedures.

We are now beginning to make progress. With the keel band and beaching rails fitted it’s time to mask up and prime the hull with its anti-foul primer. I use Seajet, it’s great for conditions with high fouling. The anti-foul top coat always goes on just before launching, so I normally attack this the evening before launching, followed by a few cold Mythos beers at the local taverna.

In between this laborious, dirty and painstaking work on the hull I’ve taken time out to work on the new tiller and its extension. I have laminated two cheeks of Iroko with a centre of Ash for the tiller using West resin before forming the curved shape and radiusing the edges. We then progress to making the extension out of Ash and fitting the bronze swivel head. Following a spray finish in Blackfriars Super Yacht varnish the tiller/extension unit is ready for its new rudder. These rudders, all fully galvanised, will be available in October from Dragon Design, along with centre plates.

21 May 2021

It is now an appropriate time to turn the hull over in order to apply the finished colour to the top plank – all Dragon Drascombe Luggers have their distinguishing top plank colours – followed by the internal cockpit spray finishing.

Over this rebuild process of Angie I have formed the opinion that this Lugger was possibly one of the first out of the original mould. It would be good to have others to contribute to my thought.

1. The high quality of the lay up and gel coat of the top plank in particular, with no vertical ripples or waves in the surface, suggests it was a new mould and probably the prototype.
2. There was no main sheet traveller tube fitted transversely. It would have been a galvanised 25 mm tube and would have had a raised section in the inside moulding to take this tube. She just had a loose wire bolted to the inside face of both Gunwhale sides. This can be seen on one of the early pictures when it arrived back in Wales. I’ve now fitted a traveller tube as shown further on. What a job to spring it in between the two upper deck sides!
3. Whilst the layup of the resin and mat is much heavier than 1970 models onwards, it is poorly applied, especially on the curved surfaces and lower plank edges, just full of continuous voids, all of which I have had to make good.

With all the internal cockpit prep work done prior to the hull being turned over onto its Gunwhale, it was a straightforward job of spray finishing the inside of the cockpit. Note the difference from its original state.

There will be some of you Drascombers scratching your heads wondering what has happened to the two lift-out aft cockpit seats? You might well ask! The originals were so poor, cracked, chunks missing and not really worth repairing, along with interfering with the main sheet traveller rail. So the answer was to form a new face bulkhead and be extended to the top line of the aft deck and form a new internal framework in Ash so an Iroko seat would clip in. This gives a flush seat with the aft deck and provides easy access to the stern storage locker.

This brings to a close this stage 4 of my Angie rebuild blog.

However, with the arrival of the new sail and cover from Dick at R&J Sails later this week, I will run through the fitting of the woodwork, internal fittings and rigging in my next blog on 16 June. This will be my last blog before loading and setting off for the road trip to Nidri, via the overnight ferry from Ancona on the Adriatic coast, yes and back to the SUN!!

Whilst acknowledging her age now since she was built 53 years ago, it is evident that she has been used extensively, based on the damage and repairs that have been undertaken, some reasonable and others at best negligent in terms of safety of the craft. But yes, she has survived and will be of a high standard in 3 weeks time.

Having initially started the cleaning out and assessment process which allowed time for the hull to dry out, I got stuck into the timber work repairs and renewals. You will have noted the initial pictures of the Transom board and the engine mounting bracket. These have now been restored, all in original Teak. You will note that the engine mounting board had mild steel 8 mm coach bolts, albeit corroded and rusty. These have now been replaced with 10 mm A4 stainless steel.

Well, you might ask the question, what is the finish applied? My preference is Rustin’s Original Danish Oil. Its a natural product, needs to be built up and maintained, but even in the sun and hard environment of the Greek Ionian it still look good. The harder more synthetic and manufactured finishes, whilst easier to apply will age, harden and flake.

Another renewal task was the making of the new floor section. I prefer them in 4 panels with a lift-up stern section behind the centre board casing, big enough to get a hand scoop in to dry the bottom out. Favoured material is a soft wood, preferably a Swedish Upper Gulf ‘unsorted’ grade. This has a tight grain with minimum knots, and the knots when the do occur are just a small button size; it’s light in weight and holds paint well.

I’ve now made these sections, all sanded, chamfered edges and pre fitted. They will be  primed in a water-based primer with an oil-based top coat, before the grey deck anti-slip finish.

Whilst at this stage of tackling the renewals I have made a centre board box casing. These very early Luggers were basic, having an exposed ribbed casing. So, Angie will now sport a full casing made of Iroko, a Teak substitute.

Again, an addition I favour on my Luggers is for the side locker cut-outs to have framed opening hatches. These like the centre board case are made out of Iroko. We make these in-house at Dragon Design. Again, in a sanded finish prior to the Rustins Danish Oil application.

The final major task, not expected to this degree, was to replace the centre plate pivot pin, 2 days later newly engineered with strengthening plates either side. It started by noticing a rusty stain mark on the floor bottom below the pin. Ah! I thought, needs cleaning. But oh no, a lot more than that. The pin was secured in the centre board cheeks by just two lugs that were held into the holes by resin filler and a little fibre glass matting to the outside casing. The lug on the port side has broken away and with the weight and movement of the centre plate had created a much larger hole; this was not good!

This now required a major strengthening and modification to this very basic design. You will note a square pad of 3 mm stainless steel has been fixed to the case side, this replicated to the other side. The pads were aligned and set on a pre laid up base of chopped strand mat and West resin, to cover the enlarged hole and to encapsulate the plates, finally bonding the entire strengthening plates down to the base of the centre board casing. A job well done and better to find it now than when out on charter in the Ionian.

The good news is that the new Mariner 4 HP outboard has arrived. Yes, it has been an eventful two weeks. Well, at least one job has been completed: the boat’s Bung has had a new washer!

Before any final spray work can be contemplated, we have taken Angie off her trailer and turned the hull over in order to replace the keel band and beaching rails. This should be the last major task before the refitting can start.

So please keep following progress with Angie’s rebuild. Maybe you will have the chance to sail her yourself out in the Ionian, if you choose to ‘Lugger about in the sun’.

So here she is on 10 April 2021, at last in Wales ready for work to commence. I’ve removed most of the clutter and debris that came with the purchase, it wasn’t even cleaned out!

One thing I had not realised is that she did not have a Bumpkin stern spar, or rather there were two rotten pieces of wood which I was told were the said spar! The Gaff that was shown in the pictures, turned out when I received it to be totally unusable and rotten. I could not see the blade of the centre plate, just the stock section above the centre box top, but with the vibration of the boat on the trailer on the first 20 miles or so there was a scraping and knocking noise which caused me to pull over, to find that this rotten piece of centre plate had dislodged itself and was hanging down below the keel. Not a pretty sight!

But hey ho , she will be now looked after and given a new life in the sun and take pride of place with my current fleet of Drascombe Luggers.

Week One

There was sufficient good wood from an odd spar that came with the boat to allow me to make a new Bumpkin. For the Gaff, I will order in a board of Douglas Fir and make 3 Gaffs while I’m at it.

All the black top coat of paint has been removed with a commercial stripper; for these who remember the paints that were sold in ‘Woolies’ many years ago, well It wasn’t even as good as that, it just fell off! There are approximately another eight coats of blue to get through before getting down to the gel coat, so quite a number of hours left. Fortunately, there has to be a little good news – there were only two thin layers of anti-foul before hitting the gel coat, amazing!

The gunwale capping was badly damaged all round, fixed with a lot of sanding down.

The gunwale rails on the early Luggers were made in one piece, but this one has had the aft section on the starboard side refabricated in sections with an open mid joint. This needed a fillet to splice the two parts together. First I machined a slot to take the fillet, then the glass fibre edge had to be protected with plastic to stop the adhesive bonding the joint to the boat. The fillet was glued in, finished flush with the rest of the rail and sanded down for a perfect finish.

So with this good progress at Dragon Design, I turned to my tried and trusted friends. Firstly Tim of Honnor Marine Classic Boats has ordered a new centre plate and is supplying the bronze stem head and tiller head fittings, whilst Dick of R&J Sails fame is beavering way making sails and covers for Angie.

I will update the website each week on the rebuild progress of this Lugger, also bringing to your attention any new availability for Lugger and apartment packages this summer.

Less than 24 hours after discovering the leak and the damage to Clara, the repair has been completed and she sailed across to Frikes Bay. The daytime heat meant that the glassing had to wait until nearer to sunset, but the job was soon done.

So at 6.30am on Friday she was back on the water ready for the journey across to the island of Ithica and Frikes Bay. But first a stop at the bakery in Vliho bay for essential provisions!

The journey across to Ithica went smoothly with a little assistance from the wind. Stephen and Georgina, our transit crew, enjoyed a well earned swim break on the east side of Orkide island before sailing on to the destination of Frikes Bay. With Clara tied up at her mooring, ready for the Wilson family to begin their holiday, it was time for a late lunch at the Bay Taverna. Their Squid, Dorado fish and Tuna Salad is first rate, a fabulous way to end a day’s sailing!

To all DIY Drascombers, avoid using automotive body filler on your ‘Pride and Joy’, especially below the water line, it could be disastrous!

You will have ready my review of the rebuild of Clara by my cabinetry making company, Dragon Design in Wales. Despite a thorough check of the underside when we cleaned all the old anti-foul off back to the gel coat, we missed totally what now appears to be a cosmetic finish of a nasty cavity rip that had been packed with car body filler. It looked good but it let in vast quantities of water on Clara’s first launch.

We started just fine yesterday morning, up at 6 to miss the heat of the day and down at the slipway to pop Clara in the water. I moored her and resumed with launching Warrior Spirit, our Atlantic 21 ex RNLI B-Class Inshore Rescue boat. Two hours later I got back to the mooring to find the floor boards afloat in Clara. Did I put the bung in correctly, I asked myself? I bailed with a bucket, then with the hand bailer and finally a sponge, but I could see a constant stream coming from the back of the floor of the aft locker. No time for pics, it was a mad rush to get her to the beach at the slipway and get the camper hitched up with the trailer and retrieve her from the sea.

With so much water still in her when I got back to the boatyard it was quite obvious where the water was entering, because by now the process had reversed itself and the water was pouring out. With very little effort or force from my Stanley knife I exposed the offending material and the extent of the cavity. The water now gushed out from the boat and she was dry in a short time. This could have been a lot worse – that packet of body filler was just waiting to explode and fall out.

Looking at the long and wide cavity I still cannot see what sort of damage would have caused this 10 mm wide and 30 mm deep gash. The wooden keel band is not damaged and this is directly under the damaged area, so it looks like a de-lamination of the moulding. Has anyone got any thoughts on this or past experience of this happening?

So to work! I have only today, Friday 22 August to get this cleaned, prepped and glassed before Saturday when I will be delivering her to Frikes on the island of Ithica. The Wilson Family from Glasgow are picking her up on Sunday in the harbour for their 6th visit to Dragon Drascombe, this for 2 weeks of ‘Luggering about in the sun’.

It’s all cleaned and prepped (note the exposure of the gel coat) and I will be wrapping the chopped strand mat over this edge as well as plugging the cavity with thoroughly wetted mat. The wetting agent is a polyester resin, but with a temperature this morning of 35 and in the sun, I will wait until this evening to do this glassing. She has to be launched in the morning!