Out of the shed and into the water

After months of work the last paint went on in the middle of December. Even inside the shed it was getting a bit cold for painting by then and we had to warm the topside gloss by putting the tin in a bucket of hot water.

All done! Varnished, painted and anti-fouled. Rather a shame
to put her back in the nasty cold water.

On Sunday the 27th Capella I finished dressing the mast and there was no excuse left for staying in the shed. Ian Palmer and I took her outside and parked her near the top of the slipway.

Capella leaving the shed in the Slipmaster.

Another view of the Slipmaster with trusty Ford tractor.

The mast was put up the same day which is a bit fiddly being keel stepped. But with Ian and Thomaz's help it was done in an hour. However it took another weekend to get the rigging set up and the sails bent.

Capella sat in a cradle for a couple of weeks while
we sorted out the rig.

Setting up the standing rigging is a bit of a job. Including her bowsprit and bumkin Capella has ten pieces of standing rigging.

The bowsprit is done first, whisker shrouds and bobstay. The forestays are next. These both have reefing foils with no bottlescrews, only a threaded fork that screws into the swagged fitting on the end of the wire. These need to be set up nice and taught if the sails are to set properly. To achieve this the mast has to be pulled forward using the foe halyards and winches. Then the stays adjusted to length and attached to the stem and bowsprit end fittings. Then the halyards can be eased off and the rest of the rigging set up.

When finished the mast should be vertical and straight and the forestays taught. If the forestays are to tight or too slack then you have to repeat the process again. It took me a couple of goes and a lot of climbing up and down the ladder to get it right. Next time I take Capella mast down I will make a note of the number of threads showing on the forestay adjusters.

Rigging complete, engine tested and Capella is back in the Slipmaster on launch day.
Master and first mate looking forward to being afloat again.

Finally on the 11th of January we are ready to launch. It was a lovely bright windless, perfect conditions

Off we go, down the slipway and into the water. With Ian Palmer driving the tractor with his usual skill and care and Thomas and Hal helping we are soon afloat..

There was one hitch during the launch. We couldn't start the engine. When launching from the Slipmaster it is usual to start the engine as soon as the cooling water intake is submerged. We tried but nothing happened, the engine turned over but would not fire.

Ian ran down to the club pontoon and brought the work boat round and pulled us out of the Slipmaster. It was a bit touch and go as we were just about aground and the tide was ebbing fast.

Of course once we were tied up to the pontoon the engine started first time. I later worked out that the engine failed to start because the fuel tank was not full and Capella was sitting at an angle in the slings that the fuel therefore wasn't reaching the lift pump.

Early evening, at low slack water, I took Capella up to her berth and moored up. No sign of any leaks. I had not heard the bilge pump go all afternoon.