And the Beat Goes On

Since the last post, so long ago, there has been little to report because every Saturday we (Mike, Tom and I) spend sanding, scraping, applying epoxy, sanding again, applying more epoxy and so on. Cherie comes sometimes. Mike has taken some interior pieces home to work on and Cherie, (His wife now. She was a girlfriend way back when we started this project) is learning to make cushions.

Sundays Tom and I usually put in an additional  half day or so. When you consider 6 or 7 full days a month and none in the winter during ski season, we really have not invested that much time over the last 2 years, but it sure feels like a lifetime. We are all weary, and are prone toward giving in to the temptation to cut corners and make it "good enough", but we are trying to stay as true to the vision as we can and make it as good as we can, considering our newbie skill level. 

Do I wish that we had, back at the beginning, decided to bite the bullet and paid the big bucks to have it professionally done, and in 2 weeks? You betcha. But oh well, lesson learned and we are almost ready to paint.

I am happy about preserving her history.

Finally - Progress

THIS POST WAS WRITTEN IN 2010 BUT NEVER PUBLISHED - JULY I THINK.

I have posted no entries in a long time because for a long time progress was mostly stalled. Mike made a few changes to the exterior, but that progress has been slow due to his limited time.
We paid to have the boat dry docked before the winter so we could begin work in earnest, but she isn't an easy boat to move. Her draft is deeper than the marina where we wanted her dry-docked, so they needed to wait, not only for high tide, but a high storm tide to gain all the depth advantage possible. Long story short, she didn't make it into dry dock until Spring.
So in the Spring we began. First we had her inspected to be sure it would be worth all the work and money it would take to restore her. Then we had a welder look at some of her metal parts that were in question. And finally, we started the slow process of bringing her back to her former glory. Some recent owner had used cork mats glued to the entire top surface. These would have to come off in order to paint. However they were applied was very effective. Removal has been inch by inch using a dremel multi-tool and a heat gun - very slow, very hot, very tedious work. but progress is being made slowly but surely. At this point cork removal is 2/3 finished. After that the entire top will need to be sanded. And the bottom, oh man is that going to be a long, hard task.

Mercury CC memory

In the early 80's Tom and I were living on Long Island and we joined a sailing club. We took sailing lessons. A little Mercury CC was what we learned on.

Here is a link to a picture of a Mercury CC.

Cute, right?

The Unibras Brython is reborn

Recently we found the owner of the Unibras Brython. She has been fully restored and is renamed Moonlight Flit. A lovely name to be sure, but sad to see her history obsured.

Here is the webpage with seveal great pictures.


This information was posted in order to sell her. She has since been sold. Here is what the seller said about the boat.

The Flit was originally built for single-handed trans Atlantic racing in 1976 and was converted to cruising in 1984. Incredibly strong and fast; this boat has made two single handed circumnavigation by all five southern capes. One of these was a nonstop solo circumnavigation and the other was made from east to west around Cape Horn. The boat has a rich history and is one of the most well proven sailing yachts available on the market today. All systems have been upgraded as of 2002. Recently readied for a trip to southern Chile; the Flit is in excellent ocean ready condition.

Fromstock Filius - By the Numbers

OK, for those who keep asking about the specs, here they are:

The Fromstock Filius is a 1976 Custom 40. As I mentioned in a previous post, there were 2 sister boats built to these specs, the Fromstock Filius and Unibras Brython.

Designer: Black & McAndrews UK Built: Milford Haven Yard UK
Length over all - 40'
Length at waterline 30.2'
Length on deck - 37'
Beam 10.1'
Draft 6.2'
DISP: 8.3T

Interior progress

Mike decided the best way to make templates for refinishing the cabin was to take sheets of typing paper and tape them together as he went. It sounds awkward, but large pieces would have been problematic in the close quarters. There is no dancin' room in this boat. It worked and he has cut the first 2 pieces of the ceiling cover for the fore berth area. They look great.

We need to find someone to pull this thing out of the water to get the real work done. Still searching for the right person. Next step is estimates and budget talks with me, Tom and Mike.

On a trip to Brussels

While on a recent trip to Brussels I met the father of my daughter's friend, Myriam. His name was also Tom. And Tom is REALLY an avid sailor. As I understand it, he works construction during the warm weather up north and then counts on being laid off in the winter so he can head south to Florida and sail for the season. How cool is that? I am sure he was frustrated by my lack of sailing knowledge(I was unable to answer most of his questions), but it was a delight to hear his enthusiasm about sailing. He sparkled when he talked about it. I am hoping sometime he can meet “my” Tom and that maybe I have learned enough by then to keep up.