Editor's Ramblings
Diary Dates
1985 South Coast Iroquois Owners’ Rally
Thoughts on Yacht Design and Innovation
The Epoxy Job
Letters
Iroquois News from around and about the Association
Bits and Pieces
Chairwoman - Haidy Blake
Editor - S D Fisher
The Iroquois Owners’ Association is a non profit making organization open to all those around the world who own, would like to own, or are interested in Sail Craft built or Roderick Macalpine-Downie designed craft. The bulk of the membership is made up of owners of the Iroquois Catamaran Marks I, II and IIa, but we are also delighted to have Apache, Comanche, Cherokee and non-owner members.
The Association issues two or three newsletters per year, has a vast store of lore on the Iroquois, its virtues, faults, and modification, and published a sailing guide and is compiling a compendium of modifications, alterations, repairs and fault corrections. There is an AGM supper/slide show on the first Friday of the London Boat Show, and a South Coast Summer Rally every year. Annual sub for 1986 will be £5.00 sterling (or 8 dollars incl. conversion charges for seamail delivery). Associate membership of MOCRA is offered at £5.00.
All current members are urged to write to the editor about any work they have carried out on their boats, cruising they have done, racing, sailing, or being struck by lightning, whales or ice cream vans, etc., so that other members may also enjoy these experiences.
S D
The next AGM will be held on Friday, January 3rd 1986 in LONDON, at 7.30 p.m. (1930 hours). The cost of the supper and the venue will be announced in the Autumn.
The 1986 Summer Solent Rally will be held over July 26th and 27th 1986 at Ryde Sands, Isle of Wight. The exact location is about 150 yards to the WEST of the pier and level with its centre.
It is also proposed that a WEST COUNTRY RALLY be held at the end of August 1986 over the weekend of 23rd, 24th and 25th. The suggested location is Cawsand Bay if the wind is not in the South East. If the weather is foul, then we will anchor up inside the Western arm of the harbour just beyond Mashfords Yard.
The 1985 Iroquois Owners’ UK South Coast Rally broke new ground this year. It was the first multi-part multihull meet that we have held. Part was held in Sandwich, part in Brighton, part in Shoreham, part in Littlehampton, part in Poole and part in Chichester.
The weather, as the photo illustration shows, was not just terrible but vindictive, because Thursday 26th July was fine with a good Easterly which would have wafted all the boats from the Thames and the Brighton area into the Solent had it held. However, when the boats wanted to travel on Friday, the wind went round to the South-West and howled to such an extent that even those boats to the West of the Solent in Poole and Christchurch couldn’t run down wind to Chichester and DOODLESACK 2, on passage from the Solent to the East Coast, had to return to Brighton to await better conditions.
Shamed at last by kind and puzzled enquiries into the reasons for ANTARES OF ASHTON’S 132 land-based lifestyle, your Secretary felt constrained to make an appearance and so, cutting away the Virginia Creeper on the trellis work, disconnecting the main drain and water connections, returning the telephone and the Harvey’s Bitter cellarage, and retrieving the planning application for a split level saloon, sun loggia and granny flat extension and shelving future plans for a covered swimming pool, ANTARES was lifted back into the water where she floated, a tribute to the enduring skills of the Sail Craft workforce who always managed to build boats which keep the water from coming in at the bottom, if not from the top.
Andrews Boat Yard is of course a good long stretch from East Head Sands; maybe only a furlong less than a mile and a half, so this arduous trip was postponed until Saturday morning. ANTARES was even then reluctant to leave, the skipper having been overconfident about water depths, laggard over breakfast and essential toiletries and sanguine over the draft of his craft, which is not 1’3"!
The Nazca Lines were obviously made by mammoth space catamarans who remained moored to some gigantic and now vanished jetty, almost too long as the last great astral tide swept out from the Peruvian Alto Plano. Antares’ spade rudders ploughed through the mud, however, and we were free. The course to East Head Sands was fortunately a close reach (ANTARES sporting a defunct engine) and having successfully hit East Head beach not far from that well known, brown, Prout Catamaran CAVALIER, the crew waded ashore with bower and kedge and the voyage was concluded.
The wind whistled over the dunes carrying drifts of fine sand, the rain pelted down, or from time to time the sun shone, and it was clear that ANTARES was to be the only boat at the 1985 Iroquois Rally.
Shame and coals of fire may fall on the heads of the unbeliever, probably; for in two shakes of a dead lambs tail, there were five other intrepid Iroquois crews lined up with their boats alongside ANTARES. TREAD SOFTLY 138, with Brian, Sue & Victoria Keeler and Victoria’s friend Lisa, were holiday cruising in the Solent and Brian’s big diesels will push TREAD SOFTLY up the side of a house. KATIKI 116, with Rod and Haidy Blake, two small children and crew Peter, were starting a four week holiday cruise to Holland and had an unpleasant trip from Portsmouth to Chichester. SITTING BULL 114 (NOT SITTING BULL 287!) in the hands of her new owners, the Weatheralls, blew over from Bembridge under only a small jib. Mike and Belinda Skinner roared down from Newtown Creek in GANISA, 38, where they had been holiday cruising not only with Victoria, Richard & Miles, but also a large red setter called Harry. Mike & Belinda also met and brought along Pierre and Michelle Pelgrim in TESBECANSNIX, 65, (Bruzzellois for almost nothing at all") who were, with their toddling son, just about to return to Belgium after holiday cruising to the Solent.
Kerry Hayward and KARMA, Richard Collier with CHEROKEE, 77, were pinned in Poole Harbour, and in Littlehampton Doug & Janet Mackay in KAWA, 153, were the most Westerly of the Eastern boats. Doug has finished KAWA himself and it was a great shame that her splendid interior could not be admired by the Solent regulars.
Ken & Thelma Pack left THELKEN, 86, with her racy modified sterns, in Shoreham and came over to Brighton where they joined David & Yvonne Smith and CHIQUITA V, 100, and Di & Doug Gutteridge in OCEAN HABICAT, 277, for an impromptu barbecue on the Marina pontoon and a party under a tarpaulin spread across the CHIQUITA’s boom.
In Sandwich, Piet Roes and family in DRAKAR 2, 212, were wind-bound, having got that far from Holland. DRAKAR 2 is another remarkable boat and it is a great pity that members were not able to admire the work and modifications carried out on her.
In Chichester Harbour the tide came in, the rain came down and all six boats came together in a line for a barbecue on the stern platform of ANTARES. In some ways this was a great success, in others a total failure. The charcoal in the Japanese-made bar-be-queue style family grillette glowed up nicely after copious draughts of a special "Charcoal lighting fluid" which smelt very like paraffin, but obviously wasn’t because it cost three times as much. Sausages, burgers and chops were broiled (that is a cross between brazing on a grill and boiling in heated rain) and the filled bread rolls disappeared as fast as they were ready, so in this way it was a great success. Unfortunately, due no doubt to the rain, no really spectacular fires started and ANTARES showed almost no traces of singeing next morning, so one could not in all honesty claim that the evening was properly rounded off with a truly splendid emergency. However, there must be a special charm attached to persons with the name of Victoria and we, at the rally, were most fortunate to have two such persons on board and happily they were able to supply everyone with plenty of really gooey toasted marshmallows, so everyone was able to leave plenty of sticky finger marks on their boats.
Pierre Pelgrim produced flask after flask of a mysterious and innocent- looking liquid and proffered it generously to all the adults. It was clearly almost harmless as, after one had sat down, it was perfectly possible to remain quite nearly upright and converse in a highly intelligent manner on the mysteries of life, hyperspace, income tax, mooring and berthing charges and other such obtuse matters. Next morning only the Weatheralls stirred with the tide and took SITTING BULL back to her mooring inside Portsmouth Harbour, in spite of the even stronger wind and rain. No-one else seemed much inclined to wake up very early on Sunday and it was mid afternoon before any sort of move was made. ANTARES was then lashed alongside KATIKI and motored off the mooring through the clustered monos. Once clear, we both set our jibs and sailed the first Iroquois quadrimaran across Chichester Harbour reaching 6 knots and sailing away from a pretty red-sailed sloop whose owner dashed forward to boom out his foresail in a vain attempt to pass ahead of us. At the entrance to Bosham river we took in sail, motored up to a mooring, dropped off ANTARES and put KATIKI alongside at Bosham Quay; TESBECANSNIX and GANISA followed.
The Boshan Village Elders have wittily placed the main access road and town car park below high tide level, consequently the local pub is able to display a large collection of amusing photos of submerged cars and "parked" yachts. Locally, they call it the Bosham car wash, "f3500 per go"!
The wind still howled and the rain still poured and after the pubs closed we all went back to TESBECANSNIX for crepes prepared beautifully by Pierre, under careful guidance from Michelle. Next day was Monday, the wind howled harder, the rain thundered down from time to time as English Summer played its merry tune. Towards evening it seemed possible that we might get off the moorings and as Rod Blake had mended ANTARES’ outboard engine, a not too trusty (or do I mean rusty) Volvo Penta, we motored away to pick up a mooring off Hayling Island Sailing Club.
Awoken early on Tuesday morning by some dramatic event, I realized that the wind had dropped and that the weather had stabilized slightly and within an hour ANTARES was off Chichester Harbour beacon and, heading away easterly on a bearing for Selsey Bill. This was a mistake, but as a result I have found a new method of locating the Loo Channel buoys. First you repeat "Variation West Compass Best" many times so as to be sure to go from a true to a magnetic course correctly. You then apply it back to front and head off on the resulting course secure in the knowledge that it must be right. About one mile off Selsey Bill you realise that it must, after all, be wrong because a) if you continue you’ll go aground on Selsey Bill, and b) the Mixon Beacon is in view to the South. You then make a dramatic variation in course to starboard and in due course the little pointy headed green fellow shows up and you then turn to port and, avoiding the lobster pot marker buoys and fishing boats strewn across the channel, sail through and away towards Brighton. By 1 pm we were alongside in the Marina, KATIKI followed not long after, as did KAWA from Littlehampton, both intent on going west towards Holland or the East Anglian estuaries instead of opposing the vile South-westerlies.
It was, in retrospect, one of the cheeriest and most enjoyable rallies I have attended, Chichester does offer a variety of moorings and anchorages and a spirit of defiance in the face of adversity definitely helped arouse a spirit of good will which may have been aided by Pierre’s jungle juice, Mike Skinner’s red wine, and the two charming Victorias’ toasted marshmallow (which must have been alcoholic, for I can’t think why else we should all have got so merry and chatty). Fortunately Miles S. has now grown taller and though still swinging a mean right hook, tends to land it well above one’s war wound. All the youngsters swam, as did my own adult son, Daniel. His reason for doing this appeared to be firstly to see if it was really as cold as it looked (it was), secondly to see if youngsters all needed someone to jump on (they did).
For ANTARES, the four days were a spectacular success. Firstly we are back in the water and sailing, secondly Rod Blake used his magic ‘fluence on the outboard and got it fully into commission which, after 3 years stagnation, is an amazing achievement, it started every time and, ran beautifully all the time on both cylinders because he realized that the lower butterfly valve was jammed. However, I did notice that when he was still in Chichester and I was off Brighton, there was some reluctance to start, this only improved after KATIKI arrived in the Marina, so there may be some metaphysical aspect to outboard maintenance of which I’m not yet fully aware. He also explained how to start a Seagull every time; new petrol, don’t overmix the oil (or even go as far as 1:10), petrol tap ON, choke fully CLOSED, throttle wide OPEN. If it doesn’t start then it’s broken. Once running immediately OPEN choke fully and close throttle. Of course, as there are no gears, this does tend to lead to rocket assisted take-offs, but you can’t sink much by ramming it with a rubber dinghy. Thirdly, Daniel performed a major service to all Iroquois’ owners, HE SEALED A LEAK! and as such will be awarded a mastic medal. Every time I have visited the boat over the last three years whilst it’s been on blocks on the hard, the hulls have been full of water. This is fairly irritating. The water appeared to be entering in a major way through:
In the first instance it ran down the shroud frames into the bilges and the leak was eventually sealed by mastic applications around the openings in the top of the coach roof. The second was a problem, but in the end Daniel scraped and raked and chipped at the joint between the anchor-well base and the well sides and then forced the best part of half a tube of Selastic into the gap and over the joint. This stopped the water dead!
The stream which had previously run down the inside of the bridgedeck ceased; no more wet under-bench lockers, no more seized up cutlery drawers, no more pools in the saloon well, marvellous!
I have also discovered that the seals between the gas cylinder locker and the bucket locker leak, BOTH AT TOP AND BOTTOM, it is after all only a thin GRP flap joining ply to cabin sole, and was put in long after the original mould was cast. The working of the boat would tend to sheer the joint in time, I therefore intend to get Daniel to tackle that next.
Rod also pointed out that all standard Iroquois tables lift and twirl around the mast. This is true (to my amazement!) of ANTARES and therefore, I suspect, of many other boats. A few solid taps with a mallet at the base of the table support box where it rests on the cross beam housing should show if yours is fixed or loose.
It’s quite a help if you’re using the saloon double bunk arrangement and does mean that with a couple of spare legs, the whole table could fit into the big part of the cabin, giving head room for party meals, but no doubt you all knew this already.
Since returning to Brighton, I’ve turned a high pressure hose onto ANTARES with startling results. Hired from a local firm for a weekend, the pump came on 2 wheels and worked directly from the water pressure at the mains tap. All the dirt and dead varnish was stripped magically away from the teak trim, stainless steel shone bright and all my rope is shining virgin white. Unfortunately there was no improvement to the fenders, they’re still the same mucky, sticky, off-white-yellow.
Rod has filled in the well in his saloon with a ply panel, this appears to be a good idea and I intend to do the same to ANTARES. The advantages are a smooth floor which is easier to walk across and put stools on. It also makes the cabin appear considerably larger whilst leaving a channel for water to collect in and, given a suitable flap valve, to escape from. Rod has also planned his infill panel and supports so that it can be used as an emergency cover-board if the glass in one of the front windows should be broken. One of KATIKI’s did crack once, although it’s the first time I’ve ever heard of such a thing happening. By using the bearers as stiffeners, leaving half a dozen one inch diameter holes in the board and laying some strongbacks and line in the well, once can have a complete set handy. It’s a nice idea, costs almost nothing extra and as one’s going to do the job anyway one might as well take the opportunity, one never can tell what it might turn out to be just the thing for.
So endeth the 1985 South Coast Iroquois Owners’ rally. If all those who planned to come had not been kept away and the weather had been a bit kinder, we might well have had 16 Iroquois at the rally, a sight to behold indeed; so, see you next year on Ryde Sands, to the West of the pier, Isle of Wight, over the weekend of July 26th & 27th, 1986.
Stuart Fisher
Without degrees in Engineering, Aeronautics, Electronics, Naval Architecture etc., one can only draw on one’s personal experience to see the way forward. Mine was learning to sail by numbers in naval boats. Standard rigs on whalers, gigs etc. were for survival; long straight keels with the odd drop plate. Modifications for intership races abounded, but the use of drop plates was an art. As a child I’d watched the spritsail barges off Greenwich demonstrating this. I’d also wondered at the vast keels of the Lipton and Sopwith boats on Campers’ slips during long hot summers in Gosport. Drawing these beautiful beasts was a hobby and one pondered on ever higher masts and deeper, heavier keels whilst nothing changed the speed/water line length limitation.
Then came the war, seeing the real power of the sea and experiencing the devices used on it in long boring, weary spells of watch keeping. There were the sea-kindly Flower class corvettes and MFV’s - long thin fast destroyers, awkwardly trying to go slow in a blow, merchantmen that had to steer special courses or lay-to, all limited by the compromises forced on their designers in order to enable the ships to perform their role. One thing was obvious - try to avoid the irresistable force, don’t try an immovable wall technique, or heavy is not strong! This is where I started to think the ping-pong ball theory was desirable for yachts with buoyancy chambers transmitting the power of the rig into forward motion.
By this time I was wanting to buy a boat and considered the most efficient way of using the power that the Bermuda Rig developed was on a catamaran hull. Overturning was a big bogey, but if you had seen sea-water go down the funnel of a lease-lend destroyer, you knew there were other considerations. As multihulls go faster and boats get lighter, the rig brings more and more limitations and the hundreds of experiments at Weymouth testify to the number of alternatives available.
The J Class story tells us more sail is not the whole answer to the problem. Balancing the overturning movement from windward or lightening the load to leeward are essential. Kites and Inclinable Rigs are interesting, but I really do not see them becoming effective in the long term.
It seems possible that mechanical design techniques could be reaching a stage where an adjustable pitch fan on a semi-circular track driving a variable pitch propeller may be viable when going up-wind or reaching. Down wind is a more manageable problem. Drawing off power at the fan hub from the wind seems to distribute the loads and therefore the stresses more easily. Undoubtedly, at first, power plants are likely to be heavy and inefficient, but a great deal of research has been undertaken into wind pumps and electricity generators. One unit under development is theoretically capable of producing 44 bhp at 180 rpm from a 15’ blade fan. Materials for dampening vibration could make accommodation more tenable.
Stress factors do not increase at the same rate as the drive unit becomes more efficient. The power is taken from the wind between the apparent and true wind direction, considerably reducing leeway with the resulting reduction in wetted surfaces of fins, keels and rudders.
I still believe that the catamaran is the best configuration to transmit this power and stress because of windage, wetted surface, directional stability and position and access of propeller. Development is likely to change all that back to monohull. The ultra-conservative sailing fraternity is going to hate all this more than it does multihulls - but what a field day for the Peytons of this world. The challenges as I see them are:
Ken Pack
I knew when I bought KARMA last year that it had the beginnings of the "pox", but interesting multihulls are few and far between in this country and the price was right, so I took the plunge.
KARMA was hauled out at the end of the season and all traces of anti-fouling removed - using a scraper! Proprietary anti-fouling removers were found to be useless except for finishing off. The amount of osmosis discovered was very small and barely visible. More prevalent was wicking, while still at an early stage covered 20% of the underwater area. With the assurance of the paint company reps at the Southampton Boat Show that small amounts of moisture would dry out through the gelcoat with time, and the visible osmotic blisters pricked, the boat was left in the open for the winter.
Six months later, with the boat now covered and using an orbital sander with the coarsest paper available, the whole u/w area and 4" above the waterline was taken back to fresh gelcoat - which was surprisingly thin in places. All suspicious areas were taken back to the laminate using a grinding disc. A number of moulding voids were discovered in the gelcoat and, more seriously, occasional larger ones in the lay-up. Areas were also found where the glass had not been properly wetted out. The gelcoat over many areas of wicking, now devoid of water, no longer stood proud and were difficult to find - I hoped that any areas I missed would not matter too much with the epoxy on top. No traces of moisture - using the cellophane test - were found anywhere.
Also added at this point were the recommended hull reinforcements at the front and back of the centreboard cases. I found a deep crack between the front of one case and the hull - this was first ground out and filled with chopped strands. The hull was now faired with epoxy filler and any bare laminate given a single coat of epoxy. The working time to this stage, including removing the antifouling, was about fourteen days, and mostly fairly unpleasant!
Eventually a dry day was promised and using International Gel Shield, a sort of runny Araldite, I set to.
Roller in one hand and brush in the other, 350 ml was as much as I could use at a mixing and the recommended thickness about as thin as I could easily brush it out to. This first coat, being clear, it was not always easy to judge and the odd patches where it went on too thickly I later paid for when the sun came out and they ran! By then the epoxy had cured too far to be brushed out again and they had to be left. Each hull took an hour to cover. The second coat four hours later, being pigmented was a lot easier and more satisfying to apply.
In spite of following International’ s instructions for the tie coat of Hard Racing antifouling it started to wrinkle, so a halt was almost thankfully called until the next day, although this meant sanding to provide a key. After that, two coats of copolymer, off with the tape and ... wow! - it looked good!
Thoughts:
Kerry Hayward, KARMA 208
Dear Stuart,
What a shame about the weather last weekend for the Iroquois rally. Let's hope for next year. As promised, here is the account of my epoxy effort on KARMA. You will see from the accompanying advertisement for the tiller fittings that I have now decided to retain the wheel steering. There were several reasons for this, but mainly, after trials it became apparent that single handing was a lot easier with a wheel - a central position within reach of everything, including good handholds when it gets bouncy.
Kerry Hayward, KARMA 208
Dear Mr. Fisher,
I understand you are secretary of the Iroquois & Comanche Owners’ Association and hence might be able to let your members know that I am hoping to sell my Comanche OOPSY DAISY (formerly LOUIS) C.4.
The boat is white with a red stripe and is well equipped for cruising in comfort, with heater, autohelm, VHF and a most useful clear plastic fixed deckhouse arrangement - sounds dreadful but is actually well worth its minor disadvantages.
I have fitted roller headsail reefing and slab main reefing and have a spinnaker squeezer for the red and white spinny.
She was built in 1979 and is number 4. She performs well and we were first multihull to finish in the Scottish Island Peaks race (there were only 2 and the other retired), but out of 19 tough starters, only 9 finished and on sailing time alone we would have been second despite the first day being all rowing and the second beating to windward in a 6-7 round the Mull of Kintire.
I am hoping to close a sale quickly as I have another boat in mind and therefore I am asking £25,000. Hope you can help.
Yours sincerely,
Curly Mills.
Dear Stuart,
We have just returned from an unsuccessful attempt to join you at Chichester. Due to adverse weather we reached Sandwich, our first British port of call, as late as July 29th.
During winter and spring we have been very busy in getting rid of recurring leaks and not without success, I am glad to add. During rough crossings my seasick-proof son Peter has been occupying himself with observing in all sorts of odd corners where the water was coming through. One of the major sources turned out to be the deck to hull attachment. This is not one of the most ingenious and thorough aspects of our ships. It consists of one or two layers of roving enclosing a tube-like cavity all around the hulls; I have tried to make a sketch. This is particularly unhappy solution to a common problem in boat building as the two parts are not always fitting very well and not glued together either at some spots. Only the sealer under the. rubbing strake actually prevents rain and spray from entering the tube-like cavity. Although the sealer was of superb quality, it was not always used in sufficient quantity and is actually more suited for sealing two non-porous materials like the window-frames in the cabin, where it lasts much better. Under the rubbing strake we found the sealer deteriorating in places after ten years. Once the water is in the tube-like cavity along the hulls it is bound to find, and does find, many spots to seep through in the front lockers as well as the living area. We have remedied this flaw as follows. After taking off the gunwale all round, 5/32" holes were drilled from the outside into the projecting rim where hull and deck meet every ½’ . Then tape was stuck inside in those spots where water was known to come through in the inside. Finally I got some syringes from my GP and used these to inject epoxy resin until it flowed out of the next hole (starting from the bows) or seeping through the cleft between hull and deck. We actually found some places inside where substantial amounts of epoxy had come through porous spots in the roving. I am sure that our rather meticulous method has not stopped each and every opening from the inside to the outside, but the point is that the tubelike cavity has at least been blocked every so often and that water cannot collect and pass along the full length of the boat from the bows to the unavoidable porous places. In any case we have finally put the rubbing strake back on again and used two layers of sealer ribbon tightening the bolts until the sealer squeezed out from top and bottom. It was quite a major operation, but I feel the result was worth the effort.
It all started off with the rubbing strake in front of the anchor locker. When jumping on the trampoline one could notice all sorts of undesirable movement. After taking off the rubbing strake it was clear that here was a major source of trouble. The water collected in the cavity in front of the locker and seeped through miniscule holes to the lockers under the cabin seats. After taking off the strip holding the baby stay, water was flowing out of the bolt holes for fifteen minutes. A trite solution here is actually quite simply to drill a hole at the middle of the bottom of the cavity from the inside of the anchor locker. This prevents water from collecting in the cavity and will usually suffice. As I was anxious to strengthen the attachment of the trampoline I felt it desirable to have a look inside the cavity. I have cut out two pieces of l’0" by 1’3" and taken off the old roving which had come loose. Then two layers of glass ribbon 3" wide have been put in using epoxy.
Other sources of leakages are the windows. Although I feel that their importance in this respect has often been exaggerated by us, there obviously has to be something done about them as well. After having renewed the worn rubber between the glass and the frames after taking the latter out, I now feel that this was quite unnecessary as it did not contribute towards the ultimate goal of sealing. We now have stopped these leaks by taking as much rubber and dirt away from the outside with a sharp knife, cleaning the cleft with methyl-chloride and sealing with a one component thiocol sealant (a sulphur compound). We have actually done this several times before it was fully effective. It appears that the cleaning is actually best effectuated by taking out the new sealant that has come loose. This comes out in long strings and takes the remaining dirt with it. The final layer of sealant should be applied quite liberally, taking away some (1/8" say) of the open glass area. This allows for sufficient grip and fills the rim so that no water has a chance to collect. Naturally, one is inclined to do this all round, but I am sure that the lower rims and perhaps the upper part of the inner bars are the most important.
We found that after resealing the bedding with the aforementioned one component thiocol sealant they did not present any more problems. We did however spend a lot of time taking away the remains of silicon rubber beforehand. My sealant supplier assures me that the thiocol can take up to 300% stretch. Also, silicon rubber can often be effective, but it requires a different primer for every type of surface and does not stretch quite as much.
During my one day visit to London on a rainy day, being moored in Chatham, I found to my great surprise at the London Yacht Centre, Artillery Lane, a full set of service parts for the toilet. I asked for them as an afterthought, being quite sure not ever to find any after having tried at several places already. I am not sure whether all Iroquois have been fitted with a "Compact" by Rariton Engineering, Millville N J, but perhaps this titbit is of some use to someone.
Several improvements made this year include a new 100% jib (Solent Jib), putting the halyard of the mainsail inside the mast and repainting deck and hulls. In order to be able to adjust the jib sheets appropriately I have installed tracks on the deck. As the halyards each have two pulleys in the mast top, I have now installed an extra halyard for the jib as well. I dare not, as yet, take off the stainless steel halyard and winch for the jib, as
I first want to have some experience with nylon halyards. As anyone will know, one can easily sail an Iroquois without a main sail, but it is quite impossible to sail her without a jib. In the long run it would be nice to replace the stainless steel halyard by one for the jib and a topping lift, having all inside the mast. Incidentally, I have led both halyards to the starboard sheet winch. After some trials I found this quite satisfactory using standard stoppers fixed to the deck. Tightening the halyards when the starboard sheet is in use is sometimes a bit awkward though.
I am afraid I have to end my letter here and just hope that we may meet sometime somewhere.
Good sailing,
Piet B M Roes, DRAKAR II, #212
Dear Stuart,
As you know, I now have a Mark 2 and a bit. Thanks for your help. I set out to make the boat suit my revised needs rather than change the boat I like and know so well.
You never finish with a boat do you? but it’s been a most interesting winter and undoubtedly some of my aims have been achieved, she will certainly carry a dinghy aft now without upsetting the balance.
I am taking the testing very carefully, the performance augers well, rudders and steering seem good and should enable the electronic steering to work well. Access aboard is much easier. Not altering the Mark 2 until I was satisfied formed a problem, hobby horsing and detail appearance is something else.
Like you, having spent sometime thinking radically about this. Nothing will replace the professionally designed Mark 3. The Iroquois concept of a 30’ 0" lightweight racer/cruiser could now be poised for a new boat.
In my view the wide beam long slim hulls blown out above water line for accommodation could produce a detuned Tornado. A clear bridge deck for unfettered mast location, high aspect sail plan and close hauled sheeting, reduced windage and working area when sailing. Well designed adaptable fabric in harbour bridge deck accommodation, concentrating on 4 good berths at sea and six in harbour.
As it would inevitably have to be a production boat, it has to be all things to all people. Such a brief is difficult to put into a stylised trendy shape and I am afraid it is still all about that. I don’t envy any designer such a problem.
Yours sincerely,
Ken Pack, THELKEN, #86
Ken Pack has moulded up the modified sterns illustrated on the back of the Winter 1984 Association Newsletter. He has carefully removed and stored his standard rudders and gear and bolted on the new sterns and spade rudders outside the existing hulls. As members will note from his letter, he is delighted with the results both to the eye and the water. THELKEN steers well and the extra buoyancy will allow the boat to carry a dinghy on davits at the stern without burying the afterend deep. In the meantime, the boat is not permanently altered and could be returned to original quickly. For more information see Winter ‘84 newsletter, Ken’s letter in this edition and for further information contact Ken direct (he may even be able to provide mould parts and advice for would-be "sterners" - Ed
Dear Sir,
I’m expecting to build your Catamaran Iroquois (the 9,16m) - I’m involved in a plant building ships close to Toulouse, so I would appreciate your collaboration in order to send me studies, plans and pictures about Iroquois Model - could that be possible?
If yes, I’m waiting for your answer, which should make my works
easier. Believe that I’m sincerely yours.
I Combettes
Dear Ms Combettes,
Thank you for your letter. I am delighted to hear that you are thinking of building Iroquois Catamarans. However, I am only the secretary of the Iroquois Owners’ Association and although we have many user comments and modifications on file, we are not the building authority. Mr. Reg White has now bought the original moulds back and is offering to build Iroquois Catamarans again; he has the best knowledge of the boat in this country. His address is: Address withheld from website - Webmaster. However, the designer of the boat is Roderick Macalpine-Downie, whose address is Address withheld from website - Webmaster. He may still have some of the original drawings and may, in addition, be willing to draw detail plans for your work, should you so require.
I enclose back numbers of our Iroquois Association newsletter. You will see that as secretary/editor, I have been instructed to prepare a cumulative edition of the modifications and alterations made to Iroquois by their owners and recorded in our newsletters of the last 20 years, and when I have done this I will write and let you know. Finally, the main problems with Iroquois are:
There are other minor items, as you will see from our newsletters; the other fault is that they should really be 750mm wider. I look forward to hearing of your further progress.
Yours sincerely,
S D Fisher
Dear Mr. Fisher,
IROQUOIS OWNERS’ ASSOCIATION AGM
Further to your request to hire the Cruising Association premises in January 1986 for the above event, I regret that following a recent Council meeting, it has been decided to discontinue the policy of hiring Ivory House, both to other maritime organisations and to individual members.
This is mainly because the growth of the Cruising Association is resulting in an increase in activities and services offered and the premises are needed by both staff, committees and members on a greater scale than previously.
I hope that since the date of the AGM is well into the future you will not encounter too much difficulty in finding an alternative venue.
Yours sincerely,
Lindsay Nunn, Sec., Cruising Association
Mr. Fisher,
Mr. Paul Cheney, a member of the Iroquois Owners’ Association, knowing of my interest in the Iroquois and of my desire to purchase one, has given me your name and I would like to join the Association in the hope that it could help in my search for an Iroquois and help in the transport to Florida from wherever the boat could be found.
Please advise of dues and membership fees so that I can forward it to you.
Thanks,
Edward J Kelly
I enclose a brief note we’ve received from Marc Sheridan (TZATZKE, 224) which I print so that you can all become as green with envy as I was, fair shares all around I say! S D
Dear Stuart,
We have had TZATZKE, no. 224, in the Abacos in the Bahamas since Feb. The sailing, diving and fishing have been great. We are taking a week to cruise back to Florida. Sincerely, Marc.
We have had several helpful mentions in various publications; Yachts & Yachting, Multihull International, Yachting World, Multihulls, and Yachting Monthly in particular have been kind enough to bring the Association and iits aims to a wider public.
There have been a steady trickle of new members since the last Newsletter and sadly two or three resignations as members have sold their boats. George and Heidi Bone have sold MELODY OF WIGHT, 14, to Richard Stilgoe, and she will be moving to the West Country. George and Heidi have bought a Prout Quest 33, we all wish them well of their new purchase and look forward to seeing her at the next Iroquois Solent Rally. Rory Fogerty has sold TWFF, 161, to Mr Mohlenkamp in West Germany, and F H fentener Van Vlissingen has sold his Apache TWEEBEEN Al5, to a Dutch owner, Mr W Heyne. After 35,000 miles in Sail Craft boats he has now bought.a Spronk designed cat which will also be called TWEEBEEN. All Sail Craft owners welcome on board!
Ron Newton is putting SEA VENTURE, 275, on the market as he wants a bigger and more competitive boat to race.
Barry Galvin has joined us with his Apache, TWEE GEBROEDERS (ex LA GOULUE) which he has owned for a number of years. Anthony Ryle has bought SHEBEEN and joined us and will be moving her from Falmouth up to Langstone in due course. Anthony is keen to receive advice on the best method of using Autohelms on Iroquois.
Lt. Col. S P Low has bought SPIRIT OF THE SUM, 202, and taken her down to the West Country, some members may remember she lay in Langstone Harbour for some time.
Jean-Pierre Gestin has bought SITTING BULL, Ir. 287, and is keeping her in Brittany about 7 km from Concarneau (NOTE this is not the Weatherall’s SITTING BULL!), and D Hillman of Leigh-on-Sea has just joined, no other details yet. Dear Al Krech of Florida writes his usual cheery, generous note and the members over this side of the pond extend best wishes and friendly greetings to all our fellow members over there in America and Canada.
As secretary I get a constant trickle of enquiries for Iroquois catamarans from prospective purchasers. There are very few available on the open market, any good ones seem to go to new owners without ever becoming generally available, so if you are thinking of selling, make sure that you take the market conditions fully into account first.
Gunnar Enberg, GUN-GUN, 188, came over for a couple of weeks holiday in England and called in with his family. Luckily, bearing in mind the vile weather, they left GUN-GUN behind.
Darch Oborne, AIRBOURNE, 92, with his ultra high mast, won the 1985 Spring series of the Western Multihull Association on the West Coast of Canada. The series of eight Wednesday evening races were run by the International Yacht Club and after the series Darch and Catherine set off on July 14th for three weeks cruising in Barklay Sound and Hot Springs Cove.
In England there were over 1250 entrants in the Island Sailing Club’s 65 mile long Round the Island Race. This was sailed in the strong South Westerlies prevalent this summer and the conditions prevented a number of Multihull yachts from reaching the Needles, or even the start, and as the Multihulls start at about 5.30 am whilst they benefit from the West going ebb, they tend to suffer from wind over tide chop between Beaulieu and the Needles.
The new trimaran APRICOT, designed by Nigel Irons and sailed by Tony Bullimore and NigelIrons, broke the all-time, all-comers record for the race with a sailed time of 4 hours 40 minutes 35 secs. In the process she beat ROUGE ETOILE, ex COLT CARS, by only 21 minutes; ROUGE ETOILE was later capsized after taking part in the Round Britain Race successfully. She was on passage with a delivery crew and over the rally weekend was screaming up Channel under full spinnaker when she tripped up off Swanage and went head over heels.
The disappointment of these Multihull performances in the Round the Island Race is that because multis start first they’re never seen by the rest of the fleet.
Richard Collier won the Iroquois Sovereign with CHEROKEE in an elapsed time of 8 hrs 42 mins, and a corrected time of 8 hours 3 mins. This put CHEROKEE 1 hr and 10 mins elapsed or 41 mins correct, time ahead ofMOGGIE D’OR, who must now have taken part in more RIR’s than any other known Iroquois, Well Done Both.
S D
Ken Pack has been much stirred by a photo he recently came across of the Iroquois catamaran which has been converted to wind propeller drive, a poor photostat of which is shown alongside. Ken and your editor, wotshisname, are pursuing this subject and hope to publish more information in future newsletters.
We believe that the boat was once called JAN or THANKS TOO. If any member knows anything of this project or the name and address of the current owner, please let us know.
S D
The 1985 long distance rally pennant goes to Pierre & Michell Pelgrim whose boat, TESBECANSNIX, 65, is based in Belgium. This will be sent to them by post as they will not be able to attend the AGM in London. In future, the long distance pennant will be awarded at a ceremony (of sorts!) at the actual rally. Had the weather been better, it’s possible that the winning distance would have been even greater. Next year there will be an overall distance pennant and a UK pennant available. The 1985 Broken Paddle trophy for the shortest distance goes to ANTARES, 132, which took 3 years to travel 1.5 miles and only managed that because the rally was moved to the boat.
The AGM will be held on Friday, January 3rd. This is the usual first Friday of the Boat Show which this year runs from January 1st to 12th. The question is WHERE? The Cruising Association have written to say that they can no longer spare the space due to pressure of their own events (see letter). This decision is the culmination of an increasingly hostile atmosphere since the new secretary took over. At first we were asked to pay £5.00 extra for cleaning and clearing, then we were required to pay on booking (and to book 9 months in advance!), then in April this year we were informed that there would be a £100 deposit required as well as payment in advance, and now finally it has been decided not to hire the premises out to other maritime organizations or individual members. So, there we all are, or rather aren’t. It was nice while it lasted, BUT has any member a suggestion? Earls Court is just not acceptable due to cost and its dim lavatorial ambience. I look to you all for guidance but would suggest that it should be LONDON; should be somewhere near parking facilities and somewhere not too remote.
S D
This will be held over the weekend of July 26th & 27th, and will be on Ryde Sands about 150 metres to the West of the pier and about half way down its length. This dries out nicely, is firm, flat, well sheltered from Westerlies to Easterlies and is in instant walking distance of Ryde town and its delights. See you all there in ‘86. (N.B. plenty of room). S.D.
Did you cruise, sail, work or alter your boat in 1985? If you have slides, film, photos, drawings, pieces of equipment and could show them and talk about them to friends at the next AGM, please do contact HAIDY BLAKE (our Chairwoman).
Contact details for the following have been withheld from website - Webmaster
IROQUOIS FOR SALE — SEA VENTURE Mk II, no. 275, built 1977. 15 hp Yamaha; VHF, echo sounder. Colnbrook roller reefing, Storm Jib, Genoa, Main. Bower & Kedge. Based Woodbridge, Essex. Ron Newton. £14,000.
FOR SALE - Two sets of Iroquois Tiller Fittings in Bronze (as required for one boat!) £25. One x 2.8 and one x 1.4 litre can INTERNATIONAL GELSHIELD, surplus to needs. £35 lot. (30% off). Iroquois Spinnaker, size uncertain, good condition. £100. Kerry Hayward
COMANCHE FOR SALE - no.4. OOPSY DAISY (ex LOUIS), in splendid condition with many accessories and good specification. Contact: Curly Mills
IROQUOIS WANTED, WHOLE or PART SHARE. Stewart Owen of Sussex, wants to buy either a part share in a Mark II or a reasonably priced Mark I; he has a foreshore berth in Chichester Harbour available.
