Old Quarter Tonners -Magic Bus

Discussion in 'Sailboats' started by steveo-nz, Oct 5, 2008.

  1. steveo-nz
    Joined: Oct 2008
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    steveo-nz Junior Member

    Back To The Future!

    Here are some photos from Blackfuns first (re)sail last Friday night.
    The name will go on this week and there are still a few things to finish off.









    Photo credit: Tony Wells
     

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  2. Paul B

    Paul B Previous Member

    Looks tidy.

    Is the rudder post in the original position? Looks pretty far forward.

    What rig size are you running? The non-overlap rig looks a lot nicer than the old genoa-style rig.
     
  3. RCundiff
    Joined: Jun 2009
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    RCundiff Junior Member

    SteveO, What a gorgeous, restored 1/4 tonner ... Do you have some 1/4 tonners to sail against ? Tell us more about the design and modifications to the boat please.
    Do you know any of my friends down there ? Rob Fry, Chris Barker, Ian Mitchell, Dave Pester or dispalced American, Brian Kent ?
    Regards from Long Beach, CA, USA. Roy Cundiff
     
  4. booster
    Joined: Apr 2009
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    booster Senior Member

    Black Fun

    Looks nice!
    Is it a Davo (Laurie Davidson) design? I agree about the rudder post that seems to more forward than usual. Must be a good feeling that first re-sail.
    Regards,
    Booster
     
  5. Toles
    Joined: Aug 2010
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    Location: Auckland NZ

    Toles Junior Member

    Updates to Smokey Joe

    Must have been similar time frames as Twitchy...SJ has just gone back in the water..With a new (old) rudder.

    Black Funs OLD rudder has updated Smokey Joe considerably- old skeg/busstle removed and just a blade now. Some tuning I think still needed with this after the initial sail- a bit of rake in the rig may help, but probably prefer to add some more balance to the front of the rudder.

    Added a small bulb to the bottom of the old keel, and have cut equiv weight from the top.

    Hopefully enough for us to keep up with the newly pimped out black fun!

    Any ETA for bringing the boat up to Auckland?
     

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  6. Toles
    Joined: Aug 2010
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    Toles Junior Member

    Black fun...

    Any pics of under the water line appendages at all twitchy?
     
  7. quartermaster
    Joined: May 2009
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    quartermaster Junior Member

    Toles and Steveo-nz,
    You guys must be congratulated! Everyone thought I was nuts for revamping "FUN", (Except of course the marine suppliers and Chandleries). Now that she's done and we are out on the race course kicking some proverbial ***, they are not talking so loud. It takes guts and vision to stick it out and have faith in these old boats. They are really fun to sail and quite demanding, I always say," They reward you for good sailing, and punish you for bad!" My crew said at the start of our last race, That I was the center of attention during the dial up. I responded,"Not ME, my friend, it's the boat." Once a Thoroughbred always a Thoroughbred.
     
  8. sean9c
    Joined: Jan 2011
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    sean9c Senior Member

    I just found this thread from a link at SA. It sure brings back memories. I helped build and sailed on a completely forgettable quarter tonner and we were lucky enough to get it to the QTC in '76 which turned out to be a complete deer in the headlights moment for us.
    I guess what I remember most was how advanced the NZ boats MB and Fun seemed to what we were doing, they were on another level.
    Also brought an introduction to Laurie Davidson and his sweet designs.
    After all these years the one boat that I remember the most and would sure be curious to know more about was a little French boat, I'm sure I'll hack up the name but I think it was Aroak Atao. It had a drop or swing keel and a 3 wire dinghy style rig. It wasn't to quick uphill but was sure fast downhill. I'm not sure how it ended up doing in the event but I remember it as one of the most interesting boats there.
    I also ended up sailing on one of the later Whiting 1/4 tonners that ended up in CA (the one that sank) but by the time I was on it the board had been replaced by a keel and the cool NZ rig with an E22 rig.
    If anyone can provide info on the little French boat I'd sure be interested to know.
    Thanks
     
  9. MF too
    Joined: May 2010
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    MF too New Member

    Araok Atao it was ! Interesting cold-moulded boat, designed by Gilles Ollier of Orange II and Club Med fame, masterminded by Jean-Marie Danielou (then Z Spars ) + Kelt-Marine.
    Never saw it back in France after the worlds, I had thought then she had been sold in the US.
    Raced against her in spring of '76 she was good and won I think, but not ahead enough from the earlier years designs given the caliber of those on board.
    An early inspiration from centreboard dinghies, but not IOR tweaked enough, shallow and wide but fair lines.
     
  10. sean9c
    Joined: Jan 2011
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    sean9c Senior Member

    Thanks a lot MF, it brings back fond memories.
    I finally waded through the whole thread. Someone mentioned that MB had a daggerboard, that's not correct, at least in the QTC that it won the boat had a keel. I even remember talking to Paul and Murray as they were sanding on it.
    A little info about after the '76 QTC.
    I'm from socal. After the QTC a guy in LA contracted with Whiting to be the distributor for his boats in the US. I don't remember who the guy was, I do remember that he ran logistics for one of the airlines at LAX, sailed out of MDR and wasn't very experienced.
    This guy ordered 2 QT's from Whiting, the boats were to be shipped less hardware and rigging. The first boat arrives, it is a daggerboard boat, significantly different hull shape than MB way more distortion. I remember seeing the boat and being stunned, it was like they took a bow, middle and stern from 3 different boats , with the middle being a beach ball, and stuck them together. I'd seen MB and didn't think it's shape was particularly distorted, this new boat was way different. So the boat shows up needing to be finished, the owner contracts with Sails by Watts for sails and for a friend of mine who was working there to finish the boat and sail it. A couple of other friends get involved, it's a big thrash to get the boat done, owner is never around to make decisions or pay bills so my friends are going out of pocket for all the hardware, not to mention labor.. Boat gets done and we do a little testing against our boat, the Whiting boat is extremely tender and isn't showing any speed. Run out of time and everyone has to go to San Diego for the NA's ('77, I think). In the mean time Stan Teel, another friend, is building the Peterson designed Blitz that Ulman will sail and the Goose guys from SD are getting the Nelson designed Blivit.
    At the NA's Blivit, Blitz and ourselves are about the same speed. I think Blivit ends up winning we were second and Blitz third but it was all close. The Whiting boat was really off the pace and I don't think even finished the regatta. The owner basically gives up on the whole program, refused to reimburse my friends even for their out of pocket costs for the hardware. I never saw the boat or heard about the owner again.
    The second boat the guy orders arrives from NZ, he doesn't even claim it at customs so it languishes there or however it works until it goes up for auction along with all the other unclaimed junk. Another friend from San Pedro ends up buying it from auction, he replaces the board with a Peterson looking keel, fairs out the worst of the hollows, there was no rig so he found an old E22 rig. This became a PHRF boat named Fat Bottom Girl, I sailed on it a little and I think we won a PHRF champs at some point. The boat ended up sinking a while later.
    A lot has been said about how MB and Fun changed the game. That is true but they were also the right boats for the '76 QTC where it was pretty breezy, if it was a lighter wind regatta I think the results would have been different. Light air I don't think they would have kept up with Business Machine, Fred Again and those sort of boats
    Thanks for giving me a reason to think about old times again, it was fun.
     
  11. Paul B

    Paul B Previous Member

    The MDR daggerboard Whiting was Afternoon Delight, owned by Zeke Duge in the early '80s. Harry O, the current owner of Blitz tells me AD was fitted with a Martin 242 keel at some point, then went to FLA where it was destroyed in one of the hurricanes a few years ago.


    In the '77 NAs Fun won (Davidson daggerboard). Blitz was second (Peterson daggerboard). Dave Ullman tells me Blitz was much faster than everyone, especially upwind. They had a 1-1-2-2- before having a navigation error while leading the final race and losing on points to Fun. Blivet (Nelson daggerboard) was third, Duck Soup (Rogers) was fourth, Dynamite Chick (Holland) was fifth.

    Blivet came back to beat Fun in the '78 NAs. Third that year was the Creekmore 22 daggerboard MORC boat. Blitz wasn't there.


    Lots of rumours in SoCal about the sinking of FBG. Do you have any info about this?
     
  12. sean9c
    Joined: Jan 2011
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    sean9c Senior Member

    Afternoon Delight, that's right that was the name. Always thought that name was bad and FBG was worse. I was embarrassed to admit I sailed on FBG I disliked the name so much.
    I've known Don Martin since '76 when he was on Fred Again, surprised he never mentioned that he made a keel for AD.
    Ya, totally got me on the NA's. I think I was there, I think it was in SD, don't remember Fun being there, think I remember beating Blitz and Ullman being very unhappy. But I guess I'm wrong.Must be old age setting in.
    Ya, FBG sank, lots of rumors, the owner was a friend and I thought it was best not to ask. It was sort of convenient, the owner couldn't afford to keep it and couldn't find anyone to buy it. I remember it made for some uncomfortable times around the campfire, everyone wanting to know, but maybe not and afraid to ask.
     
  13. Paul B

    Paul B Previous Member

    FBG wasn't quite as bad as the custom G&S MORC 30 from the mid '80s that was called No Fat Chicks. I still have one of the crew hats they gave me at the Internationals in '87.


    Martin probably has no idea about that keel. It may have come off a damaged 242, or could have come from the company that poured the keels for Martin.

    Anyway, I never saw it and this is only what I have been told.


    Yep, in SD, held in conjunction with the annual "Ton Cup" regatta. Yes, Fun won. The info I posted is out of SAIL magazine's report from the regatta.

    If you were on the boat I think you were on then I would guess you did beat Ullman in the long distance race and would have been the final point that cost him the overall win. I am sure he was pretty upset about that. By making the naviagtion errors in the last leg of that race they not only blew the championship, they also blew the funding to go to the worlds where they would have been favored to win.


    Chris Corlett was there sailing in the Half Ton fleet and said the fast QTs were posting some pretty impressive elapsed times compared to the older HTs that were racing in the class ahead. Right then and there they decided to change the specs for the HT they were building for the '77 NAs from keelboat to daggerboard.


    Sounds like we have both heard the same rumours.
     
  14. sean9c
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    sean9c Senior Member

    Paul
    I sure have to congratulate you guys for all the research you've done to keep the history alive. It was interesting to read this thread and remember the times.
    Thanks
     

  15. sean9c
    Joined: Jan 2011
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    Location: Anacortes,WA

    sean9c Senior Member

    Back in the day the guys from Sails by Watts found a Peterson 25 hull (QT), the old design not the Blitz design, put a flush deck on it and it was their PHRF racer. The boat name was Wizard, use to live in King Harbor or MDR. It was a fun little boat to race. Anyone know what might have happened to it?
    Thanks
     
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