just bought a DS II

[Guest]

put a deposit down on a DS II sunday and should have the boat delivered on saturday. it's a 1974 boat in good shape, with old but usable sails, and a 1999 4 hp mercury. trailer is OK but could use a little work. BUT, it's ready to go sailing today. it's not yet the sailing season in southwest florida so i've got three or four months to work on the boat and learn all i can. the centerboard seemed to move fairly easy. i know that's a common problem on DS boats. i plan to sail it mostly in the gulf of mexico in 10 to 15 knots with 1 to 2 foot seas. any thing i should consider prior to the sailing season. thanks and love the site.

chad (gilliscmnr19-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

Chad,
congratulations and welcome to the brotherhood.
Things to consider :- Hiking straps and a tiller extension,
roller reefing gear or jiffy or slab reefing,
check the condition of floatation foam inside seats and forepeak (try to replace if sodden)
Lots of practice runs before you get out into hairy winds and seas - these are really hard birds to get back up out of the drink if you do go sideways (which usually means turtle immediately)
Rail meat - lots of it and the more experienced the better - nimble and intelligent company can make even the dreariest and dampest day of sailing one of life's true pleasures.

Fair winds and following seas. Felix

Felix (felix.graham-jones-at-snet.net)

[Guest]

thanks for the reply. installing a tiller extension will probably be the first thing i do. hiking straps are another good idea. as for reefing, the main doesn't have point sewn on it, yet. i plan to take the sails to a loft and get them checked out before i spring for the reefing points, although i understand they're not real expensive. checking the foam will be a must. guessing i'll have to install inspection ports somewher along each seat to access the inside. there are two inspection ports along each side of the centerboard toward the bow. i read those are factory installed. my plan is to be very conservative at first. plan to take it out on a fairly sheltered river for the first several trips or so. i also noticed it doesn't have a traveler or a boom vang. don't know that a traveler is necessary but a boom vang is, for me at least. thanks again for the reply.

chad
7749

chad (gilliscmnr19-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

Chad, a few tips....Number 1, ALWAYS have the mainsheet in your hand while sailing! Use the camcleat for the mainsheet to hold the tension, but keep the sheet in your hand! This way, if you get hit by a gust of wind, you can instantly release the mainsheet and spill the wind BEFORE you even come close to capsizing. I have been sailing my 1979 DS II for 6 years on windy Buzzards Bay (Massachusetts), and have never come close to capsizing, I've had water pour over the rail a couple of times, but not gone over. Second, I will agree with the advice to put a tiller extension (hiking stick) on the tiller, the DS II becomes much more stable with the skipper on the rail. Third, if it is windy, (or even if it isn't) try sailing with just the mainsail. The DS II sails quite well without the jib. Fourth, I'd go for the reefpoints, it cost $67 to add then to my sail, and I've never regretted it! If your old sails are in bad shape, be sure to get the reefpoints on the new mainsail, on a new sail the cost is even less!

Finally, did you get a copy of the owners manual with this boat? If not, let me know and I can mail you a copy of the manual from my boat. (11" x 17", 2-sided sheet). Oh yes, be sure and have as much fun as you can with your "new" Day Sailer!

Rod Johnson, "SUNBIRD" (rjohnson24-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

I don't know if hiking straps are that necessary, but the reef point is. Rod Johnson may be sucessful sailing his DS with the main alone, but many of us have found that we can barely point into the wind without a jib, and especially that we can't come about without getting into irons. Rod is also correct about sitting on the rail and holding the mainsheet in your hand.

For comfortable and safe sailing, you will want to reef at about 15 knots of wind, and you probably should go to bare poles and motor in if you get up to 25 knots.

If I had to do a lot of sailing in a DS at above 15 knots of wind, I would also consider buying a small storm jib. That would keep you from being overpowered, but would preserve better maneuvering ability than sailing on the main alone.

The boom vang is probably a good idea, although a lot of us don't have one, and get by fine.

KCobb (kcobb-at-bspmlaw.com)

[Guest]

thanks for all the replies. i've got a few more questions. with regards to the mainsheet, will take your advice. i've never sailed with the mainsheet cleated and out of my hand, except on a san juan 21. second, i noticed rob said he can sail a DS with main alone in a fairly efficient manner. i know it's possible in a lot of other daysailers, sorry to use the genertic term. i may have just lost my soul. anyway...i've also read others who say DS boats are terrible with main alone. could centerboard position be playing a role in this? are the people who say the boat doesn't do well under main alone leaving the board all the way down. i'm not suggesting that's the case. just posing the question. third: my jib only goes slightly past the mast. on the specs it seems the standard jib goes a little further aft of the mast. is my jib small or is this standard. fourth, i've only got one set of shrouds -- no divider at the top like i've seen on specs in boating books. thanks for all the help. almost forgot, i love sitting on the rail and hiking. the only reason i sold my sunfish is because i could never take anyone along and have fun and because beach launching is touch to find here. but i think i'm going to love the DS. great lines and the boat just looks like a comfortable and stable thoroughbred.

chad (gilliscmnr19-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

Chad, two factors affect sailing without the jib. 1) as you note, position of the CB, should be raised slightly to move the center of lateral resistance (center of centerboard) closer to the center of effort (center of sail area in use). 2) rake of the mast, I may have my mast set up with less aft rake (lean),
and this has a BIG effect on weather-helm, especially if using just the main! One problem with light centerboard boats like the DS, is that when coming about, you need to conserve momentum.....in other words, keep the boat moving. Rough seas can slow the boat down as she comes through the wind, causing you to end up in irons....in this case, let the boat start to drift backwards, steer as if you are in reverse....the boat will start to fall off, and you can pull in the sheet and sail away. Another thing that will cause a boat to stall and end up in irons, is if the skipper turns the rudder too hard (too great an angle), this causes the rudder to act more like a brake than a rudder.....the boat loses way...ends up in irons. One of the first things that my Dad taught me.....(OK, tried to teach me! I really had to learn this the hard way!) was to make all maneuvers "smoothly", turn the rudder just enough to cause the boat to respond..and turn. In smooth water, and lighter winds, I can turn my DS faster than in higher winds or waves. I would be lying to tell you that I've never found my self in irons, but proper rake to the mast, and proper adjustment of the centerboard (mast rake is more important!) have been one reason that I sail so well under Mainsail alone. Oh, and when the wind is strong...I find that tightening the outhaul and boom vang (to flatten the sail) also helps. If the sails are getting old and stretched out, the main will be too full (baggy), and this increases weather helm....my sails are borderline....but still work fine for me.

Rod Johnson, "SUNBIRD" (rjohnson24-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

my mast appears to have not been raked aft. don't think the boat has ever been raced. also, checked the foam near the centerboard and it's dry, as is the hull. nothing in the bilge at all, that i have found at least. do you think i should still check for foam under the seats?

chad (gilliscmnr19-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

Chad, it does not take much aft rake to the mast to increase weather helm, and a couple of turns on the forestay turnbuckle (and maybe a few loosening turns on the shrouds) to decrease weather helm. The foam flotation in the DS II is located in the bow (loose chunks), and carefully placed pieces under the cockpit and seats. They are glued in place with expanding foam as I recall, after looking inside my boat. I had to do some beefing up under the maststep on my DS II, and so cut an access panel through the cuddy floor. It would be hard, if not impossible for the foam to have been removed from the boat, and O'DAY put sufficient flotation inside when they built the boat.

Rod Johnson, "SUNBIRD" (rjohnson24-at-juno.com)

[Guest]

tweak the forestay. sounds logical. i'm thinking that when i first start singlehanding, i'll go out with one reef and the jib, at least until i get used to it. i stuck a paper towel in the bilge last night to see if it would absorb any water. it was bone dry. there's foam along the sides of the centerboard.

chad (gilliscmnr19-at-juno.com)