Happy

[@jacktrickey1250]

Hey Tom I am over here on the east coast of FL. Just would like to say I enjoy your videos keep up the good work. Helps me stay motivated on my 1968 morgan 30 hull number 3. All though I must say whimsy and yourself has caused me to spend a lot of money over the last few years :-). Hopefully when finished mine will look almost as nice a whimsy. Keep those videos coming and thank you for taking us along for the ride. Stay safe

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Jack, Wow - #3. That's cool! So, you must have the "stick-built" interior, a deck-stepped mast, and knee-mounted chainplates. (..I'd prefer a deck stepped mast - most of the water that accumulates in my bilge comes down the keel stepped mast. 😕) Would love to see pictures/video of your boat! By now you must know that boats are "money-pits" - and old boats are the biggest "money-pits" of all.😆 Whimsy got repowered last year, and this year she is getting a completely new electrical system designed by PYS in Canada, and installed by Snead Island Boatworks as part of a major refit prior to a Bahamas trip circa 2023. The electrical design is underway now. Gathering all the necessary parts is an ongoing challenge with today's failing supply chains - I'm not sure how long it will all take. I am just going to plug away at it. Anyway, I will try and do a "post refit" video when it is complete.... so you can certainly look forward to that. 😊

[@jacktrickey1250]

@@TomScottMorgan30 Thanks Tom, stick built, deck stepped mast, the chain plates were bolted to the bulk heads and everything was held in with 5200 . All removed. new mast step fabbed. New main and jib next up later this month. New hull paint earlier this year top to bottom. Love the new repower that's the way to go. Can't wait for the wiring refit. I will be taking notes as always. Let me know how to send pics, options on ways, I don't have an youtube channel. Keep up the good work!!! Thanks again Jack

[@TomScottMorgan30]

@@jacktrickey1250 Jack, you can go to my KZbin channel's home page. At the top, you can click on "Community", and you can post pictures and comments there.

[@solosailor8799]

Hope you're OK Tom.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

I am here! I'm taking a break from posting videos as I have been getting ugly comments posted that I need to spend way too much time screening and deleting - and there has been a general lack of good comments, too. I'm not sure why anyone feels compelled to say ugly things about simple videos of an old guy, sailing an old boat, set to old music - but boy some people sure do! (...HEY! If you don't like my boat, my looks, or my videos, don"t watch them!) My guess is this channel has nearly run its course, and that's fine. I still enjoy it, and it makes me smile. And, at least I know there is something I will enjoy watching and listening to when the sad day comes when I can sail no more (..which is the fundamental reason I started this thing.) I have some more refit work ahead, and a Bahamas trip planned for 2023, so there may be a few more videos to share! But right now, the motivation to share my sailing days has been greatly diminished. There are simply too many jerks in this world, and I've tired of the fight - for now.

[@solosailor8799]

Well I am sure I am not alone in expressing the joy watching your video channel brings to me. Pure happiness. Please don't let the minority few unhappy individuals dampen your spirit. Tune them out. Is it possible to not let comments go public without approval in this vlog? You've no doubt thought of that. Or alternatively just let the negative nincompoop posts air and trust that we will comment on their comments. Wisdom of the crowd sort of thing. At any rate, the majority of us following this channel are indebted to your commitment to maintain this space for all as a positive experience. Sail On my brother!

[@neveragainii3499]

I do love your videos. They keep me going over the long winter. This old guy still sails his old boat most every weekend on Barnegat Bay in New Jersey. Only another month or so this season. Enjoy your winter and if you manage to post some more I’ll greatly appreciate seeing them.

[@lbouster]

Was thinking the same thing. Sorry to hear about the haters getting you down. The refit sounds like a major undertaking but knowing you she will come out the other side better than new. Hope you keep the videos coming. Us old farts with old boats that like to sail will always enjoy them. Thanks'

[@miguelangel909]

Hello Tom, I have not seen new videos in ages. Are you ok? Hello from Tampa

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Hi Miguel! I'm doing fine! I have taken a bit of a break from making videos - they have not been too popular in recent years, they have not garnered many good comment or interest, and I had a spat of ugly comments that just killed the fun of it for me. There was a surprising amount of effort required to produce them, and the resultant good feedback was minimal while the ugly feedback was depressing. Whimsy will be undergoing a major refit in 2022, and going to the Bahamas in 2023, so a few more videos will undoubtedly be posted soon. But, the "regular" day aailing and goofing around videos are going to be rare.

[@timtucker9108]

Sorry to hear you have had any negative comments. I check your site every day ,hoping for another vlog. As a sailor with a c&c with an atomic 4, I hated to see yours disappear, but all good things come to an end. Look forward to your next vlog. Tim

[@rO_x0x_0f1ci4l]

🤡Who the heck thumbs-downs this stuff? GREAT VIDEO! Wish that was me getting out.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

I have a hater. And most interestingly, it is a subscriber!

[@nerf5404]

Omg thanks for giving me entertainment while eating breakfast lmaooo

[@Mk-oy9ns]

Do what makes YOU happy, sod the naysayers The internet is full of negative A holes with nothing better to do than berate and criticise....... Get out there and enjoy it while you can,and if you want to take us along for the ride that'd be great 👍

[@mike1lisa1]

If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands 👏.

[@rO_x0x_0f1ci4l]

Since you haven't put out a video in longer than it takes to create a human child LOL I've been watching you and Whimsey over throughout the history of your channel again. I've noticed all my "likes" on your videos have disappeared and I actually got unsubscribed. Typical yootoob effery. Hope you've been well and all is good!

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Hi CK - I got several ugly comments regarding my boat (slow and old), my appearance (fat and ugly), my music choices (crap), and a generalized and overall loathing of my vidoes. I spent hours deleting them and trying to block them. It ruined the "fun" for me, especially when I really wasn't getting many views, likes, or good comments - maybe a handful on any one video. So, there was little upside to making the effort to continue posting regular videos when I spent more time trying to clean up the "ugliness" I attracted and so few people enjoyed what I was doing. Whimsy goes into the yard for a major refit this upcoming January - it is scheduled to be a 6-7 month long job - and then she and I will be off to the Bahamas in 2023. So, I will likely share some vidoes of those two big events here for those who may be interested. Maybe by then, the haters will have forgotten I'm here and cut me some slack! 😊

[@rO_x0x_0f1ci4l]

@@TomScottMorgan30 Oh wow, I'm sorry to hear that. Well Whimsey looks great to me and you're certainly in good enough shape to be out there working it, unfortunately hateful people will always have nothing better to do than hide behind their keyboards while people like you are out there living life. The music is great, btw. Just curious, what's in the works with the refit? I remember you just went through a considerable effort with the repower and some other things. Makes me worried for my old M30 LOL I had to take a year off from doing anything due to kids at home full time from the pandemic and it was in rough shape to begin with. Regarding that I actually have a very specific M30 question, what material is it that conceals the interior deck/hull joint on the M30? I cannot find any info and really can't even see it in photos of other M30s. When I bought mine it had all been removed due to mold. I painted the interior joints with some anti-mold and want to cover that all up again, very ugly in there! Thanks, Tom, good to know you're still out there and will be excited for the new videos in the future!

[@TomScottMorgan30]

@@rO_x0x_0f1ci4l Hi CK - This refit will include an entirely new electrical system (DC & AC) - new electric panels, all new wiring, battery charger,(s) inverter, AGM batteries, battery monitors, galvanic isolator, GFCI outlets, battery switches, battery monitors, bus bars, external regulator for the engine alternator, new grounding plate, cabin lights, spreader lights, running lights, as well as electronics including a Multi-function display, new VHF radio with AIS reception (no transmit), cockpit handheld wireless VHF repeater, SATCOM capability (Irridium Go), and EPIRB. I will also have a small solar panel fitted to the aft lazarette lid (40W), and a small methanol fuel cell installed to keep my batteries happy while cruising with minimal engine run time and no large solar array. The galley will get refrigeration, a two burner alcohol stove for cooking at anchor (The current Sea Swing stove will stay to augment the alcohol stove, and for use underway). The hanging locker will be converted to shelves. The forward hatch will be replaced with a larger framed hatch that I will be able to fit through to escape if necessary. (I can't fit through the existing forward hatch if there were a fire.) All the plumbing and fixtures will be replaced - including a new head, holding tank, hoses, and a small (4 gallon) hot water heater added in conjunction with a plumbed cockpit shower. I will have a portable water maker, and an electric outboard for the dinghy with designed storage spaces made for them. The hull deck joint will be resealed from inside, and new teak toerails will be fabricated above. (...why put in new wires and electronics if the boat still leaks? 😃) I have new windows already in place and they no longer leak! Whoo hoo! Also will get new lifelines, new running rigging, and the mast and boom will be pulled, stripped, painted, and rewired. (..standing rigging was new in 2018 and should be fine). The centerboard will be rebuilt as needed, and all cables and blocks replaced/renewed. (...Probably going to replace all CB cables with Dynema.) The rudder tube (...the pipe the rudder shaft runs through) will be beefed up with fiberglass and/or gussets. To "finish", the deck, cabin top, topsides, and bottom will be painted. In the process of doing all this work, I expect a few other "discoveries" will be made along with some "might as well" jobs. But, the end result will be a boat ready to take me to the Bahamas and back with only minor break-downs and in comfort. It would take longer than I will be alive to do all this work myself, so this is all being farmed out to Snead Island Boat Works. It will all cost many more times than the boat is worth, but still slightly less than a new "modern" 30' boat. And in the end, I am much more satisfied sailing my old, outdated, "slow" boat with ideal shallow draft and sweet sailing characteristics than almost ANY modern "ugly" (to my eye) pizza box-shaped boat with windows in the hull, and a fat stern. As for your question regarding the hull/deck interior covers, they appear to be made of Formica with a layer of fiberglass added behind? They are awkwardly screwed into the fiberglass deck liner at the top, and nothing below. I am challenging Snead Island Boat Works to come up with a better idea for those when they redo my hull/deck joint so I will let you know what they come up with for covering that joint. Hope this clarifies! Sail On! - Tom Scott

[@neveragainii3499]

@@TomScottMorgan30 That sounds amazing. There is a Morgan 30 on the Forked River just down from my marina. I always think of you and Whimsey when I see her. I can’t believe you got negative comments. I love your videos and your boat! From one old fat guy to another just remember what the old Swedish boat builder said Ya F#*& um!😉

[@rO_x0x_0f1ci4l]

@@TomScottMorgan30 Man that's quite a list, sounds like you'll be more than ready for the big cruise, tho. The anticipation would be killing me! Good luck, my man!

[@Dpackie]

Hey Tom, I appreciate your videos, we just took ownership of #307, and have her up on Lake Champlain. Just getting to sail her, and I have not yet used the board. The pulley wheel in the bilge was the only place I found corrosion and I've been hesitant to move it at all. That said, the weather helm was a bit excessive going to windward in 10-12 with full main and 110%last weekend. I have no traveler on my mainsheet (yet), so I can't bring the boom up, so feel like moving the COR back with a little board is my solution. What do you think, and how much board do you drop sailing to windward?

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Hi Dave - nice to meet ya! Congratulations on the new to you boat! You did not mention what sort of shape and age your sails are. If your sails (the mainsail in particular) are old and "blown out" (..in terms of shape), you will have a heavy helm no matter what you else you might do - period. What happens as our sails age is that the designed location of maximum draft of the sail inevitably moves aft. As the draft moves aft, heeling forces increase while drive force reduces, and weather helm loads up. This is NOT a Morgan 30 specific trait, it happens with all similar sailing boats. Still, there are things you can try to do to mitigate the bad effects of tired sails on the helm when the wind pipes up. First, make sure your luff is well tensioned. Use halyard, down haul, and/or Cunningham (if fitted) as necessary to properly tension the luff. This will tend to draw the draft forward a bit. Likewise, make sure the outhaul is snug too. When you have a traveler fitted, you'll want to tension the sheet while keeping the traveler car well down (to leward). This will take some twist out of the leach, flatten the main further, and help reduce weather helm. Since you do not have a traveler, you can try to mimic the effects of a traveler by really cranking down hard on the boom vang. (..to be effective, you'll need to make this adjustment with the mainsail fully luffing so you can maximize the vang tension.) The vang will help keep the mainsail leech from twisting off so much and come close to creating the same effect as a well adjusted traveler. Using the vang like this won't be ideal because it really loads up the gooseneck (you're Morgan 30 gooseneck - if original - can handle it!), the angle of the vang onto the boom allows for a lot less efficiency, and you physically can't get enough "pull" to close the leach the same way the mainsheet can with the car traveled down. But, it's better than nothing! This is the best you can do with your mainsail - but if the sail is old and well used, a new sail is the ultimate cure. I get new sails every five years or so not because they are weak and worn, but because their shape has morphed into "slow". New sails will make a HUGE difference if you've never experienced them. ;-) Also, do check the jib lead for your jib for the proper positioning. If your jib lead is too far aft, you will tend to "over trim" the jib to stop it from luffing, and the top of the sail may still twist off and flutter. This trim condition will add to your weather helm woes. To get close to the ideal jib lead location, draw an imaginary line (with your mind's eye) from the jib block, along the sheet, through the clew, and to a point (ideally) midway up the luff. If your imaginary line from deck through clew continues to a point BELOW midway up the luff, then your jib lead is too far aft. Move it forward as necessary. Finally, with regard to the centerboard, I pretty much leave it full down when pointing, and full up when not pointing. If the winds are strong and I'm off the wind (reaching), I MAY sometimes lower the centerboard maybe a crank or two simply to aide tracking and reduce helm load. Also, if the winds are very strong (25-35 knots), and I am reefed and using my small jib, I may also crank up the board a crank or two (..from full down) to angle the board a bit and aide with weather helm reduction. This is helpful when the boat is deeply heeled over in stronger winds. Overall, playing the centerboard angle is more helpful reaching and running in strong winds where a little bit of board area set well aft aids tracking. Upwind, any real benefit to angling the board aft seems to only occur when heel angles are extreme. Otherwise, I just leave the board "full down" upwind, and "full up" off the wind in modest to light conditions. So to recap: 1) Set your sails to try and bring the draft forward the best you can with the tools you have. 2) You'll want new sails if your sails are old and tired - new sails will have a dramatic effect on balance, speed, and helm loads! 3) Use your centerboard "full down" upwind, and "full up" off the wind until the winds get quite fresh. In breezy conditions, angling the board aft can help reduce some (not all) weather helm when sailing upwind, and lowering just a sliver of board can improve tracking and balance off the wind as well. Both "sail shape" and "sail trim" are the greatest factors affecting the weather helm on your Morgan 30, and that is where you should focus your efforts. Centerboard angle is more of a fine tune item. Using the centerboard is necessary to maximize performance upwind, and if you were sailing upwind without using it, then THAT is a huge factor in your helm load as well. If you were sailing board up, you will notice the difference immediately when you drop it. Lowering the board will increase noticeably your pointing ability, slightly increase the heel angle, and greatly reduce helm load and rudder angle. Hope this helps! Tom Scott

[@Dpackie]

@@TomScottMorgan30 Thanks so much for your time. Everything on the boat is original. She was owned for 45 years by a Mass. Merchant Marine graduate and professional seaman. She has survived amazingly well, but the main, in particular, is old. Our sail plan has up going upwind today, so I'll drop the board, for better or worse, and hope she comes back up when I turn the crank. :) Every system will be replaced over the next few years, but it's a DIY situation. I look forward to roller furling, aft-led halyards, lazy jacks. For now the family is learning old school, hanked-on, at the mast, flaking main sails and repacking headsails down below, underway. As old as our main is, I'd be interested is a descent old one that is likely way more crisp then ours. I'll probably have to have it altered for external sliders, but that can't be too bad. If you have back up taking up space that you would part with, maybe we can work something out? Our leads are extremely far back for our headsail. Great tip on that. A wind increases I'll favor a reef over headsail reduction to combat poor sail quality. I have been flattening that old main out with all adjustments I have. No Cunningham, but I could tie into the reef point for a bit more luff tension. That said, between the main halyard and downhaul I get pretty serious luff tension, the leech and the twist are the factors I don't have enough input on. Dave

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Dave, I have kept one old mainsail as a spare, so I've nothing for sale yet. I do sell my old sails to other Morgan 30 owners periodically though, so I'll try to keep you in mind for the next ones. You can do very well with Rolly Tasker or Precision Sails - a basic cross-cut mainsail with two reefs, leach and foot lines, and four battens can be had for around $1,400 I'd imagine. You'd spend $300 or so for my old mainsail, and another $300 to get the right slugs and battens, so for an additional $800 you might as well just get yourself a fresh new mainsail custom fit to your rig. I predominantly single-hand Whimsy and I find having all my lines terminate at the mast far easier to deal with than aft led halyards. Frankly, aft led halyards are a pain in the ass for the single-hander on a boat this size. The problem is that the lines inevitably snag at the turning blocks, around a winch, a cleat, any and everything. So, instead of just going up forward once, you find yourself making multiple trips between mast and cockpit to raise or douse the mainsail and unsnarl lines - the exact thing you are ostensibly trying to avoid by leading your lines "conveniently" to the cockpit! With the lines led aft, you STILL have to go forward to attach the halyard, remove the sail ties, and make sure everything else is ready to hoist (vang, downhaul, Cunningham, etc.). And, with lines led aft, the friction builds exponentially such that you will not be able to hoist your mainsail without a winch. Reefing is worse - the friction makes getting a tight reef difficult. Cranking the halyard with a winch takes more time and effort, too - and the longer lines needed to lead everything aft put more stretch into the system as well. Inevitably, you will be running back and forth between the mast and the cockpit more with your lines led aft. Same with lowering the mainsail - you'll release the halyard from the cockpit, but still have to go forward to pull the sail down, secure the halyard, and tie it all off. With everything terminating at the mast, I can pull off the sail ties as I move forward, attach the halyard, release the vang and Cunningham, hoist the sail without using the winch much at all, and return to the cockpit with everything set in one trip. To drop the sail, everything I need to touch is right there and it all come s down in 20 seconds. I don't like lazy jacks on boats our size either. They are great for larger boats where the sails are heavy and difficult to manage. On boats our size, they are just "snarl inducing chafe monsters" attempting to solve a problem that doesn't really exist. You will inevitably snag the headboard or batten of the mainsail while hoisting it, and have to drop a bit, clear, and rehoist again. It's annoying! Then, if you leave the lazy jacks in place, they slat and wear against your sail. If you pull them forward and secure them along the mast - well, great, but that is yet ANOTHER trip you have made to the mast, and an additional item to take care of before dropping. There's just nothing "lazy" about them at all! When I drop my mainsail, it just comes down and settles wherever it likes. I start flaking from the back and work my way forward and in a few minutes it is tamed and secured on the boom with no lazy jacks. This is just so much simpler, easier, and better for me. Roller furling is great, and a roller furling genoa of about 135% might be a good compromise sail for you. That size gives decent light air performance, and can be reefed a little bit to give acceptable performance in breezier conditions. While a larger genoa (say 150%) would be better for the light conditions, the reality is that reefing a furling jib - no matter all the tricks sail makers employ like foam luffs and such - results in a crappy shape if you reef deeply. A 150% genoa would need to be reefed earlier and deeper as the wind builds giving worse performance than a 135% that would need reefing. It's a trade-off - but your Morgan 30 is somewhat tender to begin with and you will want a smaller headsail more often than you imagine. Here's a link to a video of me hoisting and lowering the sails alone. kzbin.info/www/bejne/ooaqf4GmnJJkrqc Alone, it takes about 5 minutes to get all the sails set, and 7 minutes to put them all away. Of course your mileage may vary. I just want to point out that some things that people think they "need" to singlehand or manage their boats do not always help. Aft led lines and lazy jacks are two of my pet peeve, self-defeating "upgrades". (...others include wheel steering on small boats, and shortening the hoist of the mainsail to get standing headroom under a Bimini top. Groan.) Anyway, get yourself a cheap new set of sails - it will be the best money you'll EVER spend on your boat, and you will enjoy them every time you sail. (...Hey! Take the money you allocated for leading lines aft and lazy jacks, and get even better sails - win/win! :-) Sail On! Tom

[@Dpackie]

@@TomScottMorgan30 great advice. I may have to faricate a cenrerboard, or salvage one. Do you know on any resources for that part, or morgan 30 groups online anywhere?

[@TomScottMorgan30]

@@Dpackie Yes - you can get a replacement centerboard from "Foss Foam Products of Florida" located in Williston, Florida. Their website is "newrudders.com", and their phone number is 352-529-1104. They built a new rudder for Whimsy a couple of years ago, and it was perfect! They actually have the original Morgan Yachts molds for both rudder and centerboard. I picked up my new rudder at their factory to save shipping costs, but they can ship your new centerboard directly to you - at some cost. Call them up and tell them you have a Morgan 30-1, and need a centerboard. They will have to go out back and hunt down the molds (they are just lying around out in the yard), and when they find the molds they will call you back with a quote. My new rudder cost $1,200 about four years ago. I imagine a centerboard will be in the same price range, and with inflation and shipping probably come in at the $2,000 range today. (just my guess). I talked to them about maybe needing a new centerboard one day, and the guy said they had the molds. He also said that the centerboards were difficult to make because they used a three part mold and were very precise in their tooling - but he could do it, and had done it. Four years ago, their lead time was about two months. I have no idea what it is today - so just give them a call and move forward from there. Hope this helps! - Tom