Video Tour of Whimsy After Refiit

[@79cd36]

She looks fantastic. Well-fitted. Practical. Attractive. Modern. The nicest Morgan 30. Made me miss Blue Jacket. Many, many happy miles to you.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Thank you David! I'm looking forward to getting back on the water with Whimsy.

[@timjohnson8015]

Whimsy looks beautiful and is very functional. I hope the electrical systems give you years of trouble free service, and I look forward to your Bahamas adventure.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Thanks Tim! I'd be happy with just a few weeks of trouble-free service to start! Lots to learn and figure out - but it's all part of the fun.

[@williieloman1549]

Fantastic! Those old boats are so worth saving.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Well, when they are gone, they are gone. And the modern designs just do not appeal to me. So, as crazy as refitting this old boat may be, that is what ultimately made me happy.

[@behonestwithyourself3718]

Thats so awesome. One thing about a refit you can customize it to your liking. Beautiful boat. Well done.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Thanks 👍

[@tomaswest6541]

It was always a beautiful boat Tom but now gas surpassed that. I wish you many happy miles together.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Thanks Tom - I'm looking forward to some good days ahead!

[@rO_x0x_0f1ci4l]

Looking sweet. All joking aside, for probably the price of a new boat you really did get a practically whole new boat!

[@TomScottMorgan30]

That was my rationale. I am retired and was ready to get my retirement boat. However, being an old fart and long-time sailor, there are few, if any, "modern boats" that appeal to me. And, the only reason I really wanted a new boat was because all the systems and gear would be "new". So, for me, a complete refit became my best choice. I get to keep all the design and sailing characteristics I prefer, AND I get all new systems, gear, hardware, etc. etc. Had I done most of the work myself, I would have saved a lot of money and also consumed many years of my life. I also would have necessarily performed many of the tasks at a less than high standard. My age made paying the insane amount of money for this refit my choice. I do not intend to sell the boat, so the whole resale argument doesn't apply to me. (...I hope to give her to someone who might continue caring for her a bit longer - and maybe take me sailing some time.) Extensive refitting of old boats like this makes no economic sense. But, once you realize what you really want, and begin to assess the time you might have left, the whole thought process changes. I have the boat I want, equipped just how I want it, and it is ready now. It only cost me money. A shit-ton of it for sure - but you can't take it with you when you're gone!

[@wab1954]

Tom, You did a beautiful job with the refit! Hope to see more videos.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Mostly, I just wrote checks. Crabby, Mike, Edwin, Rich, Scott, Bill, Sue, and Matt did the work. They did well!

[@jimmccann6876]

Congratulations, well done!

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Thank you Jim.

[@alansantini9961]

She looks great Tom. Quite the refit. I know you will enjoy her to the greatest level possible. Getting OffTheWind ready for the trip South in early November. Will sail Charlotte some. Maybe see you out there. My best to Wendy. Al

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Have a safe trip down here, Al. I am planning to head toward the Bahamas sometime in February and return home before June 1st. I'll keep an eye out for you! 👍

[@alansantini9961]

@@TomScottMorgan30 trip sounds wonderful. Wendy going? Have you made contact with Butch? Saw him in April. Not good.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

@alansantini9961 Wendy will not be going, but she may visit if I manage to stop somewhere near an airport. Have not seen Butch - but have heard he is not well. It reinforces the idea that we all need "to do" while we can. Tomorrow is promised to no one.

[@boatsail1]

Hi Tom, beautiful work and tour. She continues a great sailboat. What work on CBoard, keel, hull. I'll look for you Bahama vids. Once again, congrats to you and Whimsy...

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Bahamas trip videos (7) are uploaded on KZbin. Enjoy!

[@TheCorsair]

That’s the most tricked out Morgan 30 ever!

[@TheCorsair]

@@TomScottMorgan30 I’m with you 100%. I have a Sea Sprite 30 which I purchase for $15K in 2013. Since then I’ve probably put in $50K worth of “maintenance and upgrades.” She’s now undergoing a full refit which will cost at least another $60K, probably more. In the end, the satisfaction is well worth the expense.

[@TomScottMorgan30]

My comment to your original post was removed by KZbin. I have no idea why?? Anyway, I checked out your videos of the Sea Sprite refit, and that looks very substantial as well. That is a very nice boat and definitely worthy of all the effort you are putting into her. I doubt future generations of sailors are going to appreciate these boats the way we do. So the handful of these boats that are fortunate enough to be cared for properly and thoughtfully at their currently advanced age are truly the luckiest of all the boats. Your Sea Sprite is a great example of a lovely boat being well cared for - kudos to you!

[@bobtookyt]

sweet

[@TomScottMorgan30]

👍

[@av8torjbc]

Beautiful! Not to long at all, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of your tour! Well done sir. I've enjoyed your day sailing videos over the years, are we to assume that that this refit means that you are planning to become a cuiser? With your upcoming Bahamas trip do you plan to share videos of your progress and experiences?

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Actually, this refit means I am decidedly NOT going to become a cruiser. Why? Because for the cost of this refit, I could have bought a much larger and more comfortable cruising boat than Whimsy. (...And if I were younger, I probably would have done exactly that.) But when I got done cruising with that big boat, I'd be left with a boat that is too big for my day sailing, single-handing, and gunkholing needs. Looking forward at the time I may have left to enjoy sailing, Whimsy is really the size and type of boat I want to "age out" with. So, I have chosen to adapt Whimsy to a comfort level that will make her acceptable to go on one or two "bucket list" adventures but also allow me to preserve all the attributes that I love about her small size, shoal draft, and ease of handling for comfortable use around SW Florida. So, I am not becoming a cruiser per se. Instead, I am simply going to go on a cruise with the boat I have and want to keep for the long term. When I return home, my use of the boat will be more in line with how she was intended to be used - day sailing, weekending, one or two coastal cruises per year, and a rare club race. Whimsy is not an ideal long-range ocean crossing cruising boat - even after this refit. Rather, she is just a very good boat that can better fulfill a number of different roles very well. As for sharing my experiences during my upcoming Bahamas trip, I mostly intend to post about it on my web page: www.whimsysailing.com. Oh, I imagine I will make a few videos simply to have something to look back on someday and document some of the trip's highlights. However, I will not be posting videos on a schedule. I will be single-handing and I want to be "present in the moment", and not always worried about filming, editing, and uploading videos. I'm not looking for a lot of work, I'm just looking for a lot of adventure and some fun. Blogs and pictures will be posted on my web page, but I imagine only a few videos.

[@mike1lisa1]

Well done. Looks like you are ready to go on your Bahamas trip. When will that be?

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Hi Mike! I plan to head out for the Bahamas in February and return home before June 1st.

[@TropicTrdr]

This is very educational. I never knew about the EFOY fuel cell but like you, I don't want junk on deck. I'll be singlehanding anything I wind up with so your tutorial is valuable. Would you take this boat to the Caribbean?

[@TomScottMorgan30]

The boat could certainly be capable of taking a solo sailor to the Carribean. But, having spent 70 days on board for the Bahamas trip, I think I'd want a bigger boat so I could carry more water, fuel, a bigger dinghy, more provisions, etc. I was typically the smallest boat everywhere I went on the Bahamas trip. And being a small boat has lots of advantages. But for longer journeys (three months or more), I would prefer a bigger boat ...simply for being able to carry more "stuff". I have no plans to become a full-time long range cruiser. I just wanted to go to the Bahamas on my own boat - once. The Morgan 30 was more than capable of that. Most importantly, it is ideal for how I will continue to use it going forward - daysailing, weekending, and perhaps one two-week cruise per year. I will never be sailing it to the Carribean ...not because the boat is not up to the trip, but because I have no desire to go for that long in a small boat.

[@TropicTrdr]

@@TomScottMorgan30 Thanks for the reply. A Morgan 34 or an Out Island 33 would probably be more suited to single hand down that far..

[@TomScottMorgan30]

A Morgan 34 - from an interior volume perspective - is probably not going to be meaningfully larger than the Morgan 30. The interior arrangement of the 34 is nearly identical to the 30. The Out Island 33 is a MUCH bigger boat than either the Morgan 34 or 30, but it is also a far less satisfying sailboat when under sail. Rather than length, a far better gauge for assessing adequate boat size for a trip to the Carribean would be "displacement". I would suggest that for a singlehander, a good rule of thumb would be around 16,000lbs of displacement. (...If you will have another person join you, then something closer to 20,000lbs might be desirable). These are just guides - not hard and fast rules. So, look for a boat around 16,000lbs - and then regardless of the length, it should be capable of carrying the water, fuel, provisions, and equipment you will inevitably want. If the boat you choose sails well, you can compromise on fuel tankage a bit. If it sails like an Out Island 33, you may want more fuel. If you like Morgan's, the original M38 centerboarder would be a good choice, or the newer M38 designed by Ted Brewer would be great, too. Most monohull sailboats that would be "ideal" for a single-handed Carribean cruise will be in the 35' - 38' range, with a few smaller or larger than that. My personal dream boat would be the original Morgan 41 classic centerboarder - often considered to be the poor man's Hinckley Bermuda 40. It sails very well, has a shoal draft, is large enough to carry all the necessities, and is easy to single-hand. Unfortunately, they are rarely on the market. But if you find one that has been well loved, they are worth the look. Good luck with your search!

[@TropicTrdr]

@@TomScottMorgan30 Thank you for your valuable insight. There is a 1971 Morgan 38 on the Florida Marketplace now. and I've seen a 41 as well. In Florida, something always turns up.

[@ozarksailor2714]

Bristol M30!

[@TomScottMorgan30]

Very close! 😊