Piper One Design

[randyhaynes]

During a trip to Conroe, Texas about 1998 or 99 I spotted a beautiful shape on a trailer lying in the corner of a boatyard. The hull had been damaged in an accident and had two ten inch jagged holes about amidships just below the waterline. Over the next few years I made several inquiries as to who was the owner and whether the boat was for sale. The responses were not encouraging. During this time I had no idea as to what class the little boat belonged or who was the manufacturer.

I have always been partial to sailboats that are traditionally designed. I have owned a Cape Dory Typhoon, a Soling and have coveted Ensigns and South Coast 21s. My sailor buddies however are lovers of lightweight sports boats. I can see the beauty in those too; I’ve also owned two Santana 20s and a Holder 20. A Soverel 26 occupied my attention for several years but that project became too large and my friend and boat restoration hero, Randy Yates, adopted that dream. The Soverel, Razzledash, is now finished, sailing, spectacular and part of his family.

In 2003 the opportunity came along to buy the beautiful boat that had been sitting neglected in Conroe. At the time I owned three other sailboats but could not let the little boat get away. My wife was somewhat upset. It turns out that the pretty little boat is a Piper One Design, hull number 23, built in Scotland in 1969. Its original name, according to the Piper Owners Association, was “Carnival”.

Like most boat deals, the purchase was easy. Moving my new prize the 60 miles home on the same wretched junk trailer that had caused the damage to the hull was an adventure in itself. I suspect several towing and traffic laws, as well as laws of physics were broken on the road home. Dr. Brad Weeks and Dr. Grant Wolf were co-conspirators / enablers of this anti social behavior although each would strongly deny any knowledge of the events of that day. Once safely stashed in an undisclosed location outside of Bryan, Texas the little sailboat rested next to another future restoration project (Pearson Ensign, hull number 212) for the next five years.

November 2008. The Piper has been moved to my house and work has begun. The trailer has been modified so as to no longer be a threat to the hull. Most of the hardware has been removed. The two large holes in the hull have been expertly repaired by Dr. Weeks. It is time to begin putting things back together.

1. The deck has suffered from core rot over the years and has been repaired in several areas. At this point, some sort of cosmetic overlay is called for.
2. In 1993, dark blue Awlgrip was applied to the topsides. It is clear that it was beautiful but now there are quite a few chips gouges and bubbles in the finish and new paint is required.
3. The last bottom paint was Micron 44 applied over epoxy barrier coating. As I understand it, all of the Micron 44 must be removed to apply new bottom paint. I plan to use Interlux Micron CSC. The Piper will sail in Texas freshwater lakes so slime and light algae is a concern but heavy bottom growth not so much.
4. The stringers that the cockpit deck assembly rest on are gone. From the remnants, it looks like they were mahogany and tabbed into the lower part of the bilge. There are six and they measure about ¾ X 3 inches. The longest is maybe two feet long. Even though there may be a lot of more high tech solutions out there, I think I will use mahogany for replacement or maybe teak. I worry about how well epoxy will stick to teak however.
5. Piper One Designs are equipped with “twing” ? blocks that adjust the lead of the jib / genoa sheet. My boat had sail track laid along the side decks to provide a place for sliding blocks. I wonder if the original method would work better, or if the track should be reinstalled.

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[One Way David]

Don't have a reply to any of your questions, but I frequent Bryan/CS as my brother lives there. I sail Ensign 1387 up in Kansas. Your projects sound interesting. I'm needing to clean up the deck of my Ensign and modernize the hardware. Gotta wait out this -2' weather though.

[One Way David]

I'm sure you've googled Piper One Design. I quickly read the rules on rigging and the running rigging seems pretty loose except for the wenches. There are lots of pics of Association boats under sail at their site.

http://www.piper-od.com/

[Hirilondë]

4. The stringers that the cockpit deck assembly rest on are gone. From the remnants, it looks like they were mahogany and tabbed into the lower part of the bilge.

I see no problem fastening them in with 5200 instead, tabbing works, but seems more work than needed.

4. Even though there may be a lot of more high tech solutions out there, I think I will use mahogany for replacement or maybe teak.

Both are fine. Teak is obviously more rot resistant, but epoxy coated mahogany should last many years.

4. I worry about how well epoxy will stick to teak however.

I never do. Clean the teak with acetone or alcohol just prior to gluing.

Pretty boats, and one design is the best racing if you ask me. Good luck with your project and feel free to post pictures of your boat as the project progresses.

[Chris Campbell]

Very cool - I had never heard of the Piper One Design before, and am glad to have been introduced. I echo Dave's "feel free to post pictures" and up it to "feel encouraged to post pictures"!