San Juan 21 Class Association

Hello Friends.
Last Sept. I bought hull #2008, Mk II, yellow with main, spinnaker, working jib (new), and 130 genoa. Hull is sound but most wood on boat will have to be replaced. Same with the blocks. I have some questions, and any answers would be a great help.

1. There are no spinnaker sheets. How long and what diameter should they be?
2. Replace the teak with teak or some other artificial wood?
3. Should I rebed windows and deck hardware as a matter of course? Boat hasn't been in water for at least ten years.
4. Right outboard shroud turnbuckle is bent about 7-10°. Leave as is or replace?
5. Boat has no cushions, inside or out. New ones will cost about $1,500. Anyone have any in good shape for sale?
6. I have a Honda 8 hp extra long shaft outboard purchased cheap with a fouled carb ($50.00!!). Runs strong, has had little use and is heavy as hell (85 lbs), but looks like too much motor for this boat. Recommendations for appropriate hp? 4-5?
7. Is the 130 genoa the maximum for class racing, or can I use a 155 if I order one?

I just joined last Sept, but my check didn't clear until late January. Hope the main office is getting squared away now. Happy Easter everyone (if you are faith-inclined).

Roland Rose aka mayfieldman21

Hello there Roland! Nice to have you in the class, mind if I ask where you're located?

As far as your questions go...

1) Tepends on if everything is stock or not. I can't recall what the stock lengths were, so someone else will have to chime in, but you could always grab a tape measure too, and start roughing it out. You could also check with Gene or Stephen. Stephen took over for Gene and now owns sjsailboats.com. He likely has the dimensions on his website, or could answer you quick. Also remember, you could move things around, and run them differently from stock if you wanted.
2) This also depends... I replaced my grab rails and retainers with "Starboard" and left some "stress risers" in them unfortunately so I have to repair those as one of them split through. I'll likely do it again as opposed to teak, as I really liked the low/no maintenance aspect of them. Something to think about though, nothing really sticks to the stuff, not 5200, or any other sealant. I used Butyl rubber to seal it up and it seems to work well.
3) Can't hurt... I'd do it.
4) I'd say replace it if you can, but i've also sailed on Shrouds that were badly bent for the past 4 years without issue. Though i've been told that's a bad thing to do. See about note about sjsailboats.com
5) you see them come up once in a while... Which ones are you most concerned about? the vberth I assume? I'd just make my own if you can't find any used. I have that "garage" foam in the vberth of mine, cut to fit. It doesn't weigh anything, dampens all the noise from things banging around, and gives me a little extra cushion for the 1-2 times a year I sleep on the boat.
6) People that race usually use about a 2-3.5hp motor. I've seen 4hp's quite often, and once or twice an 8hp. The 2-3hp won't quite get you to hull speed afaik, but they sure come close. My 3.5hp Nissan has pushed me pretty well. You could run the 8hp, but it might take strengthening up that transom:)
7) 130 is the max for class racing... Up in the PNW we don't even race with the 130, and I can't even imagine a 155, though I do have one in the store room somewhere. I think it's bigger than my spinnaker:)

Later
Christian

Christian,

Thanks for your reply. I live in Mayfield, NY, about 35 miles NW of Albany. I live about 1½miles south of Great Lake Sacandaga, on the southern edge of the Adirondack State Park, which is about 10x20 miles in size. There are also many good sized lakes in the Adirondacks. Also, I have a beach house in Kill Devil Hills, NC, (the Outer Banks) so expect to be able to do a lot of sailing on Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds at various times of the year. New Bern fleet is not too far from there.

In regard to my other questions...
1. The working jib is brand new and is by North. The other three are the original sails, all in very good to excellent shape. Thanks for the tip on sjsailboats.com.
5. I am going to have a complete set made, v-berth, quarter berths, and cockpit. Realistically, I expect to do much more cruising (probably 2-3 nights) than racing. All this is new to my wife, and since there aren't any fleets nearby, probably most of the racing that I do will be local round the cans PHRF.
7. The heavy majority of my past racing experience has been PHRF on the Chesapeake Bay in a Gulf Coast 23, which in general design, is very much like the SJ. Since much of the summer racing (usually non spinnaker) was in 5-10 kts, you were dead meat without a 150-155. I changed down to a working jib at about 13-14 kts. This brings me to another question. On my Gulf Coast, I had two reefs put in, each one reducing SA by 25%. Occasionally, I sailed the Gulf Coast in up to 40 kts of wind (usually in shallow, protected water, but once in open water where I was surfing on 15 ft. waves; I only had to go downwind to my destination), and needed both of those reefs. The main for my SJ has no reefs. Should I put in one or two?

That's it. Nice chatting with you. Roland

Hey Roland,

Welcome aboard, you will love your new boat. Here is my 2 cents:

2. Either will work. I like teak, but starboard is much less maintenance. Mainly an aesthetic choice.
3. Absolutely. At least the deck. In fact drill and fill with epoxy, then re-drill. Protect your deck and transom cores at all costs, or you will pay all cost.
4. Probably fine, but i replaced all mine since they were probably original. I posted length and cost here.
5. I sewed my own for a couple hundred.
6. I have a 4hp Yamaha. It is plenty powerful and very reliable.
7. I agree with Christian that i cant imagine a 155. I have a 130 and will buy a working jib next as being overpowered is a more common issue for me.

Cheers