Scillabub guide
Booking: Use of Scillabub is included in your £40 annual boat usage fee, as with other boats we ask you to book in advance.
Sailing Area: Remember SGBA club boats are not permitted past Dartmouth Castle.
Outboard: Scillabub comes with an electric outboard to get you home if you run out of wind and oars. The outboard is left on the boat permanently, but you will need to bring the battery from the clubhouse and attach it. Note that raising and lowering the outboard requires that it is turned sideways otherwise you can't lift it to free the lifting lever. The outboard is an auxiliary and should not be considered as the boat's main source of propulsion. Please study the detailed outboard instructions before use.
Mooring & Access: Scillabub is on a mooring off the club-house. She floats about 3hrs either side of high water. Use one of the Bugs from the club dinghy park to reach her. The Bugs are stacked on the foreshore opposite Scillabub.
The Cover: Remove the cover by releasing the elastic bungees from the two bronze cleats on the aft deck, then unhook the bungees from the hooks along both sides of the boat and finally release the snap shackle at the bow. Roll up and stow the cover in one of the side compartments.
Bailing: If there is water in the boat, insert the handle attached to the centre of the aft deck into the the bilge pump on the starboard aft deck and pump away.
The Jib: Unfurl the jib by releasing the thin cord from the clam cleat on the forward port side, then pull on the starboard jib sheet to free the jib.
The Mailsail: The mailsail is lashed to the gaff and loosely to the mast. Pull the main halliard to raise the gaff and sail as far as possible and lash off the halliard to one of the belaying pins situated either side of the mast. In order to ensure optimal sail shape, the gaff should be as flush with the mast as possible. You can then adjust the sail, and control tension in its luff, using the downhaul.; cleat the tack to the underside of the thwart. Scillabub has loose-footed sails, which means there is no boom to worry about whilst tacking. Scillabub's rig has been modified to give approximately 20% more sail area than the typical Drascombe; however, as the hull is heavy and stable, she is a comfortable sail even in stronger winds. You can reef the mainsail by fixing the downhaul tackle to the upper luff, and tying the red rope on the yard very firmly around the mast. The mailsail runs through two blocks, one on the clew of the sail, and the other on a sliding ring on the galvanised pipe at the stern of the boat, in front of the outboard. This latter block has a jamming cleat to help sheeting in the main.
The Mizzen: Unwrap the mizzen from the mizzen mast. Attach the sheet which should be fixed from the base of the mizzen mast to the clew of the mizzen with the snap shackle. The sheet runs to the eye in the outer end of the bumpkin (sternsprit - same as the bowsprit but at the stern) and back through a small hole in the transom board to a clamcleat on the rear deck.
The Rudder: The rudder is heavy and must be lifted into the slot in the aft deck just in front of the outboard. It only goes in one way. Caution: Make sure you lift the rudder in plenty of time when heading into shallow water; it has been bent multiple times already. Practice lifting the removing the rudder before you need to do it in a hurry. As the boat is aground at low tide, the rudder MUST be removed when mooring. It sits below the hull even when raised so must be removed before leaving the boat or when approaching the shore or other shallow areas. You may need to lift the rudder before approaching the mooring buoy if you are returning on a failing tide.
Before leaving the boat: Make sure the centre board is up. Moor securely to the mooring buoy. Add an extra turn on the mooring line, to avoid the mooring line chaffing and raise the mooring buoy out of the water to prevent the buoy from banging against the hull. Lift the outboard and return the battery and kill cord to the clubhouse. Put the battery on charge. Reapply boat covers as they were before. Report any issues, recommendations or suggestions to the quartermaster so we can make usage as easy, safe and fun as possible
If in doubt ask at a Sunday Sailing and boating event before using Scillabub.
Last updated 14:15 on 20 June 2023