Hi All
Just picked up an old 12 in beautiful condition. The number is 2482 and I believe its a China Doll. Anyone know anything about this boat ?
I havent sailed a 12 yet but have sailed a Miracle for a couple of years. My crew is terrified of it already and she hasnt been in it !
Any tips for first outings ?
Thanks
At work so no copy of handbook to refer to. Hope you've joined the association - then you'll get all the history material you need to check your boat out. N2482 from memory would have been built around 1970 and is definitely of the seven plank China Doll vintage period - I once owned 2470 which was a Doll built by Wyche & Coppock. As for first outing tips - pick a nice force 2-3, both of you stay on your toes and be ready to respond and just have fun - sailing a 12 is like no other experience.
Mike D
N3496
The handbook reveals she is a China Doll called Dizzy Miss Lizzy, and was built in 1970 by Wyche and Coppock.
Where are you based/do you sail? If you can let us know we can probably point you in the direction of someone nearby who may be able to give you some practical tips on rigging etc. It's also worth speaking to the guy who runs the 'Vintage Section' of the class, Ken Goddard as he is a mine of useful information.
Congratulations on your purchase - happy sailing!
Bernard
Congratulations and welcome to the class.
I bought my 1st 12 in 1972 and haven't wated to sail another class since - highly adictive! My boats have included a China Doll which was really lovely. (Mike has been sailin them even longer!)
As Mike has said - stay on your toes. You will definitely find the 12 a lot more responsive both to air and body movement than the Miracle. A fairly gentle breeze is recommended to get the feel. Be prepared for a few swims as you learn to get the most out of your new toy - persist and you'll reap the rewards!
Avoid any heel in anything but the lightest of conditions. Be ready to move aft off the wind in a blow - right back to the transom when its really blowing. Use plenty of kicker as the wind increases. To avoid the "death roll" on the run make sure that your crew knows to sit still so that you can corect with rudder and sails - the easiest way to swim is to have the crew trying to correct the roll!
Good luck and enjoy the experience.
David W
3481
Here's another tip to add to David's good advice above - when you're running in a blow with the boom against the shroud and the boat starts to roll, pull in 12-15ins of mainsheet sharply. As soon as the boat steadies, let it out again. It may not be the fastest way of sailing the run, but you'll stand a better chance of staying upright.
Mike D
N3496
I fairly recently stepped up to a china doll from a mirror although I had sailed 12s and other things way back in the distant past. Its great fun and actually easier to sail fast than the mirror as you have much better feel and they are not actuaaly as unstable as they feel.
sold the mirror because both my kids refused to go out in it after we got the 12.
Can really addd anything to what the other guys have said about sailing except I find getting the weight well back helps with stability on the run even when its not really windy enough, again not the fastest way to sail but these days I like to stay dry.
Now if you want scary try a ToY especially when the board is 6" shorter than you think it is.
Greetings New Member with China Doll!
Do ring Ken Goddard our Vintage Wing supremo on 01332 521168. I regularly sail N2487 (also a W&C China Doll) so I am v grateful to Mike and David for their advice - I wondered why I kept falling in on a run when it was blowing! Hope to see you on the Vintage Circuit espcially Trent Valley 23rd September!
Incidently, it was great to see Chirs Dimmock out on the water at Frensham Pond last week end in his 1971 Burton winning China Doll N2501.
Paul - teamtrentvalley
Hi All
Many thanks for your replies and advice.
Bernard... The boat is indeed called Dizzy Miss Lizzy as it has its name on the back. Also it has the initials W.Y.C (not sure which yacht club this is !)
I sail at Viking Sailing Club in Sheffield. Hopefully we will give the boat its first outing this week.
One other question..we have 2 x buoyancy bags with the 12 which I think are designed to go at the back. There are fittings for two at the front but a couple of 12 sailors I have spoke to says these are not required as the boat has a front compartment. Is this correct ?
Thanks
If your boat has a front tank it would be unusual to supplement this with bags at the front. It could be that a previous owner felt that there was a need for a little more bouyancy and chose this route. The norm if there is no built in stern bouyancy, would just be the in-built bow tank and a pair of 36"x12" rear bags - you do need to make sure that the latter are very well secured.
To add a little more to Mike's advice on the mainsheet pulling - if you do get to what appears to be the point of no return with the boat falling ove on top of you off te wind - drop the tiller and just concentrate on getting LOTS of mainsheet in VERY quickly - hand over hand if needs be. (the rudder would do next to nothing at that stage anyway as there little of it in the water). You'll be amazed at what you can recover from even though you may still find you have a boat full of water.
Cheers
David
3481
Hi All
Just been rigging my new (old) 12 and am a little concerened about the mast. It seems a little lose ! There are 2 T pieces of wood which I believe wedge the mast into the gate in the foredeck. is this correct ?
Thanks
Hi Yorks!
Yes this is correct. You can change probably also change the fore-aft position of the mast with these chocks. If you want to fine tune however, you might be better off fitting a mast strut or a ram. There is a wealth of information on tuning the 12 in the Tuning Guide which is on the website to download. This info has helped me tremendously, particularly since in Germany no one is acquainted with the 12..
Good luck with your new yot!
Jim N3130
Hi all
Well we had our first sail in our new old 12 on Thursday evening. Not ideal however as I had a substitute crew and our combined weight was around 27 stone.
The boat felt tippy but not as bad as I had expected. I think its going to be a challenge !
I was informed by one of the club members who sailed the boat that it doesnt point very well. What sort of things should I be looking at to rectify this problem. ?
Thanks
Hi,
It would appear that you have got one of the long lost Whitstable Yacht Club 12s from the North Kent coast. Spent some time there trying to find out where they had all gone. I have one that ended up at Seasalter just down the road from Whitstable. Members at Whitstable may be able to help with some history of the boat
Ben N2743
Thanks Ben
Its fascinating finding out about the history of the boat