what do i have?

mikestonionis

New Member
hi i have always wanted to get out on the water and learn to sail. so when i responded to an add for a free sunfish i jumped at the chance. what i have is now is a wooden boat i know its old but the hull seems very strong (no soft spots) and the sails and rigging seem fine . i plan to restore this boat. unlike most of the sunfish i have seen, my boat has no cockpit. and i cant seem to find any info on the net about this model. it has a drain plug on the deck by to the right of the mast and one at the stern these plugs are gone and i need to find replacement parts for them. any help or links would be appreciated . and if you can help me identify what i have that would help as well thanks
mike
 
Sounds like a sailfish to me. The sailfish was the precursor to the sunfish, was a little narrower, had not cockpit, and most of them were wooden. The drainplugs for the boat can be replaced with standard Ronstan plugs, but be sure to get the complete assembly. Send me a private message or email if you want to order some.
Trey
ddbrown (at) ncsu.edu
 
If it is wood, you may really have a prize. It would be very old I rmember wooden sailfishes when I was reall young. Now I am in my 50s...

Now a question for you all from a new member. I have acquired and rebuilt and ALCORT boat called a "HILO" Does anyone have any information how they sail? I have sailed many a sailfish and sunfish. This is an outrigger type of vessal, one large pontoon and one small connected by a small trampoleen with a mini fish sail rig mounted in the larger hull. Love to hear any comments from anyone out there who might be knowledgeable about this boat.
 
Dion,

Just curious,

How did you determine this boat is from the Alcort family of sailcraft?

I have never heard of it either.

Can you put up some photographs?

TIA
 
Dan,

I agree the boat described by DionB sounds like the Proa’s shown on the web page you referenced (very interesting, especially about swapping the sail end for end and keeping the out rigger to windward for the non tacking types). I was responding to mikestonionis description of what his recently acquired (and totally missed Molly’s referral) wooden boat. I am also curious about DionB’s “HILO”. If DionB would post some pictures and ask some questions over at Sunfish Sailor, maybe someone in either group will have the answer he is seeking.
 
Supercub,

I concur.

A picture is certainly worth a thousand words.

Lots of resources out there.

Reading the posts in both bulletin boards I find an amusing theme. People post things like, 'I have a boat, it looks like a Sunfish, it has a different thingy on the side, what do I have?".

Without a picture the answer is simple. It's a ThingyFish :D


BTW your link doesn't work. I think the ( ) are getting in the way.
 
All. I will try and get a picture up for you. It is most definitely a "Proa" design. I may sound a bit ignorant but can anyone tell me some quick directions how to get a digital pic of it on this site so you'all can see it? Also...It is amazing how many parts of my HILO are sunfish parts. Its made up of "minifish" sail rig/mast and boom too. typical Sunfish dagger board and rudder/tiller assembly. I am partially certain that this "thingy" was around in the 60s. Sure hoping in the meantime to hear from any other folks on this seemingly rare boat. I have rebuilt/rehabed it into perfect condition complete with brand new sail.

Anyone interested in buying...that's a collector...I might be interested in selling it. OOPS...last word....it is SUPER SUPER FAST!!!
 
Dion,

According to that website Supercub posted the Mini dates from 1971 to 1983.

In the Sunfish Bible they talk about the old Sailfish sail coming from a sailing canoe background.

I've been interested in the Proa design since I sailed on a 30 footer in Hawaii. Reading the sailing canoe web pages it appears lateen rigs are very popular for sailing canoes.

Has this boat of yours got a serial number plate on it?

Once you have pics on your computer hit the Reply switch in these messages not the Quick Reply. In the lower part of the reply form is a switch for managing attachments, hit that. Look at the size limits you might have to shrink your pics to conform. You hit another switch to see the folders on your computer and get the pic. Sorry I don't remember all the switch names. You'll do fine.

Looking forward to seeing what this boat is.
 
Hi Dion,
Yes I am familar with thhe HILU It was made by alcort inthe late 60's earlty 70's and for only I beleive about 4yrs.
Sailed quite nicely on a port tack, but because the mast was on the starboard hull it was a bit cramped on a starboard tack.
Still a lot of fun-Somewhat of a precursor to the Hobie 14
AMF then came out with the Trac series which were a failure due to competion from Hobie and to a lesser degree Prindle, Sol and Nacra
You have a real heirloom
 
Thanks SNFISH 60. I appreciate your response. I am wondering if "heirlooms" such as what I have would be of any interest to Alcort today? Any ideas of dollar worth value on the boat? I plan to hang on to the boat and keep it in great shape (the way it is now) However, if anyone is interested in collecting and would be interested in it, I am not totally above selling it. I must be an ALCORT fan. I right now have a almost brand new Minifish and a rebuilt great shape Sunfish. the Sunfish is a bit my design with a (Dixie) Southern Battle flag flag design across the whole front portion of the deck. Also had a Sailfish about 26 years ago that my wife and I courted and sailed together on all the time. I always have fun sailing these boats!
 
Will you be able to post photo(s) of your Hilu outrigger? I need to locate the rig to my Hilu before I post any photos
Avalon
 

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