Sailsite

I have a bermudian rigged otter, and find that I can easily beat mirrors upwind. It is hard to give a definitive answer, but here are some pointers which you may find helpful! First, i noticed a drastic improvement when i bought a new set of sails - what condition are your sails in? For efficient up...

As the keepers of otter 427, we have had the centreboard out at least twice. I don't remember exactly how it was mounted, but I remember it being no problem to take to pieces. My father did it the last time, and can certainly tell you more than me (I can put you in touch if it helps) The first demou...

We replaced the sails (bermudan main and jib) on our Otter several years ago. We believe that the old sails were the original set, which prbably made them 25+ years old at the time of the replacement. The main was paper-thin and quite stretched, and in need of replacement, however my brother managed...

I have just bought an Otter that is 35yrs old and seems to have all the original bits... I am just wondering how you know the age? If you know this from a reliable source, and you also know the original sail number, maybe you could post it on this forum? It would help to answer some of the above co...

In most conditions, the Otter is a great boat single handed. First, it is light enough for one person (of average strength/fitness) to launch and recover. Secondly, the reefable mainsail allows you to reduce canvass if necessary (although doing this alone, and at sea is not entirely simple - it is m...

In case anyone is interested, I can contribute 2 things: 1. My Otter (427) had a wooden mount for an outboard on the transom. I believe it was like this from new. The wooden mount is not central on the transom, thus it is possible to sail with an outboard in place. My father's outboard (I think it i...

Hello 'acra', I'm new on this site, so please forgive any 'newbie' mistakes! My father, brother and I have been sailing an Otter (no. 427) for about 21 years. Primarily we have sailed in the Exe estuary, but sometimes in coastal waters too. Now my father has retired (in Devon) and I live in Trondhei...