[Richard San Cartier]

Hello: my wife and purchased a property and discovered a Chaser Cat in behind the garage in the woods. We inflated the tires on the trailer and pulled it out from the trees and removed the old tarps. There is some damage to the wood trim and we removed about 4 garbage bags of red squirrel mess other than that she seems in good shape. There is no sail but the mast, rudder and keel are intact. We are wondering if it worth fixing her up and where we can find more information. Since there were around 20 made and she is Canadian it seems a shame not to fix her. The trim looks like mahogany? Replacement sail cost and design? Any info would be helpful or directions are where to find it or if someone has sailed one before.

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[Bruce_Sailboatdata]

Hi risuemav. What an interesting find. Are you sailors? If you end out not wanting to fix her up we’re sure you can find someone who will. You will have to contact a sail maker to get a cost. Do you have a loft nearby? The sail area for the Chaser Cat was listed at 165 sq ft. We’re guessing… and this IS a guess… the sail should cost under $1,500 or so new. You can always find used sails though.
All we have on the boat is here: https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/chaser-cat
Good luck with this project.

[Richard San Cartier]

Thanks Bruce. Sailed smaller boats when I was younger. We are half way between Sudbury and Sault Ste Marie on the north shore of Lake Huron not sure where the closest maker is. Any recommendations?

[Bruce_Sailboatdata]

Nice looking boat. Hard to believe someone just left it sitting there.
There must be a number of marinas in your area? Is Blind River near you? That’s one. I’d give them a shout and ask if they know of a sailmaker in your area. Also, you might want to start by hiring a surveyor to go over the boat. He’ll tell you the true condition and make recommendations. The marina should should be able to recommend someone.

[Richard San Cartier]

Yep, ten minute drive to Blind River. I will try that, thanks Bruce. The hull looks in good shape, no cracking. The mahogany trim has some rot and the handles on top and companion hatch I will have to replace. I do a fair bit of woodworking and have built several canoes and a kayak so think it shouldn’t be a problem

[Richard San Cartier]

Look what we found hidden in a back room under a bunch of stuff. It’s made by Sobstad. I am thinking that they must keep a record (the pattern) of sails made so should be able to get a replacement when it comes time. This will at least allow us take her out and try her

[Bruce_Sailboatdata]

Cool. Now you’ve got it all! Depending on how you use it, that sail could last a long time.

[Richard San Cartier]

Winter work on the Cat. Starting to work on the wood work, replacing the mahogany handles.

handles2016×1512 722 KB

[PaulK]

Looking better all the time! New ideas about sails may have come up since the one you have was last used. Checking with the original sailmaker (http://www.sobstad.com/sobstad-) may not be necessary.

[Author]

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