A Hartley named Budgie

I happened to be browsing on eBay (as I often do) and came across this guy selling an old Hartley TS 16 – complete with a Tohatsu outboard. I put in a very modest bid for it, just on chance, and as luck would have it I won.

And so, on Good Friday 2005, we went down and picked up a 30 year old Hartey TS 16!

This is pretty much how she looked when we first got her, looks pretty good from a distance, if in need of a paint.

On closer inspection II discovered that she had a bit of rot in a couple of places, mainly around the cabin, and well above the water line. The result of several years storage out in the open. I also learnt that she had a number of leaks, particularly along the keel and centre-board. What was worse the previous owner had thought that the best way to fix this was with some silastic.

Fortunately, we were living in a rental house with a huge backyard, and a large shed out the back.