Moody 38 (90s) Looking for Her Moody 38

  • Thread starter Raymond Gregoire
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Raymond Gregoire

Hello everybody ! nice to be here .. first step hahaha I used to have a Hallberg-Rassy 38 ...sold in Australia in 2012 ... did 2 years sailing on her stable good .. but I am sure If I hd have a look at a Moody 38 I would have gone for the Moody .... The owners stern cabin in the Moody is way way better than the HR 38 ---- But lets not talk about past makes no sense hahaha ... I got the blues again for the sea and after having hopefully very soon sold my house here in Phuket Thailand I shall move to southern Europe ... Portugal I think ... and am looking for a Moody 38 from 1993-1997 +- to be able to match my budget somewhat .... I like the Moody 38 because of course Middle Cockpit then the nicely structured owners Cabin and the single berth behind the navigation seat .. or the kitchen .. on the way to stern cabin .... and of the Moody concept of good solid construction and materials .... There is something which in my eyes is not sooo good if I may say : on a 38 ft One toilet/shower should be enough .... But that 2nd toilet can be used as hanging wet clothes .... One thing which I can not really get warm with .. is : they all seem to have Roll-IN Mast mains..//???? I did have one on the HR 38 and I did have very often problems with this stuck .. no more in ... no more out between Galapagos and Marquesas ... and also elsewhere ... So I was wondering if there are Moodys 38 with Lazy Jacks .... Looking forward to chat with you Have a nice day in these "worldgoingcrazy" times
Raymond
 
Hi Raymond and welcome,

The Moody 38 came as standard with in mast furling, as did bigger Moodys but, as you can imagine, a few original owers specified a normal hoisting main and a few may have changed tings at a later date, but that's unlikely as it really requires a different mast so is therefore quite expensive.

When we first bought Wild Thyme. ten years ago, the in mast furling was the one thing we were less than happy with but she had old blown out sails and we knew they needed replacing so as soon a we had sailed her halfway round Britain from, the rover Clyde to Harwich, we ordered the new sails and set about learning how to use the in mast system.

When the new sails arrived, they were a revelation, both in terms of performance and ease of furling / setting the main. Roller furling mainsails need to be cut fairly flat and the system does not tolerate baggy sails - they introduce creases which lead to jams. There is not sufficient room in the mast to use the padded luff concept, used on genoas to take up fullness when furling/reefing. The other thing I have learned is that most yachtsmen expect deck gear (like furlers) to operate forever without maintenance. They religiously overhaul their engines evey year, but leave all the deck gear alone, despite clear recommendations from makers on annual maintenance requirements.

You will never completely eliminate the probability of a jam but by attending to keeping the sail in good shape and regular maintenance of the gear you will reduce the probability considerably.

The next thing is to learn how to deal with a jam - when it jams up, don't just pull harder! Work out what is causing the jam and go the other way a bit to pull the problem out. Jiggle backwards and forwards until it clears. Pulling harder on a jammed furling system is the same as pulling harder on a coil of rope that has got tangled, it just tightens the knot. Even letting the sail flog freely for a bit can pull out the crease at the root of the problem if you haven't pulled it in too hard. If you must use a winch on the furler - use it gently.

Having been through the learning, we are now perfectly happy with the in-mast system and wouldn't be withpout the ease of tucking in a reef.

Peter.
 
Thank You Peter !
Of course reefing is beautiful like this ... and you are right ..gentle is the word when it come to starting to get stuck ...
Cheers Raymond
 
Ever thought of a M376? I’m considering selling mine which has undergone a full refit including new sails... slab reefed main.
Based on Ionian, Greece.
 
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