Restoring a 1985 Mirror Dinghy
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- Опубліковано 28 сер 2024
- I bought this dinghy back in August 2019 to restore over the winter ready to sail the following summer.
The music is by the Portsmouth Grammar School Senior Brass Band, and although I played in the recordings, I claim no copyright over the music. The CD of our recordings can be purchased from the school website under the merchandise section.
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I learned to sail in Mirror 45233 off the coast of Western Australia, usually 15 to 25 knots with a decent swell the boat took it in it's stride, it was very sea worthy. I wish you happy adventures 👍
Thank you - I have to say I've never taken any of my boats out in 25kts, but I have always felt the mirror is a good sea boat.
When I saw this I thought "33 mins" hmm, give it a go? So glad I did, captivating, competent and a but of a lump in the throat as Highland Cathedral accompanied the conclusion! Full marks, young man!!
Richard Perriman Thank you very much! I’m glad you enjoyed it. I thought Highland Cathedral was a suitably emotional piece for the end of her refit!
What a joy to witness such care and superb craftsmanship put into this dinghy!
Your meticulous attention to detail and thoroughness made your video such a pleasure to view, especially with the lovely musical accompaniment.
To see the rejuvenated, repainted and resplendent dinghy in her lovely new colours and her sails set is quite magical, even on dry land.
Your craftsmanship and thoroughness will inspire others to pick up their tools and breathe new life into otherwise run down boats and to feel that priceless feeling that only csrrying out such a labour of love can instil.
Thank you for documenting your journey and sharing it.
Thank you very much for those kind comments. The whole purpose of the video was to demonstrate to people that anyone can keep, look after, or restore a wooden dinghy, and I hope that it does encourage others to do the same. The boat is now with a family who are teaching their young children to sail in her, so she's still being used to educate and inspire!
Excellent work!! I'm very impressed with the attention detail and quality of this project. Well done!
As child in the 70ties, the Mirror dinghy was my favorite little boat i loved to sail it.
When I got my first boat it was a mirror and my dad made me play a very important part in it's reconditioning.
We stripped it down to wood and then painted and varnished it before I ever sailed it.
We refitted it with decent fittings my Dad had lying around.
I put a lot of hours into that dinghy and it felt like an extension of myself for it's whole life under my ownership.
It won a regatta the first year we sailed it
I still have the chopping board we won as a result.
RTYC 1991
Luv and Peace.
I completely understand what you mean. A wooden boat that you have painstakingly worked on in order to sail does feel very close to you heart by the end of it. Happy sailing!
This video should be issued as part of the build kit for every Mirror build or rebuild.
Brilliant, no messing about and cutting corners, a massive effort but this little ship is going to last a long long time 👍
Well done young man. You've done a splendid job and I'm sure that you've obtained a lot of satisfaction from completing all the work yourself and will have equal satisfaction once she's afloat and under sail.
Like many whom have commented here already, back in the mid 1970's I too had a Mirror and, like yourself, I had cause to strip it back, re-paint & re-varnish it, as well as add various farkles to it. That little dinghy was my pride & joy for many years and I certainly sailed a lot of seawater miles in it.
I wish you steady winds and congratulate you once again for giving us an entertaining video and for the lovely job you've done on your Bellatrix.
Just as I had almost become used to the degree of talent and the skills you employed to do this, a casual sentence appears on the screen informing us that you played the Xylophone in some of this video, too. What a great job (restoring the dinghy and playing the Xylophone). Well done, that man.
Thank you so much! The amount of time and effort that goes into playing an instrument makes the mirror restoration look as quick and easy as peeling a banana, so it's nice when people notice the music as well! Thanks again :)
@@CorinNelsonSmith Hi Corin. Thanks. I try to play several instruments, so I hear what you are saying :)
It's been rightly said multiple times: a fantastic video about a fantastic project. Congratulations! I watched your video because I am considering purchasing a Mirror here in the Netherlands. It doesn't need nearly the restoration you undertook and I can probably proceed directly to dingy camping come summer. Thank you again!
Thanks! Good luck with the dinghy cruising adventures. I know a few people who cruise their mirrors and they seem to have a fantastic time, camping aboard or ashore. Superb little boats!
Well done, you stuck at it and soon will enjoy sailing her. You have also learnt a lot. Good project.
Malcolm Gordge Thank you. It did take a while but it was good to have a project on going.
Great job, young man. She looks really nice.
I wish there were a lot more young men like you in this time. Something tells me your parents are doing a great job.
Congratulations!
Thank you! I'll pass that on to my parents :)
Good work :-) I saved a 1964 Mirror from the bonfire a few years ago, so know how much work you put into this! Very impressive for a youngster.
Julian Hawker Thank you! This one wasn’t quite ready for the bonfire yet, but still a lot of work to do on her! I was very lucky there was no rot to be seen.
@@CorinNelsonSmith . Cool, rigging is the next project to look at.
I built a jib furler , upgraded the rig controls and fitted single line reefing for the main.
Lots of fun to do it and far nicer to sail, extending where/when you can use it.
Planing on putting mine back on the water soon, as I have lost my Aero to my daughter now........
Superb! Congratulations on such fine work--including on the xylophone. Something tells me you'll go far in life.
Very nice done !
Nice work! your competence shone through at every stage.
Thank you very much! I don’t know about competence though; it was a big learning experience and helped with plenty of advice from others!
Phenomenal effort and video. I acquired a Mirror which needs some work and this is a wonderful guide. You are a rock star! What a sharp boat. You should be super proud.
revwesley Thank you! She is looking lovely. I sold her to a family whose children are learning to sail in her which is exactly what I wanted!
She's beautiful. You have inspired me.
Great boat-great re-fit-enjoyed the music to,Very well-done and thanks for this fantastic video.
Amazing job…I’ve always loved these but haven’t sailed for nearly 30 years (as a teenager). Just joined a local sailing club here in Wales and would love one of these. Superb job 👏👏👏
Thanks for a very inspireing and informative film. I am thinking of buying a Mirror dinghy myself. I have always likes them since I first learned about them and now when I am in my seventies I might finally own one.
Superb job! Well done too for seeing it through to completion. So many projects on boats and cars start with good intentions but never get finished. So much kudos to you!
Troy Parr Thanks! It was a good practical project to have on the go as a bit of respite from the mental stress of A-Levels! And then of course lockdown helped me finish it off.
Great video and soundtrack, and I love the chosen colour.👍🏻
Thank you! I know green is traditionally thought of as bad luck on boats, however I think it looks rather good, especially with a silver name and red sails.
Nice build, very cool to use your high school band for music.
Yes! Thank you!
Really good work! Just wanted to see her on the water...My Mirror is 1962 - lovely boat. Enjoy!
Excellent work will last for years.
I definitely loved watching this little video, O love these little boats 😀
Beautiful work! Now enjoy her, sail her, have adventures and don’t be afraid. A lucky and skilled restorer, you now need to enjoy all that hard work.
Lovely to see your hard work come to fruition and such a unique boat. You’re welcome anytime at Merthyr Tydfil Sailing Club to explore our beautiful reservoir!
Well that was just splendid. I really enjoyed watching and listening to that. I am really pleased to see you wearing a protective face mask while working.
Well done !!
Thank you. I was ahead of the game with PPE!
Hi Corin - nice to see you on Saturday. Good luck with the voyaging. D
I loved your video and the music!👍🏻👍🏻
whoever taught you how to rebuild boats taught you some outstanding skills.
Thanks John. I see you have some ship design related videos on your channel. Funnily enough I am going to study yacht design next year at Solent university so some of your videos will make interesting watching.
@@CorinNelsonSmith I taught people how to get an entry level 100 ton Captains license. The lockdown has just about ended that, but I am old anyway. All the best with your ship architects studies. I am sure you will do great. I worked at ship yards for a few years just to learn how ships goe together. Architects would design rebuilds of old vessels and barges and we would do the work. It was hard dirty work, paid well, but I liked seeing how dinner boats, tug boats and barges went together.
Splendid work, well done.
Well done young man, a very nice piece of work. Having done a similar restoration on an international 12, I appreciate the work that goes int such a project I especially liked the uplifting music.
BZ Corin, excellent video. Learned to sail on a Mirror many moons ago, I have an old 1971 Mirror I bought to renovate, feeling inspired to get my backside in gear and get on with it now :) Thanks for sharing.
ATB
Cameron
Very nice! And funny, I just got myself a mirror dinghy in half-bad condition, starting to restore it! Inspiring to see you succed! :)
Thank you for the vid. I've just bought my first dinghy, a Mirror, before Xmas. In good shape with decent varnish when I bought it, but to my dismay, have found the well-fitting cover it came with is not actually waterproof and the boat has had water sat inside it all winter. Am praying nothing bad has happened but I know nothing about woodworking or rot. This is vid could prove to be a godsend if worst occurs :(
Excellent presentation...Background audio best I've heard ...meticulous work produced a superb result.
Hi David, Thank you very much! I really enjoyed doing it, and have just bought a Merlin Rocket restoration project so stay tuned for that! I’ll be sure to pass your compliments on to the conductor. We recorded a CD back in 2018 that’s available here if you’re interested: www.pgs.org.uk/product/pgs-brass-encore/
All proceeds go to Portsmouth Down’s syndrome charity.
Absolutely outstanding work - both the restoration and the quality of the filming and the music!! Last summer I bought a Mirror which had been purchased as a kit in the late 80s and was never completed. I have been slowly building her so that she might sail for the first time in 40 years. I look forward to hoisting the sails of No 63657 this summer. Your excellent video has extremely useful and the best I’ve seen on UA-cam! Again very well done young man. 👌👨🏻
bri meb Thank you! I hope you do get a chance to launch her this summer.
Excellent work! I really enjoyed the film and soundtrack, i also learned loads, so thank you for that!
I have one waiting to be done!! Duane.
This is a brilliant video on many levels. The enthusiasm, practical info and the music. I’m just about to renovate 69460 and may use Donegal Green in your honour 👍⛵️😊
Thank you! I decided to make it because there weren't many detailed light restoration/renovation videos giving product recommendations etc that I could find so I'm glad you've found it helpful. I know green is supposed to be an unlucky colour on boats but I think it goes so well with varnished wood and the red sails that it's worth the superstitious risk! Good luck with the refurb!
You don't realise how much work goes in to painting and varnishing a little Mirror dinghy. You did a great job, be nice to have a rough idea of the costs involved.
Great job! I also had a mirror as my first boat. It had the number 26798 and it was also green.
Great job I'm just starting one
Nice work, she's looking great. For those jib sheets, I bolted a top plate to those wooden fairlead blocks and added angled fairleads and 'cam cleates'. They made so much difference for racing and solo sailing.
After the video those figure 8 jib cleats were replaced with modern cam cleats. You're right, they are much better, but for the purposes of the restoration I kept her as original as possible! She's now teaching some youngsters to sail which is exactly what I wanted for her.
Great music to accompany a great video
This is amazing... I have been offered an old Mirror that's been sitting in a friend's shed... I don't have anything like your skills though!
Neither did I before starting this! Almost anything can be found out by asking questions on the Mirror Dinghy FB forum and watching other videos. It really is mostly sanding, vacuuming and painting. There's no complex woodwork on a mirror dinghy because there are very few curves! Go for it!
I bought a mirror dinghy to restore but it was built with cheap plywood just fell apart. Then had an elderly G P 14 20 year old plywood was as good as day it was made.
That's a shame, a lot of mirrors were amateur builds at home, and I believe the plans were available to buy as well as the pre-cut plywood kits so you may have been unlucky and bought a poor quality one. Glad the GP14 was in good nick though!
Cool video and refreshingly different music. Thanks!
I have such fond memories of building and sailing our Mirror. She was named Jenny, sail No. 17742. My father brought the kit for about £70 through the Daily Mirror newspaper in the late 60s, I was about 10 at the time and was still racing her into my 20s
One of the most special things about the Mirror dinghy is the memories people have and the stories that go along with their builds. No other boat compares in that respect!
Nice to hear from my old school!
Amazing! When were you there? The PGS brass band leader got in touch with me saying that someone had bought the CD after watching this video as well, so it's getting around.
@@CorinNelsonSmith Hi Corin,
Hope you are well. I was at PGS 1971-78. A little while ago!
I’m restoring a 1972 Mirror at the moment.
Best wishes,
Paul
@@paulhardman1185Oh fantastic, my other Mirror is a 1971 build - 28423 Hurrah. I've had her since I was 11 and luckily have never had to do as extreme a refurb as young Bellatrix here, although I did need to replace the transom once after rot set in.
Best of luck with your restoration.
well done! You should be very pleased with yourself! The boat looks fantastic
Thank you, she looks a lot better than before that’s for sure! I’m trying to do the same thing to a 1986 Merlin Rocket at the moment and I’m realising how much simpler the flat sides of a mirror makes everything!
What a lovely job
Well done, Skipper!
Fantastic work!
СПАСИБО!!!
Like the Coracle.
Impressive work. I hope you're out enjoying the benefits. Fair winds!
You have done incredibly well here. It is a vast undertaking.
Those little Holt shroud chain plates failed on me! Just snapped off due to hidden corrosion underneath. I have now got stainless U-bolts, but my boat is not used for local sailing. Also not sure about wood screws for critical items like forestay plate etc.
I found the keel band screws have very little to go in to and I was getting leaks all the time so I have used Sikaflex as an adhesive now to bed the keel band on where the wood is thin.
On an old Mirror be careful that the tapes might be polyester which is not compatible with epoxy. If the tapes start to fail, it is easily taken of with a hair dryer.
If rubbing down varnish, I find wet and dry is quite good and allows me to put on a new coat over the top. Varnish likes many coats!
Anywhere suspected of rot, you can apply Blue Antifreeze and let dry for 48 hours which will kill spores.
Well done it's a great project. You will gradually refine the rig of the boat as you test it.
Mirror Cruising Thank you very much! I’ve watched a lot of your videos with a mixture of awe and terror. Between you and Roger Barnes and Steve Parke, you have inspired me to start dinghy cruising, although in a Drascombe not a Mirror. I’m planning to make my first major voyage from Bosham to Bembridge in the summer, and your videos have helped me plan the route as I haven’t really been outside of Chichester Harbour before. Thanks for your tips on the mirror, I am just starting work on another Mirror that I have owned for 7 years so will bear your advice in mind. Fair winds to you!
@@CorinNelsonSmith Thank you, Corin. First try just going out of the Harbour to the West Pole and then back. Do it an hour before high water, so the tide takes you in again. Remember just increase in small steps each time, not mega expeditions. Good sailing. D
Mirror Cruising Thank you for the advice. I’m doing my RYA Day Skipper Theory at the moment (online) and practicing my chart work. I’ll have a look for the west pole on the chart. Do you think the Drascombe (draws about 1.2m with the plate down) would be able to take a shortcut across the bar just before high tide?
@@CorinNelsonSmith Hi Corin
Do you mean close inshore, near the beach? Yes it is usually OK but be careful of the prevailing conditions and sea state on the bar. If going further out, beyond the Chi Bar beacon, I would go right out to the West Pole to be sure. D
Both of you do great work in this space . Good job Mirror Cruising and Corin .
I used to race a Mirror when I was 10 years old (about 50 years ago), out of Barry Yacht Club. It was fully kitted out with a spinnaker as well. The most memorable part of this time was my marmite sandwiches swimming about in the bottom of the boat. My mum always insisted that I take sandwiches with me. Great, great fun. Good job on the resto. It's a shame you can't transmit the smell of the boat via UA-cam. :-)
Lovely! Can't go wrong with marmite sandwiches on the water, but perhaps not IN the water!
Excellent video. Well done . 10/10.
She looks fantastic, going to be repainting mine green as bright yellow at the moment. The green floor works well and yes varvished floors are too slippery when wet.
Thanks! Personally I think the colour matched floor looks better than bare varnish on a mirror anyway, as well as being much safer. I’ve done the same on my other mirror too, but in dark blue. The only downside to green is that it’ll blend into the sea if you ever turtle and need someone to spot you from far away! I’m currently working on a merlin rocket project at the moment, thinking of dark red and gold as the colour scheme for her.
I'm just here for the music 😂
Very well done. The next job is that Mini hiding in the barn............................
Stephen Thomas It certainly is! Unfortunately she’s going to be professionally restored as I don’t have any metalwork skills, so no video on that.
nice work
well done handsome boy havegood sailing..
Nicely done.
Lovely job. I would advise not standing in the boat when it is out of the water though as you can damage it.
Superb work young man. In a world where people are becoming increasingly useless with their hands, you have learned valuable skills that will see you through life. Keep it up! I have just built my own sailing dinghy from scratch (well I am still going) and had a go at recording it for UA-cam, but you have done a much better job with your filming, thank you for the inspiration and ideas. Boat building isn't easy and I have made so many mistakes but that is half the fun. I went with green too, I think it suits a little boat beautifully.
ps I play Euphonium in the local wind band....we have two things in common.
Jason Stork Thank you! I’m really glad you enjoyed the video. Interestingly, my next (current) project and video is about building a galley box to take my Drascombe cruising, which is very similar to your design, and I wish I had seen your video before ordering the materials as I like your design/construction more than what I have planned! It is going to house a trangia stove and various foods and cooking utensils, however I am using 9mm marine ply, and after watching your video I think it may be too thin. I think your videos would be very popular with the Dinghy Cruising Association facebook group. I do think green suits small boats, despite it being traditionally an ‘unlucky’ colour! I have played percussion in the various school orchestras for 7 years and it’s been great fun. Fair winds, and I’m looking forward to seeing your future dinghy cruising adventures!
@@CorinNelsonSmith You have a Drascombe?!! How cool. The only thing I gave up on was the magnetic latches to hold the galley box down. It wouldn't sit properly so I am just strapping it to the floor with a couple of stainless steel eyes in the floor stiffeners and an adjustable strap over the top. One other thing....are those electric service lines going to your house in the background of your video? Be careful with that aluminium mast! Here is Australia we consider those lines as live (even though they are insulated) because the sun here has destroyed most of the insulation and it is cracked. Sorry, my safety obligations to society have just kicked in as I work in the electricity industry!!
Yes I have a c. 1979 Longboat Cruiser which is quite scruffy. I was planning to restore it this spring and get cruising in the summer but it’s been locked away in a shed some miles from my house! Unfortunately it wasn’t an essential journey to go and collect it... The line you see is a broadband/telephone cable which will be carrying some constant voltage, and more if the phone rings! Shouldn’t be enough to hurt and I’m more careful about not hitting it with the mast because of how unpopular I’d be if I took our entire house off the internet!
Hello!
Good job with restoring the Mirror!
I sailed the Mirror when i was young, mostly here in Sweden where i´m from. I sailed the Europeians and some Nationals and then i sailed the Tornado cathamaran for many years.
There is a "thin - easy to read - book" that i can recommend for you; Guy Wilkins - "Mirror Racing". It contains "easy- to - follow - tips" regarding equipment and how to sail even faster.
Best regards / Peter
Thanks Peter! Interesting, I will keep a look out for that book.
well done, chap. 👏
Out of interest: Did yo get galvanic corrosion betweeen the steel screws and the brass band or did the epoxy prevent this?
lovely lovely job, but why didn't you re tape the joints on the bottom of the boat, or did i miss that, can i ask where you got your halyards from, the boat is a credit to you well done.
Hi there, I'm glad you enjoyed the video! To answer your question about the fibreglass tape on the hull, I didn't re-tape it because I thought the original tape still looked in very good condition after I got the paint off, but looking back I do wish I'd taken the opportunity to put an extra layer of tape on as it probably won't get done again now for a few years. It was all a big learning experience for me though, so something to remember for next time!
Oh and I forgot to add, Mirror shrouds are available from Trident UK that are cut to size and they also sell the forestay and jib strop. £29.30 for shrouds and £17.65 for forestay and jib strop. Hope that helps!
Bravo bravo!!bella!!!
Grazie!
I loved watching this. I did notice after you drilled new pilot holes you added nothing to prevent rot before putting the screws in. (Have you thought about sharing this video to the Facebook Group "People who love Mirror Sailing Dinghies"?) Looking forward to seeing her on the water... WELL DONE !!!
Thank you! It was a good project to have over the winter, the only trouble is now this 'project' Mirror looks better than my original Mirror! With the new keel band, I filled the old holes with epoxy first, and then covered the entire length of the keel in epoxy, including over the new holes, before screwing it down for the final time into the wet epoxy. I hope that is enough to prevent rot there. I have not seen the "People who love mirror Sailing Dinghies" Facebook group, but I'll certainly check it out. She'll be out in Chichester Harbour as soon as it's legal!
Informative fun methodical patient meticulous a credit to yourself ..now go sail
What grade of sandpaper did you use please? Ps scratch that, great effort by you helping me realise I haven't the time or inclination. Nice job by the way.
Great job, could you suggest a good brand of varnish?
Hi Sam, I've always used International Compass varnish, but everyone has different opinions. I probably wouldn't bother with an expensive two pack varnish on a mirror dinghy, as the thin plywood does flex a bit which could crack a hard finish varnish.
👍🏴☠️⛵
Brilliant job..What did you insert into the thwarts before the screws to hold the toe straps underneath?
Thanks John, from what I recall I think I just drilled and countersunk pilot holes, and then put a drop of varnish into the holes to prevent rot.
After the yellow paint was off the ply has a distinct purple color. Mine had been "Smoothed" with polyester "Bondo" body filler of that color. Is that what had been done to yours?
Robert Lord I hadn’t thought about it to be honest. I thought it was just an aluminium primer layer but you’re right, it does have an unusually purple tint. Thanks for the explanation!
@@CorinNelsonSmith "Bondo" also has a distinctive smell. Sort of a "plastic" vibe.
Nice that you'd take this on, but a full restoration would involve re-fixing the gunwales rather than just bunging some filler in the gap.
Man you are the type of dude to correct people on the way they write their name huh. Goddamn man it’s close enough, the kid did a great job, restoring a boat older than you, give him some credit or fuck off @MikeAG333
Is that a coracle hanging from the rafters?
Harold Smith It is indeed. I do have another video on UA-cam about building it, just click on my channel to see them all!
Great stuff. And what year is the Mini in the garage?
Ian Barnett Thanks! The mini is a 1999 Mini 40th anniversary. Just before BMW started making the modern rubbish. Hoping to have it restored fairly soon as I have no skills whatsoever with metalwork.
@@CorinNelsonSmith Speak to Ben at Mill Road Garage, Freshwater, IOW.
@@CorinNelsonSmith If you can do such a good job on wood, metal will be a cinch for you! (Or make a wooden Mini!!!)
I think this would have been a more impressive Extend Project
What’s the name of the song at 5:00 minutes?
It’s Cossack Ride and Slavonic Dance by Brunon Baron, arr. Ray Woodfield. One of my favourites to perform and record :)
Anyone have a time lapse vid of building a mirror from a kit? I would pay for that!!
revwesley There definitely are some. I believe the video titled ‘owen’s boatbuilding slideshow’ is one.
Ditch the music for christ's sake, WTF?!?!?!
video spoilt by stupid music
comment section spoiled by stupid comment
you can please some some of the time and the others aren't worth it.
I used an industrial orbital sander, it took only 2 hours to sand down the entire mirror dinghy,