# Mistral 16 pocket cruiser



## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Hello to all
I just purchased a new Mistral 16 Cabin and I am in the process of restoring it while I wait for the next season. 
First, if there are any owners of the Cabin version I would appreciate some explanation or even a picture of the forward bulkhead and shelf. The former owner clearly wanted to access the forward compartment to secure the trailer U Bolt, which he remounted without any washers whatsoever... So it pulled out again... Fixed but now I still have an ugly hole that was cut with a jigsaw... I will install a 9x11 hatch.
However around the upper part of the bulkhead where it meets the hull there is approximately a 1/2" open space space that, I assume, must have been filled by some sort of gasket... I intend to fill it with marine silicone? Am I doing this right? Or is the bulkhead supposed to be detached from the hull? Seems strange...

Second question
Why is there a 2 or 3Kg cast metal rudder head ? Seems to me that with this contraption plus the 4HP outboard, things are staring to get a little heavy in the back. is it necessary? I could make a perfectly good wood rudder head out of some hardwood. what would it do to the sailing qualities of the boat?


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## Barquito (Dec 5, 2007)

> Second question
> Why is there a 2 or 3Kg cast metal rudder head ?


Just happened to see another thread that said the rudder can lift at speed. Maybe the weight is to keep is down. However, if you turtle, it will send it to the bottom of the lake.

Do you have any pictures of the hole in the bulkhead?


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Thank for your reply

Concerning the weight, your suggestion makes sense, I will make a plain hardwood rudder and see how she behaves. I don't like removing the rudder every time I trailer the boat but that bulk makes me nervous. Concerning the loss of rudder when turning turtle, there is a hold down rope that is attached to a V cleat on the tiller that holds the rudder assembly and the tiller together. The tiller is kept from falling out by the traveller mounted on the transom, or so one hopes...

Concerning the hole, I have included a picture. As you can see there is a shelf in front of the bulkhead, this is screwed to the hull with two small screws. When you remove the shelf, the bulkhead has exactly the same hole. Whoever did this was not aware of the double layer and cut through shelf and bulkhead together.

Now.. If you look at the rim of the shelf/bulkhead you will notice that there is a gap and that there is no paint in that area, so I must assume that there must have been a rubber gasket or silicone there, in fact the space behind the bulkhead seems to lead straight to the bilge and it would make sense if it were water tight... But then, who knows...


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## WGEwald (Jun 2, 2014)

Q. What is a "pocket cruiser"?

A. A boat that is really not big enough.

Just another foolish, overused, yachty term


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

It's big enough for me, however, I did not realize that I would,offend people if I used the term Pocket Cruiser which is the term used to describe it on some specs I found. If I have offended anyone by the use of this term, I sincerely apologize and will endeavor to buy a bigger boat as soon as I can scrape up the funds to do so.

Presently I am having a great time restoring the boat and customizing its interior cabin and the reason for my post was to get more details on the design from people with more knowledge and experience, not to discuss the merits of some terminology.


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## WGEwald (Jun 2, 2014)

Bfranchini said:


> It's big enough for me, however, I did not realize that I would,offend people if I used the term Pocket Cruiser which is the term used to describe it on some specs I found. If I have offended anyone by the use of this term, I sincerely apologize and will endeavor to buy a bigger boat as soon as I can scrape up the funds to do so.
> 
> Presently I am having a great time restoring the boat and customizing its interior cabin and the reason for my post was to get more details on the design from people with more knowledge and experience, not to discuss the merits of some terminology.


Just expressing my opinion on the term. 

I didn't say your boat is too small. Just sayin' the term always implies "this boat is nice but not really big enough" and it's been overused for many years. Sailing writers must think it's real salty to use it.


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## newhaul (Feb 19, 2010)

Here's the definition of pocket cruiser.

Pocket cruiser

A pocket cruiser, microcruiser, trailer sailer or pocket yacht is a small lightweight sailboat with a cabin, designed for recreational cruising. Pocket cruisers can be readily loaded on a trailer and towed by most passenger automobiles. 
Pocket cruiser Meaning/Definition of


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## WGEwald (Jun 2, 2014)

Some are not trailerable?

Sail Far Live Free - Sailboats, Sailing News, and Gear: Go Small and Go Now! 5 Pocket Cruisers to Take you Anywhere


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## WGEwald (Jun 2, 2014)

Part of the definition.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Exactly my thoughts, my definition is: if you can lie down, sit, eat and drink but you can't pee, wash nor cook, and the whole thing has a cabin and is trailerable then it must be a pocket cruiser. My Mistral is just that!  
Anymore suggestions on my bulkhead and my tiller issues ?


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## MarkSF (Feb 21, 2011)

I haven't had a Mistral, but I did have a Wayfarer, the boat on which the Mistral was based.

On my boat the rudder stock was wood, with steel reinforcing side plates. The rudder was physically prevented from floating up, by the traveller track. When the tiller was inserted, the traveller track was above the tiller and restrained it.

I can't see any reason not to fill the gap in the forward bulkhead. In fact I can think of two reasons you should do it : 1) Structural stiffness (if you use fibreglass) and 2) floatation.

The forward compartment on the Wayfarer was important to keep the boat afloat in a capsize. To do this it has to be sealed, of course.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Thank you very much Mark, it's as I thought but being new to boating I didn't want to do some outlandish modification that would alter the characteristics of the boat.

I will definitely seal those openings with fiberglass, I'm not new to this since I build cedar strip canoes as a hobby so I am pretty confident. I will,also install that hatch I mentioned because I may want to access this compartment to access my running lights and the U bolt and pulpit nuts . Better a waterproof hatch than a jigsaw , though I don't see why the Mistral people never thought of it.

Concerning the rudder, my set up is exactly the same with the addition of a rope attached to a V cleat on the tiller to prevent the rudder from swinging up on a fast run ( I assume). So perhaps that big cast metal rudder head is really redundant. I will experiment with a new rudder and see how she behaves... What can happen? I don't like the weight because every time I stow the rudder in the cabin I have to secure it well or it will start sliding around when I am trailoring ( is this a verb?) and act as a ram on the various bulkheads, which it may have already done judging by the pulverized gel coat in one of the lockers... Also it's darn heavy to install while in the water. 

Next spring I am planning on removing the iron centerboard to clean it and epoxy it to keep it from rusting again and then replacing the rusty old winch with a sexy new Fulton F2 1600 that way I won't get my fingers caught in the gears anymore. If you have any advice on this I will gladly accept any help I can get.

And then... I still have to attend a sailing school to keep me from going backwards like last weekend  

Thank you again for your advice

Bill


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## Barquito (Dec 5, 2007)

> Some are not trailerable?
> 
> Sail Far Live Free - Sailboats, Sailing News, and Gear: Go Small and Go Now! 5 Pocket Cruisers to Take you Anywhere


Maybe KWalter will tune in, to answer why he put those boats in that category.

Back to the OP issue:

Do you have access to empty the bilge? There should be some way to get water out. If so, then just cover the whole with whatever you want.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

I have a bronze drain plug in the stern and I will be installing a hatch on the bulkhead, just in case, I can also acces the bilge from the rear of the cabin. 
I was considering using the space to store the anchor rode by installing a small hatch on the deck as well... , the anchor itself could be secured to the pulpit. I find it a little cumbersome having to carry the anchor to the bow every time I want to lower it, it's a small boat and it's a little complicated to move carrying heavy things, perhaps this might be a solution as long as I keep the hatch closed while sailing. And the anchor hanging from the pulpit will give her a more "grown up" look


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## Barquito (Dec 5, 2007)

The anchor hanging from the pulpit may also throw the balance of a little. When you anchor, you could just lower it from the cockpit.


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## MarkSF (Feb 21, 2011)

Yes, I was also wondering if the very heavy rudder stock was intended to weigh down the stern, to make up for all the weight they added up front with the cuddy?

So is the centreboard weighted at all? Some people used to replace Wayfarer wooden centreboards with heavier ones.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Sorry For the delay and thank you for your interest.I was away for a while.
The centerboard is made out cast steel and weighs over 150 lbs or so. I haven't exactly weighed it myself but the weight is specified on a couple of specs on line. Judging by the effort used to raise it I would say it's between 100 and 200 lbs easy. It works almost like fixed keel because the other day we caught a bit of wind an the boat never capsized in spite of the fact that I was holding on to the mainsheet to keep my balance  while screaming to my other inexperienced crew member "how do you stop this f'n thing?", I never read beyon chapter five on Sailing for Dummies!
Just thought I'd share this because it was funny and laughed about it all the way home


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## newhaul (Feb 19, 2010)

You learned how to stop didnt ya and had fun at it :laugher:laugher:laugher
And it all ended well. That's what its all about


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## MarkSF (Feb 21, 2011)

Yes if it's gusty you should keep the mainsheet AND jib sheet in your hand and be ready to release them quickly.

I had to make some adjustments to the angle of the cam cleats on my Wayfarer, so that the sheets easily could be freed. You want them to pop out of the cleat when you lift them a little.

Most Wayfarer capsizes are associated with the use of large headsails, ie genoas, in gusty conditions. A large genoa does work like a great parachute. I used a 90% jib mostly, and the boat was very stable in gusts.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Well, we didn't quite stop... I turned the boat into the wind and it did stop...for a while until the wind caught the other side of the sail and we started going at full tilt the opposite way!! Finally my fearless son in law, a Marine versed in the lore of seamanship, lowered the sail and then we stopped!! Definitely taking lessons in the spring! I love sailing!


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## MarkSF (Feb 21, 2011)

If you want to stop, you should learn to heave to. In a small boat, it's particularly useful while you adjust something, top off the gas in the outboard, eat a sandwich, or whatever. The good news is that my Wayfarer heaved to extremely nicely.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Hi Mark Andy thank you for the advice. Seriously, it must be quite a stable boat since the water was almost at the gunwales but it wasn't going beyond that. The Jib I have is not overly large and I have learned to furl it in a strOng wind, which for me is about 6 knots... Just getting used to the whole thing. This year it's Lake St. Louis, Cape Horn will have to wait.

Interesting advice I just got from a Hornblower book... Apparently rolling out the guns on the windward side will keep the Boat under control...


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## MarkSF (Feb 21, 2011)

Talking about books, I suggest reading "Ocean Crossing Wayfarer: To Iceland and Norway in a 16ft Open Dinghy" by Frank Dye. He voyaged extensively in a Wayfarer including the voyage above. Not that I think this should give you any ideas, they had some pretty hairy moments. There is also "The biggest boat I could afford", in which Lee Hughes buys Frank Dye's Wanderer and sails it down the ICW.


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## Bfranchini (Sep 17, 2014)

Thanks Mark for the book suggestions, I will look them up on Amazon. Talking about heaving to, I just looked it up and I really must master it... Trouble is, the weather is getting a little chilly around here and I am not sure I'll get much sailing done before next May  I should really move to California... I bought the boat only a few weeks ago for $2,000 so my sailing season has been rather short. Hopefully we'll get a decent Indian Summer so I can try these new and wonderful techniques.


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## Railsailor (Jul 31, 2012)

I have the Mistral open cockpit. It has a fiberglass center board that I am changing for 1/2 steel trying to gain more stability. I didn't know the cabin version came with a cast center board. I am considering changing for the cabin model if I can find a good one.

Cheers

Peter


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## Tanski (May 28, 2015)

Poor boat! I had a Mistral 16 dingy when I was about 15-16 years old. Never felt the need for more stability at all, thats what the hiking straps are for!
Was a real hoot when you got it up on plane and the centerboard would start to resonate. I actually miss that boat, was my first "real" boat. Typical teen, sold it for a car....
I had that thing way out on the Atlantic (North shore New Brunswick) many times in weather I probably shouldn't have been out in.
Taught me how to really sail, proved to me that the limiting factor in most boats is the sailor and not the boat.


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