Hi all
I was planning on getting a Soling for club racing on Pittwater for the start of next summer and put myself down on the mooring wait list as it was supposed to take 6 to 9 months. Well, 3 weeks later and they've issued my mooring licence and this has accelerated my plans a little
Where I live there are at least 20 Solings in a small area and I reckon every bay on Pittwater has half a dozen, but none seem to be for sale. I've only found 2 in the whole of the Sydney area so far.
I don't want a mooring minder that hasn't been sailed for years but I also need it to be cheap enough to get past the minister for finance.
So who can help me out here? There must be heaps available if you just know where to contact them.
Geoff
A year ago you could have bought mine for $2,650. It was advertised on Seabreeze and Gumtree. But now she lives in Refuge Cove.
There has certainly been a resurgence of the Soling class in the twilight fleet at Woody Point YC on Pittwater. This season there are five regular starters and Solings are matching the Jubilees and nearly up to Etchells numbers for the biggest one-design class in the fleet of nearly 80 boats. http://www.wpyc.com.au/assets/wpycss_race17_start2.pdf
If you can't find a Soling consider going up market for an Etchells. They are not only faster but much more pleasant to sail especially in gusty conditions. You may have to pay $8,000 for a comparable boat but it will be money well spent IMHO.
Or how about a Jubilee? There may not be any advertised but there are definitely good boats for sale on Pittwater. The class association would be a good place to start or you could PM me.
Always the way with moorings, huh? When you need em, Waterways drags their feet, when you don't, they make you scramble! 
I take it the two you've seen for sale are http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/church-point/sail-boats/soling-one-design-racing-sailing-yacht/1096252879 & www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/seaforth/sail-boats/soling-fibreglass-twighlight-racing-sailing-yacht/1096013830? Yup, they're the only ones I know are for sale - but I think it's the whole mooring minder thing that keep a lot of them from being sailed. There is one on the south side of Iron Cove Bridge that hasn't moved for ages, maybe ask around at either Drummoyne Sailing Club or Dobroyd Point?
Mine was an eBay rescue for much the same reason ($356 was just cheap enough to scrape by!) and was in a bit of a state when I got her - running rigging needed replacing, bottom was desperate for a scrub. There's still a heap I need to do to really get her flying, but I've been sailing twilights out of Balmain this season and am sitting about halfway on the series ladder (I'd blame the skipper, rather than the boat for that!). So I guess even crappy mooring minders can have their day!
Incidently, if anyone has a line on any parts or old sails (I'd really love a spinnaker to play with), I'd love to hear about it 
Yeah Gravy, your old boat is pretty much exactly what I'm after, I guess timing is everything.
Another spanner in the works is that I actually only get 14 days to accept the mooring and the letter took 8 days to get here (obviously Newport is a rural area). Once I accept the mooring I have 45 days to put a boat on it. I was going to see where the mooring is before I decided whether to buy a cheapie/ mooring minder for the time being, but you don't get to know where the mooring is located until you accept it, very governmental thinking there.
Anyway, I'll toss in this mooring to the next bloke and go back to my original plan of getting something for late winter this year. Probably won't be any moorings available knowing my luck.
If anyone else stumbles upon this thread because they are selling a Soling then please still contact me.
Jethrow
There is one in terrible condition at Drummoyne SC. Next to the Swanson 25 near Boxer.
I could ask around when l am back to racing there?
I think it is a Soling, one could not see the deck from the guano.
The mooring people were ok when l bought my yacht in Qld. and booked a mooring in Sydney. I got the mooring in two months, while l was still up there and l told them, l will not be able to obey the 45 days rule. They said, do your best, when l told them l am sailing back south with the freshly purchased yacht.
I pulled in at Newcastle and done the rego transfer there. They bent over backwards to help me doing that and she said - l am going to ring them now... - and ten minutes later she came back telling me not to worry. "The mooring is yours, go as slow as you like, the 45 days got just extended another 45 days, all good."
It was a real service! Great!
This was in the days when MSB got killed and RMS just created.
Thanks Sir Gallivant but the average guano covered mooring minder isn't on my purchase radar.
I probably should have said that I intend to race this boat so I don't mind putting some new sails on and replacing some systems but some of our club races go out around Lion Island and other out to a mile or so offshore. I don't have an issue with racing these boats out there but the softness of the hull in the normal mooring minder just won't cut it on the ocean.
I'll know my boat when it comes along and hopefully everything else falls in place.
It would be worthwhile calling in to the RMS (Waterways) office at Bayview in the Quays Marina and speaking personally to the Boating Services Officer for Pittwater who is stationed there. They are open on Fridays and Saturday mornings. https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/service-centre/bayview-maritime-service-centre
You may be surprised to find that there is still some of the old fashioned customer service attitude left and it may give you the flexibility you need to source the correct boat in sufficient time.
I'm sure you will find a Soling eventually but another class that is showing up in twilight racing is the 5.5 metre. Probably a different price bracket though. For value for money, it is hard to beat a Soling, Etchells or J24. Good luck!
As of three years ago there was one north-west of Drummoyne SC, in Drummoyne Bay, that looked as if it was like Matty Hayes' or Nev Wittey's old boat from their 2000 Games efforts. I think it lived in a bag and the few times I saw it out it was going well. It had old NRMA sponsorship logo on the main and perhaps the hull. It was the best looking Soling I've seen in Sydney for years.
Google Maps seems to show one under a blue cover in the hoist that the Manly YC fleet used to use at David Marina at Balgowlah. Probably not cheap though!
Beautifully setup - everything's duplicated side to side and there's adjustments for everything! Here's us out the other week
Nice one PlaneRay, looks like a sweet ride!
Maybe once we get a bit of momentum going we can do an interdominion type Harbour V's Pittwater challenge for wet-sailed OD keelboats.
Beautifully setup - everything's duplicated side to side and there's adjustments for everything! Here's us out the other week
I picked mt Etchells up for less than $5k, near new (to me) main for $250!!!
If you can borrow a trailerhttp://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/lara/sail-boats/etchells-pamcraft/1101481938
And this one says make an offer!!
www.boatsales.com.au/boats-for-sale/private/used/SSE-AD-3568825/1985-ETCHELLS-ETCHELLS?cr=6&psq=%28%28Make%3DETCHELLS%26%28%28%28SiloType%3DDealer%20used%20boats%7CSiloType%3DDealer%20new%20boats%29%7CSiloType%3DPrivate%20used%20boats%29%7CSiloType%3DDemo%20and%20near%20new%20boats%29%29%26Service%3DBoatsales%29&pso=0&pss=Premium
Or ask if you can use the trailer for delivery!!
www.boatsales.com.au/boats-for-sale/dealer/used/OAG-AD-10482189/1990-ETCHELLS-ETCHELLS?cr=5&psq=%28%28Make%3DETCHELLS%26%28%28%28SiloType%3DDealer%20used%20boats%7CSiloType%3DDealer%20new%20boats%29%7CSiloType%3DPrivate%20used%20boats%29%7CSiloType%3DDemo%20and%20near%20new%20boats%29%29%26Service%3DBoatsales%29&pso=0&pss=Premium
Yep that one on Gumtree, no need for a trailer, it's only one bay from me and yes, we've already spoken 
