FreedomYachts.org

Hi all,
Fyne Spirit was also built in Falmouth by Western Yachts, launched 1989. Hull 007 and very well built too. Fully loaded for cruising she has been weighed at 12.0 tonne, a little heavier than the designed displacement but also reflecting strong construction.

Regards,

The hull of my Freedom 39 Pilothouse Schooner 'Paradox of Plym' was built in the Isle of Man in 1988 The carbon fibre masts were 'grown' in the US and shipped to the UK, where they were plugged into the hull by Western Yachts of Truro, Cornwall, UK, where she was fitted out. Her original owner was a Dutchman who sailed her in the Netherlands then took her to and offered her for chartering in the Caribbean. Under new ownership she crossed and returned again and has also been sailed to and back from Portugal.

Like Mike's 'Fyne Spirit', she's a very strongly-built yacht which we are right now converting to a schooner junk with cambered sail panels. We got the mainsail up yesterday for the first time in strong winds that made the operation tricky to say the least. Foresail is now also aloft but we await a windless day or two to do the final tweaks of both before leaving our current base in Portland Marina (venue for the 2012 Olympic sailing events, see http://www.deanreddyhoff.co.uk/portland-marina/) to rendezvous with our daughter in la Rochelle, France, some time in July/August.

If this conversion interests readers, let me know and I'll post more pictures in due course. Here's a few for starters - and yes, we do plan to reduce the height of the height of the masts as per the rig designer's suggestion next time they're out!
Why the conversion? Well we've sailed junk schooners for 30+ years - Freedoms make for easy conversion.

Brian Kerslake
'Paradox', Freedom 39 Pilothouse Junk Schooner (almost)
Portland Marina, Dorset, UK.

Hi Crossjack
The Peenryn boatyard went into liquidation in june of 1990, my Freedom 35 "Goldrush" was just being completed at the time. I purchased her dec 05 and met the original owners summer 06, it was they who brought me up to date with the boats early history and the demise of the yard.

Cornishman

Hello & welcome!

Lynda and I sail "Castaway", hull number 37 from the IoM builders, and also fitted out and commissioned in Falmouth. Our home port is Lerwick, but "Castaway" has spent the past three seasons in Sweden. We have one CF and one aluminium mast, still with wishbones.

Hello. I have a Freedom 44 "Windwalker" which I bought in the US in 1999 and sailed back to the UK. She is moored near Plymouth from where we cruise Spain, France, Scotland and a very windy Ireland last year. 2 fully battened sails on "conventional" booms and CF masts. Great boat and easily sailed by my wife and myself. We treated her to new sails last year and a new 50hp Beta the year before, so, can never afford to change!! Just coppercoating the hull, which I have had to admit to my wife, seems to have turned from a reasonably simple process to a rather expensive and time consuming process, but she's worth it ( the boat not the wife!)
Good sailing