I bought the boat as a bare hull with gunwales, and fitted the woodwork myself. One day she will be finished! To the original specification I have added side thwarts with buoyancy bags under them, seats, lockers, etc.

Fay is a copy of a Shetland Foureen, with a high bow and stern and a pronounced sheer giving 10” freeboard amidships. There is very little stability at rest, but underway she is very stable. The lack of centreboard allows a lot of leeway: I’m lucky to get 50 degrees made good to windward, but when pressed she skids sideways rather than capsizing. She self-steers well, has never broached even when I’ve tried to make her, and has always gybed safely in all conditions. She does not ship water when being launched backwards in surf — 5’ waves best so far — and her best speed was 5½kn for 3 hours running in a f4 plus (I carry a wind speed instrument).

The tent is a sheet of reinforced plastic cut to shape with a hole for the mast. When in use it remains on the mast and is slid up at night, and down when sailing where it lies athwartships, securely rolled and tied down with shock cord.

TO ERECT TENT:

Unship boom. Slide tent up mast. Refasten boom. Attach whisker pole to mast and lash to stempost. Unfurl tent and tie to ropes previously slid under hull. Tighten shock cord draw-string.

The whole procedure can be performed ashore or afloat. Spreaders are often used over the boom, either thick foam rubber cushions, or alkathene water pipe.