Windy Way Re: modifications.
I bought my Spirit new in 78 for $9000. Within 3 months, I was cruising it to the Bahamas. That shakedown cruise shook it down more than anticipated.
The rudder fell off because the 2 gudgeons bolted to the transom that received the 1/2" stainless rod/hinge were cheaply made and broke apart. Had a line on it so it wasn't lost.
The mast bent and flexed so much, I was in fear of dismasting.
The aft boom mainsheet was a pain in the a** because there was no control on a broad reach or run and it was always slapping the driver up the side of the head.
The cable for the swing board was glassed into the board so repairs/replacement was impossible.
The plastic forward hatch flexed and leaked when taking big waves over the bow.
The poptop was secured with 4 flimsy fasteners which I thought was totally inadequate for emergencies like a rollover.
So here is what I did to make it sound.
For safety, I added a stern rail. An additional scupper/cockpit drain was added by glassing a piece of 4" PVC straight out the back. The openings were covered with PVC shower drains. The forward hatch was replaced with one built out of plywood and glassed. I used the original as a template. The poptop was secured with 6 much larger bolts and I fabricated 2 mahogany boards that spanned the opening inside. These were attached to the holddown bolts while underway on a crossing. In theory, they would prevent the top from being ripped away in a rollover. I never had the chance to test my theory. I added safety harnesses with snapclips to the gear locker so anyone on the outside in heavy weather was always strapped on. I added an RDF; no GPS in those days. Hell, we still navigated with a compass and sextant. A large Danforth with 15' of galv 3/8" BB chain and 100' rode hung from the bow pulpit. Rode/chain was stored in a fiberglassed anchor locker built into the bow area under the deck above the Vberth. Drainhole through the side and access through a standard hawsepipe fitting on deck.
For convenience and performance, I bolted a traveler across the seats and moved the mainsheet to midboom. It did create a step-over but I didn't care because the lowest companionway board always remained in place while underway to keep following seas out of the cabin. A combo steaming light/deck light on the mast. New larger running lights off a Hunter mounted on the bow rail. Spinnaker gear and jib travelers. Larger, selftailing Lewmar winches. DataMarine knot and depth meters.
This is really straining my brain to try to remember all this stuff from 32 years ago.
OK, the kickup rudder worked well and was quite adequate for lake sailing but didn't last 5 hours in a following sea. Ripped away as easily as opening a beer can. It was not designed or built for ocean work. Using the original gudgeons as a template, I fabricated 4 heavy duty ones with the help of an old Aussie sailor in JackTarr Marina, West End, Bahamas. They were tig welded inside and out whereas the originals were only welded on one side. That's why they broke. The lowest gudgeon was mounted just above the waterline and the kickup portion of the rudder was through-bolted to it when underway to prevent any side to side movement. There is a lot of leverage on that rudder when slewing down the backside of 20 footers. This solved all my rudder problems. Just had to remember to unbolt it before getting into the shoals.
The dinky little mast and boom were woefully inadequate. Watching your mast turn into a pretzel in 40K winds is just plain scary. So upon my return to the US, I scrounged a mast and deck step and a boom from a Catalina 25. Cut to fit, and since it was complete with 1/4" rigging, I now had double lowers instead of the single 3/16" originals. I hated the toe- stubbing chainplates poking up through the deck, so I attached 3 12" SS chainplates to the outside of the hull on each side (like the factory did on the backstay), just bigger and stronger. Since the mast stepped forward, I had to release the aft lowers before stepping. No biggie.
The swingboard cable was replaced with a larger diameter and was attached to a bail that I through-bolted to the board. This job was done completely underwater while swinging on a hook in Great Sale Key, Bahamas. The original had broken. Thank God I had scuba gear. I never thought to add a block like you did, but it never gave me any more trouble.
The only interior mods that I can remember was the addition of a 8" Beckson inspection port just aft of the mast post because there is a hidden, inaccessible bilge area there that always holds a lot of water. I also found a few well dented beers in there when I opened it up. (I stored beer in the bilge to keep it cool in the Bahamas. No ice. Never knew about the 'secret' bilge). I added removable baskets under every seat locker to keep stuff dry and out of the bilge. Actually bought teak/holly for the sole but never installed it. Bare fiberglass was just easy to deal with. At home, I rolled carpet over it, but carpet has no reason on the ocean. Curtains on the windows, and across the Vberth.
I don't have photos of these mods but I hope my descriptions are complete enough so that you can visualize them. That pretty much covers it from stem to stern. Sailed the Lorilei for 10 years. Awesome boat and really fast. Clocked over 7 knots on a plane.
Oh yeah. The solid ash tiller that guided me across the ocean through the worst Mother nature could throw at me, is now installed on my C-26. I just had to keep it!
Stan