42 replies to this topic

[NeilB]

Two quick questions:

What is the location of the Mizzen. The plans indicate 123 inches from the bow, but to where (front, middle rear of mast) and from where? I assume it is from the middle of the bow to the middle of the mast on the level line where the bow is 10 inches higher than the corner of the stern and then determine the foot placement by using the 3 degree angle or 1 in 20 inch formula? But it would be nice to recieve conformation of this.

What is the width of the coaming and is only one strip of 1/4 inch plywood enough?

These migh seem like foolish questions, but for a beginning builder it is better to ask than to assume and make a mistake.

Thanks,

Neil

[makenmend]

Neil, the mizzen diamentions are from the bow to the centre line of the mast at the thwart, with that established and the boat levelled fore and aft then as you summized you can set your mast rake at 3 deg or 1" in 20". As for the coaming width that is a personal preference, but 1/4" is plenty strong when bonded to the carlin. I found it quite easy to bend the 1/4" ply to fit the deck radius simply boiling water in a large baking pan on a camp stove plus a small towel.

MM

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[NeilB]

Hi MM.

Thanks for the info. I especvially like your trick on bennding the coaming. Regarding the mizzen, since the aft of the CB trunk is 126 from the bow and the center of the mizzen at the thwart is 123 and the thwart extends a 1/2 inch aft of the trunk, this would put the center of the mizzen 3 1/2 inches from the rear of the thwart?

Neil

[makenmend]

On my boat the rear of the opening for the mizzen is 2" from the rear of the thwart, that is given 2.5" for mast diameter 3.25" to the centre.I think your doing as I did, overthinking , all of this instead of just "doing it" I would pour over the plans to obsesive amounts,you may be off a fraction here and there but you'd have to be way off to make a difference(measure twice cut once). Grahams plans if followed will get you where you need to be. Many times I just had to say to myself "just do it" and I got there, eventually..

Bending ply or most any wood with heat application not my idea,just borrowed from the more expierienced folks in the boat building arena

MM

[NeilB]

MM,

You are right - I do overthink not wanting to make a mistake and driving myself crazy in the process.

thanks

[Chick Ludwig]

I agree---just build the thing! It's amazing how things seem to work out when you actually start working. Grahams plans are really good and well thought out. Mainly be sure things are level and square. Locations a little forward or aft won't hurt.

[NeilB]

Some questions about floor boards:

 

Are they a good idea?

 

If they are a good idea how to you build them?

 

And, how do you get them not to interfere with the Anderson Bailer?

 

Thanks,

 

Neil

[Dnjost]

Neil -

 

there is a good photo of the floorboards on the CD that came with my plans.  Looks like you can customize these any way you would like. 

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[ecgossett]

The self bailer is located just outboard the mast step. I have had not problems with everything draining properly in this location. Floorboards should not interfere with it at all. If done properly mast step will keep it from coming back and bending the bailer.

 

If you don't want the floorboards to go on the floor you could use a piano hinge and have them fold along the trunk. This would require wood pegs or something for putting them up for sleeping / sitting on.

 

I'm finishing my floorboards right now using 3/4" x 4" fir. In fact the local lumberyard cut it for me to proper lengths and sold it by board feet. The only hard part is whether or not I should put a reinforcement on the seat hatches or just avoid that area all together.

[NeilB]

I was thinking about putting the boards aft of the thwart AND forward of the thwart?  Probably use some small blocks to hold them from slipping?.  Do you put them to the keel batten or do you cover the keel batten?

 

As you can see, what seems simple to you doesn't to me.  Maybe because this is my first boat building experience and I haven't been around boats much so I have very little experience to draw upon.

 

Any help would be appreciated and the more detailed the better,

 

Neil

[Peter HK]

Personally, in a bid to keep the boat as light as possible, I avoided floorboards and put on nonskid paint. Every little bit of lightness you can put on board improves the performance

My 2c worth. 

Cheers

Peter HK

[NeilB]

Thanks Peter for your 2c worth.  I will be keeping the boat at mooring through-out the season and was thinking about using the floor boards so that I didn't get wet feet after a rain.  also, to be honest, my floor has imperfections that the floor boards would hide,  I was going to add a non-skid additive to the paint for the final coats on the seats and maybe even the seat sides and the trunk sides?

 

Neil

[Brent]

The floor boards on my boat are really bunk boards like the picture above. I ended up leaving the port side at seat level almost all of the time. This is a favorite pace to relax on board. I also sleep on port side when voyaging. Mine are made of sassafras very similar to the picture above. The wood is completely natural, and they have weathered beautifully.

I do use them as floor boards when the going is cold. It is good to keep the feet dry when sailing in a winter gale.

[ecgossett]

My boards just lay down in the bottom.. Mainly intended as bunk boards, its been a nice addition to keep from slipping. I have non-slip additive painted in place, but the boards seem to give me better stability. I just put them right on the bunk board. The STBD side is easier to leave up as it is narrower already.

 

As far as feet dry most of the water splashes in from the centerboard, we have a vinyl cover that snaps on so if the centerboard releases it unsnaps as it comes up. The cover keeps the splashes from doing things like landing on sandwiches being made, and the water drips right into the bilge. 

 

Normally for feet dry I wear wading boots, and have found the individual waist high waders to be a godsend in cold weather combined with rain pants. It makes it very easy to hop in or out in shallow COLD water.

[NeilB]

Well, I’ve finally gotten to the point where I’ve fiber
glassed the hull (decided to do that since where I’ll be sailing there are a
lot of rocks) and am now completing final sanding and fairing.  My next step is to install the keel.

 

The instructions suggest that the keel should be fastened to
the hull by thickened epoxy and by screwing through the keel batten into the
keel.  That means getting under the boat
and aligning the screw to target the middle of a ¾ inch keel that is over an
inch away – doable put difficult (at least for me it is).

 

I’ve thought about just attaching the keel by thicken epoxy
and a fillet on the sides.  I think this
can be accomplished by a clamp on the transom and several straps along the
length of the keel?  But I’m wondering if
this is a good idea?  Will it be strong
enough or do I need the screws for extra strength, etc.?  My other thought is to screw from the top of
the keel and fill the holes with thickened epoxy.  I should add I will be installing a SS keel
guard.

 

Your thoughts would be appreciated,

 

Neil

 

[Peter HK]

I've always found that, until it sets, epoxy is quite a good lubricant and unless there are a few fasteners things will slip, so I would definitely screw it in position. I screwed from above through the keel into the hull and filled the holes later. The screws are not structural except at the ends as epoxy doesn't like peel stress and can let go over time but I usually fix that with a bit of fibreglass at the ends.

 

Cheers

Peter HK

[NeilB]

Peter,Thanks for the advice.  I think that is exactly what I will do.

[ecgossett]

I pre-drilled and countersunk my holes. Using bronze screws I pre-ran them to verify everything fit. After laying thickened epoxy in place, and putting screws in, I covered screw heads with a little bit of wax before before filling holes with epoxy. 

 

If I had to do it again I would use some kind of 1/8" plastic strip down the center, it would handle better on rocks then layers of glass. The kevlar I added over the glass later worked decent except in one place forward, where it always hits the rocks/beach first. The same place that got beat up when the tow truck towed it on board...

 

I'm putting a four foot piece of 1/8" aluminum on the front area of the keel this weekend to fix this problem. I will be using bronze screws with a plastic protection layer around it to keep the metals from reacting. You can buy a box of plastic protectors for screws from many marine canvas supply places for next to nothing. We used small ones all the time when installing SS snaps on aluminum hatch frames or steel built boats.

[Hirilonde]

 I covered screw heads with a little bit of wax before before filling holes with epoxy. 

In case you ever had to expose and remove the screws?

[ecgossett]

Yes  I consider the keel to be a part that may be sacrificial depending upon what happens.