styge

Oh, she's a tank alright. But a fleet footed one! At least I think so, and talk about stable!

Move to top. Boy I just priced up the aluminum I used and it appears to have shot up over 428% in five years. Unbelievable.

Wow, I just reread my post! The Aluminum sheet used was 3/16" and 1/8" NOT 3/4" and 1/4!!!!

Hi everyone, Given my financial situation and some unforseen medical expenses, I am actually considering selling the Tin Bin. A few of you know of my boat, a few of you don't. I will attach a picture or two for the latter. I'm not sure what I should be asking for it, I feel I know what it's worth to me, but doubt I could get that amount. But if there are any interested parties, please feel free to call or email and we can bash out a number! As for the boat, again for those that don't know about the Tin Bin, here's some info. Hull and bulkheads are 3/8" 5051 Marine grade aluminum. (Practically bombproof!) Seats and deck are 1/4" 5051. Complete and ready to sail. Amazingly nimble for her 750lb fighting weight. She's a little rough and ready, and I can't say I wasn't completely done finishing her, but that's the nice thing about working in this material, it's waterproof, painted or not! It's mainly the inside areas that need prettying up, otherwise shes perfectly usable as she is. I've had a few memorable camping trip with her and talk bout solid and stable in a swell! Also, she'll clip along at 7 knots on half throttle from a 4hp outboard. Anyway, I can divuldge more to those interested. FYI, she's in Juneau, Alaska and shipping to Seattle would be a piece of cake. We get two big freight barges per week. Thanks for your time. Styge Smith - styge@gci.net - 907 364 4694 (well, not having much luck posting pics, so call me and I'll email you some!)

here's a couple more

Here's some pics from this past week. I was able to take her out twice during the week. Both days were very light and variable (probably a good thing!) and she behaved wonderully. I can't wait for a bit more wind.

Here's some more. And now that I know that they posted. These were from early March. We had a very heavy snowfall this winter, upto three feet fell at one point. We also had all the snow from the roof come down into the yard right in front of the boat and buried the neighbors car. Anyway, as the boat was somewhat out of sight ( and therefore out of mind) it filled with snow very early on. Then it melted and refroze into a solid block of ice. This was added to by more than three feet of snow. I had my hands full with work and keeping the driveway clear till I noticed the boat leaning to one side. I figured the wheel had sunk into the ground a little. It was another two weeks or so before I dug my way close enough to the trailer to see that both tires had burst from the weight. So, I tried jacking the traier up and snapped a suspension spring in the process. I eventually got it up off the trailer on blocks. It then had to sit there in a block of ice for another month or so. It's just as well I went with Aluminum, othwise I would now be boat less. No major damage was done. A coupole of seat panels got a little bulged form water being inside the seat compartments and freezing. Not much I can do about that and as far as I can tell after two sail trials now, doesn't seem to have negaively effected anything. Anyway, heres a couple more pics. Enjoy! Oh, and I'm seriously considering changing Tin Bin's name to Endurance. I certainly felt like Shakleton a few times, this past Winter!

Let try this again, Here's some pics from March. I'll see if the pics post before going into detail.

Okay, We're getting there. I have the program and tried twice last night to post but now I'm getting a comment back stating " the upload folder is full" So what's that about? I'm starting to think I'm cursed!

Well Ray, Gen the complete lack of of sandy coastline, except for two small stretches, and that Juneau sits in the middle of a temperate rain forest, wood didn't seem like a viable option. As for the sheet, it wasn't cheap, I was making good money that year. I haven't checked, but I dread to think what it would cost now, with the way all raw material cost have soared in the past few years.

Weight is around 800ls. Pretty hefty, but when all said and done, it only sits an inch deeper in the water!

Ooops, I just notced your post. sorry, I'm on a time crunch. It seems my new post is still valid though as the size of the file seems to be my sticking point. I look forward to your advice. Thanks again!

Frank, I'm not sure if this is the right place to be asking, but I am having one heck of a time trying to post a picture. I have tried adding a photo as an attachment and I get an error because the file is larger than 192Kb. Just one of my photos is 791Kb and thats after I have dumbed it down to 600 x 800 pixels! Am I doing something wrong. I pretty conversant with PC's. Not so much with digital photo editing. Is there a way to reduce the file size to meet the limit, or am I missing something out completely? I would greatly appreciate your help. I am running XP and Explorer 7. Thanks

I experienced a defining moment today. I took Tin Bin out complete with her sails. It was a wonderful sunny day, calm, just a hint of wind. Perfect for the first trial run. She was perfectly mannered, we ghosted along and came about on a dime, even when it seemed like there was no wind at all. I can't wait to see how she handles with a slightly fresher breeze. I'd post pictures, if I could figure out the process! I've tried several times to post my "Tin Bin encased in ice" pics. As soon as I figure it out, I'll post 'em.

Frank, I am having one heck of a time tryig to post some pictures. Do I click on the insert image icon, or click on the add attachment button. Either way, I'm not having any luck. What's really frustrating is that I'm pretty handy with a computer! So, what am I missing? Please help. I've got lots a ics to post!

Well that's an interesting approach I hadn't thought of. I like it. You mention booms though, not sprits. I wonder if the same approach could be applied to sprits without it too complicated.

I have entertained the idea of an outboard bracket, but it wouldn't really help me as the height of the outboard cowl is almost 18" of the transom. Same with mounting on the rudder, wouldn't help. I'm thinking I will need to add a boom gallows of sorts and add a traveller to that it I want a completely unhindered sheet. The only other idea I had was a motor well, and don't really want to go there!

Miraculously, Tin Bin is almost ready to get wet under sail after four years of the odd dip with the outboard. Havig mounted the sheet blocks on the transom, I've noticed the sheets look like they will be fouled by the outboard. I can't really set it up to put on a take off easily as its a little on the heavy side. It's a 4hp Suzuki. Has anyone dealt with this issue? Does anyone have any ideas on the subject. Thanks. (at some point I'll be posting some fun pics of Tin Bin encased in ice this Winter!)

Hey guys, I am going to be having a fixed point on the mast for attaching the snotters on the Tin Bin. I'm curious how much tension be be exerted on the anchor points by the snotters. I have a couple of medium sized eye straps knocking around that I could use, or should I be thinking in terms of sometyhing more substantial like a pad eyes? Thanks Styge Smith CS17 Tin Bin Juneau AK.

I really do need to find a better name for my boat! It seemed appropriate at the time.

The weight of the boat is around 700lbs. So you won't be dragging it up any sandy beaches, but it doesn't sound like that will be a problem. As for building one, it may be easier to get a guy who's been welding, (and in particular, welding boats) for a while. I thought about doing the welding myself, but I figured my finished project should probably not be my practice piece, that gets expensive. It was all I could do to keeps up with my guy. I was cutting and grinding and he was welding, welding, welding! But it turned out great. If you decide to proceed with it, online metal in seattle is great for souring the aluminum, and they were happy to deliver it to Alaska Marine Lines to get barged up here. I went with 6065, I think, its a good marine grand and is a little more pliable (which isn't saying much) than other better grade. I have originally thought I would just do the hull and fit out everything inside in wood, but once the project was underway and we had a flow to the build process, it just seemed (at the time) to make sense carrying on in alumnium. The panels were coming together at a rapid rate, and I'm not the patient type, plus every additional panel meant less maintenance. Right now the only wood to be found on the boat is the tiller! Anyway let me know if you decide to proceed as there are a few things I would have done differently were I to do another one. Regards Styge Smith Juneau, AK

Richard, I checked out your blog page and am very interested in the downhaul setup. Can you please tell me what brand you used. The piece attached to the clew (or is it the tack - I can never keep those two straight in my head!) looks very slick! Nice pics, BTW. Styge Juneau AK

yes Hirilonde, Plast-dip is the stuf you dip tool handle into. It also comes in spray can form now. The spray can is the type I'm referring to. As for the surface of the rudder, I have it very smooth indeed, but the actual feel of the test surface is like that of a rubber mat, you can't really slide your hand over it easily and it makes me wonder if it will cause undue drag through the water. I'm probably over thinking this.

To briefly summarize: I have an Aluminum CS17, I am finishing up my rudder (also aluminum) and recently posted a question about rudder spacing. The subject of foil profiles for the rudder came up from JeffM which I pondered long and hard. I finally decided it had merit and added a very nice curve to my otherwise flat plate rudder, using bondo-glas. Came out great. As a finishing touch, I was planning to spray a fair portion of the rudder using Plasti-dip. It is very durable and would protect the seat tops when I stowed the rudder. Now, I tried a sample spray on a test piece and it came out okay, but sets up with a slightly rubbery finish that is also very grippy, rather like the sole of a running shoe! Now, it seems to me that this may not be the ideal coating for the part of the rudder that in the water! Does anyone have any insight into whether this type of coating will have a negative effect on the handling / performance. It seems to me, that whenever you see the racing yachts, all their submerged surfaces are shiney and slick! Am I barking up the wrong tree or does anyone have any suggestions as to what I should consider coating my rudder with to finish it off, perhaps some type of epoxy paint. Any thoughts anyone? Thanks in advance. Styge

Great, thanks guys. That helps me out alot. Things aren't overly obvis to me at first glance, and building in aluminum adds a little slant to things as well! Hopefully I can post some pictures when I have it rigged!