Peter Batchelor

I used a long shaft Honda air cooled 2HP motor on my CS17, and never had any issues with cavitation. Previously I had used a Minn Kota RT55 long shaft, which was great, but the 100AH battery that I used weighed over 30KG, and that was mounted in the aft locker, making the stern pretty much always sit in the water. I changed over to the Honda because of the weight, and the ability to top up the motor while out on the water... Peter

The weather has been great in Melbourne, and I'm looking forward to getting a bit more sailing done over the next few months. Earlier this week we were able to go for a sail in company with my old CS17. You can see a video of both boats sailing, at https://www.batchelors.net/boats/building-a-b-b-yacht-designs-lapwing-16 Unfortunately, the footage was just from our respective boats, so there isn't any that shows us together... I really like the CS17, but I think the Lapwing is a far prettier boat... Peter

Looking great Murray! When do you expect to have her on the water? Peter

I was able to watch them by downloading them John. Looks like you had fantastic conditions! Peter

Looking great Murray! Are you planning on a clear finish? Peter

Looks like you had great conditions John. The photos are great, but I can't see the videos, just hear them. Peter

I'll second David's advice. I don't think a strip of fibreglass over the top would solve the problem. A piece glued to the bottom of the seat, covering the split area by at least a few inches, would be your best option. Then, perhaps you could send back the top of the seat, scrape out along the crack to open it up a bit more, wet it with epoxy, and then fill it with a fairly runny mix of thickened epoxy. Wait an hour or two, and scrape off any excess so that you don't have to sand it off later. You might need to repeat the process, perhaps with some sanding filler instead of a glue filler, and then sand again, before coating the area with clear epoxy, and then repainting. Peter

Murray, the paint was Aquacote, from Boatcraft Pacific. The colour is Sand. You can see a colour chart at https://boatcraft.com.au/informationpages/aquacotecolourcard.htm. I’ve used Aquacote on a couple of boats now and I am very happy with it. Peter

Really hoping for a day with better wind before we stop for Winter...

Looking good Murray! Great to see more progress on another Lapwing... Peter

We got out on the water again on Sunday. Still not a great deal of wind, but more than the first sail... The photo shows how I store the booms whilst the sails are furled. The snotters are released until the head of the booms are below the foot of the sail, and then the sails are furled, and then the boom is held to the mast by the shock-cord equivalent of a soft shackle. Here's some footage of us (slowly) sailing around another boat on the lake... Cheers, Peter

Don, have you thought about using parrel beads on the loops you use on your main? You said that you didn't like the knots. Thinking back to when I was water-skiing as a teenager, we used hollow, floating ropes, and made a loop by feeding the end through the outside of the rope into the centre about a foot from the end, and then slid the end further into the rope. Tension stopped it from coming out, or we could pass the end back to the outside of the rope and then feed the bitter end of the rope right through it, to stop it from sliding at all. You could do that sort of thing, and combine it with some parrel beads and a toggle to make a quick-release loop, like my sketch. For Pitthirrit, I'm planning on lowering the snotter below the foot of the sail, still attached to the wishbone, furling the sails, and then standing the wishbone up against the sail, using a strap to keep it in place. We're sailing again next Sunday if the weather cooperates, and I'll take a photo then. Peter After writing this, I wondered if there was anything about loops and toggles online, and it turns out that "soft shackles" are not new ? Have a look at the video on https://www.yachtingmonthly.com/gear/softshackles-38323

Thanks Don

Thanks for going to the trouble of taking the photos Don. Lots to think about ? Peter

Thanks Steve, Skeena looks like a great boat as well ? Peter

Hi Don, I like the idea of nylon sleeves to cover the sails. I might have to try that. Do you have any photos of your current lacing system? Peter

Thanks PadrePoint, I enjoyed the build, and I'm sure that I'll enjoy sailing her as well ? Peter

Hi Gira Gira, I got the profile for the wishbones from https://grabcad.com/library/wishbone-boom-design-for-classic-day-sailing-boat-1 (the measurements can be seen in Wishbone1png), and then adjusted the size to suit my masts and sails, plus a bit of leeway. I definitely didn't want to end up with the wishbones being too short... Whilst the CAD drawings are for a single-piece boom, I made mine so that they could be opened at the aft end. There's enough flex in the booms that I can open the aft end to slip it around the mast, and then secure the boom on that side with a bolt through the connector piece that is glued onto the other half of the pair. I chose to open the aft end as it was closer to being a straight section of the boom, so there wasn't much sideways force through the laminates. The contrast between Western Red Cedar and Tassie Oak would look great. I've found that Tassie Oak can spring back quite a bit, even when laminated (my rubrails are Tassie Oak, and whilst I managed with just two laminations it would probably have been better to make them in three laminates. So, thinner laminates for the boom would probably be a good idea, as would leaving it in the jig for a few days to let the epoxy completely cure, particularly now that it's getting colder here in Australia... Cheers, Peter

Hi Dave, I went with the luff sleeve sails for now, as that's what I had used on my CS17, and I liked the simplicity and speed of setup. Like you, I keep my boat garaged, so leaving the sails on the masts isn't a particular concern. At some point I might decide that I do want to change over to sail tracks, and battened sails, and if so, then there's nothing stopping me from doing that. I almost went with tracks, as I like the idea of faster reefing, but eventually decided that with the sort of sailing we do (no racing) then the smaller sails were perfectly adequate. I made the wishbone booms because of the technical challenge, and because I'd talked about them so often when sailing the CS17 that it was something that I just had to do ? On launch day I was fortunate enough to have my old CS17 on the water to compare with, and the open layout of my Lapwing gave a much larger cockpit space than the conventionally laid out CS17. If/when we capsize, it will be interesting to see what difference not having buoyancy all the way to the gunwales in the bow will make with regards to ease of righting her. Peter

Hi all, After a build taking almost 15 months, our Lapwing 16 has been launched. I was hoping for a much faster build, but the pandemic hit not long after I started, and work got busy, so I wasn't able to spend as much time on the boat as I would have liked. This is a slightly modified version of the design, as, after consulting Graham and Alan, I didn't add the decking, and opted instead to keep the boat completely open. I also opted to build wishbone booms and birsdmouth masts. We've called our Lapwing Pitthirrit, a Masked Lapwing in the Dhauwurd Wurrung language of the people of Gunditjmara country (South Western Victoria, Australia). Pitthirrit is pronounced Pitirit. I've only had the chance for one sail in her so far, in very light winds, but we're very happy with her. I've put up some pages documenting the build, at https://www.batchelors.net/boats/building-a-b-b-yacht-designs-lapwing-16 Quite a steep learning curve, and I'm glad that I build a CS17 beforehand, but I enjoyed the process, and am happy with the result. Cheers, Peter

Hi Tom, I'm thinking about building wishbone booms for my Lapwing, and wondered about the technique you employed when building yours. Am I correct in assuming that for your 8:1 chord ratio for the finished wishbone you made a jig for half of that total depth (plus half an inch) and bent the 5 glued pieces for each side of the wishbone around it? Thanks, Peter

So many good designs, so little time ?

Our boat's been sold. Now to start thinking about the next one ? Peter

The time has finally come to build the next boat (a CS17 Mk3) , but in order to do this I need to sell the one that currently lives in the garage I will use as my work space. Kirsty Ann (CS17 #122) was launched in January 2006, and has provided years of safe and enjoyable sailing on Albert Park Lake, Port Phillip, the Gippsland Lakes, and the Nooramunga Marine & Coastal Park. Her shallow draft meant that we were able to sail up the narrow and shallow channels between the islands behind Wilsons Promontory to camp in some beautiful and remote locations. The boat is coated in BoatCote expoxy, with fibreglass sheathing on the lower chine. For a very low-maintenance finish, she is painted in white Aquacote, with the deck painted in clear Aquacote. A folding cuddy provides a bit of protection from the weather if needed. When stored, the masts lie on crutches that fit into the mast steps. Registered until January 2019, Kirsty Ann is being sold on a Dunbier trailer (registered till December 2018, and comes with a spare wheel), with a Honda 2HP long shaft air cooled outboard, and all the necessary safety gear, including lifejackets. Price: AUD $6500. You can contact me at peter@batchelors.net. Cheers, Peter

Nic, coming to this conversation late, sorry. I've used BoatCote and 2 boats and 3 kayaks, and I've found it to be excellent. If you're getting to the stage of painting, their AquaCote is also great. A good range of colours, plus a UV-stabilised clear finish. Gives a very hard finish, and can be brushed, rolled, or sprayed, and washes up in water. The paint is activated by the addition of a catalyst, and once you have finished you can tip the rest back into the pot to use again next time as the catalyst only activates it for a limited time. Cheers, Peter