ltolson

Barry Thanks for the lessons. The rudder is installed per plans and I did a good job of making it aerodynamic. One thing I have noticed is my holddown doesn't hold down too well and the rudder seems to kick up regularly about 30 degrees. I'm not hiting bottom so it must float up. How important is it to keep that rudder vertical.? I do have the gills, but my tiller does go way past 30 degrees. I'll fix that.

It's disappointing but my daughter / cobuilder has yet to go out since the incident. She wasn't with me but the story has spooked her. I wasn't going to tell her however the first thing she said when she saw the boat was "Why are there weeds on top of the mast"? I've read the arguments regarding ballast for Weekenders and have yet to make up my mind. I'm afraid the extra weight would sink her if she did go over.

Knut Thank you for the support. Your suggestions are greatly appreciated. The one thing I have noticed as a long time boater/ short time sailor is other boaters are eager to help. Maybe because sailing is so much more hands on sailors seem to be even more willing to help us rookies. The members of this board do a great job of giving support with building and sailing. Thanks again. ps. I'll keep posting my mistakes so we all can learn.

Thanks Craig that makes sense. I'll give it a try this weekend.

Better woodworker than sailor We had been out a couple of times om my new Weekender and had a great time. Third time I single handed. Winds were steady at about 10 knots. I had been having trouble tacking all day. I would stall and fall back on the original tack. I would regather momentum and hard over the tiller to get her to come around. Well after a couple of hours I decided to call it a day. The launch was downwind so I had to make a gibe to get back. I must have been too aggressive because over she went. Over I went too. After the initial shock, one minute sailing along on a warm sunny day the next swimming, my first thought was "Glad I had on a vest." I swam around to the hull got a foot up on the keel and grabbed the toerail and expected a struggle. But, she popped right up and I scrambled in. I reached for the bailing bucket but stoped short when I noticed the gunwales were an inch under water. As I sat there deciding what to do next I noticed I was making headway so I grabbed the tiller and headed for shore. I was surprised at how stable these boats are when swamped. The seatbacks do have floatation. I got to a sandbar near shore jumped out and started to bail. I figured the worst was over. Wrong! The old park ranger pulls up in his pontoon with a cute little lifeguard. He asks me if everything is OK. I said yes, no problem. He hangs around for awhile but as he is ready to leave he says " Are you sure you can make it back to the launch......SKIPPER."? With all the sarcasm he can muster. I did a double take to see if he was serious. He was. I bit my tongue and said yes. If it was'nt for the young lifeguard he would have heard how salty this new sailor can be. I finished bailing and sailed back to the launch without any trouble. I have been out since and I am slowly regaining my confidence. I learned: 1. Wear a vest. It eased the trauma greatly. 2. Learn from mistakes. Tacking and gibing are two different animals. 3. Theses boats are stable and won't sink with minimal floatation. 4. Add more floatation. 5. Ziplock baggies do not protect cellphones when submerged 6. There's alot of boat envy out there especially among pontoon drivers. 7. Keep your mouth shut about certain parts of your story. I have a new nickname and the T shirts and hats are pouring in.

I was accused on more than one occasion by my wife of being obsessed with the build. I will admit to waking up thinking about the project. It was alot of fun. I did have a great build partner though. My daughter is as handy in the workshop as anyone I know. She is a better engineer with a great eye for detail. She saved me from layout errors more than once and even caught the infamous station 13 error. Disappeared for the fiberglassing/sanding though.

Yep Stoney Creek. Its one of the reasons I built my Weekender. I can hook up the trailer and be on the water in about 30 min. Unfortunately we had our first drowning there two days ago. Guy was the chase boat for model airplane club. His boat drifted away from shore and he tried to swim after it fully clothed, no vest. Got tired and went under . Sad

Barry I live in the metro Detroit area. Specifically Rochester Hills. The pics were taken at a park about 5 min from the house. Great place to sail . Sailboats and windsurfers mostly. Jet skis not allowed. Thirty min to Lake St. Clair but I'm not confident enough yet to sail big water. Thanks everyone for the compliments. This board is invaluable for new builders.

Hello everyone My daughter Sarah and I finished our Weekender Impulse. We started in March and "finished" it the end of June. We've been out sailing and already have an adventure to share. Will save that for another post. [attachment over 4 years old deleted by admin]

Hello Jan you might try Venture Triailers out of Baltimore. I got mine (VB1100) for $475 including shipping to a local marina. I live in the metro Detroit area. Fits my Weekender very well with a few mods. I thought it was a great deal. Try www.venturetrailers.com. Larry