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boatmik

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  1. Howdy Michael. It is also applicable to Cat rigged boats with unstayed masts. It originally came from Finn, Europe and Laser class racing boats. Peter HK - thanks for putting the diagram up. It shows the different direction of the forces as the boom angle changes. You have to be a little bit beware of such diagrams because they show general principles ... not something measured and scientific. But you can see the change in heel in the video on my website. It is clear and immediate as a real effect. MIK
  2. HI, Thanks for putting the link up to the article. It is meant to be suggestive rather than "the way to do it" The first part talks about which way to goosewing - this is applicable to the B an B rigs which have a bigger mizzen than most. It also applies to the Cat rigs The sailing with the most powerful sail - partly because of position and partly because of area) by the lee gives you a way of controlling heel in a controlled way. It is not really to have weather heel or lee heel, but to be able to understand the reasons for heel and to take it under control. Generally boats are fastest pretty level. But with this method you can "dial in" the amount of heel that you want or use a sudden trim to damp rolling. There are limits to it too, such as having a long enough mainsheet to let the boom forward of the mast and reverting to the normal methods when you want to reduce power as the wind gets stronger. The other advantage is for speed sailing that the front sail is at maximum power much more of the time. Something quick boats like the B and Bs and the Goat will benefit from more than others. HOpe this helps explain it a little more. Best wishes and good sailing. Michael Storer
  3. Howdy Tom, It is even more open to question than you suggest. The "square top" sails are usually tall and elliptical with the top lopped off. Garry Hoyt's is not "square top" - it is much closer to just square. A bit of getting caught up in marketing hyperbole in the video. (not Tom's - Garry's) For those who don't know this is what a "square top" looks like. The first class that used it to my knowledge was the Leander "R" class skiffs in New Zealand circa 1980 (bit over 12 feet long with big sails). The following image shows the current Americas Cup version on the right and the even more square topped one of the AC class that was proposed by Schnackenberg (hope I've spelt his name right) and performance cats have been big users - the first main group I am aware of after the R-class cf ... The other question of course is whether the swings and roundabouts employed make it worthwhile. He talks about the drag "from wire rigging" but doesn't really extend it to the extra bits of permanent wire in his rig compared to the conventional balance lug. Plus that the "yard" doesn't appear to come down as the sail is reefed (or does it) - if it does come down I can't see the point of the blocks and lines at the throat and peak and can't work out what you do with the wires. And if it doesn't come down you can't reduce its windage as the sail is reefed. This could be a real problem in the sizes of boats that are mostly built on this website and mine. Also reefing you have four sail corners to adjust if the "yard" doesn't come down. And the yard not coming down might be very problematic in a small boat as the wind comes in. Then from cost - while it would compare VERY favourably with the cost of a conventional stayed rig and so makes a lot of sense from a production boat point of view, it doesn't really compare with the 5 bucks of rope that do the job of the yard and boom pivots on a conventional balance lug. My sense after doing more than a few races against boats like Lasers in my sailing canoe and others in the GIS is that the difference in performance between mast to windward and mast to leeward is hugely overstated except for the caveat mentioned on my webpages about extremely light winds. So I think it has three marked advantages 1/ It will be much cheaper in a production boat context compared to conventional rigs 2/ It is patentable 3/ Depending on how it is done it may produce less chafe of halyards etc for passagemaking purposes. I've never had a problem with small boats, but once you get up toward the size of boat that does passages the lug can be vulnerable. As far as whether the Balance Lug (storer style is actually very traditional so is not really "my" method) should be used on B&B designs ... I don't think it is worth it unless you want to reduce the mast length or lower the centre of effort of the sails. When I choose a rig I generally focus on the performance for the buck. The way to maximise performance is to control twist. The three rigs that control twist without extra gear are the balance lug, sprit rig and the lateen. The sprit rig is what we chose for our OZ PDRacers and is on most of the B&B boats - so I don't want to change what anyone is doing - the boats look fine as they are. For the OZ it was a question of 2 spars rather than 3. If the mast on a sprit rig is designed to bend and depower the sail then the rig has the heeling moment of a much lower rig anyhow. I don't like the lateen quite so much as it does restrict the aspect ratio and area quite a lot and forces a lot of sail area way back in the boat. Excellent rig for some boats though and a piratical feel beyond any other! Best wishes Michael Storer
  4. Quite right ... The end result will probably be a performance decrease. But area can help compensate - probably not so much in smooth water, moderate wind conditions but when the water gets rough and the boat starts to bounce around. A low area high aspect foil relies on speed to get lift - so if you hit a slowing wave there is suddenly not enough lift and the boat slips sideways and the foil will stall. Because it is stalled you can't get up the speed to unstall it - so you have bear away a fraction to ease sheets a little to get the speed up and then point again. A boat with a less critical, larger-area keel might have a bit more drag but it will be much more tolerant in such conditions. I would be making the board a bit wider to try and make sure that this area effect does not come into play. Perhaps many leeboards reflect this - being not particularly deep but very wide indeed. Best wishes Michael Storer The Balance lug yawl/ketch thing is here http://www.storerboatplans.com/Beth/beth.html
  5. Aw - cheers guys! I was slightly worried that it would look a bit like a commercial - the point was the resource! I have been through the photos and pulled out and commented on the Goat Island Skiff ones - the link for that is still in the same place. I will separate out more and comment on them too as I get the time.
  6. Howdy All, Over this time frame I would doubt it is serious rot. Some fingernail testing will find out pretty quick. Much more likely to be simple staining and discolouration. You will never get rid of all of it - and too much treatment with oxalic acid or bleaches can weaken the timber and make the plywood furry. After checking to see if your fingernail sticks in more there than anywhere else - if it doesn't then the timber is ok. If it does you need to check with more serious tools - like a screwdriver or awl and see how far in the damage goes. If it really bugs you - you could replace the gunwale or part of it - but usually I wouldn't bother. If just cosmetic clean it up and re-epoxy and varnish. My boat has a few stains of this type (it is 18 years old) and also holes where other boats have damaged it that I have repaired neatly - it is still clear finished. I don't mind a few "battle scars" in a clear finished timber boat it reflects the history and use. In some parts of the world they call it "patina" Best wishes Michael
  7. Howdy Jeff, A fabulously difficult question to answer!!! How fast do you sail your boat!? Generally the depth is the single most important determinant. If you reduce the depth, you will have to increase the width by a greater percentage. By the way, if the foil is poorly shaped now you may actually gain performance with a shorter, wider one with a more perfect shape. Best wishes Michael
  8. No reason not to sheath or epoxy the whole thing, if that is what is wanted. The hardwood shoe is a good idea - it can be glued with the 'pox too if wanted. I often use this idea and if the shoe/edge gets damage I just plane it off and glue a new one on - which can be easier that trying to prise apart a sikaflexed joint. Neither way is better really. Just whatever you think is best for you. Best wishes Michael
  9. Howdy! It probably is the same person many times - it is the way of the web - someone says something with a number in it and it gets passed round as legitimate from that point on. I know 12 footers that can't be raised after a capsize and many much bigger boats don't need any help at all. And maybe it is a good point to meditate apon ... Voss's Tillikum, Slocum's spray, Cooks Endeavour all were not self righting from much past 90 degrees. Anything that can help a boat recover can be useful if fairly foolproof and non-cumbersome and simple to use by ordinary people in non stressful difficult circumstances. These have been the problems of other systems in the past - maybe this one is better? Best wishes Michael Storer.
  10. Howdy, Just finished helping to instruct at the DuckFlat Spring boatbuilding school in OZ. I took around 600 photos of different steps in the building of the different boats (link below for all pictures) This time round there are 10 projects - all different - chosen by the builders. Some clinker/lapstrake, some plywood, some stitch and glue. The designers and boats represented are: Storer (ie Me) - Goat Island Skiff, Eureka Canoe Oughtred - MacGregor canoe, Acorn Skiff, Feather Pram CLC - LT17 Bear Mountain - Rob Roy Redmond - Whisp Joel White - Nutshell Almost everyone has not built a boat before. A couple from Tasmania have built glassfibre canoes before but have gone classy with the Bear Mountain Rob Roy built in the Chinese lightweight timber Paulownia instead of cedar strips. Cedar has become very expensive so a cheaper alternative is welcome. Also some pics of Greenland Paddles and some quite pretty plywood bladed paddles with properly designed shafts. I hope the pictures prove useful. The reservoir is here http://www.flickr.com/photos/boatmik - look for the set on the right called, strangely enough, Duck Flat Spring Boatbuilding School. Best Wishes Michael
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