Brent

Jim, I always enjoy seeing pictures of your work, very nice. From the perspective of having used a Core Sound for 8 years now I feel a responsibility to make a small suggestion. Note the small area between the outboard end of your gutter system and the hull batten. The ply bridging this gap will take large loads when crew steps on the hatch. Occassionaly crew will be making this move with great haste, and the resulting loads will be very large. By tying the gutter into the hull batten greater support can be provided for those occassional large load situations, thereby greatly reducing the opportunity to crack the seat deck ply. Also note that by putting hatches in both forward and aft sections of the seats the primary emergency flotation in the boat can be easily compromised in a capsize by a loose hatch cover. If I had been in deep water I could have lost my boat due to the very same. I have since permanently closed the forward seat compartment, and installed a bulkhead reducing the accessible area in the aft compartment by half. In addition to now having plenty of reserve buoyancy, I also loose less stuff in these large lockers while still having plenty of storage for expeditions.

Clothing choices, more or less in order of adding them as the temperature drops Long sleeve shirt and pants of quick drying synthetics. I wear these for sun protection year round. No cotton. Good sun hat and sunglasses Waterproof breathable rain jacket with venting jippers and a hood. Eventually I moved up to Goretex and other performance fabrics, and enjoy the results. Heavy duty watermans bib overalls, typically worn under rain jacket. I went with the PVC coated fabrics here, which are not breathable, but stand up well to heavy use and dirt. The breathable jacket help to keep conditions inside reasonable, but also the bibs are worn without the jacket on heavy dew morning or when splashing about on a fast sail or crabbing etc. Synthetic stocking cap and several layers of fleece. Sea boots and waterproof gloves. I carry most of this year round as I have found that nothing brighten up being in an open boat more than being warm and dry even in steady cold rain.

My CS20 sails solo in plenty of big water. I prefer to keep the boat light myself, and plane over the waves. The idea of weight bouncing around in the boat doesn't appeal at all. I do like the hiking strap. I use a clip on harness myself, plus sometimes rig a line to the mizzen just for hanging on to. Hiking out does help to keep the boat running flat and fast. I also carry good water proof clothing, knowing I am going to get wet when sailing fast in a chop. In big wind I reef down and keep the boat running flat. The boat is acutally faster reefed than sailing under full sail with a rail continually in the water. Running wider angles on the wind helps when the stink is really blowing. I would expect you know all about that sailing in Oklahoma. The additional gear I carry for expeditions creates a small but noticeable impact on boat performance versus day sailing weight, and a second person an even more noticable impact. I expect the shorter water line Lapwing to be more weight sensitive. Before adding dead weight I recommend experimenting with loading the boat with appropriate provisions, keeping the cargo low and forward of the mizzen. Consider a selection of wines to pair with some fine beef nicely iced down. Take the dutch oven for cooking rasberry cobler on the beach at sundown. Carry a gallon of water per day per person, plus a few more. I like having a beach chair... Take the boat out at expedition weight and then decide if you want more weight.

I moved this to a new thread.. Mick, Let me emphasize that a little pocket laying on the sprit is ok and even normal. If the sail sets well with the sprit to windward then the sail is most likely cut ok. I am assuming here that the sail is cut well and that some tweaking may improve the sail shape. Raising or lowering the sail slightly with the halyard changes the angle of the sprit relative to the sail. This is a good way to control sail shape. Raising the sail slightly has a similar result to lowering the sprit attachment point, which in the case above may help reduce thte pocket in the Sail. this method also changes leach tension, so If the sail is cut well there will be a nice setting where both the Luff pocket and the leach shape are good. Is this adjustment does not result in a good shape then installing a longer sprite may help flatten the sail. The result being like tightening the snotter.

If there is a halyard try tweaking the sail up and down the mast. A little Halyard goes a long way. If that doesn't do it I would think a longer sprit would be easier than a new sail.

The full batten sails make for a very fast boat, but only for those sailors that want the extra horses. I have solo camp cruised extensively on my cs20. The 15 is smaller than my preference for longer trips. The 20 is overall great, but a bit much to drag up the beach solo especially when expedtion loaded. But there is plenty of room for comfort gear.

Good on you for getting out there. When reefed pay close attention to the Halyard, you may find dropping the halyard a few inches greatly improves the sprit angle allowing to achieve a much flatter and faster mizzen. Also don't be afraid to crack off a few degrees compared to the sloopes, making up speed for pointing high.

Sailed out of Woodland Beach into Delaware bay into 15+ knots of wind with white caps plenty and 3 foot swells. A deep reach riding on the rail took us almost to the New Jersey, then turned for about a 10 mile trip west up on plane the entire way! Rode the down hill side of a single large wave for a very long time. It was a very sweet sail. Topped it off with a crab dinner fresh from my crab traps. Thanks Graham for a great boat.

I have thought the same, but after observing waves coming over the bow, I came to the conclusion that a dodger that caught most of them would block the view and be a detraction to the beautiful lines of the boat. In a blow the spary comes in great drenching quantities flying well above deck level, and from a broad spectrum of forward angles depending on waves and how hard the boat is driving. I invested in good breathable rain wear and found that to be the solution for me. I go out in all kinds of weather, and actually enjoy the feeling of the spray hitting my foul weather gear, running down my boots and into the bottom of the boat, where it is returned to the sea by the vortex bailer.

Using a third cradle is a great way to put a very bad curve into the hull shape. Use the cut outs from your bulkheads for a pattern that will be very close to the shape required.

The really wet stuff comes flying over the fore deck. I invested in good foul weather gear, which makes big difference since I like to sail when the surf is up.

At the B&B Messabout, Scott was gracious to allow me to sail his Belhaven. I was impressed with what a comfortable boat that is. The Belhaven will serve a family with young ones very well.

Thanks Graham and Carla for holding this event again this year. I was delighted to be able to attend and had a great time. Over the years I have found many good friends in this bunch and it was good to "ketch" up with them, and to make new friends. I appreciate being a part of the B&B family. Good Sailing

Thanks for all the input. Maybe I will add a couple of extra layers of glass to the hull and recoat with epoxy. I was also thinking of adding some carbon to the final epoxy layer, but I hate that it will hide the wood.

I have a small fleet of wood strip canoes. Wonderful craft, but when we go creaking they get horribly scratched up. I have been sanding and applying fresh epoxy each year to pretty them up, but am getting tired of that. I am thinking about laying on a layer of kevlar - just enough to cover the wetted part of the hull. How well will this resist scratching and gouging from bumping into rocks in a running stream?

Send a note with what you are interested in.

Joe, This video was taken in a fresh breeze with 3-4 foot seas, there are plenty of white caps about. Those conditions suggest maybe 15 knots of wind. I am sailing solo with one hand on the tiller and one on the camera. I dont make any effort to measure speed these days.

Here is a video from a recent sailing on Chesapeake Bay. Those of you who like speed may enjoy this. [ftp][/ftp]

Sailing single handed I find somewhere around 20 knots the sailing becomes less fun and more work, although I have been known to go out in such conditions for some really fine broad reaching. I have been caught out in higher winds during squalls, but I tend to carefully consider how bad I want it if the day is going to be steady above 20 knots. The boat does sail very nicely reefed - and we have blasted through some very windy conditions that way. I do a fair amount of multi day explorations in the boat, and in those situations one must deal with what nature gives.

Some of my best ever sails required wearing foul weather gear. I have been out in conditions where the steady rain and spray made a continuous river down my rain suit and into the bilge, only to be slurped out by the steady song of the bailers. During one particular storm a knock down filled water up to the top of the seats, which the bailers drew out in less than five minutes. But of course the boat was screaming on at double digits speed while the thirty plus knots of wind blew over and the storm gradually exhausted itself. A simple tent over the forward section keeps me dry while sleeping out. I used to carry a tent for pitching on shore, but found I used it less as conditions on board where developed to the point of being very comfortable. The boat has become completely self contained eliminating the need to step on shore. I do enjoy setting foot on land to explore, but tend to spend the nights out on the hook.

That clear skin is a brilliant move! I have built several Wee Lassies out of cedar strip - they are light weight and amazingly fast for a small boat. That skin on frame approach must be even lighter - I imagine you have a very agile boat there!

Oyster my friend, it is good to see you turning another idea into reality. Glad this one is for you. Looks like a great boat for getting out when the skiff is not enough, and sailing is not the call of the day. ---Brent

If you want to see a finished CS20 - there is one in Newark, DE.

Cincinnatti is a charming combination of old river town and modern metropolis. There are plenty of good restaurants (check out the cities on the Kentucky side of the river too). In fact there is a section in the town just across the river from Cincinatti proper that tries real hard to create an Irish Pub Crawl District. There is a good natural history museum, a nice aquarium, the Air Force Museum is a short drive away in Dayton. There are plenty of sports events as well. In July there is a major hydroplane race and barbeque down the river a few miles. Delta Airlines serves the Cincinnatti airport (which is actually located across the river in Kentucy). Delta international ports include Chicago and Atlanta I think - so there are opportunities for layovers there too. You may want to compare flights into Louisville Kentucky, which is about 100 miles away - and often hundreds of dollars less expensive to fly into. USAir, Southwest, and others serve Louisville.

I enjoyed visiting with old friends and making new ones. It was great to spend time with people who share passion for these fine boats. Highlites for me: Meeting people face to face that I have shared this space with. Seeing other peoples fine craftsmanship put into their boats. A very fine group of craft we have. Sailing with new friends Sailing with old friends Sailing with the dolphins