Stuart Benbow

Doing your homework is going to be a big part of this change. I swapped from the gaff sloop rig to a schooner rig, and I spent almost a whole winter reading, studdying, doing math and making model mock-ups to make sure I don't mess it up. I've learned a lot, and it's prompted me to start studying yacht design through the MacNaughton Group as a result as I found I really enjoyed all the sketching, thinking, actual useful math, tinkering and adjusting until I got it right. Of course, I still haven't finished building my boat yet, so there's not telling if I really did the math right or I'm just content with being blissfully ignorant. Either way, the one thing I've noticed with reviewing various sail plans is that the bermuda rig seems to have a different Center of Effort than gaff rigs when offered by designers as optional changes. You'll be quite busy working out how to do this change properly long before you touch the wood. Of course, since I've changed more than the rig, I've also learned that having to design my own panels at every step of the build really slows down progress too. Ah well, all in the name of getting the boat I really want. :wink:

According to one of his posts on the byyb: "I found a great bronze hardware source. The stuff is expensive (I only planned on building one boat). They are Tendercraft in Ontario Canada. Their quality is great and they are very easy to work with. 800-588-4682"

These are real nice thoughts guys. Thanks for making my day. Unfortunately, more times than not I work alone on my boat, so I get fewer moments like these to cherish, and I'm usually too busy to notice. You've given me a whole new perspective on the rare times when my son (6 years old) offers to lend a hand.

I don't know if I'd go to the extreme of kerfing the stem just yet. most likely, ratchetting and soaking should do the trick for the most part. As to the horizontal lines to tension the bowsprit, they're whisker stays, and to see how they'd look on a Stevenson boat, Chris Gerkin's been working on doing just that, though for different reasons. He's got a 10' sprit he just finished for his Vacationer. Here is Chris's bowsprit, complete with a krantz iron at the tip, with a fourth connection point to hook up a bobstay below as well. Chris has also added a second krantz iron further back in what looks to be a move towards a cutter rig. In this shot, you can see where he will be connecting the shrouds, and further forward, the connection for the whisker stays. A close-up of the connection for the whisker stay. As you can see, Chris has elevated his boatbuilding to an artform, but it serves the purpose of demonstrating how to add whisker stays to a bowsprit. Hope this helps,

Well, The weather looks like it will cooperate for this coming Saturday. 10 AM through whenever people want to hang out works for me. I've been getting a lot of work done on the boat, but there should be plentyof work remaining to keep people occupied. Tasks planned: - Complete the cabin. - Complete the seats and bridgedeck, which is framed up and caulked. - Fill in and fair screw holes and oopses. - Flip the boat and prep the hull for glassing. - Continue laminating spars. This sounds like a lot, but I've got the cabin sides dry-fitted already, and the seats framed up. I plan to have the seat pieces lofted and cut prior to Saturday so it should be like assembling a kit. Unfortunately, I won't have fiberglass or epoxy on hand until I've regained some boat funds.

Actually, Jim ... credit wasn't necessary. I'd rather not be noted as the guy with the really cheap digital camera and fuzzy pictures. Talk about a grainy finish, I've definitely got to replace it with something that gives a bit more quality. Thanks all the same though, and I look forward to seeing you again in the near future

My family and I were out with Scott and his family on his Pocket Cruiser during the Memorial Day Monday, where we met up with Jim. I can tell you first hand that Jim's done a fabulous job on his boat. I was very surprised to see how fast Jim's boat was as well. At one point we headed to shore and Jim stayed out ... I turned around for a moment, looked back and he was half way across the lake! We were sailing at Michael J. Kirwan Reservoir, in Ravenna, Ohio. The weather was originally supposed to be thunder and rain all weekend, but by Monday it was 60's with 5-10mph winds and partly cloudy. It's hard to say no to a day like that.

Mike, I've got just one question ... is it really possible to make footage of these boats sailing and being built too long if it's good footage?

Joe, If it makes you feel any better, mine isn't finished and it doesn't look like much with all the rough edges and seams showing. After you replace or repair what's gone bad and slap on some new fiberglass and a new coat of paint, she'll look like a brand new boat. Granted, its not sounding like a wave of the wand and instantly ready to sail kinda deal, but look at the adventure you're about to have. You will have an intimate knowledge of where the trouble spots are likely to appera down the road, and will be able to keep an eye out for them so the big repair job is never needed again. Either way, sounds like there's a lot of people chearing for you, and I can't wait to see how it turns out.

Come one, come all, come powertools ... For those of you in the Neighborhood of SE Michigan, I will be hosting a boatshed this coming Saturday, working on construction of a modified Stevenson Projects Weekender - Rigging as a Schooner, with a slightly longer cockpit, and a slightly taller cabin. You're more than welcome to come along and participate/chat. I've got a 3-d hull with sides on, and will be working primarily on cockpit and cabin plus misc. other odd jobs. There will be food, snacks and non-alcoholic drinks provided. I'm located at: 9911 Roseland Livonia, MI 48150 734-525-3843 If you're planning to attend, I'd appreciate a heads up, either by phone or by email so I have a general idea of how much food to get.

That will learn me to eat lunch at my desk to catch up on posts! Geez, I passed on pizza, but spagetti and meatballs is looking kinda rough after reading this. I've had two kids so I have the unfortunate visual that goes with it. I agree with Joe, sleep is my best friend ... wish we could spend more time together.

If the camera angle isn't deceiving us, it looks like the hull bottom needs to be twisted to bring the starboard side up a bit in order to even out the way it lines up at the deck. I ran into the same problem. Hope this helps [attachment over 4 years old deleted by admin]

Hi there, just thought I'd chime in here. I've got a hull sitting on my driveway, with almost all of the wood that I need for the cockpit and cabin. My steering parts are done aside from finishing detail, and some of the rigging has been purchased. I've spent under $800 bucks so far on the project itself, but have had to spend some money in related areas. Examples: A boat dolly, a shelter to build under, tools, etc. I too have been building on under cover of tarp for much of the build cycle. I can tell you that depending upon where you live, weather can make a huge impact in launch timeline when you're building outside. As much as I'm enjoying building, if I was looking to primarily be on the water as soon as possible, I'd have bought a boat. However, there isn't anything that compares to the reaction of taking a personalized, one of a kind boat out to a launch facility. By all accounts, the attention these boats get, and the fun they provide more than makes up for the time to get there. If you're interested in increasing space aboard, a boom tent will open up the cockpit and include that in your living space while at anchor. If you're looking for more living space without much difference in build time or expense, a pocket cruiser may be a better boat for you. If money and time aren't an issue and you like the weekender, but want a larger boat, then the Vacationer might be a winner. All three are designed for protected waters, so if that's your goal you can't go wrong. If you want more open sailing, then you're better off finding a different design, or buying something.

What I tend to do when building things I'm not entirely sure of, after re-reading the plans that is, is to build them in miniature using basswood from the hobby store. I've got a really nice 1/12th scale Stevenson Projects Vacationer, and I'm working on a modified 1/12th scale Weekender, which is my test-bed for all of my crazy ideas. For a fraction of the cost of a single sheet of plywood, I can build the whole model and make as many mistakes as it takes to figure things out.

Depending on what you're willing to deal with, there's another option ... Since I'll be rigging her as a cutter schooner, I'll have two headstays ... The outer one could be rigged on a track to run the length of the bowsprit, so you slide it inboard when not using the jib. The sail bundle would (theoretically speaking) be pulled along with the outer headstay to land at the bow rather than the end of the bowsprit. There are pictures of this type of bowsprit/headstay rigging in the Gaff Rig Handbook. Granted, it does add one more line into the mix, but it is an option.

Konrad, You love living don't ya? Why oh why do you keep tempting fate. Had that been me, I'd be building a dog house instead of a boat, and moving my stuff in before the sun went down (and my wife doesn't even cook). I thought this was a lesson learned when you rode the bike up the stairs. If you're going to do something that the spouse will find objectionable, do it when they're not home, and say nothing ... especially about repeating the behaviour in secret. That little detail is strictly on a need to know basis. All in all though, definitely paints a wonderful mental picture.

Actually, they ended up resuming the race coverage, but started shifting the air times. 12am for race 4, with a replay due to race 5 being postponed at 7 the following day, and I missed race 5 due to company, but either way, New Zealand didn't pull out a win, and I heard that they broke their spinaker pole during race 5. Not the kind of end to an America's Cup series that I'd be overly proud of ... but at least their boat didn't break appart or sink. I was beginning to wonder.

What I've done so far is to cut the starboard hole per plans, and left the port side for later. I plan to mount a marine stereo there inside some sort of marine electronics box that I've seen in various parts catalogs. I may put the circuit panel there as well, but I'm not sure.

They finally start racing after days off, and the sports channel has stopped airing it! I finally start watching it online using their race tracking tool, and following the New Zealand Herald report on the events, which lags behind the race by a fair margine. I got confused, then worried when the tracker started showing NZ nolonger moving, and then sailing backwards ... then the harold told the tale. No mast = no win, and it sounds like they were taking on water again too. Somebody sure goofed on the design of that boat.

Hi there, choosing a boat is a personal choice ... so opinions are as varied as there are sailors. As to learning to sail near Detroit, now that's something I can recommend. University of Michigan as a sailing club that sails out of Dexter, just north of Ann Arbor. They provide two FREE introductory sailing lessons, and they teach both on the water Saturday mornings, and if you're interested, on shore on Saturday mornings and in class Thursday nights as well. They also have racing events every Sunday so you can hone your skills when you're ready. You don't need to be a student, and they have different price packages, all of which are very reasonable, and a few different boats: Lasers, JY15's, a couple of slightly larger boats (dubbed party boats), canoes, kayaks, sailboards, and perhaps a couple of others ... they were thinking of selling off some older boats to update the fleet last I heard. It's a good way to get a feel for sailing with very little expense. Once you pass a few practical tests, you can take out their boats any time the club is open, typically every evening and all weekend. This is what got my wife hooked, and in turn cause her to agree to my building a boat in the first place. U of M sailing Club!

I'd have to say that regardless of what the coastguard considers, for personal peace of mind, I'd judge it without the bowsprit. Just from the end of the stem, simply because a bowsprit isn't going to do much for people trying to find a seat, nor keep the boat afloat. Just my 2 cents worth. No legal quotes, no manuals or handbooks to turn to, just my thoughts on the matter.

If he can't get it out through the door, he could always turn it into something like this: :wink:

I still pay for cable, but I never watch it ... well, at least I didn't until the America's Cup (if they ever race again, but that's another rant). Unfortunately, I've got two kids, and while the childrens shows for the youngest are all on pbs, the elder one feels he will die if the tv stops working through the winter months. Once it warms up, we typically get disconnected, and reconnect in time for the christmas specials at the end of the year.

slip the guy behind the counter a $20 to make the paperwork go away :wink: