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Tim Diebert

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Everything posted by Tim Diebert

  1. ...and one other thing to consider with spreaders is (in therory) the stay angles must be the same from the spreader tips. That can require some tricky buisness. I chose to make the mast longer and have the stays attach further up. That cures the interface with the gaff jaws.
  2. I have re-posted this same story on my blog, but added a few images of the boats and the area. For those of you who still think all Canadians are snow bound 10 months of the year, the area I live is considered the California of Canada and may be the most desired spot in the entire country for retirees. Well heeled retirees. The realestate prices around here are beyond reason. Anyway, on this particular evening it was nice and hot, about 90. Quite dry at about 30% relative humidity outside. It is like this from June to the end of September with the nights getting colder of course. I love the weather in this area. I like the heat. Save it up to last me all winter. http://www.timtone.com/tt/ttphotos/BigFinish.htm
  3. That is exactly it Dave. You must have the paid for version of Google Earth...? The resolution on mine is not nearly so nice. The lift thing is not a travel lift. It is a ...........very hard thing to describe. The 'cab' is at the back end, two wheels, steered by levers. A hitch....hydraulic, more like a front end loader mechanism...huge....two long booms or rails...wheels at the end. Everything is adjustable by the operator from the cab. The boats will (I have not looked in the yard yet) be shored up on something...he slips in, lifts and off he goes.
  4. Thanks Doc. Yes, a fine looking lake for sure. I hope to see a whole lot more of it this weekend. Now that I am a regular guy working for wages, I get paid holidays off. Imagine that...........paid for sailing. I am still in shock. :shock: Daphne demands that she go sailing Saturday, but she has to work Sun and Monday. So I am going for a short cruise to see how far north I can get, camp and then slide back. This part of the lake is the wildest I figure. Meaning, not as populated. The whole thing is (depending on who you listen to) 70 to 90 miles long. Lots of stuff to explore. Lots of stuff to take pictures of. Yes, my unfortunate turn of events. As always with such things you are glad of the experience. I was happy to actually feel what wind speeds like that are like on the water. After the fact, folks were saying 80 kmh...which I usually rough out to half in knots. Upon reconstructing the whole affair in my head I now realize there were many factors involved. Wierd thinweird there is no predicting wind in the mountains. If there are thunder storms around, then sure....the weather guys will say it might be windy. Nothing like at the coast where you get accurate wind velocity, direction and wave forcasts. forecasts I will take what I can get. Apparently there is some kind of marine weather on the VHF around here. I guess I might buy one and see how that goes. Dave, you are pretty well right on. The ramps are nice and steep and all paved. There is another dock on one side that is quite long and great for holding lots of boats on say a Sunday night. The really stack up there. The only gripe I would have if any is there are pilings on one side of the floating dock in the middle. Our old dock at the old lake had built in bumpers and no pilings. What a breeze. The parking lot is huge with proper spaces for vehicles with trailer. Vert nice. Well lit up, nice tarmac. The niftiest thing about that fascility is a'valet' boat yard. Yo show up, tell them which boat is yours....you go jump in, they hook up with this bizarre machine and whisk you away to the ramp and into the water. When you come back, you call them on the celly...and they are waiting there for you. There is a lot of big money folks around here and I guess they like some perks. The last two times I have been launching on the north side of the bridge and at a very small one holer ramp in a nice little park. Lots of grass and shade ....and it is free. A good spot, no dock...but beaching is no worries with us. Adla, that is kind of how I was seeing it too. I wouldn't think twice of crossing the lake right through the course if that is where I needed to go and it suited my situation. Most times I am sure it would not be required, but I am sure the Grand Pouba has not got special ownership of that end of the lake on Wednesday nights. With that strong Westerly, the fetch is right short. Small waves and big wind. Pretty nice. Not if it come up from the North though. Lots of fetch in that direction. I have some images from that evening....I will edit and post a couple. Cheers
  5. I have recently moved to another lake....you might say. We can now launch in a matter of minutes so evening sails are easy and possible during these wonderful long hot evenings. I decided to go out Wednesday night as the local hot shot racers perform their between the cans races then. I wanted to get a closer look from the boat and cause as much trouble as possible. We launched from a small bay north of the race course. The racing was well under way by the time we showed up and was a sight to behold. All those tall flat, shiny expensive sails....oh my. The wind was already a perfect average 8-10 with gusts. We decided to fly the new spinnaker and fell off on a beamer. We were trying to decide wether or not to raise the main as well and show these 30 footers what speed was all about....and then chose in the direction of sanity. The chute was already developing a high buzz at times and figured it was more than enough.....then minutes later it was way too much....we took it down and stuffed it, brought out the lapper and raised the main. Now we had some control. Still reaching but then noticed we had kind of become part of the race. We happened to be on the down wind, and as it happens, last leg of the race. What we discovered next was the boat in first place passed us like we were still on the trailer. He then crossed the line between the comity boat and a marker...and off goes the air horn. Cool. We headed that way too, crossed the line....the air horn goes off....and I jump up and pump my arms , "Woo Hooo SECOND!!" Zack laughed but then said sit down Dad. I looked back at the rather regal chaps in the comity boat and didn't see a single grin....in fact I was now wondering if in their Pussers Haze they actually thought we were in the race. I have never raced in a sail boat race before.....and still haven't for that matter...... But I can now tell you that the confusion of all those boats once they have crossed the line is interesting. Here I am, the wind has really come on in the form of these ninja gusts that require (in our boat anyway) to get some weight out and some creative sail trim going on...and all these ocean liners are milling about going in every which direction. Dropping sails, cracking beers, discussing the race and starting motors. Zach is saying, watch out for this guy Dad, watch out for that one.....I had no idea where to go. At that point I realized something a little funny. I had been sailing in a wilderness lake for so long, I had no idea (at least not a clear memory or idea) what the actual rules of the road were. Zach says to me, " you have no idea what the rules of the road are do you?" My reply was, " sure I do, don't hit any of these expensive boats....easy". I hove to for a break as it became way to windy for the sail we had up. I cracked my own beer and watched the action all around me. Wow. I live in the real world now. This is too cool. Urban Tim.
  6. Those are some cool images miss. So.....both sheets to the strbd side eh? And you prefer to sit on the Port side. I am thinking you don't get much wind in your neighbourhood then? :cry: Last night I had my 180 lb son with me and my own rather Portly 190 lbs hanging off the rail...and was thinking that maybe it was time to reef one. Plenty of regular (but wickedly gusty) wind on this new lake of ours. I finally moddified this wonderful Thistle spinnaker I acquired earlier this spring. I set it up like a reacher or asymetric but really it is still symetrical. I just removed the bottom most panel, and re-located the 'clews' Works like the blue blazes. Tacks over like a big old genny. You gotta get one. Such fun! With your lighter winds it would be fabulous. ....and used with the main I can point within a coupla degrees of a proper headsail. ....back to regular programming.
  7. Excellent Joe! I can't wait to see her rigged and sailing. Fantastic stuff. Great series of images. I am glad I stopped in here and saw them. Congrats on saving a wonderful example of historic design. What a beauty she is. I makes me so happy to see a project like this.
  8. From the foot to first reef 22" .... 44" to the second. Lay out the reef pendant holes so they are about an inch above the line between tack and clew reef points. That way the gathered and tied 'in between' material is neat and tidy. Hope that helps. Have fun.
  9. Just from the photo Phil, I would say you are right....about half way between my two sets. I just can't imagine having a boat without a way to reduce sail. I have never looked at a motor as an option. It is far better to be able to sail in crap water than to motor in it. Easier motion for sure. I generally use my motor when there is zero wind....or full pulling stumps. Thanks for the compliment on my site stuff Adla. I didn't think anyone ever noticed that stuff. This time of the year I enjoy going over images of sailing in warm weather. I always miss sailing too much this time of year. I am moving from the little town (Grand Forks) and little lake where I have been for the last 18 years to a much larger city right on one of our biggest/warmest lakes in BC. Okanogan Lake. If you read some of my site stuff you might have seen that I spent some days on that lake last year and had a riot. Now I can sail the 70 mile long lake any old time I like. I have already had an invite to crew on an Olson 25 for Thursday night racing out of Summerland...not now, but during the summer season. Could be fun.
  10. Good one Mr. Frog, you are ahead of the game. The beauty of this wee sail is....it's wee, easy to handle in conditions that require it's use and with the inner tack position it keeps you within the the safe confines of the play pen walls. Although even changing my forward headsail is a no brainer these days as I have the tack on an outhaul. Adla. More work in the sense that you are sewing multiple layers of sailcloth, multiple times. I became very familiar and comfortable with my needle selection and palm. A lot of ass time is all. I just did it in a warm spot with the stereo handy. Quite a few hours I must say. If you can wait, I can give you exact dimensions. Basically I used Charles Stocks recomendations. He, after 50 years of sailing a 17 foot boat and going through many sets of sail came to the conclusion that two 20% reductions is about right. I have tried his recomendations and another for my first set. The first set was pointless and useless...which in turn is dangerous. If your first reef is too far in, you go nowhere unless you are in survival conditions. Whereas even two in is used a lot on my boat. There are a few other details Charles pointed out that I can share as well. If you are interested let me know. I can also save you some time as far as the sizes of your re-enforcement pieces etc. Seems I stil have the patterns in the shop....somewhere. But could just measure my sails...which are more easily found. I am working away from home this week and can't get the exact detailsand measurements for you until next Monday. Let me know. Also, in my opion, you will be pleased as can be if you decide to go for a ballast box. Trust me. Last year I had the opportunity to sail the boat with and without...with some and with all. Having the blocks of lead allows you to experiment. Un balasted, my boat sucks. The boat has more ability to carry way through a tack or through a chop. It is more comfortable to sail and to move around. It inspires confidence and comfort. It has no effect on speed. None. The only effect speed wise is it may be slower to accellerate and may not move as well in super light air. (I have more sail to help with that little issue.) Personally....light air perfornace is nothing compaired to sailing in big conditions. I much prefer to have lots of wind and be safe and comfy and to feel confidence in the boat. The way I look at is this: I have as much weight in ballast as I would have if I took a larger friend sailing...only MY larger friend has been condenced into a small area and I have been able to talk him into sitting very still in one very advantageous spot for the whole sail....and he leaves my beer alone. Try it, you won't be sorry....and if you don't like the feel....just take it out. Easy.
  11. Eh? My inner stay is not a stay at all but a wired luff stay sail who's tack clips to a predetermined permanent spot(I think it is a pad eye...) I have a stay sail halyard always in place with the head shackle clipped to a fitting around the base of the mast. This way I just clip the hal shackle and tack point, feed some permanently attached sheets back aft and off I go. I don't use it all the time. I tend to use it as a storm sail. I prefer the big headsail when I want more sail forward. The stay sail is a good combo with two reefs in.....but then in this little boat it is just about time to be looking for shelter if I am that deep. I have used it in a 'cutterish' fashion and like it fine. Seems to make a nice slot and works well. Looks cool I guess but too much hassle to change tack on a regular basis. I was out in such a wind one day I used the stay sail alone and sailed really well from slightly higher than a beam reach on down. Calms a nasty situation down some. Cheers, TT
  12. Excellent story Richard. I enjoyed reading that. I hope you don't mind....I shared this story with some pals on another group. You may end up hearing of it from Dave and Paul. Glad to hear you are OK. I have not heard how all the other have done over the weekend yet. Yours is the first posting of the event. Cheers, Tim BTW, were you able to get any images you might be able to share? That would be grand.
  13. Right. Yoga huh? Cool. I have just recently discovered the benefit of stretch for my old back problems. A wonderful thing. Seems to me that Paul had commissioned JW for a 20 footer called 'Scout'. Wonderful design so far.....if that is the correct one I am thinking of. Paul is a lucky guy. It is nice to see you documenting your sailing adventures. Combined with Dave and Pauls sites and postings, I will be able to vicariously sail right through our Northern winter. Thanks. Appreciated.
  14. Fantastic images Richard. Thanks for posting them. I saw your boat first through the John Welsford group when Dave P. posted some images, and then Paul. There was great debate over what design it was, but popping here occasionally and admiring Grahams stuff had the boat pegged in my mind. The CS 17 is still a big contender for when/if I replace my current boat one day. I thought JW said something about designing something for the Water Tribe event in a year or two. I believe he intends to skipper the boat himself. So two of my favourite designers may be going head to head eh? Oh, btw....does this mean Varuna is not for sale any longer, or Paul has just not found a new home for her yet? A fantastic boat.
  15. I enjoyed your description Howard. Thanks. What 17' boat is it that you have? Just curious.
  16. So with all that you do ( 3 jobs etc etc) you did manage to actually build the boat....in what I thought was record time. In fact, it happened so fast I thought you were fully retired and bored. So now you have to find some time to actually sail...in water deep enough to fully extend the board when needed...and wind enough to get up on a plane.....with pictures. So don't forget the chase boat and photog. 8) Can't wait, she will look quite fine on her lines I am sure. You are a lucky guy. No hurry.....take your time.....when the time is perfect.....don't forget the champagne. Does this mean you are going to sell the boat? Or are you just looking for crew........?
  17. When do you think you might be sailing for the first time? Looks awesome BTW.
  18. Thanks Brad. The actual colours I use are a buff or sand colour, a dark grey and red. Red White and blue would have the same effect I am sure....at least the same vibe. I found that pure white was so bright on my eyes it hurt. 8)
  19. I just realized both Pirateshipman and Mr. Pratt are from Boise. (I am a little slow) How amazing is that? Two Weekender...(ish) boats being built in the same small region at the same time. Did you guys know one another? Excuse me if this has been covered....I don't read all the threads here. Tony, your boat looks grand. You said your doors are water tight? How are you going to do that? I like the velcro idea....could save on an average 2 cushion loss per season for me... :oops: Mine usually get blown away when I am too busy to notice and it's to late to retrieve (they can be seen)
  20. I will mention that I have been approached privately on several occasions by folks either considering or actually in the process of building a WE. Somehow they have found my web pages or babble here on the forum, who knows. Anyway, at this point, there are at least two people actually building Weekenders with the mods (or versions of them) I have done. Some folks have gone on to choose other designs. I have enjoyed talking to all of them. I all cases I have recommended this forum.....if they didn't already know about it.
  21. That's what I did Doc. All my work was done well after the fact. I would say get your boat done (unless you have not glassed the bottom yet...) and wet and in use. You might find it to be fine as is....as many others have done. Sailing is the main deal here. Just get out there and enjoy being on the water first, details later maybe. Presumably all these boats are being made to make it possible to get out sailing.....me, that's what I signed on for. The boat is just the tool for the job. :roll:
  22. Although I found the boats characteristics aggravating in the beginning, I too have had a very fun time doing the research and the work to make changes I am now enjoying. In deep summer, my winds are usually lighter than the ends of the season. Right now for example, I can go from all sail to a double reefed main and small jib in the course of an afternoon. It may get so windy as to go headsail alone. For summer, I am building a topsail and required mods in combo with a big lapper. I always though it was pretty ugly, but it is almost certainly more than any weekender needs. Mine is a 2 cylinder 6 hp. A 2hp would be fine I would think. I have just used what I already have.....and make some additional income beachcombing and pulling stumps. :roll: I have the exact location that a dagger or center board should be, but there are many other things to be considered. I added a dagger board to eliminate lateral movement or side slip. Many of the folks on this board believe their boats have zero lateral movement. Ray can even back up his opinion with numbers (surprise :wink: ), I felt otherwise ( as I sad many times before, I have done this stuff just to please myself.) I could actually see the slipping in reference to stationary objects. I am super pleased with the windward performance imrovemnets of this boat. Any info you need on this topic or mods should be continued via email. It is easier for me. A phone call might even be easier. tim@timtone.com You might reconsider the forefoot mod as there is a side benefit apart for perfect tacking.... the boat is so much more easy to get on and off of when beached. It is not on so much of an angle. Plus it goes on and off a center roller style trailer way easier. Cheers, TT
  23. Hborger: It looks fine to me. This is what mine looks like right now.... Actually, they all look fine to me. With all due respect to our very learned, experienced and brilliant members here, moving the mast even a lot will not move the CE forward more than 3 inches or so. Not enough to do more than a 'tune up' as PAR is doing. Changing weather helm from 10 to 5 degrees is great, but not enough IMHO. Having said that....I will add, not enough to correct my boat. When I first got mine, (like Doc, I traded for my WE) I raked the mast as far forward as it would go, even removed some wood on the mast stump to allow near vertical adjustment angle. It was not enough to balance the boat to what I would call a proper point. Again, with all due respect to the original designer of these boats, I personally feel the balance issue has been designed into the boat. The center of effort is fine, but just not in keeping with the center of lateral resistance. Barry, Ray and Par will know what this means...as well as many other folks I am sure....but in the end there needs to be a harmony between these two areas of a sail boat to create a nice balance. There should be enough weather helm that a boat will prefer to round up even in light conditions, but not so much that you get sore muscles from trying to hold the boat from rounding up in windier conditions. Too much weather helm is just plain inefficient as well. It slows you down with the drag effect of the rudder being at such a great angle. Basically, I feel the shape of the 'keel' in combination with the hull shape is incorrect. In fact, I guarantee that if the keel shape was reversed end for end, this boat would sail 100% better....and be balanced. I also guarantee that if you either reversed the 'keel' shape or just remove the enlarged forefoot and added a centerboard or dagger board, your boat will never have trouble tacking. I know I know, I am a heretic and perhaps a bit rude or impolite for mentioning such a thing. :oops: But, I listen to all the discussion and 'fixes' for 'why can't I tack my boat?' and 'why does it always want to face into the wind?'. I can tell you why, the boat is a little bit ...not right. :wink: I figure I am as qualified as anyone to say this out loud. I am certainly not a naval architect or an engineer of anything but stringed instruments, furniture and boat interiors, but I have done a lot of research, enlisted the assistance of a prolific small boat designer and done much practical experimentation. Perhaps I have modified an actual Weekender more than anyone before me. I have made many major changes, slowly with thought to the effects. In the end, I have proven to myself that what I said above is correct and this boat can be made to work a lot better. I know by mentioning all this it may confuse new builders. I really don't want to do that, it is not my intention, please build away. This is merely my two cents worth on this threads topic and interrelated topics. These are really awesome little boats...but with much room for improvement. I am enjoying the heck out of mine!
  24. dang.....I though I might be getting my waterfront property sooner than figured on. 8)
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