EC 22

[Joe Anderson]

Lets make that rotates out of the trunk.

[Joe Anderson]

Interior is pretty much completed below the seat tops.

[Hirilonde]

Are you working on that over on Great Island?

[Joe Anderson]

Yep

Boat shop (garage) is in sight of the water.

It does not get much better than this.

Great Island, Rhode Island.

When it is quiet and foggy I can hear the fog horn at Point Judith.

[Joe Anderson]

I finally finished working on the hull. I rolled the boat out to get turned right side up.

[Joe Anderson]

There have been some discussions on the forum concerning lightning protection.

http://www.messing-about.com/forums/index.php?topic=5936.0

I do not think that the expense and weight of an adequate grounding system is justified on a small daysailer.

Nevertheless I could not keep from thinking that connecting the aluminum spars with the metal keel strip might provide a measure of damage control with little additional weight or expense.

I wanted to add as little weight as possible and absolutely none above the deck.

Copper is by far the best conductor followed by aluminum. Bronze is a distant third. Stainless is not an insulator, but it is pretty far back.

However both copper and bronze are pretty reactive in contact with aluminum.

I had difficulty finding a source for the bronze I wanted. I do not think much of aluminum fastners. So that left me with stainless.

My "system" consists of a 18 foot by 3/4 inch by 3/16 inch stainless keel strip.

A 1/4 inch stainless through bolt to an 1/8 inch aluminum disc at the base of the mizzen.

A 1/4 inch stainless through bolt to an 1/8 by 2 inch aluminum strip which ties into the main mast at the tabernacle

I realize that in the event of a strike to the boat the best I could hope for are two toasted spars and two really jagged holes in the hull.

My assumption is that a poorly grounded mast is better that an ungrounded mast.

Main mast through bolt.

[Ray Frechette Jr]

I do not think that the expense and weight of an adequate grounding system is justified on a small daysailer.

The second any of us are out on a daysailor that gets hit by lightning we will not share that thought.

Having said that I do not own any sailboat that has a lightning protection system on board.  I do not sail in an area of frequent lightning, and I do avoid sailing when potential is higher...  But if I ever am out and get struck I know if I survive, I will retrofit to every boat I own...

My "system" consists of a 18 foot by 3/4 inch by 3/16 inch stainless keel strip.

A 1/4 inch stainless through bolt to an 1/8 inch aluminum disc at the base of the mizzen.

A 1/4 inch stainless through bolt to an 1/8 by 2 inch aluminum strip which ties into the main mast at the tabernacle

I realize that in the event of a strike to the boat the best I could hope for are two toasted spars and two really jagged holes in the hull.

My assumption is that a poorly grounded mast is better that an ungrounded mast.

Main mast through bolt.

By and large Joe your systems is pretty good.  

A properly designed lightning protection system is intended to keep the jagged holes form forming in the hull and to prevent side flashes that conduct through crew members.

Your ground plate is just fine as it meets ABYC recommendation of 1 sq ft of conductor that is at least 3/16 inch thick.  A long skinny ground plate is actually far better than a 1 foot by 1 foot square conductor.

I have  a few suggestions if you wish to consider them.  ABYC recommends that all components be able to conduct at least as much current as a #4 guage copper wire.

The one component that I question whether it might be up to this task is the 1/4 inch bolts.  I could do further research to see if they would be compliant, but if I were installing I think I would be more comfortable with 1/2 ic bolts.  Most electricity conducts on surfaces of conductor and surface are of conductor to conductor interface is very important.    Would be a pity of the bolts through bolted in hull proved to be weak point of system.

Also, if you have masts fitted together of aluminum pipe it would be reasonable to take a wee bit more time to drill and tap  some holes in the joins of the mast and fit some bolts through to transfer current from one section to next.

ABYC recommends having 3 thread depth  in material for bolt holes which is probably not likely with given mast thickness.  If doing myself for self I would probably opt for 3 evenly spaced 1/4 inch bolts around mast at point of lower bearing through both sections of mast.  Having 3 conductors here of 1/4 inch should be plenty robust.

Asa  final note, where you have dissimilar metals joined together, proper observation and vigilance regarding corrosion over time would be beneficial.  Being a trailer sailed boat, incidence is likely to be less, but a well placed eye now and again is certainly a prudent suggestion...

[Joe Anderson]

Thanks for the critique Ray. I know you have done some research in this area.

I also think the through bolts are the weakest link, but I just did not feel I go any larger and still machine nicely into my 3/4 inch keel strip.

I have not worked out how I will bond the mast sections. I am going to try to get a one piece sail track. Of course once again we are dealing with stainless.

I have some extra length on my lower mast sections and I have wondered if I could leave a 6 or 8 inch tab about 1 inch wide that could bend down under the sail track as part of the shim that tapers between the two mast sections.

I am pretty set on not adding weight above the deck.

[Ray Frechette Jr]

Thanks for the critique Ray. I know you have done some research in this area.

I also think the through bolts are the weakest link, but I just did not feel I go any larger and still machine nicely into my 3/4 inch keel strip.

Perhaps then a second set of 1/4 inch bolts and tie them together electrically.

I have not worked out how I will bond the mast sections. I am going to try to get a one piece sail track. Of course once again we are dealing with stainless.

I have some extra length on my lower mast sections and I have wondered if I could leave a 6 or 8 inch tab about 1 inch wide that could bend down under the sail track as part of the shim that tapers between the two mast sections.

I am pretty set on not adding weight above the deck.

1 piece mast track if of sufficient thickness to conduct the amount of current would be fine.  In any event the track will be in close contact with the mast and attached with rivets frequently.

How much weight does 3  stainless 1/4 by say 1/2 inch bolts per mast join section  add??

[Joe Anderson]

My EC 22 has a weighted centerboard.

The plans show the centerboard uphaul exiting the trunk with a thru deck block near the forward kingpost.

The pendant exits the cabin on top of the trunk and the gun tackle lies on top of the centerboard trunk in the cockpit.

I would like to move all the lines and blocks to the side of the trunk or underneath the trunk rails in the cockpit.

I am not sure what blocks are available or which I should use to route the lines out of the trunk.

I have attached a couple of sketches.

Another possibility would be to have some sort of block at the forward kingpost that would allow the pendant to exit the trunk under the rail in the cabin and then run out to the cockpit where the tackle would be.

Other than that I can not have any lines or blocks in the cabin.

[Gordy Hill]

Joe,

I think I'd consider having the uphaul exit the trunk at or near the kingpost. It looks like you might have a chance for a slack uphaul to drop down to the top of the board when it's down and get pinched.

I think Murphy was an optimist.......

[Joe Anderson]

Hmm I do not know Gordy, but here is plan B.

Exit the centerboard trunk at the kingpost with a thru deck block like Graham does, but angle off to the rail and go under with another thru deck block. This has the block out of line by about 1 1/2 inches in 2 feet or so. I am not sure if that is a problem.

Plan view

[Gordy Hill]

I was picturing the block horizontal and sending the line out the side of the trunk at the kingpost and under the trunk cap and seats. A few fairleads should handle things from there.

[Joe Anderson]

I thought of this idea earlier but I was not keen on it.

I did not think there was enough room to fit a horizontal block and have the line from the board on the centerline.

I was also looking to avoid openings in the trunk in the cabin.

However your comment encouraged me to rethink this approach and I think it might be workable.

I have moved everything under the starboard rail so any leakage would drain into the footwell instead of Sally's bunk.

If necessary the king post block could be on a swivel that would allow it to rotate far enough from the horizontal to have the line to the board on the center line.

[Gordy Hill]

If you had about a 3" block on the king post and one side accepted the uphaul right on the centerline of the trunk it wouldn't fit.....unless you cut a slot for the block and line. Then you could make a little box to cover this with a hole where the line could exit. A removeable, watertight panel, say 2"x3", might make Murphy happy. The line could then run in a cleverly camoflaged pvc pipe to the cockpit.

[Joe Anderson]

Thanks Gordy. That is another option.

I do not want anything protruding outside of the rail which is tapering in at the forward kingpost.

I do not believe there is that much water pressure at the forward end of the trunk.

Some water is going to work its way into the cabin, so I do not want to over complicate this for a few drops of water.

Thanks again it has been a help to draw this out and think it through.

[tom151]

Joe

FWIW, a perhaps simpler approach, depending on your specific needs - but I'll offer it as fodder.

On my 32 foot boat with a 6' centerboard... I put a forged eyebolt in the forward post of the case, attaching a double block there. On a pennant on the centerboard was a single block with a becket (for 4:1 total). The tailing end of the line led from the double block through an eyestrap on the underside of the case cover then out through the rear post of the case to a cam cleat.

I copied it from another home built tri on which it was seen to work well - otherwise I would not have even considered putting the blocks inside the case. I honestly did worry for a while - but in  the end it worked a treat.

The board was not ballasted (or I'd never have been able to attend local multihull club meetings so it also had a down haul line rigged directly from the board back through a second hole in  the rear post of the case.

If  I remember correctly, I used a short bit of garden hose slit lengthwise to fit the exit holes so as to provide a bit of friction as the free line fed back into the case.

Best of luck with the EC22,

TomH

[Joe Anderson]

Spring is coming slow to Rhode Island, but it is nice to be back in the boat shop even if it is in the forties.

I installed a thru hull block under the rail at the forward end of the CB trunk.

Then up with the cabin bulkhead and the molds for the cabin.

It is exciting to be working on the cabin. Lots of curves and nice lines.

I have not quite worked out how to hold down three layers of laminate but hopefully I will come up with something tomorrow.

[Joe Anderson]

My brother-in-law loaned me a pack of monel staples, but I have not used any of them yet. I have three layers of 4mm on the roof and one layer on the side of the cabin. One more layer to go on the sides. So far all the fastners have been pulled.

[Joe Anderson]

Way overdue for an update. Plus I have some questions.

Here is the cabin back on the boat with some deck beams going in.

These are some shots of the cabin interior including a view of our galley.