Lapwing #5 build

[John Turpin]

[quote author=Hirilond

[Hirilonde]

It's official.  The foredeck and side decks will be painted navy blue.........

.............I just checked my list.  29 tasks to go.  She is scheduled to launch one week from tomorrow.

I think you may find navy blue a bit toasty on sunny days.  Many boat manufacturers do the decks in either tan/buff which goes with anything or a pastel version of the primary color of the topsides.  The second one keeps the color scheme simple and both yield low glare and a cool place to sit.

You are a man on a mission, looking forward to the sailing photos.

[John Turpin]

[quote author=Hirilond

[John Turpin]

My splash guard gets some love from a piece of ribbon-stripe mahogany veneer and a hundred clamps.

[John Turpin]

The transom gets a mahogany cap.

[John Burritt]

Another example of "there's no such thing as too many clamps."

[Joe Anderson]

Looking very nice.

You got the mast out of the way a long time ago.

Rudder, Centerboard done.

I bet you do not even need a list.

Well I guess you have a few pieces of hardware to mount.

Keep at it.

[John Turpin]

A highway patrol trooper came by this morning to inspect the boat (and ensure that it wasn't stolen).  Now that he's applied some stickers and given me some forms, I can get the boat registered and titled.  He says that he sees 200 to 300 new homebuilt boats a year in our community (mostly canoes and kayaks). 

He predicted that my boat would indeed float.  I'm not yet convinced.

I've got four days until I launch.  Today, thwarts, sprits and stemhead.  Tomorrow, I actually step the masts and start rigging.

[hokeyhydro]

The Commonwealth of Virginia does the Trooper, County Police, or County Sheriff inspection on homebuilts, but here in NC I just fill out a registration form, get my sig notarized, and send `er in. With a stack of cash, of course :shock:

[John Turpin]

Well, I'm not going to make my deadline.  I'm trying to work too fast and it's making me cut corners.  That's needless and short sighted.  I'm going to just slow down, do it right and it will get done when it gets done.

I was hoping to sail her this weekend at  BOOTS http://groups.yahoo.com/group/boots-tsbb/ so we could have four B&B boats sailing together.  That would have made a nice photo.  I may trailer her down there so she can be with her sister ships in spirit.

Bummer.

[John Turpin]

The "lift" and "drop".

[Dale Niemann]

John,

I am sure you have already planned this but thought I would mention it in case you did not.  From the trailer photo it appears that your trailer is a typical motorboat trailer with the wheels at the very back to carry the weight of the motor.  I would suggest that you move the wheels forward until you get the proper weight distribution on the tongue.

Dale

[John Turpin]

Yeah, the tongue is definately heavy.  Moving the axle might really help.

The trailer's not a great fit, but it's new and should handle the miles well.  At the BOOTS sailing event this weekend, I'd planned to talk to some of the more experienced sailors about the trailer and how it might be best adjusted/configured.  The bunks were close, but I need to flatten them a little, as the hull really flattens out back there.  I may also need to add another roller up front. 

[Ken_Potts]

  Since you mentioned it...  :grin:

  My trailer was also originally intended for a powerboat.  I moved the bow chock as far forward as it would go without endangering my tailgate.  Then I moved the axle far enough forward to balance the trailer out properly.  The setup works well for me - The overall rig (truck, trailer, boat) is as short as possible so it is maneuverable, and since I don't float the boat on and off the trailer I don't need extra length to keep the truck out of the water.

  From the picture, it looks like you might have to move the axle forward first (it looks like the travel on the axle might be limited) and then adjust the position of the boat to balance the trailer.

  I agree that another roller would be helpful, too.  Try to keep the weight of the boat on the keel, rather than the bilges.  I added a roller or two so that I've got one every place the trailer frame is under the keel.

[John Turpin]

Transom cap and thwarts.

[jshaley]

20% of total trailer & load weight on the hitch is a rule of thumb used by RV'rs.

[Hirilonde]

I was taught to use 10% tongue weight.  I just did a search on line and got answers varying between 9% - 15%.

[PAR]

On small craft like this you want 15% to 20% or it'll hobby horse like a mule over every bump. On heavier craft you decrease the tongue weight percentage to keep it from smashing the rear suspension of your car every time you hit the brakes. My 27' Chris Craft with it's heavy tandem trailer has about 200 pounds on the tongue. This is only 3% of the package, but acceptable for short hops. If I went for a long trip, I'd load the Chris further forward and increase to 400 pounds on the tongue, which is still only 6% of the tow package.

On the other hand, the trailer I set up for the CS-17 I built last year, left here with a 60 pound tongue weight, which was light in my opinion, by the client didn't want to lift any more, to hitch 'er up. This works out at 12% and she did "snatch" at the ball on heavy road bumps. Increasing the tongue weight to 75 pounds (15%) or 85 pounds (17%) will make her ride much better behind the tow vehicle and save wear and tear on the ball and hitch.

[John Turpin]

Okay.  Vacation's over.  I attended the BOOTS sailing event last weekend--an event with a certain Lapwing conspicuously missing.  But, there was a Princess and two CS17s there, so that was nice.  The wife and I sailed on Pilgrim for Saturday's big sail and a good time was had by all.

But now, back to work on Ms. Peter.  I just went down to the workshop and stared at the boat for a few minutes.  I sanded a little here and there and sort of made a mental list of tasks to tackle.  Now, having missed my ironclad deadline, I find that the time pressure is off and I can replace my former frenetic pace with one more reasonable and craftsmanlike.  I need to get her outside and step those masts for the first time.  But, all this week we're forecasted thunderstorms and tornados, so I hate to see the boat launch herself and head for Kansas.  I may keep her inside for a few days and concentrate on non-mast-related tasks.  I do have plenty of varnish and paint work to do and that can be done inside and away from those pesky killer storms.  Ah, springtime in Oklahoma.

[Richard Whitney CS#70]

Hi John

My break has been longer than yours.  I have finally got back to doing some work on no. 4.  Found a good scraper that is working better than sanding for getting all the untidy epoxy off.  Also glued the stem and keel this last weekend.  Hope to be able to do some undercoating in the next couple of weeks and get her turned over.

Hope you enjoy the finishing touches.  How was the sail on Pilgram?  I am already thinking at some stage I am going to want a boat with a cabin - P22 is on my short list.  How does the space down below feel to you.  I am unlikely to have more than one other overnighting on her.