16/30 decked sailing canoe progress

[Dan Miller]

Wanted to hold out until she was closer to done and had a nicer backdrop, but here is where we are as of earlier today on my 16/30 decked sailing canoe.

http://sailingcanoes.dragonflycanoe.com/16_30/IMGP1659a.jpg

Her keel was laid (well, ok, her bottom panels were stitched up) on March 24, and I am planning to have her completed in time to bring to the Small Craft Workshop at Mystic in June.

The design is the result of the work of John Summers, curator at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton. John took the lines off an original, circa 1910 decked canoe built by the Gilbert Motor Co. in Toronto, and adapted it for plywood construction. We'll be at a few shows this spring, and the first regatta (should have at least six of these present) will be during the Antique Boat Show in Clayton in August. Show up and take a ride!

[JimD]

Nice work, Dan. Got a drawing of the sail plan?

[Dan Miller]

Nice work, Dan. Got a drawing of the sail plan?

Not scanned in yet... but here is a link to a thread on the WCHA site that shows sail-fitting day at the workshop - http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?t=2323

Total area is 90 square feet, divided roughly 2/3:1/3, and are being made by Douglas Fowler.

[Brian Palmer]

Thanks for the photos.

I've alway been intrigued by the sliding hiking board on sailing canoes and was wondering if you could enlighten me on how they are rigged up and used during sailing. I assume they have to be manually shifted to windward on each tack.

Thanks again,

Brian

[Dan Miller]

I've alway been intrigued by the sliding hiking board on sailing canoes and was wondering if you could enlighten me on how they are rigged up and used during sailing. I assume they have to be manually shifted to windward on each tack.


The sliding seat is pretty simple, really - there is a "bridge" permanently mounted atop the four seat supports. In this case it is 5-1/2" wide. The underside of the sliding seat has a couple of cleats mounted 6" apart, which in turn have 1-1/2" aluminum bar stock fastened to hold it on the bridge. When tacking, you shove the seat and tiller to the other side, turn yourself around and carry on...

Cheers,
Dan

[Brian Palmer]

Thanks, Dan.

So the board is just held in place by friction after put your weight on it and the bar stock keeps it from coming off the seat support bridges. The lever forces on the seat supports must be pretty substanstial, given the counter acting forces of the sails and the sailor's weight.

-- Brian

[Cuyahoga Chuck]

1910 Gilbert,eh? It looks an aweful lot like Jacques Mertens' "Cheap Canoe" circa 1992.
I always wondered what my Cheap Canoe would do under sail but, unfurling 90 squares over it would give me a heart attack before the first tack was attempted. Must take a hell of a dance to keep the keel pointing downward.
Good luck. I'm sure the folks at Clayton will be duely impressed.

[Thorne]

90 sq ft!

O. M. G.

;0 )

[Dan Miller]

90 sq ft!

O. M. G.

Yep, that's why its called "sailing by the seat of your pants"!

[Bruce Taylor]

Nice work, Dan! You're almost there.

http://www.woodenboatvb.com/vbulletin/upload/images/icons/icon14.gif

[Fitz]

Very nice Dan, thank you for sharing the photo. I keep coming back and gawking. I'm sufferin' from lackofwoodcanoeitus. I think the WCHA website has been down a few days. What'sup with that? I hope it is not catastrophic again:eek: .

So do you stay dry ridin' one of these things?...;) :D

Cheers.

Fitz

[Dan Miller]

Hi Fitz,

There are some who can stay dry sailing these... especially if they don't forget to put stopper knots in the tiller rod! I stayed dry while sailing the prototype in light winds, but went swimming a lot from Tomahawk II (round-hulled reproduction).

I'm told we're supposed to be able to do this by summers end...:

http://sailingcanoes.dragonflycanoe.com/images/walking_the_plank.jpg

A hacker got into the server hosting the WCHA site and used it to launch a NOC DOS attack. Hopefully it will be resolved soon and we will be back up without loss.

[Fitz]

If we catch the hacker can we make him Walk the Plank, as shown above???:D

[Cuyahoga Chuck]

I recall seeing some sailing canoe plans from the W.P. Stevens era that showed sail plans of around 200+ squares.
But, they had to have recourse to very stout hull construction to support all the weight of lead ballast and thick steel plate centerboards. It must have been an adventure none the less.

[Dan Miller]

I recall seeing some sailing canoe plans from the W.P. Stevens era that showed sail plans of around 200+ squares.
But, they had to have recourse to very stout hull construction to support all the weight of lead ballast and thick steel plate centerboards. It must have been an adventure none the less.

Yeah, those are the "canoe yawls" (see the canoe yawl section of "Canoe and Boatbuilding for Amateurs" at http://dragonflycanoe.com/stephens/). Somewhat different critters. More sail, but heavily ballasted. The only ballast on the 16-30 is the rocks I carry in me own head... :D

[skuthorp]

And I thought rigging a trapeze on my Macgreggor and standing on the side deck was extreme! BTW, does'nt work too well with a leeboard, too much angle and she slides out from under you on the board!

[Dan Miller]

Maiden voyage at the John Gardner Small Craft Workshop this past Saturday. :D :D :D

http://sailingcanoes.dragonflycanoe.com/16_30/DragonFly/mystic3.jpg

http://sailingcanoes.dragonflycanoe.com/16_30/DragonFly/mystic4.jpg

http://sailingcanoes.dragonflycanoe.com/16_30/DragonFly/mystic2.jpg

Cheers,
Dan

[Fitz]

Who won the race?:cool:

[DGentry]

Looks like fun, too! I want one. Are the plans available yet?
I'm curious about the speed potential and handling, and I hope you can let us know how she handles when you get her out in bigger wind and waves.
And maybe how it stacks up against some "standards" like a Laser or 470, etc.
Thanks!
Dave

[Steve Lansdowne]

Nice photos. Thanks. What does the '16/30' refer to?

[Cuyahoga Chuck]

Nice photos. Thanks. What does the '16/30' refer to?

16 feet long by 30 inches wide. Extremely narrow for a sailboat.

[sharpie]

Hi Fitz,

There are some who can stay dry sailing these... especially if they don't forget to put stopper knots in the tiller rod! I stayed dry while sailing the prototype in light winds, but went swimming a lot from Tomahawk II (round-hulled reproduction).

I'm told we're supposed to be able to do this by summers end...:

http://sailingcanoes.dragonflycanoe.com/images/walking_the_plank.jpg

A hacker got into the server hosting the WCHA site and used it to launch a NOC DOS attack. Hopefully it will be resolved soon and we will be back up without loss.

Heck, why not build a wider boat? :) Seriously, very nice.

[Cuyahoga Chuck]

Heck, why not build a wider boat? :) Seriously, very nice.

This design is about 100 years old. Even back then they knew if you want to boogie you have to keep your "wetted area" low. Long and skinny is it.

[Dan Miller]

What does the '16/30' refer to?

Like Chuck says, 16' LOA, 30" beam. It is a "rules class", in that a 16-30 gets 90 square feet of sail. For every inch increase in beam you can add a foot and a half of sail area, and for any increase in length, there is a sail area penalty.

We are sort of reviving this class, so the focus is less on the rules and more on getting folks out in this kind of craft. At our first regatta in Clayton in August, we expect a half-dozen of these new ones as well as a variety of other antique and reproduction 16-30s.

We put a buddy of mine in one a couple weeks ago - he's been a competitive sailor in a variety of craft for some 40 years. When he came in, his grin was huge and he could only mutter something about the impressive acceleration... :D These canoes are a blast - sort of the aquatic world's version of an amusement park thrill ride.

Cheers,
Dan

[Dan Lindberg]

Dan,

That canoe looks way too small for you. :)
Looks like a good way to get wet.
(and lots of fun)

Dan