Another Goat Island Skiff in Maine

[Clinton B Chase]

I am in the process of making a Goat Island Skiff to sail myself. I started with a model awhile back and my son loves it.



My vision of the boat is with a mizzen and having the ability to sail it standard or as a yawl....



Parts are in progress, bulkheads are cut to plan, framed in timber, and bevelled to the millimeter. Transom is cut, framed, with a nice cleat at the top to strengthen and give the transom a beefier look. The stem, with its quickly winding bevel over only about 24", is cut on the table saw then finished by hand on the bench. Faying surfaces are slightly backed out to create the best bond.



The side panels and bulkheads, stem, transom are all dry fit to ensure everything works, which it did beautifully. I did line off the sheer and tweak that a little bit. Shop patterns were adjusted so that if more parts are made from them, they will be "all set".



This boat will be the first or second GIS Yawl to be built, all the others are the standard rig. The beauty of this version, is that it can be used as both. The boat goes together beautifully and sails like a dream. We were out in a local GIS last fall and, on a close reach with my wife lounging in the midship thwart, we caught up to and dropped a fleet of 420s racing. That was when I decided to look at building one.

[Clinton B Chase]

Here is the mizzen tiller shot...



This has been the subject of the thread "Mizzen tiller relationship in a transomed boat" in DESIGN.

[StevenBauer]

Will she be ready for the SRR?



Steven

[Clinton B Chase]

Will she be ready for the SRR?

Steven

I'd like that very much. The better business is the less a chance I'll have it there...at this rate I should be able to work on it hard between WB Show and SRR...SRR may be the launch. Anyone ever launch their new build at the SRR before? I'm sure someone must have done it....

[StevenBauer]

Hmmm....

[Thorne]

Bob Wessel launched his new GIS yesterday near Sacramento. I missed it due to a freeway closure, but the photos on Facebook look great.

Best of luck with yours. The only building tip I'm aware of for that design is to make the fasteners that hold the rudder head to the pintles really strong, as there is a lot of stress on that part when sailing it hard. I think that bolts with washers are recommended...

[Clinton B Chase]

Thanks for looking guys.

Here she is glued up and dead level, so far.





Sadly, she goes into storage after Friday to make room for other projects (ones that "put food on the table") and it will go into.....a Goat barn! Literally, the barn is full of Goats. I hope they don't "get my Goat". No pun intended, of course.

[simonmags]

Hi Clinton, in the below picture how to the ?sash? clamps on the piece of wood that is on the floor at the bottom work.

I presume you are doing a scarf joint or a butt joint?

[Clinton B Chase]

I am gluing the butt straps. I made the jig for glueing scarfs, originally. I use butt joints as much as possible in boats with large panels like this one.

A note on gluing up scarfs and butt straps to a panel pre-cut to exact shape: glue the panels one on top of the other so they are glued up as mirror images of each other. You may not see it, but the second panel is under the top one. It was glued up previously.

[Clinton B Chase]

Making patterns for tanktops and thwarts.



Watch douglas fir...some boards are full of checks...this one literally blew up in my hands when I picked it uP!

[Falcon500]

Watch douglas fir...some boards are full of checks...this one literally blew up in my hands when I picked it uP!

Need to get those "Western Folk" back on quality control, you give'm an inch and next you have DF with knots and pitch pockets!





P.S. at first i thought you were building a one footer model, but now i see it! looks good!

[David G]

Clint,

Is it done yet?

I'm really looking forward to seeing the Texas (y'all) version, and hearing a performance report.

[Clinton B Chase]

David, it is going into storage to be completed in June/July.

But I'll be making two rigs in the spring and foils, etc.

I got behind when I found the middle BHD was asymmetric...it is easy to do. All the measurements were spot on within 1mm tolerance, yet when I traced the BHD and flipped it over, it did not line up. It put a flat spot in the chine so I remade the bhd, then we all got the flu again.

Back to it today finishing some extra sets of parts and then the bhd then storage, sadly.

Clint

[OEX]

Hey Clint. First off, your ideas will make the GS even more fun and fast and manageable to sail than it already is. Very nice ... as usual!!!

You might want to think about a loose footed main on the GS Balanced Lug. I used a very similar main on my Raider 18 (you could post a pic if you like since I am still brain dead). I think with the variable winds the loose foot might give some more options for New England winds. Cocktail hour summer breeze..... Just a thought. I will be doing this top Raiders main this year. Also very important to use min stretch lines---makes a big difference over a long day of sailing when you do not have to mess with downhaul tension so much. Might want to attach downhaul to the mast and not the thwart. I did not do this on Pagan, but I have done this before. I wish I had. I allows you to really go to town on the down- haul without worry to the hull. Just have a retainer line from step or thwart to the mast just in case you go over or you get too much lift.

Mizzen, make sure your leads go far forward for the mizzen. You will be sitting fairly close to midships, its a pain to scoot back to let fly or haul in the mizzen. I use my sliding seat to glide around very nice and fast ---for instance planning down wind, balance of helm, etc....the sliding seat had added a lot of easiness/versatility to my sailing that I had not predicted--very comfortable on the "bottom" over time as well. I also use it as a hiking strap. I even will let a bit too much heal when sailing so i can keep my but in that nice little nest!

On the mizzen sprit boom. As you know Raider is 19ft and 175lbs faering based so double-ender, but I do not need to have the sheet at the end of the sprit boom. It works just fine having it about mid point. The snotter gives plenty of ability to keep the right sail on a shape even if the boom seems to be "pulled" a bit a forward angle. My boat is about the same weight, but my main and mizzen are just a bit larger than what you have here. I know you know that mizzen is not so much for power so.... Just a thought. Maybe though, the "bumpkin" looks better same length as the sail as you have it.

I e-mailed and posted you a very low res (19.5KB) a pic of her on the wind---shows mizzen shape with a bit of tension on it, not hard , but flattish. This shot was in Deer Isle and I was going over 7 knots with no real current and hiking my fat or lanky 230lbs butt out a bit.... It does not look impressive, but there you have it.

Cheers, Bruce

sorry gave up on the attachment, can even see 19.5kb so...... Yes i am well aware I am an idiot with this pic stuff.

[bluedog225]

Watch douglas fir...some boards are full of checks...this one literally blew up in my hands when I picked it uP!

Nice work. Would you expand on the statement above? I'm fixin to build a mast and spars out of Douglas and want to understand what you are saying.

Thanks

[Clinton B Chase]

Sure, DF that is kiln dried or partially kiln dried can "check", cracks that often hide inside the wood from internal stresses being released as the wood moves during the drying cycle. If the drying is fast, like in kilns, the problem is worse. I knew it was going to happen because I could see the checking on the surface of the wood...little fissures that start and stop within a few inches.

For spars, I would really only used air dried lumber. If you had to use KD lumber, bend the board and make sure you can't hear any crackling. Also, look for surface checking.

[Clinton B Chase]

An update. My GIS Yawl is still under a tarp, but hull #1 is very close to being launched in Texas in time for the Texas 200. John Goodman just stepped shiny new birdsmouth masts of No. White Spruce and Sitka Spruce.



The mizzen is also birdsmouth using the asymmetrical stave arrangement and weighs very little. The yard and boom are 2-piece laminated spruce.

[amish rob]

Could you please elaborate on the assymetrical stave arrangement in the mizzen birdsmouth mast?
I'm getting ready to build some small spars (for a sailing canoe) that I would like to be light.
Wait, I see the staves are offset- the vee isn't in the center of the staves. Hmmm, how is this figured?
The kid in the photo on the driveway has the right idea.
That is a lovely boat.

[James McMullen]

I will be very fascinated to hear how you like the yawl rig compared to the single-sail. I did that experiment myself when I built the Ness Yawl Dragonfly with the tandem mast steps, and then after the one try, never using the single step again. That was for a much bigger and heavier boat, though.

That looks nice! I might just have to build myself an ultralight cartoppable daysailer GIS myself. I've got some extra super crazy high tech fabrics and foam core scrap I inherited from the BWM Oracle folks when they closed up shop that really ought to go into a high performance dinghy of some kind. I'd have the goal of keeping it under 100 lbs if possible. . . .cored-foam bulkheads and frames maybe, and I've been wanting to try building a carbon spar. It'd be super nifty to have a lug-rigged Laser slayer for my lake sailing. The GIS calls for a 105 sf sail which is actually just as much sail as Rowan has for a boat at least 250 lbs heavier.

[MiddleAgesMan]

The hull color of the Texas GIS is yummy. Makes me want to go buy some lime sherbet.

[Clinton B Chase]

The lime green GIS pictured above is being built by a Dad and his kids in Texas and he will be sailing the Texas 200 in a couple weeks time. I wish them the best.

James, sailing a GIS is a hoot. It is a truly elegant design and for fun I go out and spank the local 420 sailing fleet. They look at me like I am a bat out of hell -- with this weird square sail -- coming up on them and holding them on the upwind legs then totally passing them once we crack off the sheets! It is the best form of professional development I've ever undertaken.

You should build one. It is hard to get lighter than the designed weight of 128lbs, but it would be fun to try especially with the extra wood of the yawl rigged GIS. I agree, I probably won't use my aft step much, but for resale I thought it'd be good to keep it. If I build a 2nd one I'd try to get it to under 128, because why not.

[James McMullen]

Clint, what do you think about three strake 4mm lapstrake sides, a la Redmond's Whisp? I bet you could shave six pounds right there, but the integral stringer effect of the laps would keep the sides plenty stiff anyways.

[David G]

James,

I've thought about such a scheme (maybe 4 strakes, not 3). I haven't run it by the designer yet... but it's been in the back of my mind. Seems like it oughta work, but I may be missing something.

[James McMullen]

It would make the boat look that much more old fashioned and therefore all the more glorious when you could spank someone who wasn't expecting it.

[Clinton B Chase]

I'm all for improving spankability. And I love lapstrake, but I don't think it'd look right. I guess I'm happy with how it is and the simplicity the boat represents. It is all about quick and easy construction for very little $ investment (for a boat) and superb payback as far as performance. I can say Boatmik wouldn't love the idea...

If I were to spend time on mods it would be in really refining the lug yawl version and doing some experimentation with different spars with varying flexibility. I also think a tiller that folds up is needed for using this boat as a sail and oar boat. It is hard to improve on this boat.

[switters]

Bob Wessel launched his new GIS yesterday near Sacramento. I missed it due to a freeway closure, but the photos on Facebook look great.

Best of luck with yours. The only building tip I'm aware of for that design is to make the fasteners that hold the rudder head to the pintles really strong, as there is a lot of stress on that part when sailing it hard. I think that bolts with washers are recommended...

directions to see photos please?

[James McMullen]

Clint, you don't think it would look good lined off something like this?



I'd have to do it full size on the floor for sure, but I guess it would look fine and it would certainly shave some pounds going to the 4mm topsides. . . .

I could even add the frames--but in ultralight S-glass foam core instead of that desperately heavy wood stuff.

It would certainly need a wider flange for the gunwale to support the thin planking than that trad. constructed skiff has.

[James McMullen]

Say, here's a Redmond Whisp I found on boatmik's photostream, so I betcha he's thought of it too. I should send him an email, see what he thinks. . . .

[Thorne]

James,

I've thought about such a scheme (maybe 4 strakes, not 3). I haven't run it by the designer yet... but it's been in the back of my mind. Seems like it oughta work, but I may be missing something.

I did just that and the response was NOT positive. Mik might give in and help the builder if he was lucky and/or persuasive, but his buddies in OZ were already teasing him about coming back from his USA trip and making something up in lapstrake...

As for photos of Bob W's GIS, they are here on the Forum, of course!
http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...ighlight=PSPYC

[David G]

Twin,

Yes... well, he's used to my heresies. He's even gotten past the point of arguing... and just shakes his head and helps me maximize my efforts (minimize the catastrophe?). He has firm ideas, stemming from an underlying, unshakable vision... but at the core, he's an easygoing sort.

[Thorne]

Oh I agree that he's a great guy and very understanding, but was concerned that we might not be doing him any favors by encouraging a lapstrake version of the GIS. Whether it would be gilding the lily, generally unnecessary, or just sorta twee from his perspective, I figured I'd let him go there under his own steam if he was ever so inclined...

[Clinton B Chase]

Here is GIS yawl, the first, in TX ready to be launched!

[Clinton B Chase]

A lot of Goat Island SKiff Launchings happening around the world: Texas, NH, Netherlands about to happen, Australia....

http://www.woodworkforums.com/f169/j...al-day-119188/

[Boatmik]

Links to a whole lot of Goat photos

Links to a bunch of Goat Island Skiff launchings

More to the point ... how did John and Mark Goodman go in the Texas200 in the first Goat Island Skiff Yawl. This year the winds were kinder than last even if there was more upwind work. Experience and the right conditions are important for these sorts of adventures.

And about lapstraking the hull sides. I do think it is gilding the Lily. It does make the building more complicated than it needs to be and I don't think the boat would look as pretty with all the shade lines along the side of the boat. I think they would reduce the sweep of the sheer quite a bit and emphasise just how high sided it is.

I know that normally lapstrake makes a boat look longer and lower, but it this case I think it would emphasise that all the shadow lines are in the same plane and emphasise the boxiness. The lack of detail on the hull makes it kindof disappear so the sheer, the plumb bow and the varnished transom become the areas that are visually emphasised. The eye ignores the plainness of the hull sides.

But if some hard type wants to give it a go then ... why not. One caution would be that there is a LOT of load in the forefoot so when temporarily screwing it up I would recommend a very large bit of scrap ply (covered in brown packaging tape) along the stem line for all the screws to go through. Otherwise I would not be surprised if one or more of the glued lap thingies let go. Once the bottom goes on this load (from bending the chine logs) is resolved into nothing.

But to strip weight out I would be going with Paulownia instead of the cedar solid timber (using the Timber List designations in the plan) particularly in countries where cedar is no longer available at a reasonable price. Even the bottom skids could be paulownia with a hardwood cap 1/4" thick.

In a way Clint beat me up until I accepted the idea of the Goat Yawl, and we ended up working on it together to some extent, but he and John Goodman did all the detail work. Can be the same if someone wants to try and lapstrake out of thinner ply. The bulkheads and transom could be thinner ply as well. Maybe trim the mast down a bit more.

(Three Hail Marys and a Lord's Prayer or appropriate alternatives would be appropriate)

MIK

[David G]

Mik,

Great to see all the Goats. Fun to see the fotos from your trip, and our sailing outing to Timothy Lake again. Hooray DUMP CAKE!

[Boatmik]

Woodeneye on the woodwork forum got his Goat hullweight down to 104lbs.

Without lapstraking.

http://www.woodworkforums.com/f169/b...tralia-106260/

MIK

[Clinton B Chase]

That is incredible! I did not set out to build the lightest Goat, but this would be hard to beat.

I did set out to build the prettiest GIS in the world and the first GIS yawl version in the world. Unfortunately, someone in Texas beat me to the yawl version, they liked the ideas so much for using their GIS in the Texas 200. There will be a WB article about the Texas 200 and it will talk about the GIS yawl that was in the event.

Well my Goat progresses slowly. The spars have been shaped and sealed, hanging to dry above the hull:



The birdsmouth masthead sealed in two coats of System 3 Clear Coat, a great way to seal spars. You can see the nice raised grain and fuzz after the resin seeped in and cured...ready to saned to 180grit before varnishing



The spruce I had leftover after some other projects was below my normal standard so I decided to use it as an opportunity to apply some trick of the trade. Here is a big porous knot that was replaced with some laminations. You can see the resulting football shaped patch that blends in nicely with the wood around it. This trick works well for repairs especially on flatsawn wood.



After clamping before fairing into spar...



Next step is to finish the hull before wrapping up for the winter.

[Songololo]

This one?

Here she is under sail.

You need to read the trip log ... a good laugh ... beware ... no liquids, or you could have a wet screen! A quote from someone with PDR sailing experience:

The day was dragging. You have to standup every once in a while or your ass will crack the other way.

It looks like jetskis can be useful after all!

[David G]

Clint - it's looking very nice. It's good to see an active Quality Control Officer. Tell her she looks pretty in pink <G>

Songolo - that's the one.

[Clinton B Chase]

I just have to post this great photo of Christophe Matson in his Goat on an adventure outside Jewell Island in Casco Bay, pretty far out for a Goat, but having fun.



Christophe Matson in his GIS by Clint Chase Boatbuilder, on Flickr

[davebrown]

It's taken me a while to warm up to the GIS--lookswise. But as I become more educated about sailboats and why one is better or worse than the other ( I have been sailing for about three years now), I can see why a sophisticated small craft guy might like them better than say, a Windward 15--which to me looks better. I think the lapstrake version of a GIS would LOOK better than the slabsided single strake. But I don't think I could ever compare one to the Bessie Lee, in looks.

[callsign222]

I can't wait to go sailing in tandem Clint! It's going to a be good time-- your boat is going to be absolutely seamless and beautiful when it's done... (hint hint, get on it!) Sailing is awesome, and sailing in company is even better!

Our plan that day on Jewell after dropping off our camping stuff was to actually head out to Halfway Rock and look for migrating birds, but we got waylaid by some extremely kind locals who cooked us up a batch of...



Needless to say, it was a great day!

[callsign222]

It's taken me a while to warm up to the GIS--lookswise. But as I become more educated about sailboats and why one is better or worse than the other ( I have been sailing for about three years now), I can see why a sophisticated small craft guy might like them better than say, a Windward 15--which to me looks better. I think the lapstrake version of a GIS would LOOK better than the slabsided single strake. But I don't think I could ever compare one to the Bessie Lee, in looks.

I absolutely love the look of the Windward 15. It's a beautiful boat. She pulls at the heartstrings. However for a neophyte boatbuilder on the tight budget, the simple and frameless (instant) construction, the light weight, and the performance, kind of makes the GIS hard to beat for someone that was in my situation. She's been my inseparable buddy this summer, we go everywhere together, and through that love, I find beauty.

Now if I can only get Storer to design my dream Oceanic-Sleep-Aboard-Goat, the ultimate coastal cruiser... the OSAG.

[davebrown]

I can certainly appreciate that, Callsign. Some number of months ago, either James or Clint posted several responses about similar and pointed out the workboat lines were often devised for low shear and reduced freeboard, for the purpose of tending lines and rail access. The yacht designers came in with high freeboard. This is a huge over simplification, but to someone like me whose initial exposure to sail was seeing the Chesapeake style skiffs when I was a pup....the higher freeboard type skiffs did not look right to me at first. I am understanding how they will outperform the workboat style hulls, again, as I become more educated in sailing. I can't recall the post, but a year or two ago we were looking at the Bessie Lee from the Chesapeake small caraft museum...if you can find that thread it is a heartbreaker. Neither here nor there: congratulations on a great build.

[davebrown]

Check out post no. 17. I hope my comments, which stem from a desire to learn about these boats, are not taken as a criticism of the work.

http://forum.woodenboat.com/showthre...ght=bessie+lee

[callsign222]

I don't take your comments as criticism at all, but an enjoyable conversational foray into what makes boats beautiful. Somehow, either through error or through a slight failing in some of the components, my particular GIS has taken on some small, subtle bulges here and there. Add in excess epoxy that wasn't cleaned up, rough fillets, and general parental-angst, everytime I walk into the garage I focused on her trouble spots. After a summer of adventuring and good sailing, my experiences help me overlook her warts and instead of seeing some epoxy I failed to clean, I see pirates on the horizon, and buxom women awaiting rescue with chests full of booty... now that's beauty! (the buxom women help)

I guess in the end, any boat that makes your imagination go nuts when you step away for even but a few moments, is beautiful.



Thanks for the link to the Bessie Lee.

[Dave Gray]

This one?

Here she is under sail.

You need to read the trip log ... a good laugh ... beware ... no liquids, or you could have a wet screen! A quote from someone with PDR sailing experience:



It looks like jetskis can be useful after all!

I missed this. It has been a fun read. "El Flamngo del Fuego", what a great name!

[chris nova]

Thanks for sharing, Clinton. You've certainly peaked my interest. Stumbled on this thread right after reading the current WB article with GIS yawl you mentioned about the TX 200. Love that shot of the little girl - is she holding a stethascope? - wooden boats definitely have soul - do they have heartbeats too? Or is she the wooden boat doctor?

[chris nova]

[QUOTE=Clinton B Chase;2492421]Making patterns for tanktops and thwarts.



Just saw a countertop installer using this technique too. For a beginner like me, this is a real lightbulb moment. Filing this away for future use!

[Clinton B Chase]

Man, I'm psyched about the traffic on this thread!

davebrown, I am with you about the GIS aestehtics. The looks really had to grow on me, unlike designs by say Francois Vivier that just are overwhelmingly beautiful. It is also a cultural thing: some don't like Vivier's boats which draw heavily on the traditional (high-freeboard, I might add) lines of French craft. Likewise, it took me a while to take to the lines of the Australian skiff which of course is partly an influence on Storer's lines of the Goat.


GIS Build_glueup by Clint Chase Boatbuilder, on Flickr

These photos show the jigless construction method of the GIS. Hull side panels bend and twist around plywood/timber framed bulkheads and attach to timber stem and transom. I say the hull sides twist because this simple hull form is quite complex: the panels must bend and twist around the forward bulkheads. The result is a curvature in the panel in the vertical. It is quite extraordinary and is hard to see in photos.


GIS Build by Clint Chase Boatbuilder, on Flickr

This also shows the complexity in the hull as the panels twist around the forward bulkheads and into the stem.

So, the brilliant design of this seemingly simple boat is partly what started to turn me around.

Now, for me as well as others, it was a plus to have a quick to build, relatively inexpensive sailboat. That also was part of the beauty for me. Of course, once the mizzen was part of the sail plan, I thought it really looked nice.