Some of you may remember me having written about 'Whimbrel' a long while back. This embryonic design generated a considerable amount of comment and interest. Since my last article about 'Whimbrel' a lot has changed in my life, but my feelings about 'Whimbrel' have remained the same.
I was approached by a fellow back in 2009 from memory, who asked me to modify the plans for the 'San Francisco Great Pelican' to make the boat buildable using the 'Stitch-and-Glue' technique. Looking at the plans in detail convinced me that a totally new design was a better way to get a practical result. So the 'Whimbrel' idea was born.
The man who commissioned the project was unexpectedly posted overseas and so the urgency for a completed set of plans evaporated. However, I remained interested in the concept and tinkered for a year or so. My workload and life changes required me to shelve the project, but I have recently gone back for a second look.
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Whimbrel images as she was last time I posted. The inwards-tapering footwell has been changed to a more open, parallel-sided set-up.
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In the intervening years I've experimented with alternative cockpit and cuddy hatch layouts, and even a full-keel version without leeboards, but at the moment I have settled on a slot-top cuddy and a conventional self-draining cockpit. I'm in the process of drafting building plans at a leisurely pace. Here are some renderings of what will be the version in the plans.
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Whimbrel with her free-standing masts set
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| Cockpit layout from above |
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| Another shot from above showing self-draining cockpit, the free-flooding well just forrard of the stern transom, the spot in the foredeck where the free-standing mast rotates into a self-draining centreboard-case-like arrangement. This provides a deep bury for the heel of the mast and allows the tabernacle to be quite low and unobtrusive. |
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| The mast case arrangement showing foam-filled spaces adjacent to the bow transom and then stowage spaces either side of the case between bulkhead #1 and the forrard cabin bulkhead. Each of these lockers are subdivided by horizontal floors which can be seen in transparent white. The upper spaces are anchor/deck lockers accessible through hatches in the foredeck, and the lower spaces are for dry stowage accessible from the cabin through openings in the bulkhead. The construction of these parts is very simple and they add tremendous structural strength. |
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| A view into the cabin showing the heads of the raised, slatted bunk flats, the open space just ahead of them for trinkets, and then the openings into the lower lockers each side of the mast case. |
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| Bunk flats viewed looking aft towards the main cabin bulkhead and the port side. |
I'll post again when the plans are getting close to completion. Let know what you think!
