Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Getting Back On-Line after Nine Months of House and Workshop Building

I imagine that those of you who have been good enough to monitor my blog and website over the years may have been becoming concerned that I'd never write again! Well, we've been going through a year-long (maybe more) process of subdividing our land, selling a house, building a new workshop and building a new house. It has been an exceptionally demanding process, as many of you probably know only too well.

However, we have moved in finally, and the job list is down to a dull roar and I'm regaining my feet. I'll be writing more over the next few days, but there is a new website format on the way (it is happening - trust me - I've already paid the money!). The new website will incorporate this blog and promises to be more user-friendly.

In addition to a modernised format (I did the current one myself, and it looks very untidy and dated), there will be "Buy Now" buttons and a shopping cart, plus other things to make life easier for everybody, I hope.

Regular readers will be aware that I've been promising to publish a number of almost completed plans, about which I've spoken at different times. One of these which is a favourite of mine is Whimbrel

Balance Lug Rig

Gaff-headed Yawl option
The thing that has been preventing me from finishing these drawings has been the apparently simple process of illustrating the method I propose for the free-standing, folding mast to operate without having a tall, bulky and ugly tabernacle. The construction process I've had in mind is very simple, but structurally sound and efficient. However, the structure does not render well on a standard profile/plan/section style drawing, and I struggled to come up with a method of describing the system.

Several days ago I decided to bite the bullet and do a hand-drawn perspective of the important parts of the internal structure without the hull planking and framework (for clarity). Here is a sneak preview so you can get the idea. Plans are definitely, finally, not far off...

The new drawing

Just a fun sketch showing the gaff rig set up for a quiet night. This rig can be used with or without forestay and shrouds.


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10 comments:

  1. Walter BaronApril 24, 2014 at 9:46 AM

    Ross - nice to hear you will be back on line. I should do the same to my web site, it'd looking very old. Whimbrel looks very interesting- I have recently become interested in scows, especially of the lug rigged leeboard variety. What is the LOA, can't find it on the drawings?

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    1. Ross LillistoneMay 1, 2014 at 8:58 AM

      Walter, Thanks for the comment. I, too, am interested in scows because of volume and potential speed when the chine-line is properly designed. For plywood boats I believe they have significant advantages, but with round-bilged boats a conventional sharp bow comes back into consideration.

      The dimensions are: - LOA 17' 6"; BOA 6' 9"; LWL @ 1041lbs (salt) and draft 6" is 13'; @ 1538lbs and draft 7-1/2" is 14'7"; @ 2094lbs and draft 9" is 16' 1"

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  2. UnknownApril 26, 2014 at 6:50 PM

    I am very happy to see that you have updated your site. I have been checking it weekly in hopes of seeing more about the Whimbrel, lo and behold, it was the first thing that you posted about. What is your ETA for printed plans and probable cost for said plans. I am eager to hear more. BTW, the tabernacle system you came up with is very cool.
    Chuck in MN

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    1. Ross LillistoneMay 1, 2014 at 9:00 AM

      Thanks very much, Chuck. I'm getting one more perspective done, and then all I have to do is to finish off the construction plan sheet and write construction key. Less than a month, I hope.

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  3. UnknownApril 26, 2014 at 6:53 PM

    Ross,

    What is the method you are using for the mounting of the leeboards?

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    1. Ross LillistoneMay 1, 2014 at 9:05 AM

      Chuck, after agonising over a number of different methods, including mounting the boards from the edge of the cabin top with metal arrangement similar to Phil Bolger's method on Otter II, I settled on rope-hung leeboards. The plans contain detail of the method, with full-sized patterns for the critical bits. One has to be careful that the top of the board doesn't punch a hole in the cabin sides when they swing out broken-wing fashion, but as designed that is not a problem and they should be fool-proof!

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    2. UnknownMay 2, 2014 at 1:18 PM

      Thank you for the reply. So you will be using the Flemish method. What would you recommend for the rope lashings, Spectra, Dacron? What will be the thickness of the leeboard at the mounting point, and over all? These are a lot of questions I know. I am really intrigued by this design, that is why I ask.

      Chuck

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    3. Ross LillistoneMay 2, 2014 at 4:28 PM

      Chuck, The boards are between 24mm and 27mm thick, depending on the lamination method. There are small, but very important, doublers on each side at the top. The boards look to be too skinny at the top, but everything has been thought through, and their size (and that of the attachment blocks) is critical to allow free movement without damage to the boat. The easier alternative would have been to have longer boards attached at the cabin top, as per Black Skimmer and Otter II, but I would prefer to try this method first.

      The primary reason for attaching at the gunwale is that it allows better positioning of the pivot point in the context of being able to lift and lower the board with minimum effect on centre-of-lateral resistance.

      I think I'd be using Dacron unless it proved to be obviously under-strength (I will be doing calculations later. Spectra is better structurally, but I find it unpleasant on the hands - we'll see.

      Ross

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    4. Ross LillistoneMay 2, 2014 at 8:49 PM

      By the way, I forgot to mention that the doublers are 12mm, so the top end of the boards will be 48mm, or slightly more, thick along the centreline of the board, tapering in a tear-drop shape for 278mm. So in imperial, the top of the board will be just under 2" thick for the full width of the board at the top, with the doublers tapering in width in a tear-drop shape over a length of 11".

      Ross

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  4. TomAugust 14, 2016 at 12:33 AM

    Ross, any news on the Whimbrel?

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