BeachCat DagggerBoard vs. Cb vs. Fixed Keel

[jtremolo]

I am designing a beachcat for 2-3 people that can be handled by one. I was wondering what would be best for preventing side slip. It's more of a cruising boat than anything else. (I'd like to have some speed, but ease of handling and stability is more of a concern).

[Fanie]

I just had a post where the clever okes explained the differences.

Btw, the daggers won, 26 to 12

[jtremolo]

Yeah I read that post and I understand the differences between daggerboards and keels. My question is as far as lake/bay use is concerned would a keel or a daggerboards be better for a small beachcat. Just for the sake of ease of construction and handling I was thinking keels because I'm not concerend with all out top speed I was thinking something like is on the Hobie Wave(see attachment). My boat is about the same size as a Hobie Wave if that helps at all...

[Chris Ostlind]

It all depends on your usage of the boat and where you will do most of your sailing.

Daggers will give you the best upwind capability, but are a real pain in the butt for more relaxed cruising if you are going into, or through, really shallow water on a regular basis, especially when sailing alone...... Really good for racing boats, though.

Centerboards will give almost the same upwind angles (Tornado and Prindle 19-6 use them and they are very fast boats) if setup to have a flip-up feature with the control lines, they are virtually impervious to groundings or flat-out beachings..... Very good for cruising, as you don't normally have to pay that ugly penalty of a blown-up board case like you would with a daggerboard that got left down when beaching.

Fixed keels are even better for the really casual cruiser, but you will pay a bit more of a penalty when trying to sail close hauled. Absolutely hassle free when sailing onto a beach or through shallow water, though the slightly deeper draft could make for the odd contact.

Unless the collison is at flat-out speed and the object is very sharp, it is not likely that you'll suffer big damage.... Need to pay attention to the upwind angles you can realistically get and plan your route accordingly.

My choice for the boat as you describe it... the centerboard setup. If you give more info and it takes a big turn in type of sailing generally understood, that choice could change.

Edit: Hobie Wave. Good example for what you want to do. Your last post came in while I was typing the first post.

Chris

[jtremolo]

I like the idea of a centerboard the way you put it. I have a couple more questions though. How big should should each board be and does anyone have any good pictures or designs for the centerboard trunks. I've never built one before.

[Chris Ostlind]

Go visit Catsailor.com or The Beachcats.com They have some pretty good photo archives for repair work, boat mods, the whole bit. You should be able to find what you need at one of those. Beachcats also has a Yahoo Group where you can really get a ton of answers from guys who are beach cat freakazoids. Really, a great bunch of guys who will love to help you.

Size of board has to do with the sail area and to a lesser degree, the amount of lateral plane (the part of the hull that is immersed as seen from the side) The faster you go, the smaller the board can be in relation to the sail area. The opposite is also true, though not nearly as critical.

I used to live in Des Moines... sailed Saylorville and Red Rock fairly regularly with my Nacra, but that was some time ago. Still both of them are pretty nice lakes for cats when the wind is working from the Northwest. Otherwise, the high banks and the tall trees make for dead spots near the shore. 'Course, if you're out with your gal, who cares if the wind drops off for a bit.