Twiggy 32 construction

Yeah much better to shoot em through strip and yank them out later. I was just curious of penetration at multi layers due to added layers of epoxy in there as well. 1/4 wood solid or layers is just 1/4 of wood, but epoxied is 1/4 with harder layers in it, that was part I was wondering.

Barry

 

stapling

I am using 3/8" plain steel wide crown staples which can be purchased economically in boxes of 5000.

The Stanley electric stapler I am using can easily sink the staples the full 3/8" on it's "+" setting.

The soft plastic strapping I used does not successfully yank out the staples. Instead, they pull right through the plastic. However, the soft plastic under the staple crown makes it easier to wiggle one jaw of side cutters underneath, then use the grip of the side cutters and a rolling action to extract the staple.

It takes about 5 seconds per staple, or about 7 hours to extract a box of 5000. Be sure to wear leather gloves - it is hard on the hands for that long.
I used about 10000 staples (2 boxes) per float for laminating.
So count on at least 2 full days total of staple removal per float hull.

Perhaps a different banding would work better. Reinforced nylon might pull the staples more successfully. They do have quite a grip, and do a great job of holding the veneers while the epoxy is curing.

PS sorry for the slow reply, I have been out of town for a couple of weeks

 

We staple through the nylon packaging strip used to bind boxes. Cheap to buy a reel and as long as you make sure both legs of the staple pass through the strip, will pull out the staples easily and quickly. It also stops the crosspiece of the staple marking the surface of the wood. You can do about 10 staples a second if the run is straight.

Note that if you get one of the legs of the staple outside the strip, the staple will pull only one leg out, and bend or break, requiring pulling the other leg out with pliers, so do make sure you get both legs through the strip.

 

Yeah being a hardwood and flooring guy, I pull staples for a living and it always sucks! Haha for plastic sheeting I often get buy with cable staples, the ones with a hoop in them for the cable, but just no way they'd work on wood. Would be nice if ther were some kinda staple that had a nylon sled on it or something for pulling. I do have a Pnuematic stapler, so when I can the plan is to try some monel staples through some fiberglass strips, see if I can rip them up any better. Cause then one could prepreg some cloth , cut it into strips as needed and rip away.


Barry

 

Twiggy dreaming

G'day

Just came onto to your Twiggy site. Started a Mk 2 back in the eighties but life detoured me in other directions - never the less an outrigger is still lurking in the backyard. ( Although Gough did almost make the ton. Maybe time is still on my side!)

The timberwork looks great enjoy your project and please keep your photo updates coming. Lock was a cool clever bugger

Power to you

Jethro

 

Twiggy progress

Just finished the 2nd layer of cedar veneer on the mainhull.





http://twiggymk2fx.blogspot.ca/

Put together a folding model video to demonstrate how it will work:
https://photos.google.com/share/AF1...?key=amZocUVadXRrQUtVVlh0TElsWEdsRE1JaFJfS3VR

 

A bit late now but these would have been the go;

http://raptornails.com

 

Good suggestion to use these, assuming they develop the same holding power as the steel staples.
I wish I had been able to find some in my area.
These composite staples would eliminate the need to pull them out.
Just belt sand them off and begin the next layer.
So far this build has used about 30,000 staples, and a total of maybe 4 days removing them.

Composite staples would have cost a couple of hundred dollars more than regular steel staples, and the needed special composite compatible staple gun another $70.

I have only 1 layer of veneer left to do, and regular staples at the ready, so I'll leave it to another builder to try out composite staples.

 

If you have any sketches, etc that illustrate the "x"tra cabin space aspect of your mods - I for one would love to see what you're doing there.
Cheers,

 

Extra Cabin space mods

I wanted to add some more creature comfort to the Twiggy design without spoiling performance. I came up with these ideas:

I plan to extend the forward cabin even more than Lock showed for the Mk2 version. And move the head one more frame (28") forward. This will give a much larger head area with standing headroom/shower. The forward berth will have a removable section in the pillow area over the head. I don't expect to use the forward berth often, maybe sometimes at anchor. A similar forward cabin mod has already been done on Larrikim Spirit, Australia.
Another plus is better access (less slope) to the foredeck.
This forward cabin mod adds only about 20 lbs in additional plywood over the Mk1 Twiggy cabin.

The aft cabin is a tapered extension, full cabin width at the rear crossbeam, tapering to the transom width. There will be a large pop top to provide more headroom in the aft cabin when it is up.
The large single berth near the waterline will be retained.

A plywood panel spanning the gunnels in the aft cabin will create a large double berth with partially sitting up (reading) headroom at the pillows. It will be 7.5 feet long, 7 feet wide at the pillows, 3 feet wide at the transom, and about 30 inches of headroom at the pillows with the pop top down.

When the plywood panel spanning the gunnels is removed, and the pop top is up, the lower single berth becomes the aft cabin floor. There will be standing headroom under the pop top and full sitting headroom (44")over the two aft wing bunks (21" x 7.5 ft), one on each side.
Also this will provide a "U" shaped seating arrangement for socializing at anchor or on pleasant weather days by sitting on the bunks. Adding a sunbrella enclosure will create a sheltered private aft cabin. Will include a vinyl windshield forward. Maybe some side windows.

On hot sunny days the pop top could be up, without sunbrella enclosure, to provide shade and breezes.

I anticipate having the pop top down in bad weather, or at sea.
This arrangement is similar to Chris White designs with the lounge space aft.

The aft cabin mod adds about 30 lbs of additional plywood over the Mk1 Twiggy cabin/deck.
So total cabin mods add just 50 lbs while providing some desirable accomodation features. The mods are also very streamlined and add negligible windage to the boat (except when the pop top is up).
I think they will be a big improvement for cruising.

 

Looks good

These ideas are pretty much on the money. If you have a look at the Twiggy sailing upwind on port tack from your home page pic you will see the extended front cabin. That boat, Spirit, was much easier to walk forward on as you didn;t have to do the Twiggy jump as I did on mine.

I am pretty sure I was the first person to build a double down the back of a Twiggy (that I know anyway). Another guy - Glenn - did something similar to Arc of Infinity - another Mk 2. It is close to me on the lake here. I would raise the aft part of the aft cabin with a 300mm high bulkhead and make the deck permanent. If you want room then take away the bunkboards that span from side to side across the underwing panels and sit with lots of headroom. Good for reading on a rainy day - did that lots.

Also include a dodger with a permanent windscreen and fabric top over the cockpit and remember to build the foam beams. The box beam ones are too fiddly, take up interior room with the underwires and extra room in the cockpit.

cheers

Phil

 

a really worthwhile project; such a cool, cool boat! saw Krakatoa 86 in Cairns & a mk2 in 91 (name forgotten) there too: cool³ both of them!

 

Subscribed. I always like the look of the Twiggy. It's a radical little boat.

 

Twiggyman.....I know its been awhile, but any news on how the Twiggy is going?

Jethro