Building a study guide before building

Discussion in 'Boat Design' started by Luckless, Dec 27, 2009.

  1. gonzo
    Joined: Aug 2002
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    Location: Milwaukee, WI

    gonzo Senior Member

    Bunks as storage space are really common. The leeboards can keep the junk from spreading.
     
  2. ecflyer
    Joined: Jan 2009
    Posts: 81
    Likes: 4, Points: 0, Legacy Rep: 72
    Location: Green Bay, Wisconsin

    ecflyer Junior Member

    Hi Luckless,
    We have much in common. I am also a carpenter by trade and was attempting to build my own airplane (a Falco, which handles like a mini fighter jet). I was given two choices of water proof glue and sadly, I chose the wrong one and became discouraged with the project. Had I chose to use epoxy (2nd choice), which is a dream to work with, I would be flying right now. If you enjoy working with wood, then build a wood boat using epoxy because it will be fun to build & nearly maintenance free. I agree with your assessment that it's about the building process and not about sailing. I love to build and create and derive great satisfaction from such activities I knew absolutely nothing about boats when I started. I even had to attend the Chicago sail boat show to see what they were suposed to look like. I now have over 50 boat building books in my library and really treasure the learning experiences I got along the way. It takes sooo llllllllllong to build a boat that you should start as soon as possible. There will be plenty of time to research & learn about the next phase of construction before you complete the current phase. Start by obtaining books on selecting the right boat for your intended purpose. Then select a design and obtain plans. If you have excellent carpentry skills, then do not waste time building smaller projects, but instead begin right with the boat you want to have. Remember, you can always do a little test project whenever you are faced with a challenging project that you are unsure about. I am very happy I decided to build; however, one problem has recently surfaced. I am beginning to get the sailing bug and desperatly want to complete my project. I am crossing my fingers that I can launch in 1.5 years from now. I am building a 47' ketch with a big diesel and prop backup. It is about the most complex rig one could build. It even has two helm stations. If you decide to go ahead, drop me a line as I might be able to help you save some money on purchasing materials.
    Have a Great Day!
    Earl
     

  3. Luckless
    Joined: Mar 2009
    Posts: 158
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    Location: PEI, Canada

    Luckless Senior Member

    Well, honestly I'm the kind of person that takes his time and I won't pick up a tool till I have a very solid idea of exactly how I'm using it, and what I'm going to do with it.

    Also, I'm a student and my 'workshop' is where my computer gear is currently, and that is a 4'x5' closet. The boat shall have to wait unless I start it in a bottle.

    Going back and reworking/wording design goals:

    The goal of this project is to develop and built a wood/composite motor-sail boat suitable for sailing the Gulf of Saint Lawrence/North Atlantic crossings. Final design should allow for extra wide deck space, while having the capability of being broken down for short land transport (2 trailers is fine, but designing a method to carry everything in a single load is a bonus, even if highly custom trailer.) 40-50 foot LOA.

    General requirements:
    1. Multi-mast Trimaran cruiser.
    2. Enclosed/protected helm for fall sailing.
    3. Mostly wood laminate construction, with local woods. (Atlantic Canada, ideally something very common to Prince Edward Island. Goal is to cut and saw my own materials with sustainable methods.)
    4. 1 'state room' for long term voyage, extra bunks for 4 (6) short term guests.
    5. Diesel Engine(s) with CPP.
    6. Stow-able 'hard deck' for while in port, fixed open netting for while sailing out of protected waters.


    From this point I think I'm left with searching for ways to learn a few new skills. (Beyond finding people to sail with.) I'm going to have to start collecting references for hydraulic and hull form calculations. Being a Computer Sciences student, I think this could actually be a very 'fun' exercise to build my own simulation program. (Can't be all that much harder than neutron interaction simulations.)

    Likely out of the scope of this forum, but I'm really tempted to dive into AI aided design. I need to be careful here now. I'm setting out to build a boat, but if I'm likely to end up having a Personal Super Computer designed to help design a boat instead.
     
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