Page 5 of 5
Re: Inqism-01: 3 Guesses. First 2 don't count.
Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2021 8:34 am
by Inquisitor
Ixneigh wrote: ↑Tue Jan 12, 2021 8:09 am
Can’t wait for the performance assessment.it looks really nice! My suspicion is the square version will be better at the slower speed of these boats, relatively speaking.
Re fiberglass, it’s like any other skill. You’ll get better at it. The job appears nicely finished. Avoid bondo for anything but temp stuf though. You can make your own filler from the variety of things sold for such.
Re shorter dagger board: I hardly ever sail with mine all the way down. It knocks the speed quite a bit. If I mangled the bottom of mine by even a foot I’d just cut off the damage and fix it. I did however buy a 2nd board with boat purchase.
Re etc: the additional keel I added has made me stop thinking about board mods completely.
Ix
I probably use mine all the way down more often than not, but I do use it half way up and much of my future sailing will be in the Outer Banks and its rather shallow there... like your area. Like many others before me, I've had several strikes in both settings and it tends to gounge up the trailing edge. Per some's suggestions, The upper 15" has a radius'd trailing edge to match the D/B trunk. (57" of the 72" is the rated full extension). I also have a 2" portion radius'd half way down the D/B for half extending the D/B.
I also still have the old D/B shy 12" or so... I'll probably shape some foam and glass up the end and have it as a backup.
Re: Inqism-01: 3 Guesses. First 2 don't count.
Posted: Mon Jan 18, 2021 4:39 pm
by Inquisitor
Ixneigh wrote: ↑Tue Jan 12, 2021 8:09 am
... Avoid bondo for anything but temp stuf though. You can make your own filler from the variety of things sold for such.
I'd like to understand what is wrong with Bondo? I tried finding issues using it, but really couldn't find anything that seemed applicable. On their website they state it is just a polyester resin based product. With it going on vehicles that go hundreds of miles/hour in all kinds of weather, I thought it'd be plenty good as anything else I could gen up. I have micro balloons, but would only use them when I need low density stuff. In this case it is simply to raise low points. The thickest might be 1/16th of an inch. I have a layer or two of fiberglass/epoxy over that before the painting. I like it that it cures fast and is easy to shape and sand. In fact, I'd really like it if it had just a little bit more working life. I'm just not that adept with it yet.
The no-progress update
Posted: Tue Feb 23, 2021 5:01 am
by Inquisitor
ON HOLD - It has been painted. The next step is to add concrete to it to weight it. It is sealed. It would float now. I want to add just enough so that the top couple of inches are above the water. I'd hate to sink my baby. At the moment, no pools have water and the local lake is so far down that even floating docks are on dry land. Once I find something over six feet deep that I can get to, I'll continue. Mixing concrete on a boat doesn't sound like a good idea.
FINALLY - It's In!
Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2021 9:02 am
by Inquisitor
I'm sure you were just holding your breath.
TVA, as some of you know, lowers the lakes during the winter in case of large spring rains and flooding. Fontana was pulled down 60' this year. At the moment, it's 25 feet down. Docs are sitting on high ground and grass and weeds have grown up around them. People are going ape driving their 4WD out in the mud.
Anyway... the D/B is sealed and would float... thus, I was going to fill just enough weight so that it would just barely float. That way... if the line breaks, I can simply retrieve the bobbing D/B. I would have preferred to do it while floating it. No docks near water! Giving up... on that dream, I decided to trust my numbers and calculate the volume and displacement. The number came to 57.8 lbs fresh water, 59.2 lbs sea water. On the conservative side, I measured a finished weight of 51.4 lbs. So... it'll float up in the trunk a little bit this time around. I'll fine tune it after the race at the end of the month.
Poring concrete in the volume behind the spar.
Patched up, painted, pulley wheel mounted, bi-color line run and ready to install.
Installed, ready to rock and roll! Might have noted in another thread the bi-color dying. Here's what it's for...
D/B 101 for Dummies. Meaning... with one look I want to know where my daggerboard is. Green is good (up). Red showing is bad - Stop! Don't put that boat on the trailer!
Inq
Re: Inqism-01: 3 Guesses. First 2 don't count.
Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2021 8:34 pm
by Jimmyt
I'm sure you were just holding your breath.
Well, yeah! It looks great. The color coded line is a cool idea. Can't wait to hear how it works.
Re: FINALLY - It's In!
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 3:02 am
by svscott
Inquisitor wrote: ↑Sun Apr 11, 2021 9:02 am
TVA, as some of you know, lowers the lakes during the winter in case of large spring rains and flooding. Fontana was pulled down 60' this year. At the moment, it's 25 feet down.
Inq
I've been thinking about driving my work van loaded with a motorcycle or 2 and pulling my boat/trailer down to Deals Gap and exploring the lake above Fontana Dam. My wife and I paid for a scenic boat tour of the area right around the dam and that was fun but it's not the same as free roaming on your own. I've been taking moto trips to that area with friends since 2004 and have always thought it would be fun to have the boat there also. We normally stay in a cabin at Fontana Village, but camping on the boat could be awesome. Do you have experience sailing around there? When will TVA let the water level back up? I have been there in October/ November a couple times and the water was already lowered. It's such a weird contrast, looking at the desert wasteland of the coast just below the lush forest.
Re: FINALLY - It's In!
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 3:42 am
by Inquisitor
svscott wrote: ↑Mon Apr 12, 2021 3:02 am
... Do you have experience sailing around there?
Yes and no. It is nearly impossible to sail on Fontana. For someone used to one of the Great Lakes... forget sailing. Once I started doing coastal sailing, I've never gone back to lake sailing here. The widest part on the lake is about 2000'. It's very deep at 400'. Point being, the slopes going into the water extend above the water. Almost like in a gorge. Wind is either non-existent or coming up/down the lake... sometimes both.
We didn't even take the mast last time.
Water level comes back up if we get a very wet spring. They try to keep it up during the summer months for boating, but with more communities needing water downstream just to subsist, it is rare to be full. We're at the top of the water chain. Very clean lake since its mostly fed by the Great Smokey National Park.
http://fontana.uslakes.info/Level/
Re: FINALLY - It's In!
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 5:38 am
by Starscream
Inquisitor wrote: ↑Sun Apr 11, 2021 9:02 am
I'm sure you were just holding your breath.
TVA, as some of you know, lowers the lakes during the winter in case of large spring rains and flooding. Fontana was pulled down 60' this year. At the moment, it's 25 feet down. Docs are sitting on high ground and grass and weeds have grown up around them. People are going ape driving their 4WD out in the mud.
Anyway... the D/B is sealed and would float... thus, I was going to fill just enough weight so that it would just barely float. That way... if the line breaks, I can simply retrieve the bobbing D/B. I would have preferred to do it while floating it. No docks near water! Giving up... on that dream, I decided to trust my numbers and calculate the volume and displacement. The number came to 57.8 lbs fresh water, 59.2 lbs sea water. On the conservative side, I measured a finished weight of 51.4 lbs. So... it'll float up in the trunk a little bit this time around. I'll fine tune it after the race at the end of the month.
Poring concrete in the volume behind the spar.
Patched up, painted, pulley wheel mounted, bi-color line run and ready to install.
Installed, ready to rock and roll! Might have noted in another thread the bi-color dying. Here's what it's for...
D/B 101 for Dummies. Meaning... with one look I want to know where my daggerboard is. Green is good (up). Red showing is bad - Stop! Don't put that boat on the trailer!
Inq
That is seriously awesome. Makes me want a 3d printer, but I know I'd use it once, get frustrated, and leave it to gather dust. Like my bucket full of arduino parts.
Re: FINALLY - It's In!
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 8:09 am
by Be Free
svscott wrote: ↑Mon Apr 12, 2021 3:02 am
I've been thinking about driving my work van loaded with a motorcycle or 2 and pulling my boat/trailer down to Deals Gap and exploring the lake above Fontana Dam. My wife and I paid for a scenic boat tour of the area right around the dam and that was fun but it's not the same as free roaming on your own. I've been taking moto trips to that area with friends since 2004 and have always thought it would be fun to have the boat there also. We normally stay in a cabin at Fontana Village, but camping on the boat could be awesome. Do you have experience sailing around there? When will TVA let the water level back up? I have been there in October/ November a couple times and the water was already lowered. It's such a weird contrast, looking at the desert wasteland of the coast just below the lush forest.
It's been a while, but I've had my motorcycle all over those mountains. It's a blast. I've also dreamed of sailing the lake but I've never had a tow beast I'd trust in the mountains with that much weight behind it...and I could never get it up my driveway...and even if I did I'd never get it turned around.
Re: FINALLY - It's In!
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 8:10 am
by Be Free
Inquisitor wrote: ↑Mon Apr 12, 2021 3:42 am
Yes and no. It is nearly impossible to sail on Fontana. For someone used to one of the Great Lakes... forget sailing. Once I started doing coastal sailing, I've never gone back to lake sailing here. The widest part on the lake is about 2000'. It's very deep at 400'. Point being, the slopes going into the water extend above the water. Almost like in a gorge. Wind is either non-existent or coming up/down the lake... sometimes both.
We didn't even take the mast last time.
Water level comes back up if we get a very wet spring. They try to keep it up during the summer months for boating, but with more communities needing water downstream just to subsist, it is rare to be full. We're at the top of the water chain. Very clean lake since its mostly fed by the Great Smokey National Park.
http://fontana.uslakes.info/Level/
I'm sorry to hear that. There goes another reason why I'm not going to sail the lake.
Re: Inqism-01: 3 Guesses. First 2 don't count.
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 8:14 am
by Be Free
That is one beautiful dagger board! I can't wait to hear how it works out. Are you going to have time to test it before the race?
Re: Inqism-01: 3 Guesses. First 2 don't count.
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 8:19 am
by OverEasy
Re: Inqism-01: 3 Guesses. First 2 don't count.
Posted: Mon Apr 12, 2021 10:03 am
by Inquisitor
Be Free wrote: ↑Mon Apr 12, 2021 8:14 am
That is one beautiful dagger board! I can't wait to hear how it works out. Are you going to have time to test it before the race?
As I mentioned some time ago up there in the thread, I don't really expect to see much improvement. Hull speed might as well be the speed of sound. I hope it will point better and possibly stall at higher angles of attack. But... having not sailed in three years, I'm sure my memory won't be a good yardstick.
I can easily say... even before testing -
I wouldn't do an elliptical again. This was way too much work with fiberglass and it still looks like crap up close. Also, I'm not too keen on the weighted daggerboard that many have tried before. I question what it might do to the boat in a hard strike. I would make a female mold and build it up like the factory.
Before the race... I would really like to, but I have way too many other thing on the TODO list:
- The Lithium Battery has to get finished and installed.
- Some temporary wiring to run the fridge and charge phones.
- Inqism-04 - I'm going to put a temporary board up front to use for single berth.
- Inqism-05 - I'll get the composting head in, but the plumbing for the shower won't make it and the Kerfed bi-fold door won't be on - Have to use a curtain.
- Inqism-08 - Must absolutely get the stairs finished - I can't be climbing in and out as I am now.
