Please visit our home site at www.TRILOBOATS.com.

Anke and I live aboard WAYWARD, and wrote about it's design and construction at ABargeInTheMaking.blogspot.com.

Access to the net comes and goes, so I'll be writing in fits and spurts.Please feel free to browse the archives, leave comments where you will and write... I'll respond as I can.

Fair winds!

Dave and Anke
triloboats swirly gmail daughter com

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

WAYWARD at Last

WAYWARD under sail...Photo by Peter Frost

Spring is sprung,
The grass is riz.
I wonder where
My paintbrush is?


WAYWARD at Last

Finally a picture of WAYWARD sailing!

The Lion of March has turned sheepish away up here in Warmsprings Bay (Alaska). Unseasonable warmth and light winds make for pleasant turns around the bay.

In this pic, we're approaching the dock.

The mains'l (forward) is close-hauled and the mizzen (aft) is eased in anticipation of a 270deg turn in probably fluky breezes. When the wind is forward, the main is trimmed to drive us, and we can haul the mizzen in with a hand on the boom. When the wind is aft, it's the eased mizzen which drives us with the fores'l blanketed. Either way, we have good control and a range of options without the distraction of over-hauling or -easing line.

Since it's a tight corner, we'll send one of us ashore in the dory to catch a line. Sail in, round up, tack and dock (in steady, onshore wind). Or, if it flukes us, we'll settle for sail in, round up, nose the dock and warp alongside (cranking the stern in with the sculling oar against the bow line if practical). If it had been woofy, we might drop an anchor, row a line to the dock and warp in.

The rig (split junk mizzen) is in prototype, right now. The draft is set via 'Thai Style' lacings between individual panels at 8%. This worked out perfectly, so we should have just built the full sail from the git-go without all those inefficient gaps. Oh well. Eventually, we'll change the sheeting geometry to flatten the mains'l leech... all required curvature is cut into the sail, so (unlike a flat cut sail) twist is detrimental.

Adding the curvy shape to the sail is considerably more work than flat cut, and it doesn't look its best in very light to no wind (sags). But it points considerably higher, or alternatively, draws more powerfully at any given windward point. Since the mizzen is flat, it doesn't point as high, and the main is accordingly drawing powerfully at a wider angle. The net effect, however, moves us along noticeably better.

Real sea-trials are quite a ways off, however. We'll have something substantial to report a year from now-ish, from a longer boat with a bigger, split junk mizzen.

Stay tuned!


*****

PS. The photographer, an experienced blue water sailor and delivery skipper came out with us the next day, and we turned command over to him.

His comment... this is the Cat's Ass!

This means a lot, to me... for all my years on the water, I've only once or twice sailed aboard another's vessel. Our boats are limited to a lifeboat conversion and a series of square boats, under-rigged by choice. So I don't have a lot to compare with.

Pete says the boat feels and handles well in the five or so knots of wind we had. I can vouch for the rest.

Not winning races, but hearts?


8 comments:

  1. So exciting! Great photo… Hooray!!!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Shemaya,

      Thanks!

      The photographer is one of the other caretakers in the bay, watching over the 'town'. Been a great winter with them.

      Dave Z

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  2. Congrats! For some reason, I thought you were going to lengthen her before launch. Nice surprise Sail rig is impressive. Good to see experiments work out, eh?

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    Replies
    1. Hi Doryman,

      Lengthen before launch would have been the sensible approach (if not build her longer from the outset), but that would require some temporal adjustments as well. 8)

      And yes, successful experiments are great! In this case, we are at least partially standing on the shoulders of a giant - Split Junk Rig inventor, Slieve McGalliard.

      Dave Z

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  3. Very exciting! Been waiting a long time for this post.... Also, knew you'd be happy with Wayward!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Alan,

      Thanks! Looking forward to a similar pic of yours! And spring IS springing...

      Dave Z

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  4. I think you have a beautiful craft, and am looking forward to more pictures!

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Dennis!

      We have a friend coming, soon, who's a shutter bug (do they even call it that, anymore?)... she'll take a jazillion, I'm sure. 8)

      Dave Z

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