V Twin

Originally posted by JimC

Well as I might have said previously I built an all kevlar boat once, a powered race boat for water ski racing where weight was important since we were racing in a restricted power class, it was too flexy and it literally fell in half as we nosed over the first wave (We were both in our work suits at the time we'd taken it out for a quick try out during our lunch break)
That was forty years ago, things have moved on apace since then, there have been all manner of composite constructions, ally honey comb, nomex honeycomb, styrofoam core, epoxy sandwich over styrofoam, abs over epoxy over styro foam, there are still 4 mtr craft that are thirty years old weigh under 18 kilos and quite capable of being run up the beach, it's just a sad fact that your/our market will never support the volume that would justify the production expense to produce what we're looking for.

Then again unless there is a culture, that demands it, why bother? All the time everyone is perfectly happy to think 40 kgs is light, then it's game on for these pathetic 'garage' construction systems to continue. I've not weighed this twin, but i nearly bust a gut hauling it up onto its side part of the reason it's holed and scarred is due to its sheer weight (and probably the additional water on board from what looks like a previous hole).

I'm not sure what to do with it now, what I'd like to do is take it to someone professional with the instruction cut it about and lighten it up, so if it did ever go over again I'd have a half decent chance of righting it and it might get on the plane with less than 14 sq mtr of sail area.

As I see it, there is way too much deck material, which was obviously an expedient way of getting it built, but is superfluous to making it go, if the two side tanks were able to flood, it wouldn't be such a problem and less likely to turtle. It needs a jib track and a few other changes to make it easier to actually get on with the job of sailing without niggling stupid things going wrong, the last time I actually sailed it, I got off at the gun and was making half decent progress against the fleet until I got the wrong side of a shift and then the kite just candled and failed to open then one of the sheets that had been mangled by the rescue boat on a previous recovery just fell off, so rightly it is back for a thorough overhaul and refit.

I really enjoy sailing it, it's such a challenge, probably too much going on what with a jib, main and kite to control, but there is room for someone else, so I've either got to make it lighter, or admit I've made it too big and rig it up with either an 800 or maybe a 49er rig and go see what it's really capable of.

Edited by G.R.F. - 22 May 12 at 8:47am