BYYB Forums

So how goes everyones winter building, and or annual maintenance going?
Where are Y'all at on your projects, Inquiring minds want to know :wink: .
Me? I'm still in the cabin finishing up I installed the shelves in between the bulkheads and side gussets, I have been "fairing" them up with thickened epoxy and ripstop nylon (to make the epoxy smooth)
I am going to face all the fronts of the gussets, and cabin coaming with strips of 3/4" merenti plywood, I was going to go get some oak 1/2"x2" and trim it up with that, but I have all this spare merenti, and thats what I am going to make the doors out of as well.It finishes up really nice. And when that is done, I can finally get the roof on and flip it over.

Brian.

I'm glad your working on yours Brian, I haven't done a thing to mine lately. I am planning to make some new sails and I've been studying on that. But that's about all. I'll probably start getting to tools I need for making sails and go ahead and make a ditty bag before I start on the sail just for practice. It looks to be a big job making a real sail, but if others can do it so can I. I'm thinking about using a sail track on the mast instead of hoops this time. Can anyone give me a reason not to use track? Will it interfere with the gaff jaws? Paul what do you think?

Keith

I've seen gaffs on the track in some boats, though none a Stevenson. A sliding gooseneck for the gaff is a good idea, if the track is hefty and well fastened then not a problem on a fair weather boat. I have seen tracks ripped from the mast with gaffs on larger boats, but they saw more wind, rougher conditions and accidental jibes, etc.

If using a jaw, there may be more wear on the inside of the jaw, but a sacrificial "chip" could be used, maybe replaced every few years when it wears out. Leather is another option as is HDPE or other high modulus plastic.

Of course you want to end the track before the jaw land at full hoist. A tapered end piece to permit a fair trasision from the mast to the tack so the jaw will not hang is a good idea too.

Sails set better on tracks, loads are distributed better and the gap between mast and luff is tight, which is what you want. On the other side of the coin, tracks can jam if damaged or dirty and they don't let the sail take a "natural" set like hoops, gaskets or lacing. One other disadvantage is additional weight aloft, but these boats have enough heft to hoist, that the few addition pounds will not matter much.

This winter I have finally finished the top sides and just flipped my weekender "Lilybean" without incident. Just finished filling of screw holes and now sanding and preparing to glass the bottom...then paint. Looking forward to launching this summer.

Any opinions on the best Mast material? Type of wood...laminating vs. solid wood stock...etc..

Looking forward to meeting up with the Southwest Fleet finally this year!!

Tracy.

A hollow box section mast or round birdsmouth mast is the bee's knees, but more trouble to build, though not especially difficult. A laminated stick is inherently stronger, if the grains are oriented to "help" each other. A solid stick is about as easy as it gets, but like the solid laminated one, with a weight penalty. Weekender can easily handle a solid pole, laminated or grown stick. A hollow spar offers some internal spaces for hiding wires and if you're really industrious halyards and lifts too.

Wood should be light weight, with a dense straight grain pattern, preferably quarter sawn for dimensional stability. You can use just about anything and just about everything has been over the years, but the lighter woods, like white pine, many of the spruces, Douglas fur (which is a little heavy and difficult to finish bright) or whatever wood is available in your area.

Knots are okay, if you can't avoid them, if they are small and tight (not likely to fall out or cause a split).

it is good to hear that so much work is proceeding.

as for my shop, i have built all of the interior stuff in the last couple of weeks and am going to finish installing the cabin roof tomorrow. this will leave the rubb rails and the cockpit do be done. if all goes well i will be able to flip the vacatiner next week and get started on the long and unpleasurable task of sanding and finishing the hull. my wife has become quite enthusiastic about this build and she has offered to help me sand the boat. this will really help as i hope to have the project done in 6 weeks. please don't laugh.... i need the encouragement if i am to get it done.

has anyone done a birds mouth mast and installed a tabernacle? i would be interested to hear/see how the tabernacle was installed. i emagine it would have to be a little different from how i did my weekender mast. that one was solid and i used the original stevenson spec gate hinges. that worked well but the birdsmouth mast sure looks salty too.

Wow Aaron, Yer kickin' butt over there in the S.W. you slammed out the interior in a couple weeks? Man I am all thumbs in mine :oops: .
is your roof on? I will be putting mine on in about a week, I am not putting my seat backs on before I flip her because I am not installing the rub rails till last. which means acctually I will be installing the seatbacks last. Do you have any pictures? I would but it is just too messy right now to take pictures.
Paul I was wondering, I want to laminate 1x4's for my mast but I still want to be able to run wire up the mast, is it feasable to laminate 3 layers and on the middle layer use 1x1,1/2" and leave the center hollow?

Brian.

Hi Aaron. In a birds mouth spar the ends always need a solid wood "plug" and this is where you could still put a hinge. I use a different style of tabernacle that has a through bolt system rather then a hinge as I have an unstayed mast setup. You should have a plug at the top too as well as where the jaws will settle, at least this is how I have seen them built. I have a yard and boom built this way and they are nice, although with little spars like this I question if it is a big deal either solid or hollow. All fun whichever way.
@ Brian. Yup, you can do all sorts of varitations on your mast that work for wires, and where it has stays, even easier. I once ran a skill saw set to 3/4 inch depth up the mast for wires, then put in a wood plug, sanded and almost invisable when finished. Other earlier versions of hollow masts were built like you discribe with a square section leaving solid wood at the top and bottom, all works.

I did a birds mouth mast for the Falcon. I did put in plugs where the tabernacle bends. I also glued some corner pieces on the lower portion to make it square where it fits into the box then just past the bend I started rounding it all the way to the top. It is tapered also. I'll show you next time we get together.

well... of course i have not finished the interior but the general construction went fairly smoothly. i got tired of waiting for someone to come and help me with the stuff that requires someone in the boat and out of it because of the blind screwing that takes place in the prosess. i figured out how do do it myself and it went pretty quick. i have not taken any photos of my work untill today so this is all i have.



i will be installing the two small roof pannels this morning and i will be finished with the cabin.





in this last shot you can see the extra shelf rail i installed. the area in the back of the pottty is just wasted space so i decided to make a shelf there. otherwise, i stayed pretty close to the plans. i am pretty proud of the table leg too.



i will wait to complete the stove and sink untill after the boat is in the water. the cabinet is all there and i refrained from gluing the main pannels in so they can still be unscrewed and removed for whatever details i decide to do in the future. all the stringers in the cabinet are glued in so i won't have to worry about that later.

my plan is to do the rub rails and the cockpit next so i can flip the boat only one more time. i will completely finish the underside never to have it upside down again. then i will work on the top side.

i am a desciple of the "just get it in the water" philosophy. i have learned from past experience that i can get muddled up in details and end up taking too long to finish the project. (the weekender took me 3 winters to complete). i know i will be doting over this boat like i do the weekender so i will just plan on doing details during the summer when i can't get away from the house but want to play with the vacationer.