BYYB Forums

Hi,
I wonder if anybody can give me their opinion on how Weekenders do at sea?

I bought the Weekender plans a few months ago with the idea of building one to sail offshore in and around Hong Kong. Having built a little dinghy originally intended for lake sailing and finding it a bit narrow and not too stable in the sea, I was wondering about the Weekender's stability.

With no real keel, no balast and a 5ft beam, the Weekender looks long and narrow compared to other plans I have looked at on the web. I am now wondering if that will make less stable than other designs (most of them seem to be at least a foot beamier for similar lengths).

All the photos and videos I have seen of Weekenders seem to be sailing on inland waters - lakes and such- that look close to flat calm.

Does anybody have any experience of sailing a Weekender in the sea where wind and waves can make for a rough ride?

I like the look of the Weekender a lot, and it appears pretty straightforward from a construction point of view. But I'd really like to find out how it sails in the sea before I start building.

Thanks and best wishes

Welcome aboard Brian,

The Weekender is not intended to be sailed in the open sea and the Stevensons tell you that on their website.

Some folks do choose to disregard that advice and sail offshore and you will probably hear from some of them here. I have sailed in some coastal areas and my boat has handled them well but it does have a lively ride and in open seas, I believe you (and the boat) would be subjected to more punishment than fun.

Keep in mind that I am a 58 year old grandfather and a lot more conservative than I was 30 years ago. People can (and do) sail these boats in all sorts of conditions that I would refuse to go out in - different strokes as the saying goes.

Keep checking back - you will get lots of opinions and if you do decide to build a Weekender, this is the place for advice.

Fair winds..

Hello,

I agree with Richard: I would not recommend the Weekender for sailing in the open sea, and off Hong Kong just sounds like one would be asking for trouble (I assume you get some pretty fierce thunderstorms at times?)

However, from the photographs I've seen of Hong Kong, it would be lovely to sail in that harbor if the ships aren't too much of a traffic problem.

Mike

I too would agree with those statements. That being said, my first sailing experience with a Weekender was in Hawaii off of Maui. The tops were blowing off the swells and there were some significant troughs to beat our way thru to get to some more sheltered waters to actually sail in.

The two builders of the boat were pretty big Hawaiian football linemen and not only tall but pretty much on the hefty side. I would estimate that we had between the the three of us that there was more than a thousand pounds of moveable ballast aboard. We sailed about two miles thru the heavy chop in following seas and I never felt the least bit uncomfortable. Once in the more protected water we had a fantastic 3-4 hours of sailing in about 15-20 knot winds and I really had a chance to feel out the Weekender.

It is tender but stable. Never felt that we were in any jeopardy during the entire outing. Would I have stayed out in the heavier seas and wind, NO! We were reefed down for the run to the protected waters and coming back working into the sea and the wind. Actually was quite comfortable even though we were working into some pretty good waves on occasion. Some splashing onto and over the foredeck but we were dry in the cockpit. Never felt uncomfortable in the following seas as they were off our quarter.

They were all over that deck like a couple ballet dancers and yes it was moving in response to their weight shifts. They also had a couple marine batteries in the forepeak that helped keep the nose down and working with the keel/chine relationship to give additional stability. All in all a very satisfying outing.

All that being said, no I wouldn't recommend it for open ocean sailing. Protected area without heavy seas, it is fine. But then I've been sailing in the ocean for years on small to moderately large pleasure boats.

Thanks for the feedback. I think I'll put the Weekender plans in my drawer for use if I move on from Hong Kong.

For the moment, I'm going to have to look for another design that will cope with rougher conditions than the Weekender was intended for.

I imagine most people on this site have gone through the research process a few times so I thought I'd ask if anyone has any reccomendations for something else?

My criteria are:
Easy and quick to build
Cabin to sleep two adults
Easy to handle (I'm not a racer so I don't care if it isn't the fastest thing afloat, but I have kids so simplicity, safety and stability are critical)

I'd also like something with built in buoyancy (or I'll fit it myself), a self draining cockpit would also be great.

I see this is becoming a wish list. So I'll add a roomy cockpit with benches long enough to double as bunks to sleep on when the weather is good.

I suppose I am looking at something in the 15ft to 18ft line as that is what I have room for on my patio and could readily trailer to a slip nearby.

I saw something by Glen-L called a Minuet. Some of the finished boats looked great. So did some of the slightly bigger Glen-Ls.

I'd appreciate advice and any pointers anyone has to potential plans on the web.

Again, thanks for the advice and insight.

Cheers

Have you checked out any of the "Bolgeresqe" designs out there? There are quite a number of fans of his designs. There's a Yahoo group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bolger/ Also Duckworks Magazine has a good index of designs at http://www.duckworksmagazine.com

An offshore capable craft, that's inexpensive and easy to build, is a very difficult order to fill. For offshore work, you'll want as big a boat as you can afford. I have a 24' offshore capable design, if you'd like to drop me an email. Amigo from the Glen-L folks comes to mind, as does a few others, but none are near the simplicity of a Weekender, nor that small. As a rule, you shouldn't go to sea in a boat that will be shorter in length then the waves you'll meet are tall. This same boat should be able to survive a fall from the highest of those waves as well.

Well, there is offshore, and there is offshore.

I use my Weekender in Maine Coastal waters and have been out in 18-20 knt winds with ocean swells to 5-6 feet and felt comfortable.

I have added 260 lbs of ballast to the keel with a big lead bulb! And I would n't be comfortable doing that in a stock Weekender unless I had skilled crew on board with me.

Now having said that, I use mine in Maine Coastal waters, and Maine's Coast where I frequent has a LOT of islands. I usually sail in and amongst the islands and only rarely venture beyond the closer outer islands. I do not sail out to Metinic, monhegan or Matinicus some 40 miles from town.

The Maine Coast typically has a lot of Lobsterman and pleasure boaters plying the coast and monitoring channel 16 vhf if you get in trouble too.

If looking for an easy to build cabin cruiser with some designed ballast and able to take some nasty ocean punches... B&B designs Princess and bellhavenb series certainly deserve looking at. IIRC the princess 26 meets a EU design category with it's integral floatation and positive righting due to it's ballast and other parameters that measn it should survive something liek 15 foot breaking seas etc. Not sure on the specifics, but an email to Graham would bring you a response with the specifics.

These are sharpie derived craft with Caty Ketch rigging that greatly reduces rigging costs, and is very versatile and greatly simplifies sail handling on board and makes sail balance a snap. Relatively lightweight craft for ease of trailerability hence greatly reducing cost of ownership, and Graham will work with you if you decide to opt from somewhat deeper draft to increase stability curve. V bottomed, and the centerboard trunks are offset to free up cabin floor space. Self bailing cockpits, and motor wells for the outboard to limit popping the prop out of water in waves.

Doesn't have the Old World charm of looks of a Weekender, but has it's own appeal in looks, and far easier and cheaper to build than some of the more seaworthy Weekender looking designs.



http://www.bandbyachtdesigns.com/

I would recommend looking at Bateau boats specifically the Adelie 16. It has a nice V bottomed shape to deal with waves and chop with ballast and high sides to make her very hard to capsize and likely to self recover. They have a nice essay on what is ocean capable as well as a description of the boat here: http://www.boatplans-online.com/proddeta...?prod=AD16 . I built their C12 and have found it to be a delightful boat. The plans were straigforward and easy to follow.

Barry: What a fun sail! I know a bit of what you write, as we had a seriously large amount of fun with our Weekender of Hanalei. And sailing with big Hawaiian guys on an outrigger in the middle of a Kona Storm was one of my favorite sailing memories...

Ray: Another dream-like setting, though in a different vein. Gunkholing and poking about must be really fun back there...

Well now I want to go visit...Dang.

:wink:

Mike