BYYB Forums

Well, it's been a fun build so far. I've tried to upload pics but so far no luck.  When my weekender is done it will truly be a one of a kind,  based on the weekender plans LOL ;D...  I've had some difficulty in assembly, with measurements being off.  That darn upper deck was hard for me to assemble.  I went to attach it to the transom after attaching it at the bow and ended up cracking the keel at it's weakest point by pulling the pieces together too hard (rear transom is very solid).  Got the keel fixed and ended up lengthining the deck by 2" at the cockpit joints.  Atached upper deck to rear transom no problem. Used 1/2" ply for transom.     
          My problem right now is I am in the process of fitting the cockpit bulkhead to the boat but have run into another snag ??? lol.  From the centerline of my cockpit door to the starboard side of the upper deck is 35", the portside measures 34".  I double checked, triple checked and everything and yes the cockpit bulkhead is centered on the boat centerline and the cockpit bulkhead is even on both sides.  I think what i'm going to have to do without rebuilding the whole boat is to move the cockpit bulkhead 1/2" to the starboard side to even it out.  Still makes my portside deck 1" narrower out from the boat centerline for some reason at it's widest point..        Otherwise my build is going great...  YaHoo....

Sounds a lot like my building experience - minus the cracking noise from the keel.

Mike:  The story has a familiar ring to it!  When I started my build, after careful, painstaking measurements and cutting, the hull bottom came out 1/2" short (or the keel 1/2" long)!  It won't be the last time it happens.  Get yourself a moaning chair.  I have one, and I use it!

Dave

Ya the cracking noise is never fun, considering the hrs you pour into a project.  Last night I stayed up late and made a jig to where I could measure bottom center and top center to see if my upper or lower lines were off and according to my measurements last night my side decks, port and starboard were each 34 1/2" out from the centerline.  Still gotta figure out the cockpit bulkhead as it has to be moved over still at least a 1/2" to starboard. ???            When people put those round inspection plates on the top of the lazzerette does anyone know if they are 4" or 6" round?

Mike:  The 6" plates should fit fine.  There is another solution:  a lazarette hatch.  The Stevenson's website has a tutorial on adding one.  Mine is 6" X 16" and allows me to reach the hull sides inside the lazaratte.  The only down side is fitting the taffrail is a little tougher, and I may need to use a traveller instead of the mainsheet bloack the plans call for being mounted to the top of the lazarette.

Dave

(03-01-2010, 09:34 AM)mikenredding link Wrote: [ -> ]When people put those round inspection plates on the top of the lazzerette does anyone know if they are 4" or 6" round?

It depends on the size and flexability of your arm.  I have a hatch on mine and had to reach in while under way to find the bits of the steering that had fallen off during my maiden launch.

Not a time when you realize you don't fit 

It sounds painfully familiar.  I remember that part.  I attached the front bulkhead and everything was crooked, ended up tearing it out and redoing it.  I remember Bill Onley named his boat 3X because he had to do everything three times before it was right.  Keep after it.

Thanks,,  I am using a tiller (the only part of the boat totally finished lol) bought it on ebay. It's nice, Oak and included the metal fittings to attach it to the rudder.  I plan on using 2 6" hatches on the top of the transom and am going to build like a box under each for upper lazzerette storage.    Am going to use a 8" round hatch from duckworth on the lazerette wall.

    Today I got the cockpit bulkhead installed, bow gussets on, and the mastbox installed.





Custom Sorta Weekender

Greeting Mike,

Mine came out ½ inch off center.  When you bend the hull bottom up to meet the bottom curve of the transom, (the inclined transom bottom becomes curved when you bend it forward to meet the rear curve of the hull bottom) you have to bend both sides at the same time and at the same rate or you will wrack the transom a little to one side or the other, and you will not notice until everything has been glued and screwed tightly in place.

Leave the Bulkhead where it is.  Don't sweat the small stuff.  You will never notice the difference between 34 inches on one side, and 35 on the other, because the space is so large anyway.  Try to make the side decks the same width, as that might be noticeable.

Even if the boat ends up shaped like what in your mind has become a banana, it will still sail just fine.  Honestly, an inch here and there will not make a difference.  Where you sit in the boat, and where you place the cooler of beer will have much more impact on the boat's sailing qualities than whether or not the cabin door is on the centerline of the boat.

There are boats that are purposefully built with substantial asymmetries in the hull.  The Italian Gondola comes to mind.  In all of the photographs you have ever seen, these boats are beautiful.  However, if you were to ever see a lines drawing taken from a real hull, you would vomit.  The thing is bent sharply to starboard.  This was done to purposefully make the boat turn towards the side of the gondolier's oar to counteract the turning-to-port thrust of the sculling oar that operates on one side of the boat only (starboard – literally “steering board” side).  The two cancel each other out and the boat tracks straight in the water.  But the point is that the boat is still beautiful even though the boat is wracked more than a foot from one side to the other.

Some examples of some very pretty gondolas …









and now for the money shots ...





Even in the above photos where the wracked hulls are clearly visible, you brain's first response will be that the boats are straight because they are supposed to be straight and the curve that I see must be the result of distortion from a fish-eye lens.

So, the point is, nobody is going to notice an inch here or there.  You wouldn't have noticed it either if you didn't have the centerlines drawn on the individual pieces.

Press on ...

Cheers,
Tom

More gondola photos are available at http://gondolablog.blogspot.com
the above photos specifically from ... http://gondolablog.blogspot.com/2008_05_01_archive.html

(03-01-2010, 06:32 PM)mikenredding link Wrote: [ -> ]I plan on using 2 6" hatches on the top of the transom and am going to build like a box under each for upper lazzerette storage.     Am going to use a 8" round hatch from duckworth on the lazerette wall.

Rather than going through the effort to build boxes you might want to consider picking up a "dry bag" from a canoeing/kayaking shop.  They fit inside the hatch and hold your stuff with less carpentry.