Greetings:
Does anyone know how high the tiller on the Super Skipjack is above the cockpit seats? (Assuming the boat is built as designed.)
From the pictures I've seen it looks like the tiller is about the level of the helmsman's shins! I'd really prefer it at about chest height, or at least above my knees.
Perhaps I should extend the tiller box and put the tiller above the transom and lazarette. Thoughts and comments would be appreciated.
Bob
p.s. Paul, if you see this, I got the plans for Murphy today. Thanks. Only barely glanced at them so far. Got mesmerized by the page about the joggle stick. Took me 15 minutes to figure out what it was and how it's used. Cool idea!
Yep, the joggle stick page has no text or instructions of any kind, but if you look at the drawings, it should become apparent. The joggle stick is one of several old school tools that boat builders used during the golden age of sail. Most of these men didn't know how to read or write, so a method of taking off dimensional shapes, that didn't require reading was developed. The neat thing about the joggle stick is it can define any shape, very accurately. I used one today to define the outer dimensions of a bulkhead in a round bilge boat. I clamped a piece of stiff cardboard to a couple of 2x4's, that were clamped to a centerboard winch tower. On this is I use the joggle to layout the inside shape of the hull, then took the cardboard over to the plywood sheet that would become the bulkhead and reversed my steps, making tick marks directly on the work. I spaced the ticks very close together at the turn of the bilge, where the curve was tight, but spaced them out considerably in the flatter topsides and bottom. This method is so precise that I didn't cut outside the line, I cut right up against it and the bulkhead fit perfectly, except for some edge beveling that was necessary.
As to the tiller question, I'll assume the Skipjack is similar to the Weekender (someone correct me if I wrong about this) and the tiller is fixed to the rudderhead. I've never liked this arrangement, because there are lots of occasions where you need to raise or lower it. Every tiller I've ever done has been permitted to pivot, typically on a bolt. If you check the Rudder Detail sheet in the RYD-16.2 plans pack, you'll see a very typical pivoting tiller arrangement. This is the way everyone I know designs them. You can go through the transom and place the pivot inboard or you can go over the top and have the pivot on the rudderhead like Murphy's. There are good and bad points about both setups, which I will not go into, but the predominate arrangement, by a very large margin, is the over the top (of the transom) tiller setup.
From the pics I have seen its a little higher than the shin,maybe the knee's if your sittin.
have seen several weekenders changed to over the transom tillers,the boom attachment would have to be moved on the skipjack tho.
Bob.
The tiller on my Weekender (a Superskipjack with a cabin!) is through the lazarette, and the curve I fashioned for it brings it just above my knees when seated. You can extend the rudder post and bring the tiller over the transom, but you'll need to figure out an alternative to fixing the block for the mainsheet to the deck over the lazarette.
Dave
The first image is a classic example of taped seam construction. This shows the hull bottom and side interface (chine) with a chine log and screws on the left and a taped seam on the right. The taped seam eliminates the screws and chine log all together, making it lighter and reducing the pieces you have to buy and install. Any place you see a butt block or stringer, you can use the tape seam method to eliminate them.
The black lines represent the tape, the gray area the fillet, which if you look close shows it covering the end grain on the bottom planks. I should also add that this isn't a "complete" joint. On 1/2" plywood you need two layers of biax tape on both sides of the joint, this shows only one layer (partly overlapping) on the inside and none on the out side. The outside corner also needs to be rounded over and have two layers of biax tape applied. The bottom image shows the completed taped seam on 1/2" plywood, with a fillet inside and two layers of biax tape inside and out.
Of course as in all things with boat design there are compromises to be accepted. Taped seam construction requires more "goo" work, but it's stronger and much more water tight then conventional screw, batten and sealant approaches.
The other attached image shows a typical over the transom tiller with a pivoting tiller, the second shows an "articulated" tiller, with the pivot point past where it would come through a bulkhead.