Model Yachting Monthly: Volume 2, Issue 24 – February 1947

r I fitE INSTACKS f ODEb YACHTING MONTHLY 5UBSCRIPTIO!~ #zpo A YEAR IN US., t>CANADA .. #2:° FOREIGN. ZS-CENTS A COPY~ ,, J / I I I l Ij • I I I I I I … FEBRl.TARY 1947 MODEL YACHT RACING ASSOCIATION OF 1921 AMERICA The object of this Association is to eneo~ra.ga and promote the duigning, buildinir, and racing of model ~iling yachts, and to establish uniform rules and regulations for the conduct of the .sport. Model yacht clubs in the United States or possessions having a roster of not less than ten members ar@ eligible for membership in the M. Y. R. A. A. · Annual dues are ten dollars. Applica- tion:i for me..,nbership shall be made in writing to the National Secretary, and shall be signed by the Commodore and Secretary of the applicant club, stating the number of members the applicant club has, and accompanied by a fee of 1946 • ten dollar!, as dues for the calendar Y•&r, to be r(}turned i1 the appliez.tion is r.. jected. A model yacht competin~ in a.ny National, Divisional or Invitation Regatta must be registered in the M. Y .. R. A. A. Member clubs are group~d in divisio!l!, the Eastern, Mid-western, and Pacific, • th• e “–” A and– are units• f orm~ng =· y . R . A ..’\. • 1 offiEach division has its own reg1ona cen and divisional champi9nship rac~. The National Association has dire-ct charge of t~)e National Championships and other N utional Rac~s, nnd promulgnte3 RulcS and Regulation~ for the conduct of the sport. • ; ~t;;;i~C~~ I MODEL YACHT RACING ASSOCIATION OF AhtiERICA OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS – . Sailing Rulei! (Pond) and General Rules ……. ·20c each. Lots of ten or more, 18c E’.ach Sailing Rules (Skiff) …………………. ~-.:–lOceach. Lots of ten or mol’e 8c each M-~lass Rating Rules (Marblehead 50-800)·.~ . .’ .l0c each. Lots of ten or mo-re, 8c each X-Class Rating Rules (1000 sq. in. S.A.) …… •.-lOc each. Lots of ten or more, 8c eacb Standard Starting Schedules …… : …… -…. 20c each. Lot~of ten or more,.18c each J Measurement Certificate Blanks ………… :-… :…….. :A-Class, 6-M Class, $1.75 per hundred M. Y. R. A. A. R. Rubber Stamp (to record S.A.) .”.. ~:.: . .-……… 50c e.ach, pustpaic I Make check or M.O. payable to W. F. POST, Treasurer, M. Y. R. A. A. • 3064 Coleridg~ Road, ClevelandI Heights, 18, Ohio. • ,,. \ FlNEST MODEL YACHT SAILS (Ava;/able irs tlu Sprm~) FITT!NGS, SPARS AND • ACCESSORIES Made to Order Designs by H. E. Richardson, includin&’ “Yankee II”, “Blue Chip” • and “Redskin” .. JAMES BLISS & CO.,Inc. 220 State Stre~t Tel. Laf. 4141 Supplie. for tbe Model Yachtsman W.G. BITHEll 159 Falcon St., E. Boston, Mass. “< ---Boston,Mas.s. Fittinea Plana -~ ' Paint ---- '! • I\ 'f MOD·EL YACHTING MONTHLY FEBRUARY, 1947 VOL. II SUPPLF.aSNTTO MODELYACHTINGHONTHLY NEi'l UANAGE1IENT FOR l.f.Y.M. In a circular letter dated Dec.21 which did not reach us in time ror publication in our last issue, president Heisler of the 1fYRAA announces that C.H.Farley, having definitely dee ided t.o resign after publishing the February 1947 issue,that "the duties of the Magazine Committee are hereby declared terminated as of this date, with our sincerethanks for their efforts and unselfish donation of valuable time and expense. It is also ordered that Nat'l sec' y Santos is hereby instructed to assume the responsibility of establishing a practical collaborative ·staff for the production of the ~agazine, beginning with the iiarch issue, that will guarantee a representative organ for the sport within a self paying basis, as much a possible. By Sec'y Santo's request the policy of the magazine will be dictated by the Ex. Committee, whom shall "become the supervising authority". This month1s Supplement iooludes an Mand an X-Class model. J. SELEER -LARSEN has filled a long-standing request for an easily built V-bottom :i-C lass .IJany requests have been made by skippers who like the "sharpie" type, am skippers who would like to introduce model yachting to juniors feel that a sharpie is the answer as juniors can perform the work them. selves, ,nth so few planks to fit. The X-class plan is by C.H.Farley; she is "balanced" in the sense that her C.B. does not shift when heeled. Three sailplans are shown, as it is apparent that in some localities a low sailplan is best where winds are very strong, and a high sailplan can be carried with comf'ort places where winds are usually light. Her displacement of 25.5 lbs is about average for the X-class; some are only 20-21 lbs., nhile others run as high as 30- lbs. However, it seel!ls proved th.a.t excessively higp or low displacement is justified only when local conditions are in mind. The 1000 sq. inch li~it is a driving engine, and there must be a limit as to the displace~ent or bulk it will drive in a given wind-strength. Hence, \'1hile a 30-pounde" will perform speedily in good fresh wind, she usually is very sluggish in light airs. The 20-pound er vlill be overpowered in a heavy wind with full rig, but:' will show up to advantage on caln \rater and light winds. Hence the designer should try to produce a boat that \Vill perfor1:1 well in heavy vdnd with low rig and still !!love along in light airs with a tall rig. 1946, NOTICETO SUBSCRIBERS All subscribers are hereby notified that due to the re-organi- zation of the publication staff of our magazine "MODELYACHTING" payment of all subscriptions should be made to the Treasurer and circulation Manager HOWARDANGELL, 18 Brandon Road, Cranston, R.I. (signed) CHARLESHEISLER, President, ' N0.24 MYRAA. Jan. S, 1947 Lack of space prevents us from printing in full the letters of appreciation sent us by various individuals and clubs, citing the work done by the resigning cditor,and the interesting and instructive articles presented in 1IYMduring the past two years by various contributors. We mention this only bedause some clubs have written resolutions to us along these lines, and have requested that the same be published in J,;YI,i. We hereby acknowledge these beau gestes and publicly thank them. It has been a pleasure, albeit sonetimes irksome, to serve our subscribers, and we can only hope that MYMwill flourish. C.H.FARLEY Dear Editor: Last spring I let "Doc" Har\vood take the M-class V-bottomwhich he and Bob wrot9 you about. I have revamped the lines slightly and am ready to trace them. The X-class V-bottom is traced and ready for blueprinting. I hope to get her built this winter. -- A.J .DO\JNiiJG. JIU WARRELLhas decided to build the X-class .Lt,arley-d·esigned "Exemplar". BILL \'lADSV/ORTH has several new A's, H's and X's. Just to show you how he operates, he recently bought 50 gross of 1/4 #0 brass 0cre1VS.. , ... from JaBes iilis~ Go•, closton. i SPEED-PLUS By Clinton T. Simon Believe it or not, there are a great Before we attempt to desig~ a sail boat that is intended for the purpose of many designers of model? who can sight a hull for fairness while it is still on racing, it would be wise to glean some the drawing board. Naturally this canof the factors set down by theorists who not be done by all. It is a knack that have made advanced studies of the pocomes with experience. In model work tential values involved. Just what is it this is an attribute greatly to be desired that makes a sailing hull fast? Some as it takes otherwise hard figuring to ac-' will say, and rightly so, that it depends complish. The advantages of ~he full on the weight of the hull aI:ld the keel are steadiness in helm, particularstrength of the wind in which the boat is sailing. Others contend that it is a ly in broken water. More reliability can be placed on the yacht. steering her set matter of balance, while still others course without too much rudder control may state that it is strictly a matter of being necessary. knowing how to sail, that experience Many Yachts have had fins of varyis the only teacher. ing length and shapes; the forefoot beWell, perhaps they are all right but ing cut away to an ·extraordinary exthat is not going to help the fellows who tent in many examples. Undoubtedly don't have the experience or the knowthe tendency to shorten the keel has how. Therefore it is my p1;1rpose to rebeen carried to extremes, under the inlate·the somewhat technical phases with fluence_ of the theory that wetted sui;an open mind, and to set down a sort of face resistance, better known as "skin formulae that will be understood by the friction" will be reduced thereby. This novice. We will see just what is meant is a matter for discussion when the by such words as "metacentroidal" and lines are .being studied. It has • been "metacentric shelf." They are big words argued. that a short keel makes for and rather hard to define without going into a lot of terminology tha1: would quickness in stays and also makes for possibly mean nothing to you anyhow. easier steering. This is no doubt true, Let it suffice to explain themselves as yet there are other factors that should we go along o_nour merry way in plain, be con:;;idered. A hull that is quick 9:q. simple language, and garner the basic . her helm requires steering all the time, principles of speed. whereas most model yachts are designLet's concern ourselves now with the ed to be more or less self steering. Perbasic ideas relating to the underwater haps the best principle on which the profile of the yacht to be designed. To length of the keel can be fixed is this: a great extent this will be governed by the shorter the base of the sail-plan, the particular type of rnodel being built. measured from boom end to tack of In the event of an X-class hull where foremast headsail, the shorter the keel there is no limit to the length of the or fin. No set proportions can be given boat, one may use a deal of overhangs as this is a matter of individual design. fore and aft. This will tend to increase It will be well to µnderstand that the the overall length of the water-line mere possession of extra waterline when heeled, a practice that is considlength does not indicate a fast. hull; ered good. But there are detriments few model yachts can reach their theoretical speed-length ratio, since some here because the sail area is limited. Just how long to make these overhangs are of improper form for high speed. in relation to the overall length of the Others lack the power to carry sail in a breeze that would enable them to hull is the problem. Where one uses the full keel it is a matter of what I would reach the maximum possible speed, or call "eye proportion" if one has the have hulls so designed that they cannot withstand the pressure needed to obtain ability to see with his brain as well as it within a certain amount of heel, behis eye. 1 2 :·ore the sail area is reduced by such 11eeling. So far as lines are concerned, speed is governed by the resistance the hull encounters in moving thru the water. Resistance is made up of a combination of factors; the most important being skin-friction, eddy-making resistance combined with that of wave making. Skin friction is created by parti~tcs of water adhering to the submerged skin of the hull; skin friction is of prime importance at low speeds. Obviously, the way that the effects of this friction can be combated is by having the wetted surface of the underwater profile as smooth as possible. Reduce the amount of wetted surface as much as the displacement will allow. In recent years much has been made of the desirability of reducing wetted-surface to a minimum, hence the cut away underbody of some modern model yachts. It must be observed, however, that some of the reputed reduction of wetted surface claimed for them i_smore or less imaginary when comparison is based on the actual displacement of the hull. Eddy making and wave-making are the disturbances of the bodies of water caused by the movement of the hull. In creating these "blocs" force is used that would otherwise be added to the forward speed of the hull. The visible aspects are the wake and bow-waves seen when the hull is going at a good rate of speed. These visible effects are an indication of energy consumed in eddy and wave making efforts. • Let's ·see what effect these things have on our actual design so far, shall we? When the boat is standing still in a calm she presents a minimum of wetted surface to the water; in the first faint airs, she overcomes that slight resistance and starts to move ahead. In this upright position with a minimum waterline length, her ballast at the lowest possible point, and the least surface of the hull resting on the water, she will have the least stability. It is easy for a moderate breeze to make her heel. Now, however, when the breeze has become a bit heavier, it h_as caused a different attitude in her position. Her keel is now at an angle to the upright, the length of her waterline is increasing, as is the stability, in proportion. In the calm only part of the hull that was immersed was the underbody, now part of the topsideR are in the drink also. You have more boat to lean against the water. You present· a surface that is not only larger, but because of its shape is harder to push down. If the hull has been properly designed, you will gain a bearing surface on the leeward side of the boat, greater than you lose on the other side that is lifting out of the water. You will also have moved "the center of that surface to leeward. Let us now loQk at what is happening on the leeward side of the boat at the bottom. With a moderate freeboard, for'd, the floor of the boat in the calm is placed at an angle of 45° to the surface ·of the water. When the moderate breeze heels the hull down, however the floor becomes flat and all the pressure of that surface is exerted against the water to help prevent the boat from heeling· further. So we see in a moderate breeze the hull has vastly more stability than she had in_a calm. As the wind increases the waterline length continues to grow, the wetted surface of the topsides increases, and there is more bearing surface at. the bow and stern excepting where a yacht has_ no overhangs. Also we would find that the keel is working harder, as it is lifting now against gravity. The farther the keel is raised, the more powerful its action becomes in trying to bring the hull .back to an upright position. At the same time we will find that as the hull heels over, the sails are presenting less of their surface· to the wind. This too is helping to bring the boat back to an upright position. It will thus be obvious that in well-designed hulls the stability increases ·as the need for it arises. And a hull of such character has sufficient stability to be safe and at the same time driven hard. Now all these elements can not be successfully combined in all hulls. Therefore, some elements must be increased to take the place of others that deepest and fullest part of her canoe are found lacking. Some boats seem to body somewhat forward of her center settle down in the water and go to work, From this deepest section, the curve of while others seem to lift themselves out the hull slopes gently upward to the of the water; the boat that lifts herself waterline at the stern, and this line is out of the water is usually far less continued above the waterline to the stable. extreme end of the hull. The lines of The difference between a fast hull the run not only slope upward, they also and a slow one may be classed as folslope inward to the center ·of the boat. lows: First, the fast boat should attain The widest part of the beam is usualher speed at a lower wind level than a ly at, or near the waterline just slightslow hull. Second,· the fast hull will ly aft the assumed mast position on maintain her speed for a longer period deck. Most fast boats have what is of time than the slower hull in the same known as a "feather edge" at the after velocity of wind. Thirdly, the fast edge of the rudder. It is obvious that boat will attain her maximum speed if water flows from two sides of a boat with a little less sail than a slower hull. at the same time they will meet behind Exceptions are scows, catamarans, hyit in a violent disturbance at the interdroplanes and others that may actually section. This is an eddy that tends to relift out of the water and plane along tard forward progress, and the greatest the top of it. All boats must p_ush the effort should be made by the designer water aside, worm their way thru it and to ayoid any eddying at the stern of his let the water close in behind it. The boat. hull that can do this most easily is apt It is obvious that if the deepest part to prove herself the fastest. of a hull, or canoe body is far forward, •There was a time when the forward the run will be very long. Therefore sections wre considered the most imthe waters' passage from that deepest portant. They were concave in section so as to "split the water" and push the point to where it passes clear behind the boat will be as undisturbed as posboat thru. To some extent that is still sible. After the boat has pushed her the theory, but for the most part, boats nowadays are planned to lift their fordeepest and widest parts thru the ward sections over the water, rather water, the water should pass off the than thru it. Bows are still rather sharp rest of the boat in su_ch a way as to and fairly narrow, but usually they are squeeze the boat ahead of it. Any sharp a bit convex rather than concave and angles are of course disturbing,_ so in a they taper much less abrubtly at the well designed boat the angle between widest part of the hull. In judging the the bottom and the keel is well "faired" lines of your _boat try to figure what in a sweet and concave curve so there part of the water will pass under the is no abrupt line in the junction of the hull and what part will pass along the canoe body with the keel-appendage .. side. • Concavities in a hull are to be condoned The displaced water usually seems to only at the stern, as hollow lines aft bunch up somewhat back of the bow usually make for a smart sailing boat. It has long been my impression that and there either to roll off in a gentle bow wave or to rise up and cover the the braking affect of a rudder has had foredeck. Study the lines halfway befar less attentiori, then it should have. tween the mast and the entry, and The fitting at the base of rudder post judge whether the water will roll off or known as the "pintle plate" must be as pile up. free working and frictionless as possiNow let us look at the hull from the ble. stern. From a standpoint· of speed, the A long-ended hull is usually potenrun is far more important than the entially faster than one having short ends, try. A boat with a sweet run will leave not merely because the long ends tend the water astern almost undisturbed. to increase the sailing length, but also As a rule the well-designed hull has the carry the lines of the underwater pro- 4- tile almost to the vanishing 1 s r t t i t r s t I, e .t :i r e e 0 p a [l " e e d :t ;t tS 5, d 0 point. Chop ; 11 em off abruptly or twist the planking :iround in a sharp curve at either the boW or the stern and you will break the easy flow of water along the hull itself. Well, let's leave the hull alone· for the present and take up• the matter of sails. They are the propulsive force used, and require as much care and consideration as the hull. It has been observed that the choice of a sail plan and rig has been made, not always on the grounds of theoretical efficiency but perhaps because of some individual idea, and sometimes because of prejudice. Thruout the history of Model Yachting certain forms of rig have been fashionable for a long period of time, and in each case the "fad" has bee~ supported by contemporary "scientific reasons." Illustrative for this the "loose-footed mainsail" will serve. . This type of sail •was popular in American schooners as far back as 1845. However, it was ridiculed as "unscientific and inefficient." The "scientific" arguments against this type of sail disappeared in America some ten or fifteen years ago, since a lot of new theories had appeared, indicating that the sailmakers of a generation ago were not so far wrong as they were said to have been. Other examples could. be quoted, such as overlapping headsails, commonly called Genoa jibs, or reaching jibs, but tlle story of the loose-footed- mainsail will serve as an example to prove that contemporary ideas as to what· is scientific or efficient are not always correct. Racing courses are generally laid out in such manner that one leg of the course is a beat to windward. This has placed a premium on the ability to work to windward. Curiously enough, many' skippers who have a rig designed for best advantage while beating do not use the rig correctly in this light at all. It becomes apparent therefore, that the true efficiency of a rig is not its windward ability, but the suitability to the average use of the yacht in general. All racing models should be able to work to Windward; there can be no question here, but speed and handiness on other boards is not to be overlooked. There is little question as to the efficiency of the jib-headed mainsail and the extremely high and narrow sail-plan of our modern model yachts, especially for windward work. However, hulls of large displacement, ahd this describes a great many of our present day racing hulls, require rather large sail-plans which will tend to limit the height at which stability becomes a liability rather than an asset.- It seems possible that the limit in the direction of high narrow sails has been reached and maybe passed. If you have read my article in the March 1945 issue of MYM you will understand the tendencies used by most model yachtsmen of our time. Probably the high narrow rig is' more efficient in the moder.ate displaced and heavily ballasted hulls such as those used in California. The fact that a hull of large displacement requires a relatively large sail plan in order to obtain speed cannot be too strongly stated. This consideration is all important in deciding the type rig of a design in case. Any attempt to fix the lead (pronounced "leed") by means of calculations will be subject to error, for when a hull is moving under sail there is a continual change in trim, and various forC;eS are being set in motion, all •of which tend to influence lateral resistance. There is no doubt that the C. L. R. is moving in a fore-and-aft direction, depending on the contour of tp.e canoe body of the design. This is caused not only by changes in trim but by the pressure of the lee bow wave, which varies with the shape of the entrance. There is also the effect of depth to be considered; it may be accepted as an apparent fact that the portion of the "lateral plane" farthest submerged is the most effective in creating lateral resistance; this alone is sufficient to question the accuracy of accepting mathematical center of gravity of the underwater profile as the center of lateral resistance. In view of recent experiments it seems that the entering wedge of the 5 the hull is in motion. And trying to keep away from figures is the sole pur. port of this text. Anyway, as the yacht gains or loses stability when heeled and in motion it is evident that calculus and math fly out the window, figuratively speaking. These figures would merely show the value at par with the model at rest in still water; at given angles of heel, etc. the gain and loss in stability would be governed_ by the lee bow wave and transverse changes of trim, and of course by buoyancy gained and lost in passing thru or over waves encountered. For high speed under sail there must be a relationship between sail-area and displacement. A great diany models are deficient in this respect. It has already been stated that it is impractical to express this mathematically, but as a general rule it can be sa,id that any attempt to combine a very heavy displacement with a small sail area is doomed to produce a rather slow hull. It will therefore become apparent that large hull lengths necessitate proportionately large displacements and also sail areas. The same remarks go for all model yacht hulls insofar as light displacement, narrow beam and small sail-area go hand in hand, in the building of an 1 easy going boat. As the beginner in design for speed gains in experience he will find that there are certain rigs that fit certain hull-forms, and that a relationship exists between them and the underwater profile. The designer should take into consid.eration the average local water and wind conditions under which the model is to be sailed. The whole business is to be summed up in this manner: When building and · designing a rac- _ ing model yacht remember that any one boat will not be at its best unless the conditions met with are the same as the designer had in mind at the time of drawing up the plans. -It would be perhaps far better to plan a moderately fast hull that would be fast under all normal conditions to be encountered, rather than to build and design an "extreme" hull that will underbody profile plays an important part in lateral resistance, both in effectiveness and in the location of the true C. L. R. It would seem that if the hull were to be towed broadside to the line of motion the C. L. R. might not be far from a vertical line thru the mathematical center of the lateral plane for obvious reasons. In making calculations for the C. G. (center of gravity) of the ballast, observation indicates that there are large digressions in the C; G. leads employed in hulls of the same general proportions and rig. Many attempts have been made to analyze this phenomena without arriving at any particular conclusion. In respect to the lee-bow wa.ve, it has been noted that models having full bows required more ballast than sharpbowed craft of the same general contour. It would seem apparent that models having long straight keels are fa.r less sensitive in respect to the actual placing of the center of gravity. The practical methods by which the difficulties in choosing the correct amount of "lead" are overcome, are many; provisions for changing the mast, changes in logitudinal trim are all provided for by the use of the sliding-rig. The effect of size upon the lateral plane requires mention; it has been noted that large models such as the A's and X's require less proportionate area of lateral plane than smaller hulls such as the M class. It is also apparent that the area of lateral plane and the sail-plan are related also, and that they are in turn related to "stability" or that qual. ity sometimes called stiffness or tenderness. The amount of sail that a model should carry depends on these factors; depth, length of waterline, and beam. These factors "fix" stability on the drawing board so we may regard them as standard. It has been :pointed out that the use of these so-called standards would solve the stability problem, but unfortunately "theory and practice" part company here, because of the difficulty in expressing, without the use of algabraical ·terminology, the forces exerted when b r this is a bo2.t that likes heavy going," or maybe the old saw that we all get tired of hearing, "You should see my boat go at such and such a place, she just can't get going in this darn lake." After all excuses do not win races, do they? an ideal set :,f circumstances found only on occas·,,nal dz..ys or times. • Please remember also that average ; utls win average races, and that is 1 • •e to be desired than having to resort 11 11H all kinds of excuses such as "Oh , 10 ~:i i 1 very fast only under M.Y.M.SUPPLEMENT "MABEL" is a new M-class design by of Marblehead MYC. This V -bottom craft is very easy to build, and is recommended for beginners in planking as well as veterans. There are no twists or hard turns in the planking. The chine is entirely under water, and she has little flare to her topsides, so the hull will not roll out too much and lose water-line length. With a shallow canoe-body, her displacement is mostly in the middle. The one-inch "" garboard radius required by the M-class ~\,. rule is not shown on the drawing, but ·.~~ is to be provided by the builder. A fillet of plastic wood should suffice. J. Selmer-Larsen, G,TlfNG ..DQv.i~-fo 11'" .. •S·0·13E~E {t.foRWFW') • W1NNE.Q O(= "ftiE ltITEkNf>1iONAl \ CHt’lMPIONSHIP AT flEE.TwooD.AUG. 1935. BITS OF OAKUM last to trim the model when heeled, and Adding a few drops of glycerin to the angle of heel in major yachts is sel~ waterproof glue makes it le~s brittle dom used as much as it is with models; and tougher. A splendid adhesive for plank edges is we have only mechanical methods of pure celluloid diluted by acetone. Pla.ce steering. All these things point to the old umbrella handles, toothbrush handnecessity of a mechanical or scientific les (cut the part holding the bristles hull form for a model. off and throw it away) or other celluMajor yachts soak up much water, loid objects in a jar, pour acetone over and it has actually happened that a celluloid and let stand overnight. Add major 6-metres was obliged to take off mqre acet.one to dilute to proper consis100 lbs. of lead to measure in after tency, about that of syrup or molasses. some time in the water. M-class modThere is one thing, the most imporels have been checked and found to tant of all, that model yachtsmen should . have added from 1¼ lbs. to 1¼ lhs. to not lose sight of, and that is the fact their displacement after a period of conp that we are dealing with MODELS and tinuous sailing. A-class and X-c,ass not full-sized yachts, when designing yachts similarly. checked have added models. We do not have moveable balweight up to two lbs. by soakage. 7 THE NEEDS OF MODEL YACHTING By THE What are the needs of model yachting? :\tany reasons will be given by various per~ns, but we all agree to certain fundamentals. EDITOR diff. Any paper will be glad to print articles or scores if you will only send or phone them in to the sports editor. Get the feature writer and shutter-fiend THE FIRST NEED is the will to design, for the “poiper”over to the pond, give them build and sail these intriguing creations, hence pioneers must get together in some organization such as the MODEL YACHT RACING ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, ,hat has standard rules and regulations, so that some definite plan of procedure and operation will be assured. Before the advent of this Association there were dozens of clubs, each with its own set of rating and racing rules. When two or more of these clubs met in competition there was much grumbling and bickering, as each could not know each other’s regulations, some of which were often made on the spot! The yacht5 were of all shapes, types, and sizes, and handicapping did not help much. If every baseball, football or hockey team had its own rules what chaos would reign! Perhaps some of the present standard rules do not please some individuals; however these have been carefully revised and compiled and may be said to be as fair as can be to all. THE SECOND NEED is to get more people, lots of people, interested; and persuade .them to join your club. If you go along with a few members, expecting others to join just because you get out once a week and sail a boat somewhere, you will be disappointed. People ~on’t usually join anything they know nothing about, or without an invitation. People need considerable urging, prompting an~ explanation. Tell them how easy it is to build a boat, what fun it is to sail one. Go out of your way to interest them wher they stop to watch your boat, and don’t be a sourpuss and grunt a short answer to their innocent, albeit sometimes insane questions. Offer to help them select a plan, or help them to get started, etc. Put your models on display in some local stor~ window, or exhibition. It pays to advertise. Promoters of exhibitions are glad to get a line display of models. and often recipfocate with “expenses” or material for prizes or your season’s racing. Get after the cub reporter on yow hometown ·scandal-sheet, whether it is the New YorkTimes or the Bingville Bugle, makes no a couple of cigars and get some· free publicity. Build up the dub. THE THIRD NEED is to try and get a better pond or lake Jo sail on. A one or two-man club can’t do this unless they are magicians·. If you can prove that you have a fair number of people enrolled in your club, and more would join if they had a better pond, you have a good selling argument. Most municipalities are rotten with dough which some politician is itching to spend ( through a contractor-friend, possibly). He may or may not get a “cut” but why worry? If he doem’t, someone else will. So get after these public spendthrifts, and get a better pond built. We have heard of more than one such project obtained in this manner. Or, if your members are extra hard workers, borrow a donkey-engine, a vacant lot, and dig one yourself, as one active club actually did recently. . THE FOURTH NEED is to determine just what class your members want to promote. If your pond is small, the 50-800 M-Class, or the • 6-Metres class would be preferable. Don’t be inveigled into building anything smaller. . If your pond is fairly large then you may prefer the A-Class or the X-Class. Having too many classes at once in a small club scatters the interest, as at least a half dozen boats of one class are needed to make an interesting race. As the club increases membership, it can then sail more than one class. • Now take my advice, and build only to designs which have proved their ,worth, or to designs by experienced men. Trying it yourself, with no previous practice, is commend able, but foolhardy, as such amateur attempts usually end in frustration and disappointment, which causes many to quit the game before they even get a fair start. Don’t build a design unless you make sure it will “rate i~”. A lot of crack-pots, r1any of them large yacht designers, publish designs which are all wet as far as rating is concerned, both in drydock and in the water. THE FIFTH NEED is some sort of clubhouse where members can meet regularly, swap ideas, pan the other guy, and settle arguments and have a general good time. Arguments at the pond will scare away prospective members, so zip the lip and save a ship when out in public. Serverefreshments,or give a dinner once in a while. Invite interes~ng speakers. You would be surprised to know how hungry some of the local windbags are! Have members give talks on design. woodworking, metalworking. sail-making, and other topics. One club gave a course on navigation. (Must have had obstacles in their pond.) Show moving pies of the club in action. You will be surprised to see how you look to others-I know I was when some fPcker6end shot a few feet of candid stuff when I was bawling out my mate! An old shed or garage is sometimes available for little or no rent. You can then store your models between races and avoid the rigging and unrigging and attendant disturbance of “trim”. Small models can be transported in your 0ivver-if you can get the gas-large ones are easily carried on the roof, strapped to a light frame. The lead ballast is of course removed and carried inside the car. Clubs using skiffs, but minus a boathouse, overcome this handicap by building a trailer out of part of an old automobile and towing it behind a car. One club towed several trailers clear from Boston to Washington and back on several occa:;ions1 and thought nothing of it. If yo1.Jmust h ave a trailer license, have the club pav for it-what is the treasury for, anyway? • THE SIXTH NEED for a successful club is to elect the right kind of officers, and not elect certain characters just because they squawk louder than the others or just want to stick out their chests. If they don’t or won’t work for the club’s interests, you know what to do! give everyone a chance. We can’t all be good. Don’t work too hard 01 be so bloodthirsty. Never “throw” a race, but no need to garble every comma in the Rules in order to get a re-sail, or screech “foul!” when YOut boat grazes a Hoating match. Just ask yourself: “Would I rattle the bones, play poker or lay a fin on a goat week after week, year after year, and never Win ·place, or show?” The answer is ixnay: Govern yourself accordingly, unless you want to keep the club small and puny. THE SEVENTH NEED is something to satisfy the “modems” or “futurists.” • You would be surprised to know how many of these fact-seeking .enthusiasts look at a Rated Model with disdain. While old pickle-puss conservatives prefer a Boating object which they claim resembles a real yacht, some (perhaps further advanced than we may comprehend) want to add this or that strange adjunct, which, in tum, peeves the conservatives. This I’PCd could be filled by creating ~ “G Class” or Gadget Class, with anything “allowed” in the way of a hull, or alleged hull, and with any sort of gadget, thingumbob, whirligig or knick-knack welcomed whether in hull, 6n, steering-gear, control’ . • ‘ or ng. > ” This is not a joke. I am dead serious. However, such a class would have to have· ONE rule, to wit: “The G-Class must be propell~ by (so-many) square in~hes of sail, or less.’ . . .. ~ I Whether this S. A. limit was 500 or 21 000 is not important so long as the S. A. is limited. • If there are as many gadgeteers as the voice in the wilderness proclaims, we suggest they • poun~ their ~ in the ears of the long-· suffenng Executive Committee, and good luck. ,. TO SUM UP. Get back in the gam: .. Resurrect your club. Join the M:Y.R.A.A. Buy a plan. Build a boat. Sail it. You will be amply rewarded for the small Keeping the boys in good humor calls for a Race Commi~ee who are always on the job, aHmfunt of moolah you put into it. Gung o. and who won t stand for any evasion or breach of rules. Don’t expect to keep them ~n the job_forever,_though: maybe they would like to sail once m a while themselves! So rotate the job among the members. Buy each member a rule book, and make them read aloud at meetings. , If a few members win all the races and prizes, eventually more or less dissatisfaction will arise. Arrange for handicap races to OPEN-MINDEDNESS: An open mind, like an open window, should be equipped with a screen to keep the bugs out. -0. A. BATflSTA. HANDICAP FLAG-RACES By CAPT. WHYTE-ASHE l\lost clubs have a few skippers who seem win most of the marbles. This, although 1 .~inmendable, is also more or less discouraging to .oth~r skipI?ers, or ne~comers, who lack the specialized skill or experience. The Handicap Flag-Race method has been ucc:essfullyused throughout a full racing sea~on by a large and active club. The results were most gratifying. One race for each class was scheduled for each week-end, ‘and a flag awarded the winner of each race. Some skippers can’t get away to sail on a Saturday, others may have to skip Sunday races, hence schedules were arranged so the A and X Classes sailed on a Saturday, and the :Vi’s on Sunday. The .following week, the ~chedule was reversed, so the M’s sailed on Saturday and the A and X on Sunday, and so on. It makes no difference how many yachts are in a race. One day there may be four; another, seven or eight, etc. It is possible for a yacht unable to sail but one race in a season to snag a “banner.” A reasonable requirement is ‘that no less than three yachts sailing will constitute an official club race. Suitable Hags will be made up on order by any firm dealing in regalia. Specify grosgrain silk ribbon; this has the same finish on both. sides. Use ribbon one-inch wide. The length of a Rag, finished, should be about one and fiveeighths inches. . A gold or silver star or other device should be printed on the Hags, both sides. Red or blue ribl:on is most suitable. A different color may be used for the various classes. The flag should be cut with a “swallowtail” to prevent fraying. The edge near the staff is turned over and sewn, so as to make a loop about 1116th inch in diameter, tl. ..>Ugh which the backstay may be worked. The proper method of displaying is to fly Rag on the backstay near the truck, each flag l:eing kept one flag-space apart. Work the stay through making a knot close to the upper and lower part of the Rag to prevent its shifting. up or down. Owing to the loop, the flag will rotate with the wind. A· flag awarded a yacht belongs to that yacht only, and is not transferable to any other yacht. If desired, the holder of the most Rags at the end of the ~eries or ~eason may be award,ed the club championship, or Rag races and regular “out-for-blood” races altenH,tP~ The cost of such Rags, when made up in 2 or 3 dozen lots, will l::e only a few cents each. With the handicap entering into the situation, it will be found that although une flag may be won easily, that to win two or three Hagsis not a very easy task; in fact it is practically imposible to win a half-dozen. We have seen three or four “top” boats knocked galley-west by some of the “tailenders,” where the former had a 20% or a 40% handicap on their score sheet. Less experienced contestants have a grand chance to snag a prize, and are almost certain to 20-22-4-6-13- a-12·-1s-24-5 21-4-7-15-18 11-20-24-3-7 1-2-3-4 W.W. L.W. For Group of 3: Score 6-3-0 4-2-0 ,, ,, ,, 6-4-2-0 9-6-3-0 ” 4: ” ” ” 5: ” 12-9-6-3-0 8-6-4-2-0