- Description of contents
Vic Smeed’s nowadays, mainly because of the considerable expense and, even more, the difficulty of obtaining suitable timber. Fifty yearsorso EAVING aside theory — or at least the ys and wherefores — for the moment, let us this month discuss the constructional side of things. Yachts are pretty | much like other boats in variety of strucfor tural technique, but, while it is desirable 2 power boat to be built accurately, it is essential for a yacht. There is not much chance of increasing drive power, as with putting a bigger motor in a power model, and there are no asymmetric effects such as propeller torque. Although the drive from the sails may at times be off the centre line of the hull, it is as likely to be on one side as on the other, so an out-of-true hull will cause different behaviour on either tack. In order to make good a similar track, either some permanent rudder will be needed, or at best periodic jabs of rudder will have to be applied on the poor tack, and with the finite power available from the sails, the drag arising from any application of rudder will reduce the speed of the yacht. This need for accuracy is not always fully understood, but it extends to such matters as getting the lead on straight and ensuring that both fin and rudder are absolutely vertical. A lead only a shade out of true will steer the yacht in a permanentcurve, while model aircraft fliers deliberately tilt the tailplane out of alignment with the wing to induce a turn, which is exactly whata yacht rudder out of alignment with the fin will do. Moving to adjustable bits, if the mast is not truly vertical from ahead or astern, it is not ago a number of magazines (not mainly model-orientated) published designs for models which started off requiring ‘a block of yellow pine 33 x 8 x 5in.”’ or something similar. Even in those days it wasn’t easy to acquire such a block, and the chances of shakes or splits opening up as the locked-in stresses In Part Four Vic Smeed discusses methods of hull construction An example of double chine frames mounted ona building board, in actual fact Genie, Model Boats p/an MM1175, price J, £5.45 plus 50p postage and packing. performance. It is for this reason that any yacht hull (other than a carved one) should be built on a jig. Making the jig and building on it may seem a bit of a bind, which is one reason relieved by carving and is written from experience! Carved hulls thus moved to the so-called “bread and laminating butter’’ solid method, initially by planks and carving the result, later by sawing the planks to plan shape, thus reducing the amount of external carving, screwing them together while the outside was brought nearly to shape and then unscrewing and drilling/ sawing out the centres before final gluing. As timber prices rose it was realised that a saving in material, time and effort could be achieved by plotting the inside shape of each plank and sawing it out before assembly. The ‘waste’ often provided enough timber for several of the smaller laminations or, indeed, enough for a second, smaller yacht. The late and great Bill Daniels, one of the finest designers/builders/skippers ever, used to saw out all his planks solid and shape them accurately to outline, then use the nextsmallest plank, movedinward (3in. for anAclass hull) as a template to mark out the centre of the plank above. His philosophy was apparently that it was quicker to gouge unreasonable to expect different angles of heel and unwanted steering effects on either or both tacks. You can’t open the throttle a bit, or offset a constructional fault against torque, or use a wedge or trim tab without adding drag. For maximum efficiency accuracy is vital, and anyone undertaking yacht construction should remind himself constantly that every “that’s near enough” decision is likely to chisel a bit more off the ultimate were hollowing were considerable. And, yes, this out the surplus timber resulting from this process than to plot out the internal cutting lines from the plan. He almost always built ‘on the waterlines,’ i.e., with horizontal laminations, but others, including the why the writer has experimented with different forms of jig and different methods equally famous Arthur Levison, would build of construction, but the classic ‘‘T-piece and fillet strips’’ really doesn’t take all that hull shape or available timber seemed to suit long to make and given a good stout and true T, will form the basis for a number of yachts. One prolific builder of conventional wood hulls must have made more than 50 on the same basic jig. The exception, as mentioned, is a carved hull but few boats are built in this way ‘on the buttocks‘ (vertical laminations) if the the job better. How to plot the required shapes (which applies toall laminated hulls, power included) will be covered in the near future. In the 1930s, with advances in glues and machine technology, plywood of increas- ingly high quality became widely and easily CHISEL FRAME B5 B6 >> CUT- OUTS FOR ~ FIN AND SKEG Construction method using port and starboard halves built on a flat board and joined together to make one-piece hull. This technique used in Gosling, Model Boats plan MM1164. price F, £3.25 plus 50p postage and packing. Model Boats The dowel method of guaranteeing a true hull shape. Above, the two dowels can be seen inserted in matching holes drilled through frames. Right, dowels removed before addition of transom. similar to a round bilge hull, so can be discussed later. available — more so than ‘solid’ timbers — Probably most wooden yachts intended which caused designers to think harder for racing are of round bilge form, and built about hard chine hulls. This sort of hull has in a pronounced corner where the side and subtle difference between ‘rib and plank’ bottom and ‘plank on frame,’ the latter being used skins meet and has also been the rib and plank system. There is a known for many years as ‘sharpie’ form. It generally for ship models where the frames was not uncommon in pre-ply days but, in (or, if solid, bulkheads) are a permanent full-size, it was difficult to get /,-%:in. thick part of the hull. In rib and plank the frames, planks in widths greater than about 8-10in. called ‘moulds’ or ‘shadows,’ are set up on (it’s even harder today!) and not easy to the jig and narrow ribs pinned round the keep Ply overcame edges. The planks are glued only to the ribs, so that on removal from the jig the shadows these disadvantages and enabled develop- can be twisted out, leaving a planked shell ment of shapes and construction methods which were both cheaper and easier for empty apart from the thin ribs keying the planks together. Nowadays 1,,in. (1.5mm) amateur construction. or 3in. (.8mm) ply is usual for the ribs, between-plank (again, from seams experience!). watertight Model yachts of hard chine form in the 1930s tended to use ‘,in. thick solid timber widths ranging from %,in. (5mm) to %in. (910mm) on hulls from 3ft. to 7ft. or so in and the difference in cost and even building length. time between these and ‘traditional’ hulls The shadows are traced from the body plan (a view from either end of the hull showing cross-sections) with allowance was relatively small. Few successful models were raced and something of a mythology grew up, to the effect that they were harder to sail well and even at their best no match for conventional ‘round bilge’ yachts. Over the last ten or 15 years this mythology has tended to be exposed as just that myth; after ail, if hard chine yachts can come first and second in different world championship events it can hardly be said that their performance is inferior! Nor are they harder to sail — perhaps a shade different, that’s all — and they are certainly easier and cheaper to build from materials which few people have difficulty in obtaining. because some wooden hard chine power boats, in both kit and plan form, can be built without a jig, so can a yacht, but as we have tried to show, accuracy is much more marked in for the central backbone of the hull and for the inwales, which are square strips important with a yacht and a jig should be used. Possibly the exceptions are the one or two yachts designed to be built on a truly flat board as port and starboard halves (Gos/ing is perhaps the best-known example) but in general one should always, to coin a phrase, ‘think jig.’ The basic assembly of the frame on a September 1983 jig is not dis- providing a joint surface between the hull and the deck. Each shadow is extended above the deck line toa ‘building line’ which represents the surface of the jig to which they will be attached, and a square fillet strip, up to say 1in. square, is secured by screws to the top flat edge. To reduce the chances of bowing or other misalignment, There is a tendency for people to think that made for the thickness of the ribs and the planking. They are transferred to (usually) ply of 5-6mm thickness and notches are section perhaps 20ft. in length and some a great deal bigger. the jig itself normally consists of a flat and truepiece of timber screwed to a second piece in the form of aT, the stem of the T also forming a convenient piece to grip in a vice. The size of the timber At this stage the first of many progress checks should be made, this one on the ‘fairness’ of the shadows, by bendinga strip of timber along them in various positions to ensure that none are proud or low. Any discrepancy needs correcting before proceed- ing further; often a couple of strokes with a sanding block is all that is needed, but any serious fault is best dealt with by making a replacement shadow. The check should be repeated when the ribs have been fitted in place. More detail on building technique can follow in a later article. One of the problems with planking is, usually, locating a source of suitable timber, but at least it is possible to order obeche, Sitka spruce or Brazilian mahogany from Punctilio Model Spot of Hinckley if there is no local source. Planking with strips of ply is possible, but somewhat harder work and likely to turn out heavier. How wide the planks should be cut depends on the curvature of the shadows; generally the fewer the planks the lighter, as glue joints can be quite heavy. As a very general guide, plank width at the largest shadow should be between 1/15 and 1/20 of the beam at that shadow, e.g. for Qin. beam each plank should be between .45in. and .6in. or, say gin. to %in. Some builders use wider planks on gentler curves and narrower ones at the turn of the bilge, but others prefer equal width planks, which certainly looks nicer with a bright varnish (i.e., uncoloured, just varnished finish). Plank thickness is up to a likely to be around ‘in. (%,¢in. for big boats) sanded down to taste or requirements — with care, since it is easy to sand thinner over the ‘hard spots’ at rib locations. is not really critical, but 1 x 4in. would be a good choice. A centre line and station lines Quite large yachts have been built with balsa planking subsequently covered with are accurately drawn on the top surface, and the fillets/shadows are screwed in place from beneath the jig. This is to enable glass surfacing tissue and polyester resin, and one idea which would work for smaller the screws to be removed after the hull has been planked. Note that this results in the hull being built upside down, which is periment, gauze (or ladies’ tights) and painted with standard polyurethane. in full-size for all boats up to models, though is time balsa has prevented ex- covered with nylon Cascamite glue or several coats of two-pot 467 some experiment with an alternative, fibre known as Kevlar. This enables a hull of similar strength to one of grp to be moulded at about 60 per cent of the weight. It is, however, much more expensive and requires much higher standards of work (for example, it takes more ‘wetting out’ with resin and does not turn transparent to so that its show that it is completely wetted) use is likely to be confined to out and out racing models. Rather then conventional fore and aft planking, diagonal planking with veneer (two layers for small models, three for larger ones) is easier, but it takes longer. Several stringers must be notched into the shadows to ensure maintenance of the correct curvatures, but the veneer need not be glued either to these or indeed ribs, so that the result is a light shell with no internal structure at all — apart from inwales, that is. It is possible to dispense with the backbone, merely adding local reinforcement round stress points. A recent development of this method is resin-saturated balsa. Two skins of ‘/2in. balsa soaked thoroughly with a special resin will produce a remarkably tough and light hull or Marblehead (50in. length) size. Other possibilities include using cheap card for diagonal lamination, as used on the remarkably popular (and surprisingly successful!) Krispie 36R design described ly used in commercial are Cc Idings ¥Y A.B.S. hulls, this one being the Krick Tina distributed by Micro-Mold. some six or seven years ago. Mention of glass and resins brings us to grp hulls, which is the material used by possibly 90 per cent of modern competition models. The amount or work required for one-off models, in the smaller sizes at least, is no less than is needed for a wooden hull, and there are few real advantages in making a single model of less than, say, 30in. in length in this way. If several models are to be made then it is very worthwhile to carve a solid plug, or make one up in clay or plaster, from which to take a mould in which to make the hulls. The practical advantages of strength, lack of water absorption, clear internal space etc. are always worth having. In place of glass fibres, there has been Finally, an increasing range of hulls is becoming available in styrene or ABS or similar vacuum-forming types of plastic. The average modeller is unlikely to have the facilities to make a hull in this material (except, of course, a hard chine hull where flat sheets can be used) but there are grow- ing numbers of moulding shops who do have vacuum-forming machines and in many cases they may be prepared todrawa hull for an enthusiast if he provides a suit- able plug. So far most commercially-made hulls appear in kits, the exception being the 36in. Duckling hull and deck available from Micro-Mold, but it seems possible that one or two others may eventually appear to be sold as bare hulls only. Most vac-formed yachts, including one or two Marbleheads, are of German or French manufacture, the tendency elsewhere being more towards grp, which for larger yachts at least appears to be equal in strength, weight and price and, some might say, easier to work on. SLATER’S (PLASTIKARD) LIMITED Royal Bank Buildings, Temple Road, Matlock Bath, Matlock, Derbyshire. DE4 3PG. | Wetth FREEPOST DY195 Anew OLARKRAFT BARCLAYCARD Mail Order Customers Welcomed. Plastiglaz Sheet (Transparent) 0310 010” x 13” x 9” approx. …… per sheet 52p Embossed Plastikard — size approx. 300mm < 174mm 0401 4mm brick red : ; 3402 2mm Scale English Bond Brick Red per sheet 59p 9p ie 0403 4mm brick grey 0404 7mm brick red 0406 7mm brick grey 0407 4mm flemish bond brick red . 0409 4mm flemish bond brick grey 0410 7mm flemish bond brick red 0412 7mm flemish bond brick grey 0417 New 4mm Granite setts grey 0418 7mm Granite setts grey (Replaces old 0418 New Design) & 2mm scale 0419 New Stone courses grey medium (Suitable for 4mm 0420 Stone course grey large (Suitable for Original Design. 7mm scale) . ' sie 0422 New Stone course grey small (Suitable for 2mm scale)& 4mm scale 0423 New Flint/Random pebble walling (Suitable for 7mm 0421 Random grey stone O9p .0424 New Dressed stone grey (Suitable for 4mm scale) (Note: Design replaces old0424)59p 0431 0432 0433 0434 4mm 4mm 4mm 7mm 7mm 7mm roofing roofing slating roofing roofing slating Various rivet 1mm spaced 2mm spaced 4mm spaced . tile red 020” thick tile grey .020” thick white .010” thick tile red .020” thick tile grey .020” thick white .010” thick ie Rta 0435 New Dressed stone grey (Suitable for 2mm scale) . “i ) ¢ 0438 New 4mm roof tile (Scalloped Shell style) 0440 New Pantile Roof Large suitable for 7mm scale 0441 New Pantile Roof Medium suitable for 4mm scale oo 442 New 2mm Roofing Tile 0443 New 3mm Roofing Tile £4 468 New 2mm Pantile Roof New Chequer Plate tea 59p SOP _59p eae spacings planking planking planking 0436 4mm scale Corrugations 0437 7mm scale Corrugations SUPERB YACHTS LEAD THE WORLD. THIS YEAR AGAIN BARRY JACKSON WAS CHAMPION OF THE WORLD IN RADIO MARBLEHEAD. WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN DUNKIRK, FRANCE. 0413 New 2mm scale paving grey 0414 4mm paving grey 0416 7mm paving grey 0425 0426 0427 0428 0429 0430 OUR 59p 59p 59p 59p 59p aA p toe 59p 59p 59 SEA-KING. 10 Rater (R10R) SEAHORSE 3. Marblehead (RM) SEA-URCHIN. Marblehead (RM) DOLPHIN. 36” Restricted (36R) THE above boats are available as packs of finished components ready for assembly in the absolute minimum of time OR as finished ready-to-sail boats re- quiring only radio and winch. If you want to ‘do your own thing’ by building froma published design or even from your own design, then our catalogue of fittings and materials will have something to interest you. It lists the < : : as brass and stainless steel which include such useful items fittings and materialsstainless steel cable, polyester braids, sailcloth and so on. wire, nylon covered Send 60p for your catalogue containing information on all yachts, fittings, sails and materials. SOLARKRAFT ACKHURST ROAD, CHORLEY, LANCS. Model Boats A For Tumblehome (1) Reduces windage. (2) Improves strength of structure. SE Se —————— (3) Enables balance of hull form to be more easily achieved. === CLASSIC (4) Looks very attractive on the drawing ———————— board body plan. (5) Reduces weight of deck and deck beams. (6) Possibly increases heeled sailing length. \_—__ a 10 RATER By John A. Lewis B Against Tumblehome OOKING at my books| see that it is 100 years since Dixon Kemp was writing his wonderful book on yacht architecture and it fashionable gimmicks which sometimes work still is in today’s context. It will also be remembered that Dixon Kemp devised the ‘Rater’ rules to which so many very fast and innovative yachts were designed and built some thing of a disadvantage in that only is remarkable how relevant so much of that in the early 1900's. The modern 10 rater model rule is a derivation of the original Dixon Kemp rule and has, as happened full size, produced many extremely interesting and advanced racing models. The very simplicity of the rule was a great attraction and the freedom was there to experiment almost to heart's content. Control of the two principal speed governing factors of sail area and waterline length by the formula sail area x LWL _ 10 6000 is a masterpiece of simplicity particularly when backed up by simple means of measuring the sail area. Intense competition forces designers to look at rules very carefully and seek loopholes and interpretations which enable the speed factors to be enhanced. This results in a tightening of the rules and an automatic restriction in the apparent ability to develop the class. Note the word ‘apparent.’ One could argue that the challenge to the designer is increased and the competitiveness of the racing improved in that it becomes increasingly the skipper’s ability which is being tested. The model 10 rater class has passed through this sort of phase and the rule as it now exists is more complex to apply although the basic formula is unchanged except for 7,500 being substituted for 6,000 in order to compensate for change in sail area measuremenrtt, i.e. sail area x LWL elements. The very speed of a free sailing 10 rater is physically fit skippers can expect to survive several days of competitive racing in strong winds. On the other hand this sort of and the whole of the effective sail area is now included. Changes were made to the rule at the same as the successful re-emergence of the bulb keel configuration. This enabled stability to be achieved with much lighter displacement. Coupled to increases in waterline length speeds went up dramatically and a whole new style of model developed. This style has stabilised and is becoming a classic in its own right. Hence the name chose for my new design. | believe it represents the best of its class without any recourse to stylisation or (1) Reduces stability. (2) Makes a very wet ship. (3) Can produce hideous highlights on top sides of completed ship even though body plan is attractive. The pro’s and con’s are fairly evenly balanced i.e., control league. A (1) Reduced windage is a positive factor but very difficult to assess value under rater has decreased in recent years as it still (2) Improved strength really only applicable problem is overcome by entering the radio It is a pity that the popularity of the 10 represents the fastest and most elegant racing model which provides a challenge to the technically minded who seek to advance the performance of yachts. The rules of the class are still less restrictive than any other class in terms of providing design development opportunity. The Classic design is based on a long family background of successful free sailing 10 raters which can be traced in my files for some 30 years back. | have tried to condense the concept to one of simplicity and elegance. It is not easy therefore to pick out particular features to explain, rather it is the amalgam of proven elements which is the outstanding feature. There is no doubt in my mind that design- ing light displacement yachts is easier than heavy displacement ones. The very choice of dimensions, i.e., long, light and narrow produce the elements of speed which transcend niceties of hull form and hydrodynamic considerations. This is why some technically poor designs can do well in competition when sailed by competent skippers. | would add though that designing light displacement full size yachts is another matter as there can be several engineering problems coupled with stability considera- tions which do not figure in the model world. = 10 7,500 484 are believed to contribute to the ‘go faster’ It will be noted that the measured waterline length of C/assic isa little less, at 63in., than | have chosen previously. This is because the overhangs are a bit lower and the sections at the ends of the hull considerably more powerful. The effective sailing length will however be significantly longer and thus raise the speed potential at the same time as enabling the effective sail area to be increased. Looking at the body plan there is a lack of the extreme tumblehome which is commonly a feature these days. One can debate the merits or otherwise of the use of tumblehome in a design for a long time but briefly my views can be summarised as: conditions when it may be relevant. to full size designs. (3) Balance can be facilitated without resource to tumblehome. (4) Possibly a design selling point. (5) Reduced weights can be a positive factor but has to be balanced with other structural elements including increased area of topsides. (6) Increased sailing length applicable at more extreme angles of heel when other disadvantages in these conditions are primary. B (1) Stability is reduced mainly at high angles of heel and would certainly offset A(6). wet ship cannot be faster because (2) Avery of its wetness. (3) A positive visual disadvantage. So perhaps for model racing yachts it is not very important either way after all. | am going for improved stability as this is a fundamental requirement in a good yacht and for the better potential attractiveness and beauty of line which to me is also important. Because | have reduced the displacement from previous designs the hull has a flatter floor and this should improve the downwind planing ability. | would expect this hull to lift its nose and sit back to some extent on the flat quarter when planing. A more symmetrical type of hull can be made to plane with equal ease and I’m not suggesting this is the only way to get downwind speed with a light displacement hull. Whilst on this subject though the position of the sail plan requires some thought. Off the wind the sails exert a heavy depressing moment on the bow and we have all seen model yachts nose dive. It becomes attractive therefore to be able to position the mast as far aft as possible and ideally actually at the midship point. Hence you will notice that | have raked the fin to assist this feature. Combined with the powerful bow sections there should be no Model Boats ...... anew design for vane or radio "CLASSIC" io Rater By Jonn a Lewis CLASSIC. we aes bce Pi Saat to rarer By Jon A Lewis DIMENSIONS. Lwi FOR SMALLER — 63.0 DISPLACEMENT Sisce Lome f } : Couces nF! i ; LOA | ! - ~ 21 Sibs. 80:55" SAIL AREA — 1.190 'sqr ins: a ORAUGHT cu — 16 25" SECTIONS SPACED - 63" ‘ WATERLINES SPACED - t 1° & 1/2 ie eet a / iM LEAD BALLAST. 14 SO ibs, 83 i MM/1357 PLAN FOR CLASSIC /S AVAILABLE FROM MODEL BOATS PLANS SERVICE, P.O. BOX 35, WOLSEY HOUSE, WOLSEY ROAD, HEMEL HEMPSTEAD, HERTS. HP2 4SS. PLAN INCLUDES |, FULL SIZE ELEVATION AND THREE QUARTER VIEW, FULL SIZE B ODY PLAN AND 1/8 SIZE SAIL PLAN. L.W.L. IS 63IN., DISPLACEMENT 21.5LBS., L.0.A. 80.55IN. AND DRAUGHT 16.25IN. PLEASE QUOTE PLAN NO. MM/1357 WHEN ORDERING, PRICE CODE G, £3.95 PLUS 50P POST AND PACKING. question that C/assic will be very fast off the wind and will not dive. | used to believe that the angle of leading edge to the fin had some bearing on the balance (i.e. directional stability) of the hull and in the case of heavy displacement designs there may still be need for such considerations. It does seem though that with lightweight hulls and no garboard fairing problems the question of fins is one of positioning the centre of lateral resistance where you want it, a choice of actual area needed and the requirement to connect the lead bulb to the hull somehow. Neither do | believe the cross section shape of the fin to be important except for one feature which is that the leading edge should not be sharp. If it is the flow of water will break down when going to windward September 1983 and very high drag with excessive leeway angles will ensue. One reads about fins with lamina flow sections but our fins are so small that lamina flow will exist regardless of section shape — within reason. | cannot see much virtue in some of the thin bladed floppy fins and would rather have extra thickness and adequate strength. Over the years 10 raters have appeared with long droopy overhangs. This is an attempt to achieve a sailing length which is unmeasured by the rule. The overhangs, rather like tumblehome, have some merits and some disadvantages. In Classic | have chosen the optimum length and shape for the overhangs. As well as satisfying technical requirements this also satisfies a basic belief of mine that a good yacht should and can be beautiful as well as efficient. Although Classic is primary conceived as a free sailing yacht with vane gear there is no reason why the design should not be successful in radio control competition if the waterline length is reduced to 57in. by spacing the sections 5.7 instead of 6.3. The displacement will reduce to 20.5Ib and the sail area increase to 1315 square inches. Appropriate adjustment of ballast weight will need to be made according to the radio equipment weights. Additionally it would be advisable to change the rudder and skeg toa large spade rudder typical of radio control yachts. | hope we may see an upsurge of 10 rater yachts in the near future and that Classic will provide many people much enjoyment. 485 soon after sented, 10 o'clock. Five clubs were repre- five skippers from Danson, four from Woodley, two from New Forest, four from Three Rivers (Rickmansworth), and four from Chiltern The races were seven boat affairs, twice round a big course with two penalty turns for the occasional ‘problem.’ Dave decided to have race judges rather than just observers as some of the skippers were new to open meetings and it made for a better atmosphere if everyone was told that there had been an infringement, why, and what they had to do to exonerate themselves. This worked out very Left. a splash start of a Restricted heat at Sheffield’s All-electric Regatta. Above. a most interesting Restricted boat featuring a catamaran hull by John Goddard. Photos: Glynn Guest. they ought to forsake the liquid gold that 1/C motors consume in vast quantities and switch to amps! All Electric Regatta — Sheffield — May 22 The Sheffield club had previously supported electric multi-racing by including suitable events into our annual South Yorkshire 50 multi-racing 1st |. Duckenfield 1st J. Baker 2nd P. Musselwhite 3rd J. Baker 3rd R. Ireland formances have steadily risen, we did note the substantial support for the electric classes. 2.5kg Unlimited 1st |. Duckenfield 1st D. Cooper 2nd J. Baker 2nd K. Woolhouse (two entries only) 3rd |. Duckenfield little prompting from the two club devotees to this branch of our hobby, lan Duckenfield and Pete Musselwhite, we decided to hold our first all electric regatta in 1983. After a little detective work we selected the pool in High Hazels Park as the best one for this type of event. Normally children’s paddleboats occupy this water in the summer months so we had to ask for permission from the Recreation Department for its use on this day, which they generously gave to us. The pool is ideal in many ways being solid bottomed and sided with overall dimensions of about 250 x 9Oft. The depth is a convenient 1520in. which made laying the course and, as we later found out, boat recovery very easy. With a suitable date and venue fixed all we needed were the competitors and some decent It was soon evident that the main competition was between Tony and Rob Owens (Danson) with their new Jrappers, very closely followed by Vic Cooney (Woodley), Russell Potts (Danson) and the real competition was with the wind which had 2nd D. Cooper a Don't get me wrong, everyone was really trying! something special for us, constantly varying, it swung round at least 120 degrees, occasionally 2kg regatta. Whilst the entries in the |/C classes have fallen over the last few years, though the per- With atmosphere which was the aim of the meeting. newcomer Sam Hodge (Three Rivers). However The final results were as follows: Restricted well indeed and added to the relaxed and friendly very light, at other times a good working suit blow. The Officer of the Day had quite a problem maintaining a beat rather than a reach to the first mark of the big course, buoys had to be moved and the course changed several times, including a complete reversal at one stage! However, the last race before lunch was a won most very light winded affair, spectacularly by John Fincham of Danson by over two legs. John reckoned that was Steering his race of the season! 1st P. Musselwhite Competition stayed keen right through to the end of the day with Tony Owens just edging out Rob for top place. 2nd J. Goddard 3rd D. Cooper At the end of the day we were all pleased anda little surprised, at how easy this regatta had been to hold. Since everyone seemed to enjoy it, anda few competitors actually came up and thanked us at the end of the event, we plan to hold more All Electric regattas in future; check next year's regatta list for details. Glynn Guest 1. A. Owens Danson = _ Trapper............ TY, 2. R. Owens Danson Trapper...............9 3. V. Cooney Woodley Deception.........12 4. R. Potts Danson Deception......... 7, 5. S. Hodge Three Seahorse I/II... 20%, 6. B. Shildrake Woodley Deception..... 22Y, Danson Trapper.......... 23%, Rivers 7. J. Fincham weather. Pete and lan spread the word about this event at other electric regattas, even the Editor gave us alittle publicity. Rather than give anyone the chance to say that we had not catered for their interest we opted for four multi-race classes (plus a steering event just for good measure We were pleased to record a total of 26 entries, not overwhelmed but from past experience itisan encouraging classes, such sign as for a first try. Whilst some the popular Restricted class were almost full, others had only a handful of entries. Still if they had made the effort tocome to Sheffield we were determined that everyone should get a good day's sailing in. One difference between electric and |/C multiraces is the short duration of the electric heats. In order to hold sufficient sailing rounds each race had to start on time. This tight scheduling was aided by the efficient use of our PA system. | do not know how any club can manage without one! At first some competitors appeared to be unused to such strict adherence to the timetable since we were treated to the spectacle of the odd one sprinting to the pool side clutching his Tx and model in order to avoid missing his race. Although, on reflection, the weather, cool, cloudy with showers again! did as much to keep the competitors on the move. We were all treated to some fast, skilful and exciting racing throughout the day. This is best illustrated by the results of the Restricted event where less than half a lap separated the top three drivers. The speed*of some models was frankly astonishing and left a few members wondering if September 1983 Radio Marbleheads — The Chiltern Open — May 22 The Chiltern Model Yacht Club held their ‘Friendly Open’ on Sunday May 22 on Hinksey Park Lake on the south side of Oxford city centre. We had 19 entries and everyone managed to find their way there, even though Lake Road is the sort of turning you see once you've passed it! Officer of the Day was Dave Robinson of the home club and he had the first race under way 8. G. Hounsell New 25 Forest 8. D. Causer Chiltern Seahorse /i/I......25 A very pleasant day with only one shower and that was over lunch, good keen racing enjoyed by everyone, even those who had more than their fair share of problems — better luck next time! Keith Allen 487 ing at Broomfield, standing and looking at the lake there this morning made me realise that those are the sorts of incidents which could happen on any such small piece of water. Last Sunday — June 12 — | went to the Moorhen regatta at Harlow. The weather was a turn out of 50 boats andit marvellous; there was was only a ten minute drive away. It was good to see some old faces again and, some new ones. | met the other Gregory Metcalf, he who writes letters about scale speed. The major difference LOGBOOK Model Yachting Association News between us is that he is not as good looking as |! We have a couple of new faces on the scene, John Holman and ‘Sailor’ Rackman, both from Herne Bay club. Last month the pair of them went off toa big scale regatta at Rotterdam, where they were made most welcome and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. The only problem was getting their scale boats through the Dutch customs. In case they sold the boats while they were in Rotterdam, they had to leave a cheque with the customs for £250.00. On the way back they collected their cheque, then had to pay £30.00 for the cost of the customs paperwork! | understand that it is best to go via Belgium to prevent this sort of thing happening again. | want to mention the Approval! of Club Waters form again. By nowall clubs should have received the form; in fact we hope that most of them will have been returned by the time this article appears in Mode/ Boats. | must stress the impor- tance of it being completed and returned to your Area Secretary. Remember that next year’s affiliation will depend on whether we receive it or not. | have already had one letter complaining, not about the form, but the lack of information to the 10 R. Stollery 1 42 R. Brown 21 clubs as to why we have sent the form out. If that is the case then | apologise, but | do not think the form is difficult to complete; in many cases all it needs is a simple tick. Let me quote you one of the sentences in a letter received recently from our insurance brokers... ‘‘This means that cover will be applicable whether a member is actually taking part in an arranged special event or whether he is just racing for pleasure, as long as he is abiding by the membership rules of the Association cover will be in force.”’ It is the responsibility of the NEC to ensure that our members are model boating with safety and respect of that safety in mind. This form will standardise the way we approve club waters and will clarify matters for the future. Should we ever have a claim we can look up our records to see what the water is like and, if any recommendato have to tions were made as toits use. |am sorry protract this subject, but the NEC are insistent that | ram home to you the importance of it all. We have a couple of regatta date changes, so please note: the Kings Lynn regatta for September 11 has been changed to September 25. Thanks here altered the date the Inter-Area. Championships Heaton Park, to the Kings Lynnclub, who have to prevent a possible clash with The National Speed/Steering will be held on September 4 at Manchester. Manchester club secretary Angela Palmer informs me that lack of interest and poor publicity has led to its postponement from the original June date. The whole Speed Section is a little in the doldrums. | personally feel that while the Section is at such a low ebb, there should just be one National Final; cut out the Eliminators altogether. Those who are interested can be counted on one hand. Perhaps that is something which could be discussed at the RC Conference later in the year. The month of July promises to be busy for me. | have a trip to Northampton to the Midland Area half hour Eliminators on the 17th, a trip tosee the Highland 100 at Inverness on the 24th and an NEC meeting.on the 30th. 492 E MYA ‘acquaint’ sheet circulated with the minutes of the May Council meeting draws attention to the issue of a rearranged 10-rater certificate to all clubs, to be used as a master for plioto-copies of blank certificates for club members’ use. Perhaps it will bear repeating that all clubs also have a master for Marblehead andA Class certificates for the same purpose; the only ones which are still needed from the Publications Secretary are for 36R and 6m classes, plus declaration cards for a// classes. Reference is also made to 1984 fixtures, dates of which should be in the hands of the General Secretary not later than October 31, 1983. This will enable fixture lists to be printed to be available at exhibitions etc. from January 1, 1984; past experience at the ME Exhibition and the Boat Show has indicated that the most useful publicity would be achieved by being able to offer interested enquirers a list of forthcoming regattas together with an up to date club listing etc. A third point is that queries have once again arisen on the possibility of overall third party insurance (as offered by the MPBA and SMAE) which should be more economic than separate policies arranged by individual clubs. Clubs with such policies are requested to forward details of company, cover and premium, in confidence, to the General Secretary. The May meeting started with a couple of amendments, one quite lengthy, to the minutes of the January meeting. The lengthy one related to the proposed revision of the Mrules by the IMYRU and various specific points which had been raised but not minuted in detail. There were also brief minutes of two Emergency Committee meetings relating to publication of the new Competition Rules, Rating Regulations and Vane Racing Rules, and the acceptance of an offer of an electric duplicator at little more than the cost of repairs necessary to the elderly hand-cranked one which the Secretary had used for many years. Among matters arising from the January minutes was a report that the National Westminster Bank had provided a ‘Nat-West Trophy’ for the R36R National Championship and that Scotland has agreed with the proposed revision of the six metre rules, now therefore passed on to the IMYRU for necessary action. Additional fixture lists and publicity material will be printed for circulation to active model shops. Graham Bantock reported 12 replies to his circular on a possible new system for membership, four for, seven against, and after a discussion on some of the points raised it was agreed to put the scheme ‘on ice’ for a time and record a vote of thanks to Graham for the considerable amount of work entailed in the survey. The Treasurer then reported on finance, indicating that the new fee structure showed an increase of 70 per cent, despite five clubs having apparently decided not to re-affiliate, and funds therefore were in a much healthier position than at this time last year, when they were a cause for some concern. to For reasons which are not clear, applications host the major 1984 events were exceptionally, low and it has been necessary to draw up a provisional list with suggested revenues in many instances, the clubs concerned to be asked if they would be willing to stage the events and if soon which dates. Thus of the following events only those with an unqualified club and date can be taken as firm. 1984 National Championships A M Gosport Bournville to be Aug. 4-10 asked 10r MYSA to be asked 6m 36R Birmingham Sept. 22/3 Clapham to be asked Model Boats Little Portugal Fleetwood to be Cup asked A Team M Team RM Birmingham Birmingham Apr 14/5 July 14/5 New Forestto {May 26-87) be asked R10OR Hove and Brighton to be asked RA Cheimsford to be asked R36R Guildford Sept. 15/6 (or 16 if 1 day only) Other events Champions Cup Leicester to be asked Mickey Finn Bournville Model Maker ? June 16 Trophy The Fleetwood club has, incidentally, offered the use of their lake to any club prepared to organise and run an event. (Similar offers have been made by other clubs with good waters, and one of the few clubs to have taken up such offers is Guildford, whose water at Ash is unsuitable for vane, so they have organised and manned races were at least to some extent true, though the at Clapham Gosport and Hove in the last three or Council did all that was possible with their limited four seasons). It has been found that extensive amendment to IYRU Competition Rules is necessary to implement the IMYRU GM decision to use IYRU rules, suitably modified, for radio racing, and a proposal resources. The fact that Council was induced to consider the matter may be thought a positive result of the comments, much of the intention of which was to cause some self-examination. A suggestion was made to adjust points weigh- is to be put that the IMYRU Competition Rules ings in come into line with those of the MYA, which order to increase the incentive for average club would members to compete in some events. The League reduce the number of amendments needed to the IYRU rules (if you follow!). At the same time, Rating Regulations (modified for the annual League Championships in Secretary, Peter Somers, would submit a revised system for consideration at the September CM. international application but based on those used successfully by the MYA) which the IMYRU does not have, are tobe proposed. The request from the IMYRU that the MYA considers including an indication of country in the title was rejected by Council, on the grounds that all other national authorities were aware that the MYA represented England and Wales. (But what about outside bodies who might respond more favourably to a This new and welcome event was suggested by the Guildford club last year, with an offer to run the first meeting at Ash. As it happened with the RA Championship for ‘83 allocated to Guildford, it was felt that running more than one major event would prove too much at a site not yet fully developed and the R36R looked like being post- clearly national title?). Other IMYRU matters were poned, until Chelmsford stepped in and said they would run it. Clapham club submitted several sketch designs yachts, seeking a At this time (last September) there were no ruling on possible R36R yachts at all registered, though some were legality (basically what might be classed as punts known to exist, usually sailed by skippers not too or prams and rudder positions). It was generally enthusiastic about competitive sailing. In order to agreed that the rule as existing contained a make the event more appealing to them, it was number of ambiguities (or loopholes) and a re- decided to bar any former draft of the whole rule will be submitted to the winners and, as it turned out, about half the entry September Council meeting. R/C championship were having their first dabble in a national event. A new affiliation was approved — North Wales There were 13 entries, 11 different designs from Model Club, G. Kirkham, Acres View, 152 Old ten designers, and it would seem that all but two Highway, Colwyn Bay, Clwyd LL28 5YE (0492- of the boats had been built and registered for this 2840) and there was an enquiry from Rhyl DMC. event. (Rhyl was quite an active model yachting area in intended for vane, as might be expected, but nine Most of the designs were originally the 1930s but activity has been only spasmodic were grp, one styrene, and three wood, though since). the styrene one failed to arrive. This year another invitation has been received for four people to attend a Royal Garden Party and Roy and Mrs. Gardner, Clive Colsell and Ken Shaw will represent the MYA. Also in London, the Water Recreation Division of the Central Council of Physical Recreation will be holding a meeting with the Port of London Authority regarding recreational facilities in the Dockland Development scheme, at Roger Stollery put his finger on a very valid point when he remarked that the class gives an enormous amount of racing (and close racing at that) on a small course. With, particularly, 10- raters there is a tendency for zip-zip-zip and that’s one lap, whereas the little boats plug steadily away and remain in contact, at least while the breeze is steady. When it got fitful there were which greater distances between the first and last of the Norman Hatfield will represent the Association. seven-eight boats in each heat, perhaps because Some consideration was given to comments made earlier this year in this column which had attracted some criticisms, chiefly, apparently because of certain hyperbolic remarks. However, it seems to have been agreed that the points made September 1983 illustrated blow-by-blow account. Photo: Vic Smeed. Up until the wind started to swing and die off, John Osborne's Lazer (a Checkmate with a very tall una rig) led, pursued by the only boat designed expressly for radio Pronto, which was referred to as the “Oliver Lee works entry,’’ and, challenging all the time, young Peter Stollery’s 7axachun. The Pronto boat was moulded very thinly in naturalresin grp with a balsa deck andclearly every effort had been made to use weight only where it was The R36R Championship touched on in last month's Log Book. of 36R Heat preparation time at the R36R Championships at Chelmsford which attracted a healthy number of newcomers to Championship racing. A brief report appears below - look out for next month's fully in a lull the 36s seem to wander off heading and when the breeze fills in again, they can be pointing in quite the wrong direction or even in irons. Boats that didn’t swing could thus make 20 or 30ft. before the unlucky ones got going again. essential. Sailed hard by Mike Golding, it seemed to have the legs of most of the other boats in very light conditions. It was noticeable that the three loading boats all had excellent sails superbly set, although in fairness it should be added that the average standard of sails and setting appeared to little higher than usual. Possibly the lower be a aspect ratio of the usual 36 rig makes it easier to get them setting well. Overall it was a highly successful launch of a new championship, and with the renewed interest evident in vane in the 36R class it is tobe hoped that more radio 36s will be registeredanda lot more people will find that they’re not only inexpensive and fun to sail, but that they can provide excellent radio racing. Results were: 1st was Mike Golding of Chelmsford sailing Pronto, the Lee design; 2nd was Peter Stollery of Guild- ford with his Austin designed Xasperachun called Taxachun and 3rd was Woodspring’s John Osborne with Lazer, a Dovey designed Checkmate. Full report in October issue. ‘Model Racing Yachts’ This most sought-after classic by Dick Priest and John Lewis has been out of print for some ten years, but a secondhand copy is offered by Vic Smeed (who put the original book together) tothe highest bidder by October 1, proceeds to go to “MYA funds. If you're one of those who have been searching for a copy, send your bid (not cash or cheque) to Log Book, c/o Model Boats. Whoever tops the list on October 1 will be asked to send his money, or if there are several tied bids a draw will be held in MB office. Other (possibly puzzled) readers may like to know that the book, which covers design and vane sailing up to 1965, is wanted by a relatively small number of yachtsmen — maybe a couple of hundred — but they all want it badly! 493
