The Model Yacht: Volume 3, Number 1 – Spring 1999

LINCOLN MEMORIAL POOL, WASHINGTON, D.C. NEWSLETTER OF THE U.S. VINTAGE MODEL YACHT GROUP VOLUME THREE, NUMBER ONE SPRING 1999 NEWSLETTER OF THE U.S. VINTAGE MODEL YACHT GROUP VOLUME THREE, NUMBER ONE SPRING 1999 Editor’s Welcome First, I would like to apologize for the lateness of this issue. I upgraded and changed models of computer, which not only took longer than expected, but also meant changing almost all the tools which I use to produce this newsletter. They’re all much faster and more powerful than the ones I used before, that is, after I have figured out how they work. Since I moved many files from machine to machine, there is always the possibility that errors have been introduced into the mailing list. As always, the two digit number after your name on the mailing label is the Volume and Issue number of the last issue we show for your subscription. This is Volume 3, Number 1 (“31) and there are three issues per volume (and $15.00 subscription). If it looks like we got things wrong, drop me a note at the masthead address and I’ll fix our records. It gives me great pleasure to initiate the third volume of our little periodical, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy putting it together. I even have a “teaser” for the next issue: thanks to the great generosity of Carlton Pinhero, Curator of the Herreshoff Museum, I was able to study the sailing models made and sailed by members of the Herreshoff family. I am researching and preparing an article on what I saw there; a couple of “preview” pictures are in this issue. Earl Boebert Ebbs and Flows The President’s Message Vintage Membership Our annual $15 fee covers three issues of the VMYG newsletter – “The Model Yacht”, and access to technical assistance and vintage model plans. A VMYG lifetime membership is $100. Our “how to” booklet/video package on wooden, plank-on-frame model construction is available to members but is not covered by the annual fee. To subscribe to our newsletter and our services, send a check (payable to US VMYG) or cash for $15 (or $100) to: John Snow, c/o US VMYG, 78 East Orchard St., Marblehead, MA 01945. For inquiries on our activities, either call me @ 781-631-4203 or visit the VMYG Web Page at http://www.swcp.com/usvmyg R/C “Vintage M” (VM) Group Good news: we now have reached our initial goal of 20-registered VM boats. This number should continue to grow thanks to the ongoing efforts of our VM Coordinator – Charlie Roden. There are two distinct VM divisions: 1945 and prior designs – “Traditional M’s, and post-1945 through 1970 designs – “High Flyer M’s. For the rating rules or to register a VM, contact Charlie at 19 Oak Glen Ln., Colts Neck, NJ 07722 and 732-462-7483. Email: c.roden-5@worldnet.att.net The VMYG 1999 VM event is part of the National Vintage Regatta, September 24-26, at Clarkston, MI. This event will feature both R/C VM and Traditional Sailing Craft/Scale model regattas and display judging. There will be optional activities on Friday, Sept. 24: VM Page 1 ventional sail rigs having non-kevlar hull material. We want to sponsor annual C50 events on the East Coast (NY) and West Coast (CA), plus a C50 race at the 2000 VMYG national event. These activities will not preclude C50 models from being raced in AMYA-sanctioned “M” Class events. Our C50 Group Coordinator is Dennis Lindsey at 515 N. Lyall Ave, West Covina, CA 91790, 626-966-9538. Email: lindseyd@flash.net Dennis has a listing of older AMYA M designs and the draft C50 rating rules. A sailing model built by Nathanael Herreshoff during his retirement in Florida in the 1930’s. Note the wishbone booms, vane gear, and balanced rudder -an innovater to the very end. free-sailing at the old Belle Isle Model Yacht Basin and an afternoon visit to the A.J. Fisher Company. A.J. Fisher has been a purveyor (fittings, plans, kits, etc.) to model yachtsman since 1925. “A” Class Invitational Regatta The VMYG is working with the AMYA International “A” Class Secretary, Mike Denest, on ways to help preserve the “A” model as viable class and design entity. The VMYG has a vested historical interest in the “A”, given its vital role in popularizing the sport of model yachting worldwide during the 1920s to the 1950s. The “A” became the first recognized international model yacht class in the early 1930s, mainly resulting from the extensive press coverage, both here and abroad, of the rivalry developed through the International “A” Races for the Yachting Monthly Cup. This free-sail competition became our sport’s racing equivalent of the America’s Cup races. Thus, the VMYG is actively supporting the only planned US “A” invitational race this year: the Port Washington “A” Boat Race, Sunday, August 15. Our approach in coordination with the AMYA is to try to regenerate interest in the “A” Class starting with this race, along with a brainstorming meeting with the “A” owners/skippers participating and other interested model yachtsmen. The Mill Pond MYC is hosting this event at Mill Pond, Port Washington, NY. This club is the Traditional Sailing Craft/Scale Models Group The 1999 vintage racing/display event for R/C traditional models is also a National Vintage Regatta activity. It will include scratch-built schooner models with design rules, schooners with fin & bulb keels and built from kits, and other traditional sailing designs such as skipjack models. Schooner model rules are available through our Traditional Coordinator Harry Mote at 18 Woodmansee Blvd, Barnegat, NJ 08005 and 609660-0100. Email: stryker@cybercomm.net Proposed R/C American Classic “50/800” (C50) Group The VMYG supports activities for “M 50/ 800” model yachts from early AMYA designs: 1971 to 1991 “M” boats with con- Detail of the vane gear on the Herreshoff boat. Nathanael invented the vane gear in 1850, using a real bird’s feather! Page 2 only MYC that still has regular R/C “A” racing. Their Commodore, Charlie Blume, is the “A” event contact at PO Box 227, Port Washington, NY 11050 or 516-883-0207. The vintage events listing in this issue and the VMYG Web Site have more details. Vintage Etcetera VMYG members participated in two early 1999 activities: the Mystic Seaport Museum’s “Yachting History Symposium” (late March) and the biennial Woods Hole Model Boat Show (mid-April). Jim Dolan, our Archivist, and myself made a formal presentation at the Symposium on American model yachting, its history and the VMYG. Our 20-slide briefing with old photos was supported with a vintage model display. This slide package can be readily used to educate others on our activities and the sport. The VMYG and AMYA collaborated on a R/C regatta and exhibit at the two-day Woods Hole Model Show. AMYA President, Jack Gregory, and their Region 1 Director, Jim Linville, worked closely with us on these activities and their efforts were much appreciated. Many VMYG members were actively involved at this Show: Earl & Judy Boebert from Albuquerque, NM, Charlie & Dot Roden and Harry & Alice Mote from NJ, and locally Jim Dolan, Al Hubbard and myself. In addition, several New England maritime museums were visited by the VMYG in late winter/early spring to meet with their curatorial staffs on our activities. Our objective was to inform them about our group and to eventually coordinate with one of them on a future historical research project or an exhibit with early sailing models. Preparations for this year’s Vintage National Regatta (September 24 – 26) are finished and it should be one of our best events ever. It is a three-day event being hosted by the Detroit MYC, with optional activities on Friday (Sept. 24) for VM vane-sailing and a tour of the A.J. Fisher Company. Check elsewhere in this issue for details and an entry form. The San Francisco MYC free-sail VM event in August should also be a very “good take”. It is unique in the US: the only invitational regatta using early free-sail racing rules and pond-sailing techniques. The last free-sail “M” Class Championship in the US was in the early 1970s, so you can literally go back in time by attending this SFMYC event. Finally, we still need more vintage film of early model yacht racing scenes involving free-sail model racing. Our goal is a professionallyproduced, historical video fully documenting this aspect of the sport, given that regular free-sail racing is now only performed by the SFMYC. Anyone having such film material and willing to loan it to the VMYG should contact Earl Boebert @ 505-823-1046 or via email at: boebert@swcp.com John Snow Remaining 1999 Vintage Events WoodenBoat Show – June 25-27 Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, St. Michaels, MD; VM/Traditional Sailing Craft model displays and demonstrations, plus extensive exhibits for full-size wooden sail/ power boats and accessories by trades people. VMYG Contact – John Snow 781-6314203 “VM” Free-sail Regatta – August 7-8 Spreckles Lake, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA; San Francisco MYC invitational event for free-sail Vintage M 50/800 models. SFMYC Contact – Jeff Stobbe 408-475-6233 International “A” Class Race – August 15 Mill Pond, Port Washington, Long Island, NY; Mill Pond MYC invitational for any R/C “A” boat, plus meeting at MPMYC Clubhouse. MPMYC Contact – Charlie Blume 516883-0207 International Yacht Restoration School “Family Day” – August 22 IYRS, Newport, RI; VMYG model display, plus IYRS exhibits, harbor excursions and children’s activities. VMYG Contact – John Snow 781-631-4203 National Vintage Regatta – September 24-26 Independence Oaks County Park, Clarkston, MI; R/C VM & Traditional Sailing Craft model regattas/displays. Friday optional day for free-sailing VM’s at Belle Isle Model Yacht Basin and touring the A.J. Fisher Company. Detroit MYC Contact – Alan Suydam 248-4763017; asuydam@ameritech.net Entry Form: Elsewhere in this issue and VMYG Web Page.1 Page 3 Free-sail Model Regatta – October 10 Red Beach, Menemsha Pond, Martha’s Vineyard, MA; Scratch-built, free-sailed wooden models one meter and under. VMYG Con- tact – John Snow 781-631-4203 Vintage Marblehead Coordinator’s Report Vintage Marblehead registrations continue to be received. We now have a total of 29 registrations, seventeen in the Traditional Division (1945 and before) and twelve in the High Flyer Division (after 1945 and before1970). We also have good national representation including both coasts and a pocket of sailors in Albuquerque, New Mexico of all places (oops, sorry Earl). I would like to urge all VM sailors who have not registered to do so at this time, particularly those planning to race at the National VM Regatta in Detroit in September. Consistency in sail numbers is important to running a good regatta. Please write or call for an application -Charlie Roden, 19 Oak Glen Lane, Colts Neck, NJ 07722, (732) 462-7483, c.roden-5@worldnet.att.net. We are looking forward to the 1999 Regatta in the Detroit area on September25-26. In addition to VM racing there will be a VM static judging competition with separate trophies being awarded. It is not necessary to race to participate in the static judging contest and we hope that this will attract additional boats. In the last issue of The Model Yacht, I initiated a discussion on possible changes to the VM Rating Rules. Three changes were subsequently suggested: 1. Acceptance of the JR LeBlanc type balanced rudder in the Traditional Division. 2. Allowance of only wooden spars in the Traditional Division. 3. Acceptance of paneled sails in both divisions. 1.As soon as I get this issue out — Ed. There was strong opposition to all three proposed changes and therefore there will be no changes to the rules this year. It was felt that the balanced rudder was more than a question of aesthetics and gave a performance advantage over the skeg rudder. Masts constructed of materials other than wood were thought to be in common use prior to 1945 and paneled sails were not in general use in the vintage era. We will accept proposals for changes again after the 1999 racing season. The description and rationale for future changes will be published in the newsletter and all registered VM sailors will be given an opportunity to vote on the proposals before acceptance (another good reason to register your boat). Since the last newsletter a question has come up as to the design and measurement of vintage sails. The VM rules are based on the 1954 M Rules and sail measurement in 1954 for all classes was as described in the MYRAA Handbook. Only triangular area was counted in the 800 square inch total sail area (jib and main) limit. A two inch roach and a one inch foot round were allowed in mainsail and jib but were not included in the sail area calculation. The specifics of the measurement are as follows and as illustrated in Fig. 1. The luff is measured at the lowest point of the sail at the forward (tack) to the bottom edge of the headboard, headstick, or eye (where no headboard or headstick is used) at the head of the sail. The headboard shall not exceed 3/4 inch width across the base The diagonal is measured from the after edge of the sail to nearest point on the luff. The area of the main is equal to the product of the luff measurement and diagonal measurement divided by two. The jib is measured and area calculated in identical fashion. The rules unfortunately are unclear on a number of points. In the first place the conPage 4 struction of the headboard is not defined. In practice some sailors have used headboards constructed of relatively thick hard materials such as wood, metal, or plastic. Others have made headboards from very thin flexible plastic sheet material or from additional layers of sail cloth. Many sailors have added sail patches or layers of additional sail cloth at the head assuming that they were not to be considered headboards and extended them well below the 3/4 inch width point The location of the eye to be used for the measurement in the absence of a headboard is not specified. Some feel that this is not important as the portion of the sail above the eye is not effective as a air foil. Others feel the inherent stiffness of the head of the sail provides useful sail area above the eye which could be used to unfair advantage if it were to be used in the measurement of the luff. It appears that vintage sailors must have had in mind specific construction concepts that were never documented. This, in combination with the improved materials and techniques available today, has created some confusion. My recommendation to resolve this dilemma is to allow headboards and patches as variously constructed, but in all cases to measure the luff from the tack to a point at the head of the sail where its width perpendicular to the luff is 3/4 inch. This I believe would come closest to providing consistency in sail measurement. Charlie Roden Vintage Northwest Steady progress continues in the Pacific Northwest with a number of new projects starting up and ongoing ones being successfully completed. Stan Delo of Port Townsend has notified us of the rehabilitation of what may be an older Aclass design, and the use of the hull to produce a fiberglass mold. A description of his project was printed in Waterlines, the newsletter of the Seattle Model Yacht Club, and appears in this issue. A Gus Lassell A-boat named “Angella” has changed hands again. It has been in the fleet of Allan Rumpf since about 1973, but space limitations convinced Allan to seek a new owner who would care for the historic model. After some friendly negotiations, David Stedman of Kirkland, formerly known for his work as the caretaker of the M-Class “Arrow,” became the new owner. “Angella” is now undergoing a rehab and restoration prior to being fitted out with a new rig and R/C gear. Provision will be made for easy switching between R/C and vane, and new vane gear will likely be made up this winter. “Angella”’s restoration is proving to be a motivating factor and work has recommenced on Rod Carr’s “Miss Seattle” so that she can sail with “Angella.” These two carry sail numbers 501 and 503 respectively and were both designed and built by Mr. Lassell. Allan’s other A-boat, a Saundry designed and built named “Mystic,” is likely to find a home either in San Francisco or on the East Coast and the bidding seems to be heating up on this one of a kind example of mid-20th century craftsmanship. Allan Rumpf is now sailing his Ted Houk designed and built 2-meter “Black Pirate” under R/C off his dock on Lake Margaret, Washington. The boat’s slim hull, constructed to the “Skookumchuk” design, has proven to be a very easily driven form and a good light air performer. She picks up quite a bit of sailing length when heeled and leaves little disturbance in the water by her passage. Conversion to R/C was part of a Christmas present to Allan from his sons, and gear installation and new rigging was provided by Rod Carr. Our Detroit immigrant, John Payotelis continues his work on replicating vintage Marbleheads. He has examples of “Witch,” “Warrior” and others in various stages from the drawing board to the building board. We are hoping to see the first of the series launched this summer. The L.E. Geary designed R-Boat “Pirate,” has been purchased by a syndicate headed by Scott Rohrer of Seattle. “Pirate” is being brought up from California and will be donated to Seattle’s Center for Wooden Boats after she has been restored. As part of the fund raising program planned to support the restoration, Scott has started a “school-boy” yacht building program much like what was done in the manual arts courses back in the Page 5 The original drawings Page 6 1930’s and 20’s. Ultimately there will be a fleet of little 36 inch “Pirates” plying the waters of the Pacific Northwest. More on this as the project unfolds. Seattle Model Yacht Club in cooperation with the Gig Harbor Model Yacht Club has again taken out a contract for a booth at the Center for Wooden Boats Lake Union Boat Show that is scheduled for the July 3 – 4 – 5 weekend. Both modern R/C yachts and the newly discovered and restored Vintage boats will be on display for all three days. Sailing demonstrations are planned for all three days. Rod Carr “Daisy” I found my first early free sailing model replication project by accident one day nearly twenty years ago when idly flicking through bound volumes of a Victorian magazine. The image of a cutter yacht caught my eye and proved to be illustrating an article entitled “Model Ship-Building”. I could not resist. The periodical in question was Cassells Household Encyclopedia, a British magazine first published in 1875; the articles appear early in volume four, and I therefore take them to have been published in 1878. Cassells Household Encyclopedia is full of articles on “every department of practical life” and had a section entitled “Household Amusements”. Here you can find pieces on making wax fruit, designs for Christmas ornaments, advice on pressing flowers, instructions on modeling buildings in cork and a thousand and one other now extinct hobbies. “Model Ship-Building” is an anonymous article in four parts. The introduction suggests that further articles were intended in the series and that these would describe models depicting other significant classes of vessel. The first three parts of the article are very detailed but the fourth however is a hasty and sketchy conclusion – which rather suggests to me that the editors had pulled the plug on the whole project. The article is written for boys with little or no experience of model yachting and aimed to help them build a beautiful boat. The design offered is I am sure an exact scale model of an actual vessel (which I have been unable to identify), consequently it is much flawed as a model yacht. In addition the instructions are not as complete as they ought to be! The model is almost five feet long overall and depicts a small cruising yacht which is rather old fashioned for 1878 – quite unlike the sleek racers with wire rigging and weighted keels described by Dixon Kemp in his Treatise on Yacht Design published the same year. There are few concessions to pond use and none to the reduced size of the boat. The dimensions given are those of the full sized yacht and the modeler is expected to reduce them to the given scale of 3/4” to the foot (1:16). The model is to be built of mahogany and straight grained yellow deal with boxwood blocks and deadeyes. The directions are extremely specific and determine for example the exact form of the molding along the top of the whale! The deck is adorned with an appropriate array of hatches, companionways and skylights – the latter to be glazed with sheets of mica bedded in putty. These erections are to be fitted to the deck with “some watertight means”, but unhelpfully, none is suggested! Practical details such as scuppers are omitted. The directions even specify the color scheme for the various parts of the vessel. She is to be painted black with red below the waterline. Internally the bulwarks are white, the deck houses “bright” with varnished mahogany, their roofs of stone color or buff, hatches black and spars varnished with white extremities. The model has elaborate rigging following full size practice; This is described in great detail with rope and block sizes specified but several items are omitted. Standing rigging is to be painted black and varnished. Sails are illustrated but very little is said about how to make them! A cutter of this date could carry a main sail, fore sail, yarded topsail, jib sail (in several sizes) and a jib topsail. This vessel has no boom for a spinnaker and was clearly built primarily for cruising rather than racing. The topmast is not fixed permanently in place but held with a pin. At this period it was still the practice to keep the topmasts of cutter yachts lowered and lashed to the mast, Page 7 and to set them up (at sea if necessary) only when needed to carry the topsail. To sail with a naked topmast was considered very poor yachtsmanship! Similarly the bowsprit is not fixed in place but pinned to the windlass frame. The bowsprit can be set, reefed (shortened) twice or withdrawn completely in severe weather. The model has no deep or weighted keel or any form of tiller control. Ballast is of lead, cast to fit within the hull between the frames and fitted with wire handles so that it can be removed through the main hatch. The main concession to pond use ironically seems the most impractical feature of the design – the mast is not stepped on the keel but on deck.! This was done so that it could be collapsed onto the hull without disturbing the rigging in order to make carrying the model to and from ponds much easier. The bowsprit, being a reefing design, could also be painlessly withdrawn onto the deck for transportation. Vague instructions for making a box to carry the collapsed model in are also given. My own model will follow the original directions as completely as possible but it will employ modern paints and adhesives. I will probably step the mast on deck as directed just to see how well this works in practice. I will however also fit a step within the hull so that if the specified arrangement fails, as it undoubtedly will, I can drill through the dummy mast coat and step a longer mast in the traditional manner. I have christened my boat “Daisy” for as Winnie the Pooh says “every boat deserves to have a name” and this is just the sort of simple name popular for modest cruising yachts at the period. I did actually collect materials for “Daisy”, cut her frames and deck beams and make the windlass – but then I stumbled upon my “Bramble” project and poor “Daisy” has been in mothballs ever since. One day she will be finished and set upon the water as she so clearly deserves to be! tages offered by our method will attract a large amount of attention, and we hope, prevent further waste of time and annoyance, that must ever attend the making of unshapable models as are usually to be met with. “The whole beauty of a ship depends upon its exact and symmetrical proportion, and as nothing is so desirable as beauty, and upon which the sailing powers depend, no pains should be spared to produce that effect. “For a boy to build a model ship is no easy task; it requires much thought and mechanical aptitude, combined with care and patience to achieve success. It therefore tends to elevate while it interests, and to impart instruction with pleasure; and, taking this view, we more strongly recommend boys to test their capabilities by making their own models, and to compete with their companions for excellence of work and perfect execution of their task. And then comes the pleasing ceremony of christening the tiny bark, and launching it in its proper element, and the excitement of watching it scud before the wind, and contemplating with honest pride the offspring of his own perseverance and handiwork. We are sure no boy would value a model bought for guineas half so much as one made by his own hands… As a postscript I add for information and amusement some extracts from the introduction to “Model Ship-Building”: “We will next refer to the fast-sailing pleasure yachts; that is, the cutter-yacht with one mast, and the schooner yacht with two masts. These are perfect pictures of simplicity and neatness, and creditable examples of the efficiency attained by our naval architects. and considering the care, the money and the skill employed in the experimental construction of these fine vessels, it is not to be wondered at that they should reserve their personal interest by withholding the publication of their designs. Nevertheless, it may be said, and perhaps truly, that it would be mutually advantageous if they were to communicate more freely their several experiences, and greatly facilitate the achievement of much greater excellence, besides considerably adding to our stock of knowledge in this important branch of science. “The lines of a vessel suitable for a model, and the proper mode of constructing it, have hitherto been almost unattainable; and it is our object to supply the deficiency, and to represent the finest specimens of naval architecture. We have no doubt that the advan- “It may not be out of place to remark that until 1870 the only two foreign vessels that challenged our yachts in the Royal Yacht Squadron races carried off the prizes. These were the American yachts America and Sappho – the former winning the prize in 1851 Page 8 and the latter in 1870 – and the success of these fine yachts is said to have been entirely due to their superior build and rig affording superior sailing powers. By the success attending these contests the Americans may claim something like pre-eminence in this class of ship-building. It is not our purpose to make comments, but simply to state facts which prove that our yachts are not so perfect as they might be…” Jonathan Kinghorn once again in the rafters for many more years. I think It was fortunate we glassed it, as without it the planking probably would have cupped or become so dinged and ugly that it would have become kindling. There it stayed until about 1988 when I spotted it again while visiting my parents. After asking about it my father suggested I take it before he biffed it while moving things about in the basement. At that point I took it home to Vashon and made a plug for what I thought the ballast keel should look like, to hopefully take it down to the original scribed waterline, by calculating the volume of lead needed, making the plug slightly oversize, then pouring the amount required (about 25 lbs.) The molding method I came up with worked very well and was pretty Old A-boat to be sailing soon I have an old 72-inch long model that I thought might be interesting to the members of your club. It was apparently found by my parents’ neighbors around the mid-50’s or so up in Birch Bay, Washington, according to my older brother. They found it on the beach and knew my father was into modeling so they gave it to him. It is cedar on oak frames, half of the frames being sawn, half of them steamed. It had no ballast keel or deck, only a few deck beams here and there, and was in new condition when found. As near as I can figure it was under construction when the builders son decided to try it out and lost it. It has an interesting method to fasten the planks: it looks like copper wire strung through 2 holes in the planking at each frame and twisted on the inside to draw up the plank until the glue set. It was then clipped off on the inside and the inside of the hull was tarred, which worked remarkably well as it is still intact today, and the structure as a whole is very sound, with nothing showing any signs of moving about. It appears to me to have been built by a professional boat- builder or very talented modeler, as the scribed-in waterline is accurate to within a 1/32 of an inch, and seems to be almost perfectly symmetrical.After being given to my dad it hung in the basement rafters until about 1964 or so, when I and my cousin Kevin sanded the paint off, cleaned up the shear (which was a little dinged-up aft) and put a single layer of boat cloth on it with polyester resin. We then found other things to do, as young kids will, and it hung easy. Just make a wooden plug, lacquer and wax it about 3 times (floor wax seemed to work fine) and then carefully cover it with Fix-All patching plaster (split mold in my case) Then pull the plug and dry the plaster very thoroughly in an oven at very low heat, as any moisture may cause the hot lead to sputter or pop violently (ouch!!) The beauty of this is a split mold can be joined with more plaster after the plug has been pulled (I used a little light mesh for insurance) and then easily broken from the new part. I then finished decking it amongst other things, and it once again languished for a while. I then decided to pull a mold from it as it’s such a pretty old boat, which I proceeded to do. My 1st mold was epoxy-glass because it is more flexible than polyester, the idea being to “peel” the split mold off of the joined poly-ester hull. Mixing the two materials proved to be a mistake, as I got the 1st hull out OK the 2nd try dove through 4 coats of hard parting wax and 2 wipes of PVA parting film!! It took about 30% of the surface off my mold, and fractured it so badly that it was pretty much ruined. I hope someone can learn from my painful mistake. I then took a polyester mold off the 1st hull and have had no problems since; this also allowed me to fair it out even more. I have since pulled 5 parts and they get a little easier every time. The design seems to be a Page 9 modeler’s take of Herreshoff’s Reliance or perhaps Resolute, as far as I have been able to deduce, although I suspect the builder was guessing a little. After researching a bit it occurred to me that J-boat lines were somewhat secret and are very often not to be found outside the designers door. If anyone out there knows anything about this boat I would greatly appreciate hearing from them. A friend told me he thought it was a Keith Black design or built by him back in New York for pond racing, with long tripstrings for control. In any case my original and my friend Ed’s molded version should be sailing by April or so…I have my mast and boom done, which use a luff-groove for the luff and foot, and am planning to use a power-mirror drive controlled by a standard servo to operate the sheets. Hope to see you at the first race I can get to…. Stan E. Delo vane yachts a loosening of the elastic is also important because going downwind in light air the apparent wind drops of to near zero and with it the power of the vane to control the yacht. About 1/3 of the distance down the lake the tree cover is less of a factor and the breezes shift slightly more SW and come in distinct puffs. Now your yacht has a tendency to be pushed onto the N shore, so when poling off, send your yacht of at a rather large acute angle and your yacht will scribe large arcs coming back to shore 100’ downwind each time. The final 1/3 of the lake, the Eastern end, finds the wind increasing and slightly more Westerly. Poling sharply out here will often send your yacht to the far shore, so keep your yacht more parallel to the shore. The finish line is an orange stripe on the shore and a stripe on a pine tree on the far shore. Congratulations! You have just won the leeward leg and now you must line up behind the loser at the Sailing Spreckles Lake Spreckles Lake is a marvelous free-sailing venue that encourages a good eye for the wind and the tactics to exploit this ability. The winds roaring from the WNW off the Pacific are transformed by the trees and buildings around the lake into light breezes coming from an arc ranging from the WNW to WSW. Designed for free-sailing, the lake is perfectly situated to utilize these breezes. The start line is the Western edge of the lake which means a downwind start. The Western edge of the lake has the lightest breezes because most of the wind passes overhead off the trees. The only relief is the occasional puff from the NW corner of the lake, where the streets allow the breeze a more direct access. Local knowledge favors the N side of the start line. By design you must always sail the N shore of the lake on both leeward and windward legs of a race. Before starting, a small port tack bias in the rudder angle is set using a comb style rack on the rudder centering elastic. This will keep your yacht on the N side going downwind. For The Varying Moods of a Free-Sailing Skipper (1931) Page 10 orange stripe. Adjustments for the weather leg must now be made. The weather leg will be a tacking duel back to the Western end of the lake. The port tack is usually favored and keeps your boat along the North shore. To help the yachts tack quickly, elastic guys are now hooked to pull the jib to starboard and the main to port. This reduces the chances of being caught in “irons.” Your rudder elastic is now set straight ahead and for vane boats it is tightened. Critical here for vane steered yachts is the elastic “breaking” the vane, a loose elastic means a longer starboard tack out before the yacht tacks back to you. A tight elastic will dramatically short tack your yacht up the North shore. If the breeze has a NW slant loosen the elastic to favor the starboard tack, if a SW slant tighten it to favor the port tack. Both yachts start on a starboard tack with the leeward leg loser starting first. As you head up the lake and into the more variable and lighter West end breezes, look for puffs on the water. Sending the yacht out at more of a 90 degree angle will help lengthen the starboard tack and put you further into the center of the lake. If you see a puff out there, go for it. However, hugging the north shore is usually favored because you can control your boat better. Now the two yachts are close hauled and racing for the finish line, which is again an orange stripe on the North shore and a pole on the far shore. At this point, the big question for the leader becomes whether to go for a longer starboard tack looking for wind or to cover your opponent, although ahead you must try to match his every tack and thus receive every wind shift first. Vane boats follow close to the wind and, if allowed to get too far out toward the South shore, will pick up the more SW wind forcing them to stay out veering more and more Southerly and off the race course. A slight bias in the arc the vane swings through or rotating the entire vane slightly toward the desired direction will help favor the port tack here. As you can see sailing Spreckles Lake usually involves working the yacht along a slight lee shore in both the windward and leeward directions. I hope this synopsis of our normal sailing conditions and adjustments will help. The rest is just a stroll along a beautiful lake and pleasant conversation. Jeff Stobbe Camelot East Regatta A Great Success Bob Nichols continued his winning ways at the Camelot East Soling Regatta hosted by Greg Chapman after winning the Sarasota MYC Winter Series in a tightly contested 72 race program. Milton Thrasher, builder of IOD 48’s, bested the Vintage MYG companion event, that included four IOD 48’s and two Cheerio design Marblehead 50/800’s. The winds were light and variable with some strong puffs that changed the order throughout each race. The Camelot East residents came out in droves and lined the banks with their chairs, cheering on local Soling owners to no avail. One sailed into a drain pipe on the first race and continued to have difficulties throughout the day. Another had problems with frequencies and then had to spend time retrieving another’s (who must remain nameless) disabled boat. Milton Thrasher was pleased with the outcome, being able to keep the IOD half model trophy he put up for the event. His IOD 48” Class with only 31” designed LWL and 1000 sq. in. sail area seemed faster than the Vintage Marblehead 50/800’s with almost 50” LWL and 800 sq. in of sail. All of the IOD 48’s present were over ballasted which gave them as much as 42” actual LWL in some cases. Thom McLaughlin’s Vintage M had a larger rudder but smaller keel than Adam Lawall’s and appeared to be faster in the stronger breezes. In some Vintage events, racing scores are combined with marks for appearance and workmanship. If we had done that, Thom McLaughlin would have taken 1st and Adam Lawall would have had a very close 2nd as their Vintage M’s were magnificent. Being the first Vintage MY Group event in Southwest Florida, Thom McLaughlin, VP of the VMY Group, was very pleased and continued sailing long after the event was over with Adam Lawall. They contend that with the local population of advanced years with lots of time to build models, the VMYG should catch on. Given more events like today, we think that would be a distinct possibility. Sam Montondo, former SMYC Commodore, has expressed interest in a bigger model, possibly an EC 12. Jack Peters and Ed Havlik have already built their own IOD’s. There are a number of spectators who have told us from time to time that they only build Page 11 models for fun, not racing. We need to get the word out that there is such a group locally! ing it often the wood of choice for full size boats and pond boats. The Camelot East race course was a big challenge for the visually impaired as the far mark was the cause of doom for many. Also, a lot of the boats met with calamities when others tried to pull them from the water between races. Boots and chairs are a must for next year assuming we are invited back. Also, bring your own drinks because the nearest source was at the opposite side of the pond which some walked to but other drove. The planks appear to have been produced on a table saw with a planning blade mounted. This produces very clean surfaces that will require a minimum of final fairing. I have been generating planks on a band saw with a fence to insure uniform dimension. If one is careful this gives accurate thickness, but leaves surfaces that require more sanding than planks produced on a table saw. Even though I have access to a table saw and a planning blade I resist using it to produce planks. The thought of cutting a large number of quite thin pieces of wood with my fingers often near that blade just doesn’t appeal to me even with normal safety precautions. I have too many boats I want to build yet! The current offering of planks by the VMYG, at a most honest price, solves a problem for those who do not have a shop to use, enables them to produce exquisite vintage boats using material typical of the originals. I hope others will take advantage of this opportunity and insure that the numbers of vintage pond yachts, of all types, continues to grow. A good time was had by all. Milt Thrasher Red Cedar Planks Now Available The Vintage Model Yacht Group is currently offering Western Red Cedar planks to assist in new construction of plank on frame vintage pond yachts. The planks are 1/8”X1/ 2”X60” in bundles of 50 at $60, which includes shipping. These dimensions make them most appropriate for building Vintage Marbleheads, but they easily can be used for other classes of boats. The price might seem a little high, but if one does some quick calculations it is actually quite reasonable. 50 pieces of 1/8”X1/2” wood stock from a hobby store would not be available in the 60″ length, nor Western Red Cedar, and would likely cost more than the VMYG’s price. It seems very clear to me that the group is not making a profit on these planks, but the offering is a labor of passion on Earl’s part to hopefully see more building of vintage pond boats. I ordered two bundles and they quickly arrived securely packed in PVC tubes. They will be used in the future construction of a X Class boat, hence the need for two bundles. If one were building a Vintage Marblehead and using tapered planks, one bundle would be sufficient to meet the typical 40 planks needed and still have some excess for the inevitable mistakes. Western Red Cedar is a clean grained, very light, and flexible wood, insuring minimum hull weight and ease of bending to complicated curvatures. It also is minimally effected by water intrusion mak- Thom McLaughlin Vane Parts Since our last issue, and too late to be mentioned in WoodenBoat magazine, we have arranged for pre-cut and pre-drilled parts for the Simple Self-Tacking Vane Gear. The materials are slightly different from those called out in the article: The shafts are brass and the body block is an opaque plastic. These changes were made for machining reasons, and will not affect the operation of the gear. The parts set enables an individual without a drill press to make a working vane gear. For those who have already ordered the special gear/magazine combination, we will ship these for $18.20 ($15.00 plus $3.20 postage). The complete set (gears, parts, and documentation) is $30.00 and the gears and parts alone (for those who already have the magazine) is $25.00, all postpaid. Checks or money orders only to the Editorial Address. Page 12 Earl Boebert Donald Stearns’ sqare rigger, mentioned in his note to the Editor A Sailing Model Square Rigger Book Review Editor’s Note Don Stearns dropped us this note about his square-rigger model. If you wish to contact Don about his experiences with this boat, his address is: Beaver Hill Road Box 3305 Springvale, ME 04083 SUNDAY SAILORS A Beginner’s Guide to Pond Boats and Model Yachting Until the 1950’s First, let me preface this review with the fact that this is my initial attempt at reviewing any book. With that said, “Sunday Sailors”, copyrighted in 1998, is authored by Don Kilhstrom, a member of the US VMYG and an antique dealer by trade. Mr. Kilhstrom began his personal involvement with model yachts, e.g., pond boats, in the late 1980s through his antiques business. The book just became available to the general public in March 1999 and it retails for $34.95. Copies can be obtained directly from the publisher: Turner Publishing Company at 412 Broadway, PO Box 3101, Paducah, KY 42002-3101 or 502-443-0121. Don’s Letter When I was young, I played with pond boats in Bar Harbor, Maine. They were of solid pine and had a good lead keel. The captured the “look” of the ships of their time. To my young eyes, they looked to be the real thing. When I build, I try to capture the era. I have great fun doing this. This model clipper goes after the era around 1860. I am deeply indebted to your Web site and the reprint “Square Riggers.” This reprint allowed me to build my own model. I have enclosed a picture. I had a picture taken this Summer and in the background was a moored 16-foot boat. I took this picture to an old boat builder. His comment was, “Is this a trick photo?” To me that will always be the best compliment. Donald Stearns Mr. Kilhstrom started his book writing efforts back in 1992, given a dearth of collective information on pond boats from both a hobbyist’s and collector’s perspective. Not surprisingly, Sunday Sailors is brimming with highly interesting text, diagrams and many model/racing photos. Most of its material was gleaned through interviews with oldtime model yachtsmen and a review of their personal records, and from previously published books and periodicals. It comes with a Page 13 slip-out, handy price guide covering different types of vintage model designs. The book’s main contents provide the reader with: a condensed history of US model yachting (1865 1950 activities), types of construction methods, model sailing/steering functions and techniques, original manufacturers/sellers of pond boats, notable model yachtsmen and designers, vintage racing class rating rules, a racing/sailing model clubs listing and, most importantly for collectors, 25 pages of colored photos of actual vintage models linked to the price guide. It ends with a glossary of frequently used terms and a bibliography where one finds the basic documentation to develop a reference library on this subject. Sunday Sailors manages to neatly encapsulate a wealth of historical information, both original and that compiled from a multitude of other sources. No longer does one have to find and then buy a small library of books/ material on the subject of sailing models: this book provides you with a concise reference source (136 pages) on the sport of model yachting and pond boats! An excerpt from the book’s Forward, as written by Charles Wanker, best summarizes my own feelings about Sunday Sailors – “The author has made a significant contribution to the assembly of historical data pertaining to model yachting.” John Snow A Few Comments On Jibs The jib sail is of considerable importance to sailors since it is more efficient than the mainsail and if properly trimmed can substantially improve pointing and boat speed. While jibs have been in use for about two thousand years, it has only been within the last thirty years that their operation has been correctly understood. In contrast to jibs on full size yachts, I believe that model yacht technology offers a better means of properly setting and trimming the jib to maximize performance. Some of these points are discussed here. A major breakthrough in understanding the operation of the jib and the interaction of jib and mainsail was made in 1971 by Arvell Gentry, an aeronautical engineer. It was previously thought that the tunneling action of the slot between jib and mainsail produced greater air velocity through the slot and behind the mainsail. This would then, according to Bernoulli, lower the air pressure behind the main and increase its drive. Gentry showed that just the opposite is true. The main causes a lower resistance path to form behind the jib as compared to the path through the slot. More air flows behind the jib and at greater velocity because of the influence of the mainsail and this gives the jib increased drive. The total airflow through the slot is decreased producing less mainsail drive. Thus the main helps the jib to become more efficient at some reduction to its own efficiency. The presence of the mast also further reduces the effectiveness of the mainsail by creating a high pressure separation bubble behind the sail. Air flow approaching the jib is diverted to leeward and behind the sail (upwash) in such a way as to produce a directional lift which allows the boat to point higher. The airflow to the main is directionally headed (downwash) which requires that the main be sheeted closer to the centerline on a beat. A good place to start with sheeting angles is a 15 degree for the jib and a 5 degrees for the main attempting to keep a ten degree difference between the two. The proper trimming of both sails is important to achieve the full benefit of the jib. Jibs on full size boats are typically supported only along the luff of the sail by the jib stay and are trimmed by a sheet attached to the clew in an attempt to control sheeting angle, draft, and leech twist. Ideally one would like a single sail control to change one parameter at a time and not several in some combined nonlinear fashion. The model yacht with a jib boom or club, adjustable boom swivel attachment point, and topping lift approaches the ideal control arrangement. The point of attachment of the jib swivel on the boom can approach 25 percent of the foot length back from the sail tack. This allows the leading edge of the jib to catch the wind on a downwind run and flip over to a wing on wing position with the main and jib on opposite sides. The adjustable point of attachment of the boom to the deck rack allows the jib to be shifted with changes of mast position and also allows the jib to be moved forward in heavier air to open the slot up further. The Page 14 latter provides the same function as a barber hauler on full size boats. This has proved to be an important adjustment on the Spring Lake Marbleheader. In moderate to heavy air, if the jib when centered is closer to the mast than 1.25 inches, performance suffers appreciably. A boom swivel attachment point set in from the luff divides the jib sail tension between the jib stay and sail leech unless a topping lift is used. A topping lift between the after tip of the boom and the upper mast reduces the leech tension and allows sail twist to be independently set in the jib. This is particularly important in light air, where additional twist is required, and can increase boat speed by up to 25 percent. Twist is set by trying various settings of the topping lift until the upper and lower jib telltales break evenly when bearing off. If a boat is equipped with mast spreaders, the topping lift can sometimes catch when it goes slack in a puff. This can be avoided by attaching a short piece of elastic to the topping lift at the boom end to take up the slack when the boom lifts. The draft in the jib is controlled with two adjustments. Draft in the lower half of the sail is controlled by the clew control lines on the jib boom. Draft in the upper half is put in by the sail maker by means of luff round and broad seaming and is removed by tensioning the jib stay to reduce head stay sag. The jib stay is tensioned by tightening the back stay. Typical values of jib draft vary from twelve percent of cord length in light air to six percent in heavy air. A jib cloth control separate from the jib stay is desirable to avoid excessive cloth tension which could otherwise pull the point of maximum draft too far forward. Just enough cloth tension to remove sail wrinkles will maintain the point of maximum draft at the desired 45 percent of cord length from the tack. The increase in jib stay tension with increasing wind speed prevents the boom from lifting to place more twist in the sail than is set by the topping lift. Thus the model sailor has total and independent control of draft, leech twist, and sheeting angle which makes it easier to maximize the performance of the jib Charlie Roden The Ancient Mariner Answers Your Questions Editor’s Note There we were, hiking in the Bosque, when I spotted a ginger beer bottle going upstream in the Rio Grande. What was this? Do they go up to Cochiti Pueblo to mate? I fetched and opened it. No clue as to what powered it, but a note inside contained this issue’s contribution from the Ancient Mariner. The Ancient Mariner Speaks Charles Roden It is well known that vintage boats with a full skeg are slow and difficult to tack. How does one make the best of this situation? Ancient Mariner The old adage, “look before you leap” applies to tacking. There is no free lunch in tacking as several boat lengths are typically lost when a keel boat tacks. In moderate air the loss is typically about two boat lengths and the loss increases to about four boat lengths in light air. If you are unfortunate enough to get caught in irons, then the race is over for all practical purposes. Minimize tacking as much as possible, particularly in light air. It is always necessary to tack, of course, when you are running out of water (shore) or wind (flat spot). It may also be necessary to tack to clear your air from a competitor or to respond to wind shifts. Always ask yourself if a tack is necessary before you leap to throw that steering lever over. Having decided that a tack is necessary, it is important that the boat be in a good position to tack. Make sure that the boat is close hauled before tacking in order to minimize the angle through which the boat must be turned. If the boat is set up with a little weather helm, this will happen naturally. A mast head fly is also helpful to indicate if the boat is sailing below close hauled. Next, boat speed is needed in order to tack as the rudder turning force is proportional to the square of boat speed. Don’t tack in holes. The best of all worlds is to wait for a wind puff when the boat is heeling before tacking. In addition to achieving adequate speed for rudder control, heeling produces a sail force couple that attempts to turn the boat into the wind and helps the tacking process. Now let’s consider how best to turn the rudder during the tacking maneuver. Turning Page 15 the rudder also puts on the brakes. Apply a small amount of rudder at first to get the boat turning without slowing it down significantly. Increase the amount of rudder as the boat slows naturally and comes head to wind. Maximum rudder should be applied as the boat comes head to wind and is coasting. As the boat turns to the new tack gradually reduce the helm until it is back to centerline. What constitutes maximum rudder is important. If a rudder is turned beyond a critical point, the water flow on the suction side of the rudder that contributes to the foil lift force will separate and the rudder will stall with a large reduction in turning force. This critical angle is typically 15 degrees for a high aspect spade rudder. A low aspect skeg rudder has a greater critical angle that is between 25 and 30 degrees. Be sure to set up your rudder linkage so that you cannot exceed a rudder angle of over 30 degrees. This will prevent stalling the rudder in the heat of battle. In flat water and a moderate breeze you can often get by with less rudder and the boat can be turned more gradually and use its momentum to coast directly upwind for a nice gain. In windy or lumpy water conditions, the flogging of the sails or added water resistance will slow the boat quickly, and a faster tack with full rudder will be necessary. In very heavy air these factors may prevent you from tacking in gusts and it may be necessary to look for a momentary lull before tacking. My last word of advice is to get out to the lake and practice tacking in all conditions. No one said it would be easy, but it is a lot more doable than you might at first imagine. Its all part of the challenge of vintage sailing! Bob Sturges I can’t point my Vintage Marblehead as high as other boats. My speed seems good, but I am being outpointed by the competition. How do I correct this? Ancient Mariner You have a common malady called “point-itis” which may be due to a lack of angle or height. Angle is simply the angle your boat is heading or aiming relative to the wind or to your competition. Try steering your boat closer to the wind. Jib luff telltails can be helpful. If the leeward telltail droops, it is an indication that you can head higher. A masthead fly can also help, particularly in the presence of large wind shifts. Many R/C sailors don’t use telltails and flys because they claim they can’t see them. Its true that in dis- tant parts of a course they often can’t be seen, but where they can be seen they are useful. If your boat is also set up with a little weather helm, it will continually try to reach maximum angle and will even require a kick of the rudder occasionally to prevent luffing of the sails. Steering to windward requires constant adjustment and you should always be ready to angle higher in puffs and in stretches of flat water, in order to grab that extra half boat length when no one is looking. The second aspect of pointing is height. Height refers to the actual distance made good to windward or a measure of how the boat is actually tracking. Wind side forces on the sails cause leeway or side slippage and its not your heading, but where you end up that counts. Before you try for improved height, you must first be going full speed in order to maximize the efficiency of your underwater foils. You will often see boats that don’t appear to be pointing too high, but watch out when they get underneath you. They are living proof that speed produces height. Once you are going fast, the key control for increasing height is adjustment of jib and mainsail leeches. The sail sheeting angles should be about 15 degrees for the jib and 5 degrees for the main. In moderate air and flat water the jib sheeting angle can be brought in to about 12 degrees. Next reduce mainsail twist in order to pull the top of the leech more to windward. This may require both a vang and/or main sheet adjustment depending on your particular rig. Be careful not to overdo it, the top leech batten should be no more than parallel to the boom or slightly to weather. This will start pushing your stern to leeward and load up your helm a bit, but if it only hurts your helm and doesn’t help your height, try closing off the upper jib leech for more bite. Placing minimum tension on the jib cloth downhaul, helps height by giving the jib a narrower leading edge or luff. In terms of pointing, however the leech adjustment is more important than any luff adjustment If the backstay is over tensioned in light air, it will flatten and de-power the jib and hurt height. There are also other factors that contribute to height loss. These are excessive heel, sails too full in flat water, sails too flat in choppy water, and sail sheeted too hard for the conditions. In most cases pointing higher boils down to first achieving full speed and then shifting into point mode by trimming your main to tighten your leech a bit. Finally Page 16 don’t hesitate to ask that sailor who is continually pinching you off to leeward for a little help in solving your pointing problem. Liz Sturges Sail Expo in Atlantic City in recent years has emphasized “women is sailing” and we are starting to see women in boat construction (including my daughter) and particularly women sailing model yachts. Have there been any outstanding women sailors in the past whom we should be aware of? Ancient Mariner I would propose Mary Patten of Boston who in 1856 took over for her incapacitated husband and skippered the clipper ship “Neptune’s Car” around Cape Horn and on to San Francisco. This so impressed the public at the time that she was referred to as the “Heroine of the Horn.” It all began in April of 1853 when Mary Ann Brown at age sixteen married Captain Joshua Patten of Rockland, Maine in the Old North Church, Boston. Mary was a slender beauty with delicate features, dark hair and large dark eyes. She had an air of feminine softness that was at odds with the role she was destined to play. Joshua Patten, at age 26, was a capable and highly regarded ship’s captain. Soon after their marriage he was offered the command of the newly launched clipper ship, “Neptune ‘s Car,” of 1616 tons, length of 216 feet with a beam of 40 feet. “Neptune ‘s Car” was comparable in size to the Clipper ship “Flying Cloud.” Patten was reluctant to leave his new bride ashore and received permission from the owners to bring his wife with him. The first two voyages of the “Neptune‘s Car,” to San Francisco and then to Hong Kong, proved to be uneventful. Joshua taught Mary navigation on the second voyage, which was to later prove invaluable. The third and their last voyage began on July 18, 1856 from New York to the west coast via Cape Horn. At the beginning of the voyage Captain Patten had a falling out with the first mate who resisted carrying full sails in order to be competitive with other clippers on the same run. The first mate was subsequently relieved of his duties for insubordination. Captain Patten assumed the first mate’s duties in addition to his own and spent long hours on watch. He fell ill before the ship reached the Horn, became delirious, and was unable to continue in command. At this point Mary, who was expecting a child, took over command of the ship. On reaching the Horn the ship encountered strong opposing westerly gales with 60 foot waves. Mary divided her time between navigating, directing the handling of the ship, and nursing her ailing husband who began losing his sight and hearing. The crew resolved to stand by her and fought hard in the cold howling winds to save the ship. It took 18 days to round the Horn. They eventually reached San Francisco on November 15 after 136 days at sea. On the tenth of March Mary gave birth to a healthy baby boy and named him for his father. Mary received praise and thanks from the owners and world acclaim from the public for her role in commanding “Neptune‘s Car.” This attention seriously embarrassed her as she felt much of the credit belonged to the crew. Unfortunately her problems did not end at this point. Captain Patten had to be admitted to a mental hospital and died before the end of the year. Mary contracted tuberculosis and died a few years later in 1861 at the age of 24. (This account was abstracted from an article written by Wanda Webb included in a collection of sea stories entitled, Yankees Under Sail edited by Richard Heckman in 1968) The Model Yacht is published three times a year by the U.S. Vintage Model Yacht Group. Copyright 1998, U.S.V.M.Y.G. Reproduction for noncommercial purposes permitted; all other rights reserved. Editorial Address: 9219 Flushing Meadows NE Albuquerque NM 87111 Email: boebert@swcp.com Phone: 505 823 1046 Officers of the U.S. Vintage Model Yacht Group: President: John Snow Eastern Vice-President: Ben Martin Midwest Vice-President: Al Suydam Western Vice-President: Dominic Meo, III Southeastern Vice-President: Thom Mclaughlin Traditional/Scale Coordinator: Harry Mote Vintage M Class Coordinator: Charles Roden Classic “50” Coordinator: Dennis Lindsey Historian: Earl Boebert Historian: Charles Williamson Archivist: Jim Dolan Page 17 Technical Supplement Editor’s Note We have two articles in our technical supplement this issue. Both have to do with the operation of free-sailing models, in anticipation of the free-sailing Regatta at San Francisco on August 7 and 8. We cover both Braine and vane steered boats in this supplement. Braine steered boats sail well on Spreckles Lake in San Francisco; in fact, the majority of boats in the club are Braine steered. The first article describes rigging and trimming for Braine steered free-sailing models. It was written by George Baron, designer of “Zip” and “Vanja,” and appeared in Popular Mechanics in 1937. The material is copyright by them and is excerpted here in the interests of teaching and research. We are indebted to member “Abe” Lincoln for bringing this material to our attention. The second article is a comprehensive description of setting and adjustment for vane steered boats. It was written in 1945 by Charles Farley, who also authored our plank on frame construction model. Between these two articles you should have all you need to sail at San Francisco. Hope to see you there! Earl Boebert 2 Speed Rigging Most racing yacht models are fitted with a sliding mast step and jib rack. If you move the mast and sails forward, the boat will not have the same tendency to point up into the wind, while if you move it back, the boat will luff, or point into the wind more. In the 50-in. class there is no restriction on the movement of the mast but in the International A-class the limit is 1/2 in. either way from the measured point, which is fixed by trial. Almost the same effect can be obtained by raking (slanting) the mast. The angle at which the shrouds come down to the deck should remain approximately the same. This explains why the chain plates have several holes. Most model yachtsmen now use a “kicking strap,” to prevent the main boom going up while running, causing the sail to wrap around the mast. It consists of a double gooseneck with a stiff-wire kicking strap tightened by a turnbuckle, Fig. 2. The whole thing turns without friction caused by pulling against an outside object. When a boat is beating to windward, the steering sheets are not used, and the rudder is left free. Both jib and mainsail are trimmed in fairly tight, but not right amidships. The angle of both sails with the center line of deck should be about the same. Should there be any difference the jib should be in slightly more, as then the boat will pay off more quickly, in case she should luff up in irons (both sails flapping). If the course is a little more off the wind, say a close reach, you can use the jib to steer by. Unhook the jib beating sheet and set the bowser on the running sheet on the jib boom to a position which lets it out to the angle required, and set the mainsail to a corresponding angle. The jib steering lines on deck should hook to the holes near the outside edges of the quadrant because there is not so much pull on the jib. Now place the slides in position to allow the quadrant to turn a little. It is better to start with them about half way along the slots and just enough tension on the rubber to pull the rudder straight when the strain goes off the sail. Then, if the boat comes ashore you can quickly readjust the slide to the tension required. The tension required on the rubber will be found to vary with different wind velocities; the more wind the more tension Page 18 required, and also the more rudder necessary to keep the boat off the wind. When running true down wind, the mainsail should be well out, but not enough for the boom to hang against the stays. The jib should be out at about the same angle. In this position the tendency should be to “jibe,” or swing around on the other tack. But the jib would jibe first and at this position, Fig. 4, the jib will be pulling against the mainsail and should prevent it from jibing. If you are not using a spinnaker this method of sailing would be the best if you can get the mainsail and jib to stay on opposite sides. In any case you should be prepared for a jibe and have the other steering sheet set so that she will immediately jibe back, Fig. 5. Spinnakers are now used in all model yacht racing. In the A-class the size of spinnaker is limited by the hoist and foot of the jib. The spinnaker boom must not be longer than the distance from the foot of mast to where the luff of the jib cuts the deck, and 3 must not be hauled up higher than where the jib halyard cuts the mast. In the Marblehead class the boom is limited to 12 in. and the hoist the same as the jib. Parachute-type spinnakers can be made very large. Some are 72 in. along the foot, and are made in four triangular pieces with about 2 l/2in. curve on each joining edge. They only work well in a good steady breeze. A gooseneck is necessary on the mast for use of the spinnaker boom. The beginner is advised to use a small, fairly flat spinnaker at first, cutting the foot the length of the base of the fore triangle plus half the beam of the boat at the mast. This sail should be set between the jib and the mast, the sheet fastened aft of the stays on the rail. It is a good plan to have scale markings on the deck where the bowsers are, to enable you to get the same setting each time. Sails are the most important fittings on a model yacht and if you make them yourself mark them out directly on the cloth, which should be pre-shrunk and pressed. You will need a straightedge about 7 ft. long, a 1/4 by 1/4-in. batten about the same length, a Tsquare, and weights to hold the straightedge in place. On the straightedge mark a point a distance from one end equal to the length of the luff of the sail. At this point set the Tsquare and mark on it a distance equal to the length of the foot of the sail as in Fig. 3. Now move both so that the mark on the T-square will come to one end of the cloth about 3 in. from the edge, and the end of the straight edge about the same distance from the edge of the cloth at what will be the top of the sail. Before marking out, check the measurements with the sail plan, making any necessary changes. When you have the corner points correctly located, join with straight pencil lines. Next lay off the curve of the roach, the amount which you can put in depending on the length of battens and stiffness of the cloth. This is limited to 2 in. in the Marblehead class. If you put in too much roach the sail will not draw. Pencil the curved line of the roach with the batten, using weights to hold it in place, and be sure you have a fair curve running well up above the top batten pocket and below the lower one. There are four batten pockets spaced equal distances apart. Make allowance for the headboard, for the A-class.98 in. and for the 50-in. Marblehead class,.75 in. Without making the sail wider at the foot you can increase it at the top the width of the headboard before adding roach. With the roach correctly located, mark lines on the inside and outside curve of the batten to give a 1/4-in. allowance for the hem. The writer prefers a straight luff. The foot of the main sail should have a little fullness, about 1/2 in. in 36 in. Next, you mark out the jib. As the cloth lies on the bench, the luff of jib will be about parallel to the luff of the mainsail, Fig. 3. The roach in Page 19 4 5 Page 20 the jib is put in similar to the mainsail, and similar fullness allowed on the foot, in proportion to the length. The leech of the sails is hemmed first and if corner pieces are used they fit under the hem. Great care must be taken not to stretch the cloth. The other sides should be taped as follows: Take some 5/8 or 3/4-in. tape (linen preferred), wet it and iron it doubled. Fold the tape over one end of the sail and slowly start the machine by hand, taking only two or three stitches. Then pull the tape tight with one hand and feed the cloth into the fold with the other, keeping it straight. When the sail is finished you should be able to put considerable strain on the tape without pulling the sail. In making sails to measurement for classes where restrictions are strictly observed, allowance must be made for stretching, say, 1 in. in height and 1/2 in. on the foot of the mainsail. The jib is not measured in A-class, but some allowance should be made in 50-in. class. Batten pockets may be made of sail cloth or tape, the latter being easier. The battens can be made out of l/16 in. celluloid, 1/4 in. wide. Push in the battens, cut to length, then close the pocket with several stitches across the open end. When set- ting the sails, do not stretch them out the first few days, but let them gradually “bend” into shape. Should they get wet be sure to loosen them at both ends immediately, or in shrinking they will pull out of shape. In pond sailing, where the models are handled from the shore, a “gye” is used to tack the boat a few yards off shore as in Figs. 6 and 7. It consists of a cord with a hook at one end, a pulley on a hook at the middle, and a hook and bowser at the other end. The first hook fastens to a ring on the main boom about 18 or 20 in. from the mast. The pulley is hooked to an eye plate on the rail about 1 in. aft of the stays. The other hook is fastened to the quadrant. To adjust the gye, hold the boom amidships and set the bowser so that the cord is tight and ready to pull the quadrant. The gye is hooked up, but not set to “act” unless required. When the boat is sailing on the tack where the boom and pulley are on the same side, the gye is not pulling. If the boat is put on the other tack the gye should start to pull as the mainsail crosses the center of the deck. George Baron (1937) 6 7 Page 21 Pond Sailing With Vane Gear The charts herewith give detailed instructions for the theoretical set of sails and vane for pond sailing, and show the procedure to follow when the yacht cones ashore. The main principles to follow are; 1. Make correct sail and vane-set before you start your yacht off. 2. If the yacht comes ashore on a beat, decide in advance what you are going to do; to simply tack, to apply the tacking-gye, or make a change of trim of sails or vane. 3. On a Reach or a Run, when the yacht approaches the shore, note the angle which she is making in reference to the shore-line, which is a valuable clue for adjustment. Decide in advance whether to adJust the set of the sails or the vane, or both, or to Jibe the boom over without making any adJustments. Trim Or Set Of Sails Trim, or set of sails, also angle of the vane, is a matter of study for each individual yacht. On a beat, some yachts require Jib and mainsail sheeted well inboard, while others have to have started, or free sheets. for best performance. It all depends on the form of the yacht, her characteristics when heeled, amount of lateral plane, set and fullness of the sails, and other variables. Off the wind, running or reaching, one yacht will require a quite different set of sails and vane than another. The same factors mentioned above are applicable, plus the steering effect of vane-feather and rudder, their areas in relation to one another, and the ratio of power between the vane-arm and the tillerarm. By using the Charts as a starting point, adjustments for individual characteristics of your yacht, and adjustments of the vane for apparent wind can be arrived at by experience alone. The Tacking Gye Always have the tacking gye ready when beating or on a close reach. If you get on a lee shore you then have some chance of getting off without taking a course across the pond away from the finish-line. If your gye is not ready rigged for instant use, the time lost in applying it may cause you to lose the race Lee Shore A good rule is to keep off the lee shore of the pond on all runs or reaches. By keeping toward the windward side of the pond it is easier to slack off sheets when the yacht comes ashore, rather than to try and work off or beat off a lee shore. Coming Ashore If the yacht comes ashore, any adjustment of sails or vane should be made sparingly, and never greatly divergent from the original set, except should the wind veer or back. Sometimes it is sufficient to simply stop the yacht and head her off in the right direction, making no change of trim, or a very slight change. Use Of The Charts The Charts are drawn so that the skipper may imagine himself starting at the left panel, and returning by the right panel, as he would do in a race. The left panel gives a view of the pond or course, with the yacht starting off on the first board. The chart is turned around for the return board. The Charts may also be turned sideways to visualize walking along the shore with the yacht, and shows what to do if the yacht comes ashore. The yachts are pictured on Charts as holding a true course as shown by the solid lines. Dotted lines show what may happen if the yacht comes ashore, and the remedy. Study each Chart and visualize and memorize the proper procedure. If your yacht holds a true course, there is nothing to do except to try and repeat the performance. However, while a certain adjustment will work once, it does not follow that it will work on even the very next time you sail the same course. Where the wind is of uniform strength and direction the matter is simple, but if the wind is fluky or varies in strength or in direction, the matter becomes complicated, and one for good Judgment and good luck. Study the Charts, then cover them up and try and draw a memory sketch, of wind direction, set of vane and sails, what to do if the yacht comes ashore. Then compare your efforts with the Charts. You will learn a lot by so doing. Chart No. 1, Top Panel, shows a Dead Beat, the yacht sailing up the pond with the wind dead ahead. This is the ideal condition for a real beat, as either port or starboard tack takes the yacht at the same angle toward the finish line. However, if near the end of either tack the shore area is blanketed by buildings, Page 22 trees, or other obstructions which create a dead spot or eddies in the wind, or where there are weeds, rocks or shoals, chose the tack offering the least interference. Also have the tacking-gye ready for an emergency. Chart No.l, Bottom Panel shows the return board, a Dead Run. Theoretically, the mainsail may be carried on either side of the yacht with equal efficiency, but as a rule, local conditions require having the mainsail on a certain side. The ideal condition is to have the mainsail and Jib winged out on opposite sides, as then the mainsail will not blanket the smaller Jib. When a spinnaker is used always ship it on the side opposite to the main boom, and at a forward angle from the yacht’s centerline. Chart No. 2, Top Panel shows the wind coming 2 points off the corner of the pond. In such a wind it may be possible to make the course in one long tack. The set of vane and sails is the same as for a Dead Beat, but if the wind should veer or back, the yacht will change course and perhaps come ashore. It is thus advisable to try and keep to the windward side of the pond. If your opponent is far astern, and your yacht comes ashore on the lee side of the pond near the finish line, you may elect to come about on the opposite tack, or gye. If’ the wind shows signs of slackening or changing direction, or if there is a blanketed area on either shore, it will be best to apply the tacking-gye if you are reasonably sure it will work. Sometimes a “lazy” gye, or gye very lightly applied, will just hold the yacht well up into the wind on the short tack without actually making her come about on the other tack If your opponent is close by, or ahead of you, you must then decide to put the yacht about on the opposite tack, or to use the tackinggye. If he tacks first with no gye, and shows signs of bearing away from the finish line, you should use your gye by all means. If he tacks with his gye applied, by all means use yours, perhaps his will not work, and then if yours does, you will benefit. Chart No.3, Top Panel, shows the wind angling off the corner of the pond 4 points, or 45 degrees. This point of sailing is called a Close Reach. Strategy to follow includes keeping off the lee shore and having the tacking-gye ready for instant use. A very little easing of sheets is usually sufficient to keep the yacht a little off the wind with the aid of the vane, which is shifted forward about one-half a point, or possibly a full point. Chart No. 3, Bottom Panel, shows, the return board, which is a Broad Reach, but not quite so broad as is shown on Chart No.2, Right Panel. Chart No. 4 shows a Reach, with the wind directly abeam, or at right angles to the long axis of the pond. Theoretically, the same set of vane and sails should ensure the yacht sailing either way of the course, but in practice it may be found that due to local conditions, a slightly different set is necessary for each of these boards. In any event, try and keep off the lee shore, unless beneficial wind currents are known to exist there. Jibing, or Gybing means when the yacht keeps so far off the wind that the wind gets on the opposite or lee side of the sail and causes the sail to swing over. A Jibe can also be accomplished by hand. If the yacht comes ashore on a Broad Reach or a Run, and will not keep off in spite of re-trimming sheets or vane, then it is necessary to jibe, but you will find that usually a retrim is called for to prevent the yacht taking a diagonal course across the pond. Use Of Spinnaker. A spinnaker will increase speed when properly rigged and kept full and drawing. It is foolhardy to ship a spinnaker if the wind is shifting, fluky or extremely light. If the spinnaker will not fill it is best to remove it, if there is time, or to cast off the spinnaker sheet or spinnaker-pole guy, and let the sail fly. A strong cross-wind or sudden heading of the wind will make the spinnaker go aback, and the yacht may broach and run wild, or perhaps even sail backward. Chart No.2, Bottom Panel, shows the return board, which will be a Broad Reach, almost a run. The diagram shows what to do if your yacht comes ashore. Page 23 Charles Farley (1945) Page 24 Page 25