Laying out the sails is the first step, so about 3” from the selvedge, and parallel to it, mark a fine, straight pencil line the length of your leach measurement—the mainsail on the left hand side and the jib on the right.
The sailing qualities, speed, and control of your model are dependent on good sails.
Over in the Quaker State, the Philadelphia
M. Y. C. is determined not to lose its many
sailing events in spite of all the handicaps the city and state or park officials might put in its path. This coming Fall the members will sail at “Hunting Park,’ located at the junction of Roosevelt Blvd. and Broad St. This is a new lake, evidently, and it runs due north and south with a measurement of 200x630 ft... . and
there is plenty of depth for A boats and a fine wall around it so wading will not be necessary.
Prior to the advent of the new X class there
existed in this country but two major classes, the A class and the M class. Many model yachtsmen objected to the A class because of its too complicated rule and excessive weight and size. With the advent of the Marblehead 50-800 or M class, it appeared that at last a rule had been perfected which because of its extreme
simplicity and the moderate size produced would suit everyone, and so it did apparently, because hundreds have been built and the M has formed the largest class and proved to be the backbone
of model yachting throughout the nation.
There has been considerable controversy regarding the Vane Steering Gear
wherever its use in model yachting has
been utilized. In the opinion of the writer, the Vane Gear is the great leveller in model yacht sailing, especially when used to windward.
Model sailing yachts, especially racing craft, have their sailing qualities materially altered when a change is made in the amount of the rake of the mast—the center of effort of the sail plan is shifted backward when the rake is increased,
causing the boat to luff into the wind, and forward when the rake is lessened, reducing the “pointing” ability of the yacht.
You Should Join the MYRAA
MYRAA Objective, National Officers, Executive Committee and Division Officers
Model Yachting
1940 Racing Calendar
MYRAA Member Clubs and Officers
Other American Model Yacht Clubs
Canadian Model Yacht Racing Association
What Class Should I Build?
Official Burgees of the MYRAA
Model Yachting History
The Crakpot’s Corner: Believe it (Or Maybe You’d Rather Not)
Four Rules for Good Sportsmanship
The sport of model yachting is sometimes mixed up with the sailing of the common homemade or “toy boat” variety of sailing, where the proud parent whittles out a small boat from a shingle or a piece of scrap wood that is lying around the cellar collecting dust. The majority of these are poorly designed and turned out. They may be the finest of craftsmanship and the people take the model to the lake where “Junior” sits on the shore while “Daddy” tries to sail the boat.
All too frequently one sees a model racing
yacht skipper lining up his craft’s rudder
at the pondside, or hears him bitterly complaining of a race lost because his quadrant has loosened on the rudder post and he was unable to make a solid adjustment. Rudder assemblies
are a real problem, as even the best available books on the subject of model yacht construction slight this particular feature, or pass it over entirely.
It can be appreciated that the writer had the
