dinghys outboards and mini keels

[northerncat]

have just had a read of this months cruising helmsman and it has an artlicle about a guy in small keeler that went onto a reef, he bounced up and down and put some holes in his hull till his keel snapped off and then drifted off into deeper water, he didnt want to abandon ship as he only had an inflateable (puncturable i believe liferafts have the same problem)

now had he had a catamaran with minikeels and outboards or a hard dinghy he may not have had to put out the mayday he did as he could have bounced up and own on his minikeels without doing any damage and used his out boards which sit well above the minikeels to move off the reef, or he could have hopped into his hard botttomed dinghy and tried to find the edge of the reef

sean

[44'cruisingcat]

An Oram 44c "Outahia" was run onto the reef off Great Keppel at 5-6 knots, bounced around for a while and finally reversed off - the only significant damage done was to the rudders, which had kicked up as designed to, but in the panic they hadn't been restrained in the "up' position and were damaged when the boat moved backwards over them.

She was beached the following morning and the rudders fixed on the beach (one later broke off, but it's absence was hardly noticed). The hulls had a few VERY minor dents (about thumbnail size) in them.

This boat doesn't even have minikeels - she is duflex built with hard chines, flat keel panels with sacrificial plywood panels glassed on over the duflex.

[northerncat]

aha but this guy bounced for most of a night whereas outahia bounced for a few minutes as i read the account
sean

[44'cruisingcat]

I think most of the damage happens in the initial 6 knot impact.

[northerncat]

how did those hondas go on that recent launch
sean

[cat man do]

We hit the bricks on the last cat with the rudder at full motor speed and bent the rudder shaft back .

Being tiller steer, we diconected one rudder and steered home on the other.

The pointy back edge of the rudder punched a hole through the outer but not the inner skin and that was easily repaired.

We cut the rudder shafts at the bend and put a solid insert in and I TIG'ed it together.

In New Cal we hit the reef @ 14 knot's and actually had the boat out of the water on one side by about 10 inches parked on the damaged board.

Just the slightest crease in the glass at the back of the case where it exits the hull, and this damage to the board.

I was amazed, as I fully expected to go below and see the furniture and floor ripped out with a metre long gash in the hull.

Strong stuff this lightweight composite construction.

Dave