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pressuredrop · 24-12-2011, 06:27

built a rig for my rowing dink out of some free garbage pile carbon fiber windsurfer masts (used for mast and bow sprit... boom is a sunfish spar, thrubolted teak strops and spliced 3 strand standing rigging with spectra lashings... all of the aluminum fittings are leftover 1/8"x1" bar from my mast step project, used to make goosneck, chain plates, keel strap, sprit heel... untie 5 knots and the sprit and boom fold up against the mast for easy storage, whole rig weights less then 10lbs...

very fun satisfying project...

main will be 20 sqft, jib will be 14-18sqft (depending on how much overlap i decide on...) sails will be cut down from old sails or some maroon sunbrella (i have both, opinions?)

my prediction, she will sail like a witch!

David_Old_Jersey · 24-12-2011, 06:33

Nice!

As no centreboard, might want to think about a leeboard. and maybe a rudder.........

pressuredrop · 24-12-2011, 07:12

haha yess of course, i am going to start with a leeboard tied to a rope fixed on the centerline that you flop from side to side when tacking (ala ben zartman...) rudder depends on if i find an opti one first otherwise i will make my own kick up rudder with a channel cutter profile...saving the daggerboard trunk project for after the mothership is sailing again...

clockwork orange · 24-12-2011, 07:46

Nice looking dink,seabird?

pressuredrop · 24-12-2011, 07:49

no idea, been trying to figure that out...

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ink-56459.html

but this thread didnt go anywhere, seabird you say?

cal40john · 24-12-2011, 08:06

Thought about CE CLR relationship? As it looks now you might have to attach the leeboard near the bow. Or maybe make the boom stick out over the transom a few feet.

John

pressuredrop · 24-12-2011, 08:37

will figure that out, tweek as i go... to beauty of this boat is that endless modification is cheap and easy, the boom stick over the transom by 6" as it is...

Randyonr3 · 24-12-2011, 10:29

My question is, will you eventually bulid it as a fin keel for speed or a full keel for comfort..(you know I had to ask )
Nice dink, you should have loads of fun on it.............

**Dockhead** · 24-12-2011, 11:44

Leeboard would work fine.

But you need to be damned sure that you have enough flotation to avoid sinking when -- not if, but when -- you go over. There should be enough flotation to carry the extra weight of the rig plus all imaginable contents. Be careful with that.

**hummingway** · 24-12-2011, 12:07

I love it! Nice work.

pressuredrop · 24-12-2011, 20:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Randyonr3

My question is, will you eventually bulid it as a fin keel for speed or a full keel for comfort..(you know I had to ask )
Nice dink, you should have loads of fun on it.............

now if it didnt have to worry about getting this thing on the deck of my seawind, id love to cast a long external lead keel for this thing... but opti blades should work just fine...

no worries about flotation it has the standard rowboat floatation (front middle and rear compartments)

7'4" is the perfect size sailboat, i declare, small enough that you can build a rig from scratch in 3 days and big enough that you can actually sail it, a working model ship of sorts...

IdoraKeeper · 25-12-2011, 12:07

You have come this far, a little marine plywood and some glass tape and resin some fasteners and you can have a nice centerboard trunk. With all that sail area, if you get some weight down low it might even plane on a broad reach. Better wear a wet suit though. Looks like loads of fun.
Todd

S/V Alchemy · 26-12-2011, 09:37

I have a nesting 10 foot dinghy with a tallish rig and trust me, unless you are a trapeze artist monkey with a lead hat, you'll really want some sort of lateral resistance/centerboard.

I haven't gotten wet yet, but I have noticed a bit of an issue with working to windward, even with the board down.

You may consider, should you ever build a centerboard trunk, a lead "shoe" for the bottom of said centerboard. It needn't be elaborate or even particularly heavy, because 20 pounds of lead three feet below that boat will stiffen up everything nicely and yet still will allow the board to be raised and lowered pretty easily.