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Old 23-04-2020, 13:03   #1
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Wing Keels

Hi everyone. I'm new, and looking to get back into sailing. What are your opinions of wing keels? All I know about them is a friend had one and sold the boat in less than a year. He said it made the boat horribly slow, and was a trap line magnet. I live in the Lower Florida Keys so shallow draft is a good thing to have here, but not at the costs of speed. I'm looking for a trailerable small sailboat, even though I live on a canal. (A boat's hurricane survival chances are much better on a trailer than in the water.) I could be wrong about the wing keel. The shoal draft is very desirable for where I live. I would appreciate any advice on wing keels.
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Old 23-04-2020, 13:06   #2
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Re: Wing Keels

A “trailerable small sailboat” with shoal draft screams “lifting keel”. I can’t recall ever seeing a lifting wing keel.
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Old 23-04-2020, 13:17   #3
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Re: Wing Keels

The righting moment of a winged keel is less than a deeper fin keel of the same weight and the winged keel is likely to have higher leading edge area and wetted surface area. The wing may tangle lines and seaweed a bit more because the tangle will be blocked from sliding off the bottom edge of the keel as is the tendency of a fin keel with a aftward angle.

But if depth of shoal is the key metric then one has to reposition your counter balance weight higher. A bulb keel is an alternative, basically a wing keel with stubs for wings.

One could go towards a fuller length keel with a shallow shoal design instead of a wing.

Sure a wing keel is likely to be a bit slower because the boat will tend to heel more and have somewhat greater resistance and a tad more leeway, but then its a sail boat they don't go fast. Are you cruising or racing? Very different requirements.

Always a trade off.
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Old 23-04-2020, 14:33   #4
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Re: Wing Keels

Quote:
Originally Posted by CassidyNZ View Post
A “trailerable small sailboat” with shoal draft screams “lifting keel”.
Yes, or keel/centerboard.

How small?
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Old 23-04-2020, 14:41   #5
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Re: Wing Keels

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Originally Posted by Wet Zen View Post
Hi everyone. I'm new, and looking to get back into sailing. What are your opinions of wing keels? All I know about them is a friend had one and sold the boat in less than a year. He said it made the boat horribly slow, and was a trap line magnet. I live in the Lower Florida Keys so shallow draft is a good thing to have here, but not at the costs of speed. I'm looking for a trailerable small sailboat, even though I live on a canal. (A boat's hurricane survival chances are much better on a trailer than in the water.) I could be wrong about the wing keel. The shoal draft is very desirable for where I live. I would appreciate any advice on wing keels.
The Wing keel is a dog ....avoid

Better to choose a professionally designed shoal draft boat

Nigel Irens is world renowned

Roxane - Nigel Irens Design
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Old 23-04-2020, 14:43   #6
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Re: Wing Keels

Don't know about smaller boats - I have a 35' with a wing keel and it works fine for me. But your reality may be different because of the size of boat and conditions.

More details available if you want them, but not sure they're relevant.
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Old 23-04-2020, 14:43   #7
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Re: Wing Keels

Or bilge keels.


Wing keels are more like Australia II stuff. Performance.



b.
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Old 23-04-2020, 15:10   #8
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Re: Wing Keels

Wing keels can also be a liability in running aground. They tend to act like arrows - very difficult to pull out. Don’t know of any lifting keel/centerboard trailerable boats that have wings, so you may have dodged that bullet. Try looking up boats like the different Egret designs from Commodore Monroe: . Ruel Parker also has a number of shallow-draft vessels.
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Old 23-04-2020, 16:04   #9
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Re: Wing Keels

I have a wing keel though have not owned it long. I find my boat plenty fast but I agree that picking up crab pots and running aground can be more problematic with a wing keel. That said both of those situations are more the responsibility of the captain than the keel :-)
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Old 23-04-2020, 16:47   #10
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Re: Wing Keels

Quote:
Originally Posted by CassidyNZ View Post
A “trailerable small sailboat” with shoal draft screams “lifting keel”. I can’t recall ever seeing a lifting wing keel.
Cassidy got it right!! Buy a vessel w/ retractable centerboard. Excellent windward performance with board down, but gets you in skinny water when needed.
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Old 23-04-2020, 17:53   #11
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Re: Wing Keels

All things boating are a compromise. Wing keel pros - shallower draft, higher profile than a full or cutaway keel. Cons - won't point as well as a deeper keel. Things that are probably not a big enough deal to worry about - a bit slower, catches crab traps, harder to get ungrounded.

We had a wing keel, or a beavertail as the manufacturer called it, on our last boat. I never wished I had a different keel because of my speed. As a cruiser I'm sure I regularly give up more speed with imperfect sail trim. We sailed the Chesapeake three summers and Maine and Nova Scotia last summer. After dropping numerous bumped lines off the keel, in Maine a daily occurrence, the idea of avoiding that keel because of catching things is not impressing me. Yes, we went aground a few times and probably would have gotten off easier without the winged keel but we always got off eventually without assistance and it was we ourselves who screwed up and put the boat aground in the first place. I'd buy a boat with a winged keel again if I were looking for a shallow draft monohull.
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Old 24-04-2020, 07:52   #12
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Re: Wing Keels

I'm looking for a small cruiser. Something I can take to the Marquesas Keys, the Back County of the Lower Keys, and maybe Dry Tortugas. I used to work on the resupply ship for Dry Tortugas and know the waters well. I did a lot of freediving there in 04 and 05. It is a phenomenal area. I'd love to go back and shoot some GoPro. I'm considering a swing keel also. I considered a Corsair Tri with the dagger board keel. The speed is very attractive, but the tiny accommodations is a deal breaker. One of my first sailboats was a 32' Iroquois cat. The bridge deck was very low, as is fully bend over low, and after the second day out my back was screaming. It was OK for day sailing.
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