Posting Rules | post new threads post replies post attachments edit your posts is are code is are are are | Similar Threads | Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post | | lyl | Monohull Sailboats | 6 | 15-12-2020 14:16 | | chowdan | General Sailing Forum | 13 | 03-11-2020 11:37 | | john61ct | Monohull Sailboats | 17 | 27-05-2018 09:36 | | nematon785 | Monohull Sailboats | 16 | 10-03-2017 09:08 | | RedDragonSails | Monohull Sailboats | 23 | 06-10-2008 12:09 | Privacy Guaranteed - your email is never shared with anyone, opt out any time. Lit’l Coot 18 Full KeelDevlin Boats , Sailboats The Lit’l Coot 18 Full Keel is a is seaworthy and capable motorsailor with enough space on board for the organized sailor and enough potential to keep serious travelers satisfied. She is the sister to the original Lit’l Coot with the same hull and the same tendency for balanced performance and maximal use of space, but the change to a fixed centerline keel allows her to stand up to weather that the original could not handle. This change also frees up space in the cabin, which makes her more comfortable for longer cruises. Twin rudders surround the outboard motor on the centerline to allow efficient motor cruising on an economical 9.9 hp outboard. Read Sam’s design notes below for the big picture on the Lit’l Coot Full Keel. The Lit’l Coot 18 Full Keel is available in study and full construction plans . Precision cut CNC hull kit available here | Length | 17 ft. – 10.5 in. | Beam | 6 ft. – 11 in. | Draft | 2 ft. – 6 in. | Power | Outboard 9.9hp | Displacement | 2300 lbs. | Ballast | 650 lbs. | Sail Area | 160 sq. ft. | Height on Trailer | 8 ft. – 4 in. | Lit’l Coot Design NotesRecently I was working on the plans for a small under 20ft. Pocket Sailor design but found during the process I couldn’t help but think about another design, one roughly the same size and in many respects similar in use, but the type I zeroed in on was a small Motorsailor. This “Litl Coot” design is the result of my musings and dreams. Now in this case, despite being my own design customer, I still needed to stay focused and set up a list of design parameters that the new design would accommodate. First of all she needed to be very trailerable with the capability of sitting on a powerboat type trailer low and compact enough to be able to be backed into a garage or storage shed without any special needs. So right away that got rid of any notion that I would need to design a deep keel for her. I flirted with the idea of leeboards but quickly realized that a couple of hardwood Bilge Keels, along with a centerline small shoe keel and aft skeg, would be just the ticket. The bilge keels also had the additional benefit that they would allow her to beach out level and upright if I got caught by a quickly receding tide in some of the shallow and very tidal bays that I was dreaming of using her on. If you are a fan of classic literature, there is an excellent novel written just before World War One titled “Riddle of the Sands”. The story is based near the Friesian Islands located off the N.W. shore of Holland and Germany. These waters are a very tidal area and the descriptions of the main character straying off the dredged and poorly marked channels and getting caught on the sands in his shoal draft boat with all the extra adventures that one would have with that scenario, has always been appealing to me. Anyway, it’s a great read. As I recollect, this is either one of the first or the very first Mystery Adventure novels written by Erskine Childers and it has had a prominent position in my library for many years. But back to the “Litl Coot” design – once I had made the decision to give her bilge keels, that meant all her ballast needed to be in the bilge and my plan is to use recycled lead shot (I buy mine from one of the local trap and skeet shooting ranges) which is very nice to work with, all cleaned, in small canvas bags weighing 30 lbs. each and ready to be mixed with epoxy and set into her bilge. I usually plan on casting about 75-85% of the anticipated ballast (in this case 600 lbs) before launching and then finish off the final ballasting after checking her trim in the water and re-assuring myself that the weight is located where it is most needed to keep her floating level and on her lines. That reminds me of a story, several years ago my long-term landlord at my main shop (which I have rented for 28 years now) told me one day just after we had launched a new boat, that one of the things that amazed him most of all about my designing and building boats was how accurately I could predict the floating of the boat level and on her lines. Well that was quite a compliment and I think that if I remember properly that I tried to pass it off as not being that hard to do! Within just a couple of weeks we had occasion to launch another new build (different design, one that we hadn’t built before) and the new vessel floated down on her lines by the stern. We had to add some (actually read quite a lot of) extra chain in her anchor locker to get her settled down on her lines (as designed). I often wondered if my landlord had somehow jinxed me by saying that they all floated on their lines so nicely, and having missed the mark on the very next boat project, the whole experience sobered me considerably. It should go without saying that on the next design I spent almost twice as much time as I usually did on the weight study trying to not make the same mistake twice. But back to our musings about the “Litl Coot” – now that we’ve got the keels on her and the ballast settled, it’s time to think about that engine package. This is a pure 50/50 Motorsailor and on this size boat, I think the little 9.9 horsepower Yamaha 4 cycle engine in hi-thrust configuration is just about ideal. It’s a great little engine, barely sips fuel, is almost soundless at idle and will work on this design very well. But here I was confronted with a problem. With many small sailboats, if we make a centerline rudder and hang the outboard on some sort of scissoring bracket to one side of the stern, when sailing on the tack where the outboard is to the lee side, you will find the end of the lower unit of the outboard dragging in the water. There might be a couple of solutions to this problem, we could move the outboard closer to the centerline, but if we are not really careful then there is a really good chance that sooner or later you will hit the prop with the rudder while doing some short maneuvering in a docking or mooring situation. If you place the engine further away from the rudder you’ve exaggerated the problem of the drag of the lower unit and prop of the outboard (and I hate dragging something like that when trying to sail). So my solution for the “Litl Coot” was to place the motor on the centerline of the transom, and by using a long shaft outboard we will be able to keep the lower unit from dragging on the lee side tack (as there is no lee side to a centerline mounted engine) and both the motoring and the sailing will be without compromise. Now with the engine on the centerline that meant in order to be able to steer her under sail, I needed to find a way to either mount a rudder off the centerline or an even better solution was to use twin rudders that have tillers that tie together into a common link arm. The additional benefit of the twin rudders allowed them to not extend into the water quite as deeply as if I had used just a single rudder and conforms rather nicely with our requirement of being able to sit level and upright in grounding situations without any necessity to lift the rudders up or have some sort of swing blades on them. Once we joined the two tillers together into a single link arm then my next problem of how to allow an inside steering station to be rigged was easily assisted by having one common link with simple shackles made up to fixed lines (when desiring the inside steering station) and led through turning blocks to a fore and aft pivoting vertical tiller that will be fixed in the pilothouse on the starboard side. If I desire to steer from this inside station, I can sit in a comfortable seat on the starboard side facing forward and steer her by either pushing or pulling on the tiller. There is enough drag in this type of steering system to keep the helm steady for short periods of time if I needed to have her self steering while fixing a spot of tea or perhaps making a snack. One of the main ideas with this design is that all functions could be done while sailing, or motoring, solo. There is room to take a buddy along but you don’t necessarily have to, in fact there might be a lot of days when just my dog “Bella” might be the perfect crew for an adventure on the “Litl Coot”. So all the halyards, topping lifts, etc. are lead aft to the sides of the pilothouse. With her little mizzen sail set up and left rigged most of the time either under sail or under power, she will have the wonderful capability to have a balanced helm under different wind and tacking conditions, and the mizzen would help to keep her steady on a mooring, or at anchor when holed up for a rest. For easy and quick set up when launching from trailer I designed a tabernacle hinged Mainmast setting a rig that I would call a Cat Yawl (although under some definitions this might also be described as a Cat Ketch, the mizzen being stepped ahead of the rudders) configuration. This style of rig keeps the sail area where it is needed for balance under sail and is a very simple to use, with literally no re-sheeting necessary as one tacks from board to board. With the process of rigging the Mainmast simply being a matter of rotating up the mast in its tabernacle, set up the forestay on the bail above the Stainless Steel anchor roller up on the bow, and insert a pin into the bottom of the tabernacle and you are ready to launch. Keeping the mast up in the eyes of the boat also allowed me to have a top hinged window on the front of the pilothouse for sailing or motoring on warm days. This allows lots of wind in the face but reduces the chance of getting too much sun on my already overly exposed face, if I choose to be inside in the shade of the pilothouse. So we now have a boat that can sit on a trailer, fit in a normal sized garage for berthage when we aren’t using her, an inside and outside steering arrangement, a couple of berths for doing some simple cruise/camping, and one that will sail or motor at a fairly efficient level whether the wind is blowing or not. And did I add that she is towable behind most of the small-to-mid sized SUVss or Pickups? She also is a boat that will allow me to explore the really shallow and fringe cruising areas that more conventional sailboats with their deep keels can’t even think about sailing in. I can sail her either on my own or with crew, but again all systems and setup can be done on my own if that is the way I choose to use her. In final expression I have found the “Litl Coot” to be absolutely beguiling during her design stages and my armchair cruises have been wonderful, built around her platform. My best guess is that her real life adventures might be just as good or better, and that adds a lot of spice to my life, just the ticket for a modern, busy world! Amateur plans are $195 and consist of 16 drawings printed on 24X36 inch paper and a simple building booklet. You can either buy printed sets of plans directly from us or buy a download version and print on your own. We are now producing basic hull kits for her or we could build you the whole boat if you would like, and very soon I look forward to seeing many of these little Cat Yawls on the water. — Sam Devlin Notice to our valued Devlin Boat customersAs always, if you have any questions about orders (past or present), don’t hesitate to get in touch! Featured ProductsArtfully Designed and Crafted Boats since 1978Shop tours on Fridays by appointment Pin It on Pinterest- New Sailboats
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Mason 33 Used Boat ReviewBeneteau 311, Catalina 310 and Hunter 326 Used Boat ComparisonMaine Cat 41 Used Boat ReviewCheoy Lee Clipper 36 & 42 Used Boat ReviewTips From A First “Sail” on the ICWTillerpilot Tips and Safety CautionsBest Crimpers and Strippers for Fixing Marine Electrical ConnectorsThinking Through a Solar Power InstallationStopping Mainsheet TwistWorking with High-Tech RopesGetting a Clue for the Blown-Out ClewMonel Seizing Wire is Worth the Extra CostFuel Lift Pump: Easy DIY Diesel Fuel System Diagnostic and RepairEnsuring Safe ShorepowerSinking? 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History shows that its an uncommon occurrence, but because we now annually hear of such incidents, weve decided to take a closer look at keels and see what keeps the ballast where it belongs. The International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Offshore Special Regulations devotes pages to helping sailors prevent and respond to a crew overboard incident. There is nothing about how to handle the loss of a keel or ballast bulb. Some might say this is because such occurrences are so infrequent, while others note that, if youre still upright once the ballast breaks off theres not much you can do other than blow the sheets, douse the sails as quickly as possible and attempt to stop any leaks. When solo sailor Mike Plants Open 60 Coyote lost her lead bulb in 1992, Mike was lost at sea. Other adventure-sailors have survived near instantaneous capsize precipitated by keel loss. In 2003, round-the-world racer Tim Kent and his crew capsized when Everest Horizontal lost its ballast on the way back from Bermuda. US Sailing Safety at Sea Committee Chairman Chuck Hawley was aboard the racing sloop Charlie, on the way back from Hawaii, when a loud groaning sound led to a deep heel as the lead peeled away from the keel bolts and ballast headed straight to the bottom. This encounter at least had a happy ending thanks to the crews quick actions to douse sail. Apparently the keel had been cast with too little antimony (an additive that causes lead to become a harder alloy). The point here is that keeping the keel attached is as important as keeping the crew safely on board. And for the offshore monohull sailor, preventing a keel loss, like preventing crew overboard, requires some informed forethought. A ballast keel on a sailboat is a classic example of potential energy poised in a balancing act. The buoyancy of the hull itself offsets the effect of thousands of pounds of lead or iron. At rest, gravitys attraction for the dense material strains against the buoyancy of the hull, and the adjacent garboard region is continuously in tension. Few sailors spend much time contemplating how keel bolts corrode and what cycle-loading does to the resin matrix comprising the garboard region just above the ballast. What is apparent, is that the attachment material, whether it be wood, metal or fiber reinforced plastic (FRP), must be able to support a mass of metal weighing as much as a small truck-and do so day in and day out for decades. Underway, every tack causes the rig and sailplan to try to lever this ballast package free from the hull. And when the helmsman starts daydreaming about lobster for dinner and wanders off course onto a granite ledge Down East, the keel designed to handle sailing loads takes it on the chin. Its easy to see why experienced designers and builders lose sleep over their decisions about keel shape, structure, and what kind of safety factor should be built into the structure. Its surprising to discover that with better materials and computer-aided design, we still hear about incidents such as the Rambler capsize in the 2011 Fastnet Race (PS, May 2012). Just as significant is a spate of smaller race boat keel-ectomies that have caused ISAF to send out a cautionary note to sailors around the world, and introduce new structural standards for race boats. Keeping the ballast attached to the boat involves an awareness of a chain-like set of failure points. And one of the most difficult decisions each designer must make is how to marry foil efficiency with a structural safety margin that covers the boats intended usage and the unintended use of the keel as a depth sounding device. For decades, engineers and naval architects have had to contend with some racing sailors Icarus-like quest-a trend that prioritizes shedding weight and making the keel foil a long, thin appendage with a high-aspect ratio. Though not quite a flight toward the sun with wings made of wax and feathers, some race-boat scan’tlings walk a fine line between lightweight and structural failure. The challenge lies in attaching a lead bulb on a high-tensile steel foil to a lightweight, high-modulus, FRP hull. Interconnecting the dense metallic ballast to the lower-density foam/fiberglass hull structure is a true engineering puzzle. Part of the challenge lies in the dissipation of point loads (confined to a relatively small area) and how to handle the resulting stress risers. A stress riser is the point at which theres an abrupt change in a materials flexibility, such as where a stiff, fin keel meets the more elastic hull bottom. In FRP composites like those found in a balsa-cored hull, stress risers are a likely place for delamination to occur. Over time, these can result in the failure of the FRP composite. The see-saw effect of the keel counteracting a vessels righting moment is a mathematically predictable energy transfer. Even the effect of groundings such as those that turn hull speed into a dead stop can be quantified. But its the cumulative effect of fatigue (localized structural damage caused by cyclical loading) and corrosion that are harder to pin down. The term allision refers to hitting a fixed object such as a granite ledge or coral reef. Naval architects analyze the energy transfer and evaluate the stress and strain characteristics that occur. The recognition that the keel-to-hull connection must endure even more punishment than is doled out in heavy-weather sailing episodes is at the heart of how structural specs are devised. Designers also must consider the jack-hammer-like pounding of a keel on a reef in surf, and realize that there are limits to the abuse a keel and hull can endure. With this in mind, its reasonable to assume that sailboat keels should be built to handle sailing induced loads for decades. It is the extra safety factor built into the boat that defines what happens when the sandbar is a rock pile. What is harder to anticipate are the unusual encounters that can inflict serious damage to the keel connection. Take, for example, what happens when a sailboats deep fin keel is wedged in a rocky cleft and a good Samaritan with a big powerboat attempts to pivot the sailboat using a line attached to the bow. The distance from the keels vertical centerline to the stem may be 20 feet or more, and with a couple of thousand pounds of bollard pull, the 20-foot lever arm creates a rotary force that can spike to 40,000 foot-pounds or more. This level of torque goes well beyond what most designers and builders model as sailing loads, and its likely to seriously damage the boat. In plain low-tech talk, extreme fin keels provide a valuable performance edge, but they come with their own set of downsides that every owner needs to be aware of. In essence, the more radical the keel shape, the better the crew must navigate. A couple of decades ago, PS Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo ran a boatyard and had a client who liked to cut the corners during Block Island Race Week. His first spinnaker reach into a granite boulder stopped the boat and shoved the companionway ladder upward six inches. This underscored how an allision that causes the keel to stop abruptly transfers a shock wave through the entire hull. The resulting compression cracked several transverse members in the New York 40 and damaged the core in the canoe body near the garboard. The FRP repairs had to be tapered and all delamination problems resolved. The moderate-aspect-ratio lead fin keel absorbed a good deal of the blunt trauma. Judging from the cannonball-size dent on the leading edge of the lead keel, it was clear that the impact was significant. The dent offered grim proof of the advantage of having soft lead instead of steel as keel ballast. New floor frames were added, the broken transverse members were replaced, and the boat was off and sailing. The next season, the boat had another Block Island encounter, and only because the Petersen-designed New York 40 was a pretty ruggedly built boat was a second repair even considered. This time, an equally violent keel-to-hull trauma came from an on-the-wind encounter with a different rock. The extent of the delamination was greater than it had been in the first go round, and more extensive core removal and repair was required. The keel was dropped in order to check the bolts and the garboard. With the bilge fully opened for the FRP repair work, the repair crew made a pattern of the canoe body dead rise and fore and aft contour. As the glass work was being completed, they fabricated a stainless-steel grid that would spread keel loads fore and aft as well as athwartship. The new grid reinforced the keel attachment and returned the sloop to the race course. Afterward, Naranjo and the owner discussed the details of the repair, including the possibility of hidden, widespread damage from the two groundings. These included the dynamic loads imposed upon the chainplates and rigging, the likelihood of hidden resin-cracking, and potential for more delamination and core shear linked to the torque induced by the accident. In short, any serious allision causes overt and hard-to-detect damage far from the actual impact zone, and these can lead to more problems down the road. When buying a used boat, look for a good pedigree, but also look for signs of previous blunt-force trauma. A good surveyor will be skilled in such structural forensics, and he or she will do more than comment on the gelcoat shine. In the early days of wooden ships and iron men, a lack of dense metal ballast put less point-loading in the garboard region of the hull. Bilges free of cargo were filled with rocks or tighter-fitting granite blocks cut for more compact stacking. The principal of ballasting a vessel was to lower her center of gravity (CG) and create both an increase in the righting arm and a greater righting moment to offset the heeling moment created by the rig and sail plan. The keel also helped lessen leeway and would evolve into an appendage that added lift. Movable ballast had a few downsides, not the least of which was its propensity to move in the wrong direction at the very worst moment. Even small boat sailors have found out what can happen to unsecured pigs of lead ballast when the boat heels far enough over for gravity to overcome friction. Whether stones, lead, movable water ballast, or a can’ting keel are used to augment the boats righting moment, a sailor must anticipate the worst-case scenario. This is when the weight ends up on the leeward side of the boat and a bad situation can turn into a real catastrophe. Fixing or locking ballast in place, controlling the volume of water put in ballast tanks, and limiting the can’ting keels range are sensible compromises. Internal ballast, the ballast inside a keel envelope thats contiguous with the hull, is still seen in many new boats. Island Packet is an example of a builder has stuck with this traditional approach of securing ballast without using keel bolts. Its a sensible design for shoal-draft cruisers, and the upsides are numerous. These high-volume, long-range cruisers arent encumbered by the demands prioritized by light displacement, performance-oriented sailors. Instead, Island Packets combine a rugged laminate and a long-footed, shallow-draft keel. This may not place the lead or iron ballast as deep as the tip of a fin keel, but it does keep the all-important CG low enough to deliver a powerful righting moment along with shoal draft. In order to deliver the high angle of vanishing stability (AVS) also known as limit of positive stability (LPS), designer Bob Johnson puts what amounts to an internal bulb in the very lowest point in the boat. This long slug of iron or lead (depending on the model) is then covered by Portland cement, locking it in the Island Packets monocoque structure. The result is a contiguous FRP structure spreading keel loads efficiently over a considerable amount of hull skin. Keel bolts and the infamous garboard seam are completely eliminated. This approach to sailboat keel design dates back to the Rhodes Bounty II and other prototypes in the production world of sailboats. Now over 50 years old, many of these boats continue to have a tenacious grasp on the lead or iron that they hold. Encapsulated iron ballast is much less desirable than encapsulated lead, and its sad to see builders skimp on this. Iron, or even worse steel, has been used in many Far Eastern encapsulated keels. It works as long as water and the resulting oxidation havent caused expansion and cracking of the seal. Lead is also denser than ferrous metal, and therefore, the same amount of ballast will have a smaller volume and create less drag. Encapsulated ballast starts to be less appealing as keels become more fin-like and high-aspect ratio. The reason for this is that the geometry of the support changes, focusing more load on less area of the hull. As hull shapes evolved into canoe underbodies with hard turns in the bilge, and fin-like keels became thinner, deeper, and with shorter chord measurements (thickness), the concept of encapsulated keel became impractical. The Cal 40, Ericson 39, Pearson 365, and a long list of similar genre boats signified the end of an era when performance racer/cruisers would be built with encapsulated ballast. External BallastPerformance-oriented sailors and race-boat designers quickly latched on to hull shapes marked by deep-draft, foil-shaped, high-aspect ratio fin keels. From the late 60s to whats currently glowing on CAD screens in designer offices around the world, keels have grown deeper and shorter in chord length, and bulb or anvil-like tips have grown more and more common. The design development was sound, lift was enhanced, and deeper-not longer-became the answer to getting to windward faster. The challenge was not only in designing an efficient shape, it lay in creating an attachment means that minimized foil flex and twist, retained the low drag coefficient, and still had the ability to withstand an occasional, albeit modest, grounding. During this same period, marine surveyors and boatyard techs began to see moderate groundings result in major structural problems. The classic example was the allision that produced a moderate dent in the lead at the leading edge of the keel tip. In many cases, further inspection revealed cracks radiating outward from a knot meter or depth sounder mistakenly placed just ahead of the keel. An even closer look often revealed grid damage or a cracked bulkhead just aft of the last keel bolt. Like the New York 40 mentioned earlier, this was a result of a shock wave radiating through the hull structure. As we learned in Mrs. McCrearys science class, Bodies in motion tend to stay in motion, unless acted on by an equal and opposite force. Fin keel sailboats encountering abrupt energy transfers,tend to endure more damage than their long-keel counterparts. A forensic look at the Achilles heel of external ballast highlights a few pitfalls. First the good news: Lead absorbs impact well, consuming much of the imparted energy through deformation. However, the translation of the remaining energy from the metal keel foil and keelbolts into an FRP hull is where we often find stress risers, and point loading linked to material and hull shape changes. The near right-angle interface between a modern sailboats canoe body and its deep fin keel is a classic load-path hotspot. In the old days, fiberglass techs spoke of oil-canning or the dimpling of a large section of the garboard as tacks were swapped. Today Naval Architects use Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to better engineer hull structure. Colorized graphics pinpoint load concentration, glowing bright red in the region where the keel joins the hull, the epicenter of the oil-canning. A common solution to coping with this high-load focal point, is to eliminate core in the region and to gradually increase the unit schedule (layers of FRP), or to add an internal FRP grid. Maximum thickness of a keel stub is located where the keelbolts penetrate the stub. In this region, the solid glass thickness is often equal to the dimension of the keel bolt diameter or even greater. Laminate thickness at the keel bolts is only part of the equation. Just as important is how the transition to the general hull laminate transpires. A bullet-proof keel stub that immediately transitions into a core hull comprising two units of laminate on each side of the panel creates whats equivalent to a tear-on-the-dotted-line weakness. Transitions that involve sharp angles and marked differences in panel strength require a well-reinforced taper that spreads loads gradually rather than abruptly. Occasionally, we see massive metal frameworks used in the bilge as support for keel bolts; these structures need to be carefully engineered to not create the same hard spot fracture points. When carefully tapered in order to gradually introduce more flex, the problem is abated, as it was in the repair of the New York 40 mentioned earlier. The stainless-steel grid built to support the keel loads incorporated a gradual decrease in stiffness to the framework. The keel was carefully mated to the underside of this grid to ensure full contact (See Keel Bolt Repair Options, online). As a result, the crew relieved the hard spots at the end points and made the transition to the more flexible FRP hull less dramatic. For cruisers, the take-away lesson is that extra reinforcement, a long garboard keel-to-hull interface, and internal transverse and longitudinal reinforcement really do pay off. Keep in mind that the extra weight this entails is all below the center of gravity and contributes to the secondary righting moment as well as keeping the water out. This is a big departure from the way many modern production boats are built. They carry a skimpy ballast ratio of 30 percent or less, have less structure to support the keel and are not designed to handle unintended cruising consequences. There are exceptions, and its worth looking at the keel design and structure of the Navy 44 Mark II and the USCG Leadership 44 (see PS, August 2012). These boats utilize external ballast and are examples of rugged keel attachment. They have a relatively long keel-to-stub garboard junction, the laminate scan’tling meets American Bureau of Shipping recommendations, and both utilize an overabundance of 316 stainless-steel keel bolts and an FRP grid to keep the keel where it belongs. There are many reasons why were seeing more keel problems today. On one hand, light, fast, race-boat design pushes the envelope, and thats probably OK. But when mainstream racer/cruisers start to suffer from lead loss, too much of one good thing (high-aspect ratio) and too little of another good thing (reinforcement) can begin creeping into design and construction. RELATED ARTICLES MORE FROM AUTHORLeave a reply cancel reply. Log in to leave a comment Latest VideosThe Perfect Family Sailboat! Hunter 27-2 – Boat ReviewPettit EZ-Poxy – How to Paint a BoatThe Boat From True Spirit – Sparkman & StephensTop 5 Boat Hacks – Boat Maintenance Tips and TricksLatest sailboat review. - Privacy Policy
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Superyacht sinks latest: Fifth body found in search today - six people now confirmed deadFive bodies have been found in the search for several people missing after a yacht sank off the Sicily coast, bringing the total number of dead to six. Search efforts are in their third day, after the captain was reportedly questioned by Italian prosecutors over the sinking. Wednesday 21 August 2024 22:03, UK Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player - Five bodies found in search for survivors, taking number of confirmed deaths in superyacht tragedy to six - with one person still missing
- Search ends for day as darkness falls
- Eyewitness: Onlookers wipe away tears as bodies hauled up
- Yacht's captain questioned for more than two hours - report
- Advanced underwater drone deployed
- Watch: CCTV captures yacht seconds before it sinks
- Explained: Inside the superyacht
- Live reporting by Mark Wyatt
We're pausing our coverage for tonight but here is a recap of what we know: - Five bodies have been found in the wreckage of the sunken Bayesian;
- Four of the bodies have been retrieved and recovered to shore. Efforts to recover the fifth will resume tomorrow;
- One person is still unaccounted for;
- Divers employed the use of an upgraded remote-controlled underwater vehicle to help with the search;
- Emergency service staff and others involved in the search and rescue operations formed a "guard of honour" as bodies were brought ashore;
- The UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) confirmed it is investigating the sinking;
- The Bayesian's captain, James Cutfield, was questioned for more than two hours by Italian prosecutors;
- An investigation might result in changes to how masts are constructed, according to a professor of transport law;
- Two crew members who survived the disaster reportedly said it is a "miracle" they are still alive;
- Another crew member who survived the disaster was confirmed as Dutch national Tjis Koopmans.
It's been a busy day for search and rescue teams as they continued their quest to find people unaccounted for from the Bayesian's sinking. Divers found five bodies, leaving just one person still unaccounted for when the search resumes tomorrow. Below, we have a look at some images of the day as it unfolded: Karsten Borner, the captain of a boat that came to the Bayesian's aide, has described the moment he came across the life raft containing survivors. The 69-year-old told Sky News he had been busy trying to secure his own vessel when the violent storm hit when he noticed the Bayesian had disappeared behind him. "We saw a flickering light and it turned out to be the life raft, a 12-person life raft with 15 people inside including one baby," he said. The people "stepped on" to his vessel, where he "took care of them". He added: "We gave them dry clothes, towels, blankets, tea and coffee and so on. "I was busy talking to the coastguard to get them an ambulance and to send a message to search and rescue." Those involved in the search and rescue operation looking for bodies should receive mental health support, an expert has told Sky News. Divers have been working tirelessly since Monday morning to find the passengers unaccounted for following the sinking of the Bayesian. Since then, six bodies have been found, with one person still missing. "There's been a lot of focus on the physical risks involved with diving for the vessel," says Matthew Schanck, chair of the Maritime Search and Rescue Council. "We've talked about debris and we've talked about the complex layout, but the lasting impacts on everybody involved is going to be on the mental health and we hope that the support is going to be there. "And I'm sure it will be for the emergency responders and also for the people who have survived and what is obviously been a very, very traumatic experience." Searches have finished for the day and will resume tomorrow, the head of Sicily's civil protection agency has told the PA news agency. Salvatore Cocina confirmed earlier that five bodies have been found today, but only four recovered. One person remains missing. A shipbuilding expert has said the Bayesian superyacht which sunk on Monday is among the "safest" available. Giovanni Costantino is the chief executive of The Italian Sea Group, which now owns the firm that previously built the yacht. He told Sky News this week's disaster off the coast of Sicily has put him "in a state of sadness on the one hand and of disbelief on the other". He said: "Being the manufacturer of Perini [boats] I know very well how the boats have always been designed and built." "The sailing ships, it is well known, are the safest in the most absolute sense," Mr Constantino added. "First of all, because they have very little surface compared to a yacht facing the wind. Second, with the structure, the drift keel... they become unsinkable bodies." The Bayesian sunk in the early hours of Monday morning off Palermo following a violent storm. Investigators looking into the sinking of the Bayesian must work through evidence "methodically and meticulously", says the managing director of a maritime consulting group. The UK's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has already confirmed it is investigating the incident. James Wilkes, a maritime investigator, told Sky News the investigation into the deaths of passengers will take time. "The key thing for the investigators is to work methodically and meticulously through the evidence that they are able to get and make sure they're not missing something or not over interpreting something," he said. Five bodies have been found today, bringing the number of confirmed deaths to six. "They'll want to expedite it because if bodies are being recovered of British nationals, then it is very likely that an inquest will be opened into their deaths in the UK," added Mr Wilkes. "There is no benefit to anybody rushing it. We need to arrive at the right conclusions with as little supposition and ambiguity as possible so that we actually make yachts safer in the future and actually understand what happened in detail." Search and rescue teams have been working hard since Monday morning to find those unaccounted after the sinking of the Bayesian. Specialists divers and experts have been called in, with coastguard helicopters and underwater remotely operated vehicles deployed to help. Sky News correspondent Laura Bundock has been taking a closer look at the how the recovery operation unfolded... A fifth body has been found today in the search for survivors of the sunken superyacht The head of Sicily's civil protection agency Salvatore Cocina said four bodies have been recovered and that efforts to bring a fifth to shore are "ongoing". It brings the number of confirmed deaths to six, after the body of the yacht's on-board chef was recovered shortly after the incident on Monday. By Ashna Hurynag , news correspondent The crowd on the harbourside has been growing since lunchtime. News that cave divers from Naples and Rome had joined the search came with more attention and interest. The search had entered its third day, and conservations were turning to fear about a lack of oxygen for those on board the sunken yacht. Radios were heard crackling across the water where a makeshift temporary search and rescue "centre" has been constructed. The white coastguard vessel and the search and rescue cream and red boat were coming in from the search site. As they docked, two divers dressed in orange wetsuits on the back of the boat lifted the first body bag. The sight causing the crowd opposite to fall silent. The poignancy of the sombre moment bringing some watching on to tears. Some looked away, whilst others filmed on their phones. The moment many had feared was unfolding before their eyes as the rescue mission only minutes ago quickly turned to recovery. The crowd watched on as another body was brought ashore too. A spontaneous guard of honour seemed to form as each body was brought to the harbourside - police officers, firefighters and search and rescue officials side by side, some with bowed heads - a moment of silence and respect. After hours of searching, this operation is coming to a close. Be the first to get Breaking News Install the Sky News app for free Attainable Adventure Cruising The Offshore Voyaging Reference Site - Surviving Storms While Coastal Cruising—21 Preparation Tips
In Part 1 I shared the strategies Phyllis and I used in over 30 years of voyaging to keep our boat safe from storms when coastal cruising, and in Part 2 we looked at how we selected anchorages or harbours when something nasty was on the way. Now let’s dig into getting ready for the storm. The good news is that over the years I have written articles and chapters to support most of the tips that follow. I am assuming that you have read our Anchoring Online Book, so I will not be duplicating anything about anchor gear selection or anchoring techniques here. Login to continue reading (scroll down) Please Share a Link: More Articles From Online Book: Heavy Weather Tactics:- Introduction—We Need A System
- Goals For A Heavy Weather System
- Rogue Waves Are Not Bad Luck
- Just Get a Series Drogue Designed By Don Jordan…Dammit!
- Jordan Series Drogue Attachments And Launch System
- Alternatives to Chainplates For Drogue Attachment…Or Not
- Jordan Series Drogue Retrieval System
- Jordan Series Drogue Retrieval—An Alternative From Hal Roth
- Series Drogue Durability Problems
- Battle Testing a Jordan-Designed Series Drogue—Round 1
- Battle Testing a Jordan-Designed Series Drogue—Round 2
- Real Life Storm Survival Story
- Series Drogues: Learning From Tony Gooch
- Series Drogues: Learning From Randall Reeves
- Retrieval of Dyneema (Spectra) Series Drogues Solved
- When Heaving-To Is Dangerous
- Stopping Wave Strikes While Heaved-To
- Determining When Heaving-To Is Dangerous
- Transitioning From Heaved-to To a Series Drogue
- Storm Strategy—Fore-Reaching
- Surviving A Lee Shore
- Storm Survival Secret Weapon: Your Engine
- Storm Survival FAQ
- Companionway Integrity In A Storm
- Q&A: Safety of Large Pilothouse Windows
- Surviving Storms While Coastal Cruising—12 Strategy Tips
- Surviving Storms While Coastal Cruising—9 Tips for Anchorage and Harbour Selection
- Gale And Storm At Anchor Or On A Mooring Check List
- Summary And Conclusions For Heavy Weather Offshore Section
5 Surprising Advantages of a Full Keel SailboatModern keel designs favor fin keels, with the high-performance boats using bulbs with narrow chord sections and deep drafts. Very few full keel designs are being built today, but there is a huge secondary market of used boats with full keels. Many ocean sailors swear by them and love their full keeled boats. There are reasons they love them. While fin and bulb keels outperform full keels in straight speed and performance, the full keel is not without benefits you can appreciate. Here are five distinct advantages of a full keel you may not know about. - Full keels provide better tracking
- Full keels are integral to the hull construction
- Better rudder and propeller protection
- Full keels are more comfortable
- They have less draft than fin keels
There are a lot of great cruising boats with full keel designs . Before you let someone talk you out of that sweet beauty because of her keel, look at some things that you might like about that full-figured boat. On this page:1. full keels provide better tracking, 2. full keels are integral to the hull construction, 3. better rudder & propeller protection, 4. full keels are more comfortable, 5. less draft as other designs (but as stable), other keel designs to consider. A boat with a full keel keeps sailing in the direction you point it. That big keel is a little harder to turn, and while that can make backing into a slip a bit of trouble, it helps to set up balanced boat trim. With correct sail trim on any boat, sailing can be a two finger affair and only need a light touch to keep the boat on the wind, on course and fast. Constant steering and adjustment of a boat's course slows you, as the rudder acts like a brake every time you turn it. A full keel helps, because of the boat's inherent ability to keep going straight. Setting up the rig and sails to get the boat to track like it’s on rails is a lot easier, and many full-keeled boats will sail themselves in moderate conditions with proper trim. Fin and bulb keels keels are more likely to spin out a little and require more correction. How does this help? At least three ways: - Fewer touches on the wheel is more boat speed . Yes, a full keel boat is slower that a fin because of the drag caused by the large wetted surface area of the keel, but keeping the boat sailing in the groove is much easier when the boat wants to keep going where you pointed it.
- It's easier on autopilots and wind-vane steering . The less you work your autopilot the better. From saving wear and tear on the machinery to avoiding overloads and over steering, the stability of the full keel helps. And wind-vane steering is a natural fit for most full keel boats, as their inherent course stability makes this a smart pairing.
- Heaving to . Stopping your boat is an important capability, whether it's to get some sleep or a shower when shorthanded, to make a repair, or to ride out a storm. Most full-keeled boats heave to easily, whereas some fin and bulb keels struggle and take more practice and still don't stop as well.
The keel and the boat are one. Well, not always one piece, but a full keel runs the length of the boat and is almost always integral to the hull construction. A grounding which rips a fin off a lighter boat may be just an inconvenience with a full keel. Full keels run over 50% of the length of the hull and are often integral to the hull construction, with ballast inside the keel. External keels have a much smaller attachment surface and rely on high tensile keel bolts and toughened structures to suspend the keel from the hull. Striking a rock or the bottom with a fin or bulb puts the shearing force from the collision on a smaller, more leveraged point on the hull, whereas a full keel disperses the force over most of the hull. While other keels are as strong and quite safe, the full keel is more resistant to these shearing and twisting forces because it spreads out the load. Grounded vessels with full keels will take less damage as the boat lies on its side waiting for the tide. Again it comes down to dispersing the load - putting the load of the grounded boat over a broader area reduces point loading and stress on any one component of the boat. Most full-keeled boats will just lie on their sides, waiting for the tide to come back in instead of tipping or rocking with swells and waves. Also, grounding may be easier or softer with a full keel. Most full keels keep running on a slope matching the curve of the hull - the transition from hull to keel is gradual, not sudden. If you hit the bottom, you aren't hitting it at a ninety-degree angle with your boat, you're hitting a ramp. The sudden stop will be more of a slide up than a slam, and this equals better protection in a grounding. It's virtually impossible to catch your rudder on kelp or lobster pots when it's attached to the full trailing edge of the keel. And a propeller in an aperture is well protected from passing snags. If you're not motoring, it's very unlikely anything will get sucked into that space and wrapped on your prop. It's not just protection from tangling and snags, either. Groundings can damage exposed spade and skeg rudders behind fin keels. Your full keel throws an enormous shadow for the more delicate parts of your underwater gear to hide behind, so they won't get damaged if you find the bottom. Coupled with the tracking a full keel gives you is improved lateral stability - you roll less. While any ballast below water stops rolling by adding leverage and righting moment, the full keel uses more than just weight to slow your roll. The shape of the keel - a broad surface in the water - inherently resists rolling forces. Righting Moment refers to a boat's tendency to come back up to upright when it's tipped or heeled. It's a combination of the movement of the center of buoyancy and the center of gravity of the boat as it tilts. More righting moment gives less heel angle. Offshore, this gives you a better feel, more sea comfort. And sea comfort not only makes your passages easier, but in rough conditions is a safety feature. Lighter boats with fins and bulbs will get tossed and rolled in chop and waves, and that motion is exhausting. Not only do you have to constantly adjust your stance, grip and seating to handle the motion, sleeping, eating and cooking is that much more difficult. Hours of sitting in the cockpit watching the autopilot in rough conditions can make your entire body feel you've been working out. You're always holding, bracing, and clenching something. A boat which makes the motions less violent and more natural will take that edge off. You won't have to hold and brace so much, and that keeps you from tiring as fast on watch. The other place you'll love the stability is at anchorThe ideal anchorage is flat, calm and beautiful. But everyone likes that anchorage, and boat traffic and wakes aren't uncommon. Weather and wind shifts can make a calm anchorage uncomfortable as fetch carries over the water and makes chop. And sometimes, you just have to stay in an anchorage that just isn't that comfortable because it's the only one there is and it has chop or roll. (Academy Bay, I'm talking to you!) That full keel stops a lot of roll and motion in the anchorage . Small fin-keeled boats thrash and roll violently when a big wake hits an anchorage, only the bigger, heavier boats are spared. But with a full keel you'll roll like a boat twice your size, spill a lot fewer drinks, and sleep better. The size of a full keel gives some stability; with added internal ballast you can get good stiffness and stability to the boat. Other keels don't have that same size and have to take alternative approaches to get the same stability. A fin or bulb keel is a lever against the forces above the waterline from the rig and sails trying to tip the boat. You counteract those forces with weight - ballast. With a lever, you can increase the righting force two ways - add more weight, or make the lever longer. A longer lever equals a deeper keel. Deeper draft equates to better sail performance and righting moment, but you can get the needed stability on a full-keeled boat with less draft . Fin and bulb keels are deeper to get the extra righting forces they can't get from the longer, full keel. Trends in modern keel design have led to deeper and deeper drafts, which close off some waters to some boats and make navigation trickier. Two or three feet of extra draft can close you out of a lot of anchorages and gunkholes. There are dozens of keel types out there and all serve a different purpose and excel under different conditions. To understand which keel type is best for your situation , I recommend you read our Illustrated Guide to Sailboat Keel Types , which contains the fundamentals of keel design and an overview for each keel type's characteristics (including diagrams). It will help you understand which keel designs to consider in ten minutes or less. Leave a commentYou may also like, sailboat keel types: illustrated guide (bilge, fin, full). The keel type is one of the most important features of your boat. But the different designs can be confusing, so I've set out to create a very clear guide that will … 13 Popular Full Keel Sailboats Worth ConsideringWhat's the Best Keel Design for Bluewater Sailing?The Minimum Water Depth for Different Types of BoatsWhat's the Largest Sailboat You Can Trailer? |
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Here are 13 good full keel sailboats that are worth considering: Nicholson 32. Island Packet 380. Folkboat 25. Cape Dory 36. Vancouver 32. Freya 39. Wylo 2. Tradewind 33.
A list of 10 small sailboats that are easy to trailer, rig, and sail, and offer fun and versatility. Some models have full keel, centerboard, or kick-up rudders, and can accommodate different numbers of people and budgets.
Learn about the pros and cons of small sailboats for bluewater cruising, and see examples of five models with full keels. Find out why smaller boats are slower, simpler, and more affordable, but also less spacious and comfortable.
The Catalina 16.5 sits right in the middle of Catalina Yachts' line of small sailboats, which range from the 12.5 to the 22 Capri and Sport, and it comes in both an easy-to-trailer centerboard model and a shoal-draft fixed-keel configuration.
Discover why bigger isn't always better, with these 8 small sail boats — perfect for learning to sail, racing and getting your thrills on the water!
What is a pocket cruiser? It's a small trailerable sailboat, typically under 30 feet in length, that's ideal for cruising big lakes, bays, coastal ocean waters, and occasionally bluewater cruising. Pocket cruisers are usually more affordable, compact, and offer a level of comfort that's comparable to bigger liveaboards.
The Sabre 27 is a fiberglass sailboat that was produced by the Sabre Yachts company in the 1970s. The Sabre 27 has a length of 27 feet (8.2 meters) and a beam (width) of 9 feet (2.6 meters). The boat has a displacement of 6,800 pounds (3,084 kilograms) and is equipped with a fin keel. Hull Type: Fin and skeg-hung rudder.
On a small sailboat you can connect with the sea, feeling the boat move beneath you. The boat is typically easy to rig, simple to sail, and can even be sailed solo. Small sailboats give you the freedom to trailer your or car-top your boat and go anywhere, and they're perfect for learning the nuances of sailing. There are many excellent brands and models of small sailboat, each with their own ...
There's nothing like a list of best small sailing boat designs to get the blood pumping. Everyone has their favourites, and everyone has their pet hates. This is my list of the 25 best small sailing boat designs, honed down from the list of 55 yachts I started with.
Nicholson 35. Now somewhat legendary, the tough and dependable Nicholson 35 first appeared in 1971, and between then and 1985, some 228 boats were launched. Built to Lloyds' specifications with a hand-laid solid GRP hull, she boasts a fully encapsulated lead fin keel and full-depth skeg. She has an alluring sheer with nicely balanced ...
Learn what makes a small bluewater sailboat seaworthy and safe for offshore cruising. Discover five models with full keel, from Albin Vega 27 to Baba 30, with photos and stories from sailors.
Easy to rig, simple to toe, compact, manageable, maintainable, and affordable, all the perfect small sailboats have one thing in common: they always provide
Looking for a sailboat but don't want to bear the high costs? The best bluewater sailboats under 24 feet are trailerable and require low maintenance.
If you want to navigate the seas without breaking the bank, you do need the best budget small cruiser sailboats, perfect for both novices and seasoned sailors.
Conclusion: Choosing the best small sailboat under 20 feet when you are getting ready to sail ultimately depends on your preferences and sailing goals. The Hunter 17 offers a spacious cockpit and stability, making it an excellent choice for families and beginners. On the other hand, the O'Day Javelin focuses on simplicity and affordability ...
The most common sailboat keel types are full-length keels, fin keels, bulb keels, wing keels, bilge keels, and lifting keels. Full keels are popular among cruisers, while fin keels are generally used for racing. Bilge keels and lifting keels are typically used in tidal waters, on small fishing boats for example.
List of the best small 30-35' full keel cruising boats based on traditional designs.. ... « Ranger 29 V-berth Question | Nauticat Performance?
A sailboat's keel plays a significant role in its overall stability, performance, and comfort. It helps you maintain balance, steer your boat, and improve your boat's sailing efficiency. Sailboat keel types impact not only the performance and handling of your sailboat but also its suitability for different sailing conditions.
Devlin Boats, Sailboats. The Lit'l Coot 18 Full Keel is a is seaworthy and capable motorsailor with enough space on board for the organized sailor and enough potential to keep serious travelers satisfied. She is the sister to the original Lit'l Coot with the same hull and the same tendency for balanced performance and maximal use of space ...
And the excuse is better than any: The Tempest, like Medicare and Medicaid, turned 50 this year. It's perhaps the best small keelboat you never sailed. It was used in the Olympic Games in 1972 and 1976, and once enjoyed worldwide popularity. Today it's mainly Europeans who keep the flag flying; in the United States the class is a faint ...
When a keel tears away from a sailboats hull, it makes the loss of a rig or rudder seem like a minor inconvenience. History shows that its an uncommon occurrence, but because we now annually hear of such incidents, weve decided to take a closer look at keels and see what keeps the ballast where it belongs.
MacGregor boats have proven very popular trailerable boats, selling over 38,000 boats during the company's lifetime. The Mac 26 differs from many small sailboats by two things - water ballast for stability, and the ability to take what is, by small sailboat standards, a massive outboard engine.
Superyacht sinks latest: Fifth body found in search today - six people now confirmed dead. Five bodies have been found in the search for several people missing after a yacht sank off the Sicily ...
In Part 1 I shared the strategies Phyllis and I used in over 30 years of voyaging to keep our boat safe from storms when coastal cruising, ... say a dragger gets our rode between its keel and rudder, ... it's worth having dive masks to hand since once the wind gets to full storm force it's impossible to look upwind without eye protection.
A full keel helps, because of the boat's inherent ability to keep going straight. Setting up the rig and sails to get the boat to track like it's on rails is a lot easier, and many full-keeled boats will sail themselves in moderate conditions with proper trim.