The day after that last post, the boat went in the water again for another quick dip. We were planning to leave it in the water after its test, tied to the West Cove Boatyard pier for a week or two, but the weather forecast was going downhill. With 20 to 25 knot wind forecast out of the north – for three days – it did not seem like such a good idea. The worst of the wind was forecast for the holiday when nobody would be around to even check on things. It’s a well protected cove, but north wind is exactly the worst direction, so together the decision was made to get the boat back onto land that same day. But we sure did have fun!
Photo credit: Suzanne Jean

The mast went up, the motor went down, and Christopher (West Cove Boatyard owner, and engineer), Kyle (who has done a lot of the recent building on the boat), and I set out for the slightly more open water to find a breeze. We didn’t plan to sail – no rigging yet – but wanted to see how the motor would perform now that it’s deeper in the water, and with the boat working against the wind. Photo credit: Suzanne Jean

Photo credit: Shemaya Laurel

I’m very happy to say that this sea trial was quite successful. Besides being lower in the water, the motor now has a cable turning system, so its angle can be adjusted from inside the cockpit. That’s really helpful for counteracting the motor being located so far off to the side of the transom. Interestingly, the ideal orientation of the motor changes quite a bit depending on the orientation of the boat to the wind. I suppose one could have predicted that – either way, it made the fussy engineering for the motor-turning arrangement feel quite worthwhile.

The other good news is that we were able to maintain full control of the boat even after we got out into a little bit of breeze. Moderately increasing the throttle took care of steering problems in the wind; with the motor so much deeper in the water than it was during our first test, we made plenty of headway – about 2.5 knots, without strain – so the rudder had a good grip. This was quite a change from the previous outing, when in a virtually identical breeze – approaching 10 knots, with a little bit of waves coming the long way up Frenchman Bay – we had to turn back because we couldn’t make enough headway through the water, and steering was not reliable against the wind and waves. Having repositioned the motor bracket so the propeller is further below the surface has made all the difference.

It did become clear during this trial that setting the boat up with two motors would make a lot more sense than the current arrangement. It has been suggested that an alternative would be to put the motor in the middle of the transom, and have two rudders instead, on either side. This approach would also address the motor offset issues.

However, the present rudder mounting has been quite a project. More on that in another post, but it has lacing instead of gudgeons and pintles, and we’ve gone through quite a process to get this something like right. It would be easier the second time, but you just hate to tear something off and redo what has been such a job. Besides that, two motors will help a lot with tight maneuvering in a crosswind or current, and motor redundancy is a nice thing, especially with a boat that, with all those broad surfaces above the water, is not going to be the most agile creature under sail.

The other Torqeedo issue is the problem of picking up weed on the propeller, and we got a good test of that also. The cove from which we set out has quite a bit of floating, unattached rockweed, and we did indeed have complications with propeller tangles. More tools were in order for dealing with this, and fortunately the boatyard has a barge on a mooring a little further out from shore. Rather than going back to the dock – and having to get in and back out through the weedy section again – Christopher suggested we could go to the barge, and there find a boat hook, a suitable knife, and some tape. Naturally, once we had gotten those things and Christopher had assembled them, we did not pick up another clump of weed for the entire rest of the outing. Photo credit: Shemaya Laurel

I really loved the way GREAT AUK’s square bow could go right up to the side of the work barge.

Those first two times of picking up rockweed clumps on our way out had meant that we had to stop entirely, raise the motor, and scramble to reach the propeller. Once the propeller picks up a significant clump of weed the motor is pretty much ineffective, so there’s no ignoring it. There was some hope that with the motor deeper in the water, and the rockweed floating, that the propeller would miraculously pass beneath without picking it up. Sadly this does not seem to be the case. On AUKLET, with its smaller Torqeedo clamped right onto the transom, clearing weed isn’t so hard. This new situation is going to require a different approach.

Fortunately, just in the last few weeks I was reminded again about folks who deal with stray lines in their sailboat propellers by having a serrated knife taped onto something like a broomstick – pretty much like what Christopher also thought to put together. They keep that tool always assembled, so it is handy when needed. With all of this fresh in mind, I am thinking it’s exactly the way to go for this Torqeedo weed issue. Then the inevitable tangles can be cut away maybe even without raising the motor, which would save a lot of effort. (It does make the case for sailing everywhere, which completely bypasses this problem.)

On this trip we also happened to have a nice push broom on board. Kyle stationed himself at the bow, broom in hand, as we went back into the cove that had so much weed. Between steering to miss the big clumps, and Kyle’s efforts, we got back to the dock without further problems. It was a lot of fun seeing that trick with the broom work – kind of like curling!
Photo credit: Suzanne Jean

The other system we were testing with this trip had to do with the rudder. This rudder is “balanced,” meaning part of its area is forward of the axis of rotation for the rudder. When done just right, this balanced design takes strain off of the steering, so the person at the tiller or the wheel doesn’t have to work so hard. The crucial question is how much balance is enough, without being too much and causing other problems.

When we did the first test launch, it was quite striking how heavy the steering was. In discussing this with Dave Zeiger, the designer of Triloboats, I learned more about balance, and a simple approach to adjust the shape of the lower rudder so it can swing further forward. A small change in that pivot angle moves a significant amount of rudder area forward of the vertical hinge that the rudder turns on. The question is how much of the lower rudder hook to remove, keeping in mind that it’s better to take too little than too much. It’s so much easier to take away more later, than to put any of it back!
Drawing: Christopher Lariviere

With all this in mind, in the intervening time between the first launch and this one, a 1 inch sliver was taken off the curve of the lower rudder. Epoxy was applied, to keep everything sealed, and we gave it a try.

I think that the steering is now a little easier than it was, but it’s still pretty heavy. So another sliver will be coming off, and it will be interesting to see how we do. Along with this rudder shape adjustment, the boat is also going to be getting wheel steering. The engineering for that is providing some puzzles, but we are working on it. In the meantime, we have the tiller, and we are gradually making progress toward really workable steering.

GREAT AUK is now snug on land, and everybody has gone off for the Thanksgiving holiday (and to watch the wind blow). We have made some headway on crucial information, and got to have loads of fun while we were at it. It was a real treat to be out on the water on November 26th – this is incredibly late in the season for recreational boats in downeast Maine. The day was warmish, in the 40s Fahrenheit, and with the sun, and that nice cabin, it was quite delightful. The possibilities are really opening up.
Photo credit: Shemaya Laurel

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GREAT AUK is a variation on the SHANTY T24x8 Triloboat design, by Dave Zeiger. For more information on Dave’s designs, see http://www.Triloboats.com
(Patsy, there you go!)

The Next Boat has come a long way since the last writing. There has been test launching, and work on both motor and mast raising systems.

Photo credit: Jon Mickel

GREAT AUK has gone into the water once so far, for the purpose of testing the rudder and electric outboard. The leeboards – which are simple plywood prototypes – were also tested, though not under sail. Still, with that flat bottom in a crosswind the boards made a huge difference with holding course. The boat tracks pretty well, with or without the boards down, but in a crosswind putting them down makes a major difference in leeway even under power. That big cabin is quite a sail in its own right.

We positioned the motor off to the side quite a bit, in order to avoid unhappy clashes between propeller and rudder. Photo credit: Suzanne Jean

This arrangement is not ideal for steering, requiring turning the rudder a good bit in order to steer straight, or turning the motor quite a bit to compensate for that side position; either approach wastes a lot of power. The possibility of a second motor to be mounted on the other side of the stern, to balance everything out, is under serious consideration. It has been pointed out to me – thank you Tim – that a second motor would also really improve control for getting in and out of docks, given all the windage on this boat. A decision will be made before the big 10% spring sale at Defender Marine (nope, not receiving anything for that mention).

Those studying the above photo carefully might also notice that the motor really is not deep enough in the water. The bracket has since been moved down.

One of the other interesting motor issues, discovered in that big test, has been the enormous strength of the springs in the motor bracket. This bracket was chosen because it has the greatest range of travel, moving the motor up and down by about 15 inches, to get the motor out of the water when it’s not in use, and deep enough down when it is. But the bracket is designed for enormous heavy gasoline outboards that can weigh as much as 150 pounds. With a 40 pound Torqeedo on that bracket, pushing the motor down against the springs and into its operating position required two strong boatyard guys, and even for them it was awkward and difficult.

After a good bit of puzzling by everybody, my friend Tim suggested removing the springs entirely, which seemed ideal; this just left the question of how to remove them – not always a simple proposition, with heavy springs under tension. Christopher, who runs the boatyard, came up with the idea of carefully and evenly grinding the coils of each spring, side to side, until it became thin enough to completely relax. This worked well, without drama. There were two springs, and the second one was ground and removed in the same way. Now the bracket can be operated with a handy billy, a small block and tackle fastened to the back of the cabin top overhang, for lifting the motor and bracket into its upper storage position and for letting it down.

I do want to emphasize, in case anybody thinks about trying this themselves, that strong springs can be extremely hazardous. Wear a face shield! And I’m not recommending this at all… Just saying what we did. This was a “torsion spring” – the approach may be completely inappropriate for springs that work in other directions.

Meanwhile, since that first water test the mast has been installed on the tabernacle, along with a worm gear winch for raising and lowering. Photo credit: Suzanne Jean [That’s Christopher, doing the honors.]

I’m quite happy about this arrangement. It’s incredibly easy to put the mast up and down, which means that going under low bridges will be very straightforward. That will come in handy, in protected coastal waters for which the boat is designed. Canals have also been mentioned…

The mast winch has a gear ratio of 30:1, which is more than needed, but appeared to be the only option for a winch using a worm gear rather than ratchets (ratcheting winches are the kind generally seen on boat trailers). The worm gear is especially appealing for good control when lowering the mast. You have to crank it down, as well as up, but this also means that the mast will not fall, and it will not spin the winch handle if somebody lets go – there is so much friction in a worm gear, that it holds itself in place whenever the handle is not being turned. Previous dramas with boat trailer winches and wildly freewheeling handles, especially when launching, were high in mind when putting this together. Again thanks to Christopher, in this design process. That worm gear was a brilliant suggestion.

Best of all, this winch can also be turned with a cordless drill. This comes in handy, because the downside of a 30:1 gear ratio is the zillion number of times the crank must be turned in order to carry out the operation. Here’s the link for the winch that we got:
https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer_Winch/Dutton%7ELainson/DL10950.html
and the attachment so you can use a cordless drill:
https://www.etrailer.com/Accessories_and_Parts/Dutton%7ELainson/DL406102.html

And here’s the link for the slightly more expensive winch version that has the hex shaft already built in. We got another one of these winches for moving things at home, after seeing how well the one for the mast worked. If I were doing it over, the second one with the built in hex shaft is what I would put on the boat too. The biggest advantage of this second one is that the crank comes off easily when you are not using it, along with the low fuss connection for using a drill to turn it.
https://www.etrailer.com/Trailer_Winch/Dutton%7ELainson/DL11011.html

Neither of these winches is technically a saltwater piece of equipment. But they are powder coated, and expected to be used outdoors. It’s an experiment, seeing how this will hold up. Healthy doses of lanolin spray lubricant are part of the plan.

Turning these winches with a drill also involves having a “socket adapter” that makes it possible to attach a regular ratchet wrench socket to the drill. It’s a simple gadget – and surprisingly hard to replicate with stuff around the house. Here’s an example: https://www.harborfreight.com/hex-drill-socket-driver-set-3-pc-68513.html They are widely available, once you know what you’re looking for.

Just to be clear, I’m not receiving anything from anybody for sharing the links above – they are included for readers’ convenience, in case anybody wants to find this stuff, or would just like to see more pictures to illustrate the discussion.

The mast swings up and down on a 1/2 inch stainless pin that goes crossways through the tabernacle. We ended up needing to put the hole for that pin a little close to the forward edge of the tabernacle, so a couple of bronze straps have been added, in hopes of preventing catastrophe in case of a hard knock. Once the mast is up, a lower retaining pin holds it in place. The mast is raked forward, as is typical for a junk rig. Photo credit: Suzanne Jean Photo credit: Suzanne Jean

So that’s where we are now. The cabin was getting a berth, a couple of days ago: Photo credit: Suzanne Jean

Photos of the entire construction process can be seen on this smugmug photo page, which is periodically updated (click on the photo below to open the smugmug page – for some reason the link is not shown as text):

There are captions below those smugmug photos, if you look down a little extra, for anybody who wants more information about them.

The sail is being borrowed from AUKLET, but rigging won’t happen until the spring when the boat goes into the water in Joy Bay. The boat will be spending the winter at the boatyard. This will allow for some more work to take place over there, and will keep it safe from falling trees that could be an issue in the place where we could park it here at home.

Spring can’t come soon enough!

Photo credit: Jon Mickel

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Thanks to Bill Whalen for this post getting done… “Blog you must.” ;-)