S2 6.7 Junk Rig Conversion

  • 12 Sep 2019 14:41
    Reply # 7877514 on 6872873
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Its not easy to weigh a mast so I have only an estimate of the  weight of mine - 25 kg at least, and maybe getting towards 30kg. It ended up much heavier than I wanted, and much much heavier than the mast plus rigging it replaced. The boat is only 1700 lb and has no ballasted keel, only a centre board. (There may be a little bit of ballast in the stub.) Anyway, for what that is worth, surprisingly to me, the mast does not seem too heavy, she stands up quite well in a breeze - though it is about the limit for me these days, for stepping. [edit: I can do it though - I have a good tabernacle. For a younger person 30kg would be "up there", but OK I think provided it is being raised in a tabernacle.]

    If your 28' lamp post weighs 35 kg then by simple proportion cutting it down to 24' will bring it to something like (24/28)*35 = 30 kg. (Maybe a little under that, since you will be cutting off the heavy end.)

    James G is carrying a 37kg mast on his 19' (1200 lb) River Rat and says it is too heavy, though he is sailing with it.

    I agree with Arne, but would go further: don't cut the mast at all until you have made the sail and hoisted it high enough to be out of the lifts and lazy jacks. Then you can take the mast down and cut off what you don't need, from the bottom end allowing a little extra, as Arne suggests. Don't cut it too short, is the lesson I learned.

    Last modified: 12 Sep 2019 21:41 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 12 Sep 2019 14:12
    Reply # 7877467 on 6872873
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Scott,

    if the price is good and if the boat were mine, I might still jump at it. There are three reasons for it:

    • The boat is not to be crossing oceans or win races.
    • The boat is so light that body weight will have a significant effect on keeping it upright.
    • This mast will still be much lighter related to the boat than the wooden masts of my Malena (her about 85kg mast was 6.1% and her hollow 70kg mast was 5%)

    The solid mast really was too heavy, for sure. The 70kg mast (1400kg boat) was still not ideal, but I could live with it in lack of anything better.

    I would therefore not call a 35kg mast a show-stopper. However, you are to raise and lower that mast before and after each sail, right? Then I guess 35kg would feel on the heavy side.

    Arne

    PS: When cutting down the lamp post to fit your rig, I think you can safely cut from the thick end. Leave a mast about 1-2 feet longer than you think you need, and then trim it down after having gone for a few sails. It's easier to subtract length from a mast than adding more to it...

    Last modified: 13 Sep 2019 14:11 | Anonymous member (Administrator)
  • 12 Sep 2019 13:56
    Reply # 7877444 on 6872873

    Hi David,

    I have an article about Ming Ming II that describes an 8" lamp post being used. I have not been able to find details on the wall thickness of this mast.

    Thank you for the quick helpful response. I found a comment from Arne about mast weight as a percent of displacement here.

    Arne said, "My experience is that I will keep the weight of the mast below 3% (better 2.5%) of the boat’s displacement - and then pile on maximum sail area on that stick."

    So for my 2200lbs boat I need to keep the mast at 55 lbs ideally and 66lbs as an absolute maximum. A quick look with the Junk Rig Calculation Tools tells me that this lamp post will weigh 35.7kg or 78.7 lbs.

    Seems too heavy, I think?

    I do not have an immediate idea how to estimate the weight if I cut it down to something like 24ft, which I expect may be enough.

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    Last modified: 12 Sep 2019 13:59 | Anonymous member
  • 12 Sep 2019 08:37
    Reply # 7877161 on 6872873

    If I remember correctly, Roger Taylor put a 8in mast into Mingming II, and was a bit nervous that it would 'look' too big, but when the boat was launched and sailing, he no longer thought that.

    I'm happy that my 7in mast can take anything that I can throw at it, so there's no need for the extra diameter in your case. That said, if you were to make an all-wood mast, it would be about 8in at the partners, and probably heavier than the tube that's available to you. If that tube complies with Arne's "% of the displacement" rule, it should be OK. My only other thought is that the tabernacle will have to be large to accommodate it, and take up more room inside the cabin.

  • 12 Sep 2019 01:45
    Reply # 7876901 on 6872873

    Does anyone have an opinion on using the following for a mast stepped in a tablernacle:

    Aluminum alloy tube (specific alloy unknown)

    28 feet in length

    8 inch diameter at the bottom

    4.5 inch diameter at the top

    1/8 inch thick wall

    I was considering a 6 or 7 inch diameter tube. This 8 inch tube has become available locally at a price I like.

    Scott.

    Last modified: 12 Sep 2019 02:06 | Anonymous member
  • 29 Aug 2019 02:47
    Reply # 7854356 on 6872873

    I think I have something more like proletarian paralysis. I ran out of epoxy and I have been working long hours recently. The few places that sell west system do not open early enough for me to go before work and they do not stay open late enough for me to go in the evening. It is a lot easier to find time to read these forums and guess about problems that may or may not exist.

    Today I was able to pick up more epoxy. I now have the top section of the mast step screwed and glued together in the garage. I am almost ready to glue the bottom section, layer by layer, in the boat!

    I do appreciate the points raised by Graeme and Arne. Failing and failing fast is often the most effective way to get something done successfully. Thank you for the advice.

    Last modified: 29 Aug 2019 13:33 | Anonymous member
  • 27 Aug 2019 14:27
    Reply # 7851336 on 6872873
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Analysis paralysis,

    what a great word! I don’t dare to think of all the projects which has been slowed down or stopped by AP. When I get attacked by AP, I try to be stubborn and keep on. I have found that I learn at least as much when I get things wrong as when I get it right, first time.

    I recently came to this conclusion:

    It is surprising how much we can achieve if we ignore how little we understand.

    Arne

     


  • 27 Aug 2019 00:37
    Reply # 7850704 on 6872873
    Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Sometimes it pays not to think and worry too much. I have this problem - a fellow junkie described it as "analysis paralysis". Your trailer worries turned out to be no problem at all. I am sure your rig will be the same - an awful lot just depends on the hull itself anyway and your little boat is going to scoot along just fine.

  • 26 Aug 2019 13:44
    Reply # 7849288 on 6872873
    I have been reading the topic titled A Question of Balance. It seems I made a bad assumption about the rig I am building. I thought adding long batten parrels, and a running tack parrel, to one of Arne's master sails would allow me to cant the sail fore and aft and set the sail with more balance when running down wind.

    Arne said, "My Johanna-style sail can hardly be set with much more than 17% balance."

    I thought I would be be able to move the yard sling point forward of the center to adjust how much the foot of the sail 'wants' to move forward as I ease out the running tack parrel. Is this wrong?

    Also: I went sailing. I like sailing.

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    Last modified: 26 Aug 2019 22:37 | Anonymous member
  • 11 Aug 2019 23:28
    Reply # 7823043 on 6872873

    The time is here. Tomorrow starts the week I set aside to start sailing my newly converted junk rigged trailer sailer! Back on February 10th when I ordered the WeatherMax 6.5 it seemed like a reasonable plan.

    In reality I was able to construct what I think is a functional sail and about half of a mast step. This is a long way off from 'ready to sail'.

    After so much time invested I find it difficult to explain to my friends and neighbors how all this nonsense I am doing in the driveway adds up to 'easier' sailing. They say things like, 'If the sail you made is so much better, then why wasn't the boat built that way in the first place?'

    I remain committed! I think summer 2020 sometime is still likely. I really hope it does not slip all the way to 2021.

    Scott.

       " ...there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in junk-rigged boats" 
                                                               - the Chinese Water Rat

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