Now that is how you show photos of model boats! Crop the photo or use a zoom/telephoto lens to bring the subject in close leaving a little water around the edge. Thanks for doing that.
Lew
Florida ⛱️, USA 🇺🇸
A bit more video of a friend sailing my boat for the first time in VERY light air while I took a bit of film. A few initial teething problems with the running rigging ended this session but she does look and go well. This is a 60" J class from Alan Horne at jclasshulls.co.uk
The prototype J Class yachts were a class for the Americas Cup back in the 1930s. They were over canvassed and could only sail in less than 20 mph winds!
All of the original were metal hull yachts using the rising aircraft industry design teams for maximum strength against lightness of hull. In the case of the British Endeavour of 1934 she also had to be sailed across the Atlantic to get to the competition! If you look aft on the yacht there is a discrete black hole and this is where the mizzen mast was set for the journey.
The class had a formula which traded off hull length against sail area plus some stuff in between. A couple of hulls have recently been built one of laminated wood but otherwise those 'rescued' have had to be re-fitted to modern standards.
The Endeavour now has an engine with prop in the cut out rudder area and floats a foot lower on the waterline.
One of my yachts is the 1 : 35 scale Amati Endeavour kit modified to take to the water and I found the quadrilateral jib makes her look really good on the water. But as I say there is so much sail are that even at this size there is too much. I set her up to run with local expected breezes without the quad sail and she goes well. When there is a light breeze the quad can go on and I use the rudder to give some weather helm so she is under control.
It can be seen from the hull design that the rudder is sloped away at an acute angle and this can be a problem! Consider the hull heeled over 20 degress and you will see the rudder no longer operates in a directional way but just makes the aft of the yacht rise up and down, so you have lost control!
Therefore the yacht needs to be operated close to the vertical position. The extreme of this is the modern planing cup yachts which only work upright with a mainsail angle of just a few degrees.
I have added the 3rd. photo as it shows the detail of the mast. On the model this is a 'stressed' ally extrusion mast. The cross-trees are scale and the wire shrouds do strengthen the mast. The mast and sails are stored separately in a sail box.
When on static display I have a crew, nice and easy at this scale! There was a class system among the crew, the floppy (Rupert the bear) white hats are the crew the proper seamans caps are the officers. When at sea there were 22 crew on board I have about 9 on show. Ca'nt afford any more.
This is my first attempt at building a boat and is based on TOPAZ (J8). The hull/basic kit is from jclasshull.co.uk and the sails from PJsails. My biggest mistake is to make her too heavy but I can't remove ballast, besides that she goes REALLY well. I am still fiddling with the tuning to remove the Lee helm and have already got her neutral. : ) The remote movable Genoa clew carriages are proving to offer brilliant control over the Genoa leech, powering up or down as required.
That’s a very sleek yacht and sails beautifully. I notice that you are sailing close hauled in several directions, what she like on a reach or run? There’s a fair breeze there, do you foresee having to replace the genoa with a jib in a blow?
Hello Frankiesays, you are right, since that video I have moved the mast top backwards due to a pretty strong Lee helm which has worked a treat, she is pretty neutral now. Trying to sail and hold the camera meant sail trimming wasn't the best however broad reaching she looks and goes beautifully, straight downwind = no nose dives so far and very controllable. I have a jib which is about 20% smaller than the Genoa which I have yet to try but am still learning to work with the rig as it is at the moment.
Aucklands' classic wooden boat festival ,1,2,3 March
Was invited to take my restored 1970s 12ft racing yacht (red and white one-93 at 1:3) down to put in the display this afternoon, at the Viaduct Event Center In Auckland, and decided to get some pics of the boats on and off water before the crowds come over the next 3 days. Lots of beautiful restored yachts and launches, as well as smaller racing and sailing dinghies. A couple of NZ designed and built Chris Craft copies inside as well. Also steam launches and a few models.
The boat at 1:54 and 3:12 does not have the usual V8 as you would expect, but has a 4 cyl Mercruiser motor, not as the drive motor, but as a generator running 3 high output alternators powering an electrical system for twin electric motors, (round black objects seen in pic, in front of petrol motor). Shafts run each side of petrol motor, Has large control boards on each side for each motor. Boat and laminated wooden trailer designed and built by the owner, Took 2000hrs to build,- absolutely immaculate workmanship.
Also a short vid on an Auckland ferry trip I took while waiting for the liner Queen Victoria to
depart
JB
What a fantastic event at one of the best harbours in the world !.
Looking forward to seeing the SailGP down in CHCH (Lyttleton) 23-24March😊😀😁
Stay safe JP 😎
Although the Moonbeam was a classic looking yacht, it was certainly over canvas. Therefore I decided to re-rig it with a Nottingham J class second set of sails. It seems well balanced and still looks like a classic yacht. The video is from its first sail.
Andy,
Part of my message was omitted. It should read -
You will see that the email addresses are slightly different. Not sure which one to use but I was successful with the first one and that is the one that I have listed in my 'Contacts'.
Derek.
The sails look good and your Moonbeam sails well. However, I think you have lost the original charm of a superb yacht that sails well in most winds. We have 3 Moonbeam yachts in our Club and they look stunning under full sail as intended.
The " J Class " model yacht here was filmed at Mill Rythe with the Hayling Island Model Boat Club.
Many thanks to owner Greg and all the members for their hospitality. !
Just a fun project to use up some old radio gear , single for steering only, or two channel if you want to include a sail winch.
Great for when the pond is full of weed - Also if no wind , stick a motor on the front or back !.
Just have fun !
In the 1940s and 50s, many traditional Thames Sailing barges were converted into motor barges. This is a model, based on photos and my memory of the 'Nellie'. The sailing barge 'Nellie' was built by Cremers at Hollowshore, Faversham in 1901,. She traded under sail carrying about 90 tons of cargo around the Thames, Medway and Swale until about 1952 and then had the gear taken out, a Chrysler Crown petrol/paraffin motor installed and carried on trading for some years owned by R.Lapthorne & Co of Hoo on the River Medway.. She was eventually sold out of trade and is now privately owned. She has been rerigged with a reduced sailing barge rig without a topsail. My model is based on a 30" barge hull from Dave Watts Mastman.
NOTE More information from Nerys - read on ........
Hi Phil,
I'll just add a little more information to that. I was Nellie's skipper in the mid 50's for a few years. We were based at Hoo on the Medway and carried cargoes around the Medway, Swale, Thames and Colne. Regular trips were such as ballast from Fingringhoe on the Colne to Hoo, sand from Upnor on the Medway to the Ford works at Dagenham, fertilizers from London to Faversham and Queenborough, wheat from London docks to Whitstable and more or less anything that could be carried between ships in the London docks to anywhere in the Estuary. We were paid by the freight. Half the value of the carriage charges going to the owners and the other half to the crew, shared 2/3 for the skipper, 1/3 for the mate, Then fuel and other expenses were divided up similarly.
Nellie, of all the barges I served on was the one I liked best. She was the smallest, but there was just something about her. However as a footnote, in the 1970's I built a forty three foot schooner rigged barge yacht in the same yard as Nellie was built.
Yes, Nellie visited Buxton. We had been on holiday in the Lake District and on the way home, made a diversion into Buxton. We were made most welcome by the members we met and particularly by Phil and Graham. Enjoyed a nice little sail with Nellie. Made a pleasant interlude in an otherwise long 300 mile drive.
Lew
Florida ⛱️, USA 🇺🇸