Re: Double Eagle, since you asked
--- Inbolger@yahoogroups.com, "fritzdfk" <gaffcat@...> wrote:
Thank you so very much for taking the time for your considerate
reply.I can only half way begin to appreciate what it must have been
like having to add the bustles after so much effort had already been
applied to the project. I know I would have been cursing something
fierce! To learn that there remains still further remedial work
would surely see me turning to the bottle!
Fortunately,if I may be so glib,you certainly have managed to
pull it off so far and made a bit of loot to boot! This speaks
volumes,most favourable, to your talents and character. I hope to be
so good come my own launch day :-)
Continued success with GREAT SEA and may you know many
profitable years with her!
Sincerely,
Peter Lenihan,sitting in awe of such an undertaking,from along the
shores of the mighty tranquil St.Lawrence...........
P.S. give my regards to Davey and Anke!
>Fritz,
> OK, Since you asked I will tell you about the launching of Double
> Eagle or as she is named the "Great Sea".
Thank you so very much for taking the time for your considerate
reply.I can only half way begin to appreciate what it must have been
like having to add the bustles after so much effort had already been
applied to the project. I know I would have been cursing something
fierce! To learn that there remains still further remedial work
would surely see me turning to the bottle!
Fortunately,if I may be so glib,you certainly have managed to
pull it off so far and made a bit of loot to boot! This speaks
volumes,most favourable, to your talents and character. I hope to be
so good come my own launch day :-)
Continued success with GREAT SEA and may you know many
profitable years with her!
Sincerely,
Peter Lenihan,sitting in awe of such an undertaking,from along the
shores of the mighty tranquil St.Lawrence...........
P.S. give my regards to Davey and Anke!
OK, Since you asked I will tell you about the launching of Double
Eagle or as she is named the "Great Sea".
The Great Sea was launched on April 26th of this year. I built a
simple frame on a large flatbed trailer, jacked the boat up and
situated the trailer between the two hulls. The boat was supported by
the bridgedeck with the hulls hanging over each side of the trailer.
Moving the boat the half mile or so to the launching ramp was
uneventful, I will post some photos. There were a hundred or so people
at the ramp to see the launch including the school kids let out early
to witness the event. The actual launch went smoothly. As soon as the
boat was floating, though, my excitement was dashed as I saw the
lowers edges of the transoms sitting 9 or so inches lower than they
should be. I didn't let on and no one other than my wife, who can read
me like a book, knew that something was up, or down in this case.
After a short cruise in the river the boat was anchored and I went
home and sent a fax to Bolger and Friends explaining the situation.
The bows were lower than they should have been but nothing like the
transoms. I received a fax a couple days later from Bolger with
apologies and some drawings for what he called box skegs or "bustles"
to be attached under the transoms to add displacment thereby lifting
the sterns. As I had charters scheduled in a few weeks I went right to
work on the boat on the beach. The bustles were fabricated in my shop
at home. They looked like wide dories cut in half from the tip of the
stem or sternpost diagonally down to amidships to be attached with the
pointy end facing aft. I won't go into details but working on the
beach with 20' tides, bad weather, stubborn bottom paint etc was a
nightmare.
With the bustles in place the boat floats more or less level but is
overall sitting 5 or so inches lower than it should. This is more of
an issue with a catamaran than a monohull as you loose bridgedeck
clearance. The boat has a centerboard trunk located amidships that
drags in the water when underway, it should be 4-5 inches above the
water. The bridgedeck clearance is an issue in heavy seas.
I built the boat exactly to specifications. The out of trim, stern
lower than the bow, problem is the hardest to explain for me anyway.
It has to be a design problem. As for the overall overweight issue I
can probably take some of the blame though again I did nothing out of
spec. While building I was continually impressed by the weight of the
massive plywood pieces going into the boat. Like other modern
multihull builders I should have been more conscious of weight from
the beginning. I could have done more with foam cores etc. I might
also have used "lighter",(read much more expensive), plywood. Early in
the building Bolger suggested widening the boat from 16' to 20'. I had
just built one hull so I hadn't done anything yet that would have to
be changed, it just meant the the hulls would be 4' further apart. The
wider boat did require fairly massive extra reinforcement which added
significantly to overall weight.
I am waiting for some drawings from Bolger that will outline a long
term solution to the problem. As much as I want to see them I also
dread what they will mean as far as work and expense on my part.
Displacement will have to be added to the hulls.
I did charter the boat and made some money. It was a great relief to
see money going the other direction. We still haven't sailed the boat
though we now have all the major pieces. We will be sailing by spring.
My wife and I are living on the boat in Sitka, Alaska this winter. We
are mostly warm and snug and a few boats away from Dave and Anka on
"Luna", if anyone knows them. Next summer we will again be chartering
in Glacier Bay.
Under power the boat rides like a Cadilac even in rough seas. Everyone
who has been on her loves the boat, the views from inside, all the
deckspace, good company etc.
fritz
Eagle or as she is named the "Great Sea".
The Great Sea was launched on April 26th of this year. I built a
simple frame on a large flatbed trailer, jacked the boat up and
situated the trailer between the two hulls. The boat was supported by
the bridgedeck with the hulls hanging over each side of the trailer.
Moving the boat the half mile or so to the launching ramp was
uneventful, I will post some photos. There were a hundred or so people
at the ramp to see the launch including the school kids let out early
to witness the event. The actual launch went smoothly. As soon as the
boat was floating, though, my excitement was dashed as I saw the
lowers edges of the transoms sitting 9 or so inches lower than they
should be. I didn't let on and no one other than my wife, who can read
me like a book, knew that something was up, or down in this case.
After a short cruise in the river the boat was anchored and I went
home and sent a fax to Bolger and Friends explaining the situation.
The bows were lower than they should have been but nothing like the
transoms. I received a fax a couple days later from Bolger with
apologies and some drawings for what he called box skegs or "bustles"
to be attached under the transoms to add displacment thereby lifting
the sterns. As I had charters scheduled in a few weeks I went right to
work on the boat on the beach. The bustles were fabricated in my shop
at home. They looked like wide dories cut in half from the tip of the
stem or sternpost diagonally down to amidships to be attached with the
pointy end facing aft. I won't go into details but working on the
beach with 20' tides, bad weather, stubborn bottom paint etc was a
nightmare.
With the bustles in place the boat floats more or less level but is
overall sitting 5 or so inches lower than it should. This is more of
an issue with a catamaran than a monohull as you loose bridgedeck
clearance. The boat has a centerboard trunk located amidships that
drags in the water when underway, it should be 4-5 inches above the
water. The bridgedeck clearance is an issue in heavy seas.
I built the boat exactly to specifications. The out of trim, stern
lower than the bow, problem is the hardest to explain for me anyway.
It has to be a design problem. As for the overall overweight issue I
can probably take some of the blame though again I did nothing out of
spec. While building I was continually impressed by the weight of the
massive plywood pieces going into the boat. Like other modern
multihull builders I should have been more conscious of weight from
the beginning. I could have done more with foam cores etc. I might
also have used "lighter",(read much more expensive), plywood. Early in
the building Bolger suggested widening the boat from 16' to 20'. I had
just built one hull so I hadn't done anything yet that would have to
be changed, it just meant the the hulls would be 4' further apart. The
wider boat did require fairly massive extra reinforcement which added
significantly to overall weight.
I am waiting for some drawings from Bolger that will outline a long
term solution to the problem. As much as I want to see them I also
dread what they will mean as far as work and expense on my part.
Displacement will have to be added to the hulls.
I did charter the boat and made some money. It was a great relief to
see money going the other direction. We still haven't sailed the boat
though we now have all the major pieces. We will be sailing by spring.
My wife and I are living on the boat in Sitka, Alaska this winter. We
are mostly warm and snug and a few boats away from Dave and Anka on
"Luna", if anyone knows them. Next summer we will again be chartering
in Glacier Bay.
Under power the boat rides like a Cadilac even in rough seas. Everyone
who has been on her loves the boat, the views from inside, all the
deckspace, good company etc.
fritz