Wooden boats and their environment




Ireland has a rich tradition of boat-building, both working craft and racing boats. These boats were designed for specific purposes and particular places, local weather, materials and craftsmanship were incorporated into their designs. Sometimes the designs came from abroad and were adapted for local conditions. Many of these designs are still preserved and active today.


This course is about designing a wooden sailing boat for Lough Derg (County Tipperary) referring to the history and traditions of local construction and water use. Students will learn about the history of boat design and construction, the processes of design and the methods of construction. There will be visits to boatyards and boatbuilders with a particular emphasis on techniques of wooden construction. The final objective is the creation of a new design of sailing craft.

Thursday, December 18, 2014

Model boat sailing

International One Metre sailing, Blackrock, November. 


The old swimming baths by the Dart station are a good place for model sailing, reasonably protected from waves. We sailed an International One Metre (IOM) that I had made a few years ago in cedar strip. One metres are a good area for hull experimentation. This boat is a 'Kite' design by Graham Bantock, a very fair and well balanced form in my opinion, particularly suited for timber home building, it seems a well rounded design compared to the more extreme designs at either end of the design envelope of this box rule class.


Mark Mills had discussed the benefits and drawbacks of tank testing when working towards full scale designs and the difficulties of scaling up certain results. In this instance the model could show us:

Balancing rig to wind conditions
Power afforded by very low centre of gravity
Maneuverability of substantial rocker
Preferred angles of heel
Poor quality of my electronics

Very interesting Seahorse article on one metres and how their development is an alternative insight into boat design, from which sections above taken. Lots of further information on model boats and theory on Lester Gilbert's site.

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