Converted Mirror rudder

Spent some time over the last couple of days turning a Mirror rudder and stock into one that fits a Minisail...

Time will tell if  it works, and isn't dead slow. I had to sand the edges much further up the blade, but left the shape as I didn't want to lose area, and the stock needed completely re-modelling. The tiller is new. Black to match the hull, of course!

Minisail Max

A huge thanks to Phillipe for sending me thse photos of his new, larger Minisail Max sail, made by Morgan sails in Southampton. He had this to say about it:

Last weekend I finaly had the chance to take my revived minisail out on the water again.

A nice temperature and a bit of wind. I do say 'a bit' :(

They predicted windspeeds of 6knots and gusts of 8.

I was gently breezed across the pond and only had to sit ou 4 times in a small gust.

 

But on the up-side I could give the new "MAX" sail its first outing and it looks great.

There is a significant difference in power and even in soft wind I could take a friend out on the water and get the sailing feeling.

 

Coming weekend the predictions are 12 knots with gusts blowing to 20 knots.

I guess I will then appreciate a second person sitting out.

 

The lack of wind, and possibly some inexperience in setting the sail means it doesn't look as good as I think it can, but at least we can get an idea of the shape.

 

 

Minim, 3446, withdrawn from sale

 Edit: A Change of plans - she sounded so good when I re-read this ad, I have decided to keep her and sell the GRP boat instead!

Minisail 3446, twice winner (2011 & 2012) of the Classic and Vintage Racing Dinghy Association Nationals is for sale.

A wooden Sprite variant, she is in very sound condition, and is ready to sail or race, though there are a couple of touch-ups that could be done on the hull, and the varnish on the deck, whilst complete and not needing doing, has a change of colour where the edges have lifted in the past and been sanded back and re-done.

There is a nice varnished centreboard, and a rudder that works well but maybe hasn't got the prettiest tiller attached.

She comes with a stiff boom, all controls working well, and an excellent 2 year old R&J sail, which produces loads of power, but flattens off nicely for upwind work.

Also comes with a trolley, but without a trailer.

There is an almost new breathable cover, made to measure by Sail Register, which keeps the boat absolutely dry.

Selling as I have 2 Minisails, and I have decided I have too many other wooden boats to look after, so I'm keeping the GRP version.

Price £450, ready to sail.

Spring Training

Spring Training 23/24 March 2013

Below are a few more thoughts and details on what I hope will be happening on the cvrda, Minisail and British Moth Spring Training.

Some people have further to travel than others, and some will be arriving on Friday, so the start time is the first obstacle we have to overcome.

My suggestion is that will be expecting people from about 9.00am on Saturday, but I’ll get there for about 8.30 to catch the early birds! If you are arriving on Friday, then let me know what time, and if possible I’ll pop up to the club to meet you. If not possible, then I’ll make sure you can get through the gates to deposit boats.

We will then have a boat rigging session, where we can ensure that all the boats are rigged the best way they can be on the day, and maybe make suggestions as to how things can be improved for the future. We can also explain how your controls change the sails on your boat.

Once we are rigged and changed, which I hope will be by about 10.30, we will meet for a briefing and split into groups.

Depending on numbers, we may split the group into British Moths , other singlehanders  and doublehanders, but even if we stay together, we will have dedicated coaches for each, to look at what needs doing.

We will start with some race start theory, working from “where is the line” through to “where is the best place to start on it”, and “How do I know there is a start going to happen” to “How do I make sure I’m on the line at the start”. We will then go out and do some startline exercises. Obviously, with a mixed ability group, different people will be looking for different things from the exercises. I hope we can work with you all be improve the starts of both beginners and experts.

Once we have the starts down pat, it will probably be time to stop for lunch, at about 12.30. There will be hot and cold snack lunches available. Also, tea, coffee, soup and beer.  I need to double check how we go about ensuring the kitchen has enough food. Certainly a posting on the cvrda, Minisail or British Moth forum to say you are coming will be good to get the numbers. If I need you to specify what food you require, I’ll let you know.

After lunch, we will look at how to get from the startline to the windward mark and back in the shortest time. We will try and get the theory done whilst eating, so we can get on the water and maximise sailing time. We shall look at getting to the mark, doing a good rounding and then running back down to the start again. For the upwind bit, the boats will all need to do things in a similar way, though having a jib obviously changes things a little. For the run back down, we shall need to concentrate on different things for the shroudless boats, spinnakered boats etc, so the coaches will be kept busy!

Once we have mastered all that, we shall come in for a break and a snack at about 3.00, and have a talk about reaching and gybing. We shall then go out again and get sailing round a triangular course, with a beat, a reach, a gybe and another reach.  At this point, rather than running mini races, sailing round the course in a non-racing fashion will make things easier for both the practice and for coaches to give advice.

I hope we will be able to come off the water by about 4.30, get the boats packed for the night, get changed and disappear off to the pub for tea. If I can have numbers for those who will be staying to eat at the pub, I will let them know how many will be coming. I hope we can be there by 6, before it gets too busy.

Saturday night, some are staying at the Premier Inn at Swindon North, others in B&B’s scattered around. Let me know if you need advice on finding somewhere.

Sunday will dawn bright and sunny, of course!

We shall be getting rigged for 10.30am, and getting out on the water after a briefing. There may  well be more British Moths on Sunday, so in the morning, we shall probably split into 2 groups, joining up, again in the afternoon

The morning format will be more mini races, to sharpen up everything we did on the Saturday.  I hope we can get seven or eight 5-10 minute races in before lunch. Following another 12.30 lunch, we will run some slightly longer races, putting all we have learned into practice on the race course. The races will still only be about 15 minutes long, but that is enough time to see whether  the cracking start can be backed up with some serious boat speed!

The aim will be to be off the water by 3.00, with a de-brief to follow, to allow people to get changed and pack away without being horribly late on the road. If people would like to stay and sail for longer, they will be very welcome.

Useful things to bring:

A watch with a countdown setting

A notebook and pen

Warm sailing clothes (it is March, after all!)

Your buoyancy aid (compulsory at Whitefriars)

Beer money

3446 and 2427 sail together

Well, the two Minisails shared water at the Yachts and Yachting forum open meeting on 13th October.

I used the GRP Monaco with the new blue stripy Morgan sail, and my son used the  wooden Sprite with the year old R&J sail for the 1st 3 races.

With light and shifty winds, and a difference in helming experience it was difficult to tell which set up was better. For the 4th race, I used the Sprite, and certainly found the hull more to my liking - higher volume meant less shipped water on the roll tacks and a higher angle of heel to windward on the runs without too much of the deck under water. The R&J sail appeared to have a little more power, but a tendancy for the leech to hook more.

The Sprite will be going under cover this week, but the plan is to carry on testing the 2 sails on the Monaco over the Autumn, to provide feedback owners might find useful.

I hope more photos will be published on Yachts and Yachting from the weekend, as there were camera people out in safety boats. Meanwhile, here is one of the 2 sails together on the shore.

Packed up and ready to go!

Ready for the Yachts and Yachting Forum Open Meeting - Minim on the bottom, Dotted Minim on the top on mt home made double stacker!

Made it home from the club, hopefully it will make it to Broxbourne and back on Saturday!

New Morgan sail has first outing!

A quick dash down to the club this morning (9/10/12) saw the first raising of my new (and Morgan Sails' first) Minisail sail.

A snug fit onto the mast makes pulling the sail on a little more difficult than the old sails, but pays massively once you start sailing, with no floppy bits of cloth on the sleeve.

My initial impression is of a very nicely cut sail, quite old fashioned in some ways, with little cunningham tension needed on the fairly flat entry, fullness coming from the outhaul tension, which should suit the Minisail, as too much cunningham tension would probably rip fittings out of some of the boats!

The concave leech isn't obvious, but does reduce the amount of hooking. However, I think Kicker tension is going to be vital to get the sail setting correctly. 

Oh, and the blue is a very nice shade!

Photos below hopefully show the sail to good effect. Thanks to Tim Hopes for taking the pics.