September 10, 2017-Boat Design

wingssail photo mashup-fredrick roswold
Sailing

I embarked on my boat design project just for fun. I just wanted to see, after a long time dreaming about it, what my fantasy boat would actually look like. We have no intention of building this boat, this is just a design exercise.

In August I sat down at the computer with a new CAD program, and inspired by a boat I saw in a photo on the wall of a restaurant in Phuket,Thailand in 2009 and a lot of photos and measurements of other boats, I went about designing a 70’ performance cruising boat, one that had a certain traditional look.

That boat in the photo I saw in Phuket was Bloodhound, a William Fife II design from 1870 and the photograph was taken by Beken of Cowes in 1910, but that wasn’t the first time I’d seen the look represented by the boat in that photo. There had been others: A hulk floating in Opua Harbor in 1998 without masts or engine had that plumb bow, low transom look; a couple of Bob Perry’s boats which were on the scene in Seattle in the 1980’s, Night Runner and Eclipse, also struck a chord with me. I just liked that certain traditional look which they all shared.

Since seeing that photo in Phuket I started collecting pictures and stories about other traditional looking cruising boats. Most were big. Huge actually, boats like the 180’ Dykstra designed Kamaxitha , and the 219’ Hetarios also by Dykstra and Pugh Yacht Design, and more recently Carl Linne, Holland Jachtbouw, 106’also a Dykstra design, and Toroa , a 72’ design by Botin Partners.

Click here for photos of all these boats and more.

Bloodhound itself was replicated in the 90’s and this 98’ exact replica has been sailing in California and even, for a time, Mexico. It is beautiful. But it has a full underbody and its performance must be more like 1870 than 2017.

I wanted a 1870 look and a 2017 performance.

Here is how the project proceeded:

At the beginning I envisioned a 65’ boat with a 20’ beam. This would give me the interior volume I needed for the accommodations I had in mind. I drew the hull and rig and keel and we mocked it up on the computer. This was about a week’s worth of work, taking into account that I had to learn the software system I was using. Both Judy and I looked at the result. It was ugly. The bow was too short, the boat too wide, and it looked tubby.

I started over with a 70’ boat and an 18’ beam, narrowed the bow, and moved the mast back.

Now we had something.

The next issue was the look of the main salon. It was cramped and didn’t feel right. So we redesigned the cockpit to be farther aft, reshaped the galley, and opened up the salon. This was better. Then we decided the forward cabin was not going to work as a master stateroom. Chuck that. We moved the master to the stern, behind the aft head. Little by little the boat took shape. The fact that we could view the model in 3 dimensions, rotating it and exploring the inside, helped to see how it would look.

The process was fun. It was almost like building the boat. When I put the motor in it was a big day, just like it would be in a real build.

After the walls and cabinetry were in place we added the paint, upholstery, counter tops, and cabin sole. This brought cause for further changes. We decided dark blue leather would be better than woolen cloth, and dark mahogany and ash sole was better than oak parquet. We made those changes.

It began to look very nice.

wingssail designs-fredrick roswold
70' Cutter Design

The last change was to move the helm aft, leaving more room on deck for winches (and passengers).

So, is it done? No, the deck is not finished; there is no sailing hardware or winches and no rigging. Inside we have not added doors or wood trim (it will be primarily white walls with dark teak and mahogany trim) nor have we done the mechanical or electrical drawings. I have them all in my head but this project has taken three weeks and I need to get on with other things. Maybe I’ll come back to it sometime in the future.

Oh, we named this boat Judy D Jensen.

Click here to see the step by step process and the results.

Click here to see the other historic designs again.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, La Cruz Huanacaxtle

September 2, 2017-The Lazy, Rainy Days of August

wingssail images-fredrick roswold
Rain in the Marina

The days of August slid by. They were sweet days because we’ve continued to go to the gym and the hard workouts leave us with a glow which lasts through the rest of the day. They were slow because other than go to the gym we didn’t do much. We did a few small projects but not many worth mentioning. There were a lot of naps.

There were some things which we had on the list and which we wanted to do that didn’t even get started. They are still on the list. There were sewing projects and we’ve been waiting for materials to do them. August was supposed to be a sewing month. The material was ordered in June and it still has not been delivered. We’re learned the hard way not to depend on others to bring things into Mexico for us. It’s better to use a shipping company and pay the customs duty.

It’s been a rainy month and we enjoy that. When the dark clouds move in and the mountains are lost in the lowering gloom, somehow that makes us content, and there is something about being down below in our boat when the wind and rain thrash around outside which makes us feel cozy and safe.

We’ve taken a few day trips around the area, like up to the dam on the River Amica. We thought we might see some pleasant countryside and even get up into the mountains. We took the camera. But a flat tire which had to be fixed gave us a late start and by mid afternoon, before even getting far up into the foothills, we turned back. The weather looked threatening and we’d already crossed several low spots on the road where streams flooded the highway. We worried about getting back down that road if the rain came in heavy, which is not unusual this time of year. The overall grayness spoiled the photo ops a bit too, but the dam was interesting.

Another trip to San Pancho for lunch was pleasant enough. Lynn went with us and while our favorite BBQ restaurant was closed we found another one, had a nice lunch and afterwards got margaritas to go.

beken of cowes
Bloodhound, William Fife II, 1910

One thing I’ve been working on, just for fun, has been a boat design project. Inspired by a photo I saw on the wall of a restaurant once long ago, and remembered ever since, I decided to replicate it in a modern boat, not replicate the boat itself, just do the design. Learning a new CAD/CAM program and working out the details of large sailing yacht has kept me busy for many hours this month. It has been fun and it is getting close to being finished, at least to a point. I’ll share it when it is. Judy has been observing and offering suggestions through this process and her input has improved the design.

Now it is September, hurricane month. We have been watching the storms march up the coast and then turn away before they reach Banderas Bay all summer. But in September they can get stronger and sometimes stay closer to the coastline. We have to watch them closely.

Other than that it is workouts, boat projects (if we ever get our materials), and time to start thinking about the arrival of the winter sailing season.

Life goes on.

Click here for more photos from a lazy August.

Fred & Judy, SV Wings, La Cruz Huanacaxtle