Skip to main content

The SAILSetc Block 65-SE in 3D

Got bored, plus I wanted to add it to the 3D Vickers V8 IOM I'm working on, so I modeled a SAILSetc Block 65-SE through-deck block for RC sailboats. It also turns the sheet direction, so it's sometimes called a turning block.




NOTE: There was some concern on RC Groups that I had copied his product without permission. I have not copied his product. I have only made a 3D drawing of his product, and I have actually purchased three of his blocks for installation in previous or current boats. 

Here was my response on RC Groups:

"This is just a drawing of his block. It's not a real block. There is no value in a picture of the block. You can’t make an actual block from this 3D file any more than you could from a pencil drawing or photograph of it. It’s not a manufacturing file. There are no internal parts in this shell. It’s only a drawing of the outside of it.

It’s used to help model 3D designs so that you know where you place bits and you know how it will fit and how it will look. We do the same with various winches, masts, batteries, blocks, rudder posts, etc. It is fully expected that you would accurately draw various parts in your 2D paper plans to see if it fits... it is exactly the same in 3D.

Drawing in 3D doesn’t mean that you can magic up an actual part... that’s 3D “printing” and you need an extremely detailed engineering drawing with all the working parts included. 3D drawing and 3D printing are very different. I draw so that I can accurately use the actual purchased product later in the real boat and know that it will fit well and look nice.

Think of it as “... and this is where the block will go” in your planning for your boat. From a business point of view, this is also saying that I’ll be buying this part for my boat. In fact I already have one for my next build.

No one worries if you sketched out an accurate 2D picture of a winch that you intended to use in your boat with paper and pencil to see if it will fit or not. No one worries if an architect draws out a specific oven or other product for architectural plans. In neither case are people trying to make the actual product. Rather, they are actually planning on buying the product and drawing it out for their own planning. 3D is exactly the same but just using more modern tools than pencil and paper. It's only a drawing, not an actual product."

So bottom line, if you don't know about 3D modeling, please understand that a "drawing" or "3D model" is NOT an actual product. The drawing has no value. You wouldn't get upset at someone who takes a photograph of his block, so why would this be treated any differently? It's just a drawing."



Aloha!



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

1934 America's Cup Rainbow J-Class RC Drawing

At some point I would very much like to model a vintage America's Cup yacht. The one I've been most interested in lately in the 1964 winner Constellation. But this past week I was sent a 1/16 scale drawing of the 1934 Rainbow. It's a beautiful drawing! Full sized so it's very large. I have been working on making it into a 3D model, but as is true with most hand-drawing lines, none of the lines from one view match up with the lines from the other views. For example, I spent a lot of time tracing the "sections" view so I could make stations. But when I tried to match them up with the plan/deck view or the waterplanes view, none of the lines met. Some came close, but all had to be adjusted. Then, once they are matched to the deck and keel lines, it's obvious that the hull is not fair. I honestly doubt that the hull would be fair if you simply used the station lines as originally drawn either. Back when they made these boats, they put it on the actual bu...

IOM Rig Box (IOM Sail Box) plans

So all the cool IOM kids seem to have nice wooden boxes to store their rigs in. This might be my next quick project then, so that I can pretend to be cool too. :-P The rig box images that I've seen online are mostly similar, and would work well, but David Jensen from Bellevue, WA, USA (The same guy who designed a fantastic IOM boat stand I posted about earlier) has a really nice design that he shared on RC Groups . Or if that link doesn't work, the go here and search for " IOM sail box " or " IOM rig box ". It holds three sets of rigs for the A, B, and C rigs. He also has a nifty way to attach his IOM boat stand, with a boat on it, to the rig box. His rig box has wheels attached, so once everything is loaded up he just wheels it to the launch spot. Very nice! There are other sources online. They show different variations of the same type of sail box. Here's a nice looking one . Here's a YouTube video of a really nice one . Wil...

A Wooden "Alternative" IOM RC Sailboat

Being forced to stay home due to the Coronavirus quarantine has had a positive impact on my boat building. I still haven't been able to sail my newly completed Vickers V8 IOM, yet have just planked and glassed a wooden Alternative IOM . It only took me eight days. It usually takes a couple weeks. I haven't been motivated to blog about it, but I started planking on 5 April and finished planking last night. Today I sanded and have fiberglassed the outside. The Alternative by Brad Gibson was a challenge to plank due to its up-swept bow and flared sheer near the bow. It turned out okay, but as any builder will tell you, there are goofs all over. One that I only discovered after sanding is a lighter colored plank on the starboard side. It really showed up after fiberglassing as the epoxy brought it out... GAAAAH! How did that get there? The other goofs I'll let you find, but that one is pretty obvious. Here's how it looks so far: Here you can see that mu...

IOM Sailboat Stand

I made an IOM boat stand! The plans are from David Jensen in Bellevue, WA, USA. I found the plans through someone else's blog here , and a model sailboat club from Australia here . It was pretty straightforward to build. My only contribution to the design is that I laser cut the cradle out of 1/8" Lite Ply. I made eight copies, and then epoxy laminated two sets of four each. Turned out really well. If you wish to laser cut your own set, here is my DWG file . You'll have to have your own laser cutter, or send the job to a laser cutting company like National Balsa . Here are the original plans , and here are the original plans for just the cradle . Thanks to David Jensen!! Note that in the picture below, my boat is not finished! Yikes. You can't see it in this image, but there's a small chuck of self-stick foam behind the bulb to protect the bulb. I'll eventually incorporate some Velcro or a strap of some sort to hold the bulb in place so...