My new Vintage Marblehead Sun Wind HF rc sailboat had its maiden sail this afternoon! Very light winds, and I'll need a lot more time to do some tuning, but it didn't sink and it came back to shore, so it all went well! However, it was VERY obvious that the rig was too far forward. So now the entire thing will need to be moved aft about 2". The pics in this post are of the original placement of the rig, and you can see that it's too far forward. Will update a new post when it has been moved back. Now, how to cover the holes... ugh!  There were a few asking for better pics of the spars... Will hopefully be able to take her out again this weekend for some proper wind, but the forecast isn't looking good right now. Tough time of year for sailing. Aloha!

Making very slow, steady progress on the planking. Can really only add one plank per side, per day. Sigh... Epoxy takes too long to cure. Peace!

Tonight I only had to finish the aft rudder tube keel assembly, and then add Frame 0 to the forward keel piece. Easy jobs. In the picture below, you can barely see the hole for the rudder tube. The idea in this assembly is that the rudder tube fits in a gap created between "Keel piece #2" and "Keel piece #3". That gap is held open by two side pieces that are perfectly aligned by running 1/8" stock through the two alignment holes in back of the gap, and the three holes in front of the gap. In the picture below, you can see the stock protruding from the front alignment holes. Then frame 9 will slip into the slot you can see just in front of the assembly.  When planked, this rudder tube assembly will be extremely strong and yet relatively light. Much better than trying to carve a solid piece of wood and fit it to the bottom and then accurately drill a hole through it. Ugh... been there. This way, the hole is perfectly aligned, and perfectly straight. Tomorro...

A NOTE ABOUT GLUE: If you read some of my earlier posts regarding my mock-up test hull, you'll know that I often used Titebond II to glue things instead of epoxy. That was because that boat was never going to see water. This time I am almost exclusively using epoxy. This is the real deal boat and will be sailed, so a waterproof adhesive is required. Specifically I'm using WEST System 105/205. Read more about it here .    ------------------------------------------------------------------ I started to laminate the fin tonight. Just the inner core made from 1/8" plywood, and then the first side of ply #2 made out of 1/16" plywood. You need to take extra caution on the first three or four ply's so that it remains really flat. The last few ply's you can stop using the 3/4" MDF form, but use it for the first several. Use the excess epoxy: Then use the extra epoxy to clear coat some of the frames. Between laminating the fin and rudder, you can easily ...

Tada! Here's how my 6 laminations of 1/32" plywood turned out today when I took the clamps off... Here's how it looks mounted to the servo and servo tray. Yes, I have some work to do on the tray, and especially on putting down some velcro for the battery and receiver. And I'll need to ziptie the wires too, but you get the idea! Peace!

I am using WEST System® epoxy for this boat, but I’ve also had great experiences with System Three®. Whatever brand you use, be sure to stick with it. Never mix and match resins from one company and hardener from another. Stick to one brand and follow their instructions. Specifically, I am using WEST System® Group ‘A’ size cans of 105 resin with their 205 hardener. This epoxy uses a 5:1 ratio of resin to hardener; therefore, you’ll buy a quart of 105 resin and a much smaller tin of 205 hardener. They are usually sold together. Using the WEST System® Mini Pumps: (They still actually put out a lot of epoxy!) I use their ‘ Mini Pump ’ kit which includes measuring pumps for each can. They are easy to set up and use, and will dispense the proper 5:1 ratio. CAUTION : System Three uses a 2:1 ratio, and some brands use a 3:1 ratio. Furthermore, each brand has its own ratios and you must follow them carefully! READ the directions closely for your brand. I assume you are using WEST Syst...

It begins! Yesterday I cut all the parts for the new, improved Vintage Marblehead "High Flyer" division, wooden Sun Wind II RC sailboat. Then last night I began assembly, starting with the servo tray. I'm still not entirely happy with it, even though it's now version 5 or 6. At this point, I think it will be a constant evolution. I'm torn between a simple board that mounts all the things, versus a board that tries to hide the cables and such. It's a balance that I haven't achieved yet. Today I've started to laminate some of the doubled-up frames. Will continue tomorrow. Peace!

So it turns out that there is actually a very big difference between cutting the various types of 1/8" hobby plywood! I had no idea. I bought my plywood from National Balsa . They offer three types of 1/8" hobby plywood: 1. Lite ply, which is very light but not too strong. Apparently it is made from poplar. Very flexible. I haven't tried to cut it, but would imagine that it cuts easily. 2. Regular, 3-ply plywood which is called birch, but seems to clearly be not as refined as 6-ply. Much stronger than Lite ply, but a bit heavier too. Cuts really well! Less reflective, fewer layers which means less resin to melt. 3. 6-ply birch plywood. This is actual birch. Very reflective, strong and solid. Tough to cut! 6 ply's mean lots of resin to melt. They also offer both 1/16" and 1/32" birch ply.   -------------------------------------------------------------- So, the other day when I was laser cutting my frames, I was able to easily cut through the ...

Today I cut my test hull off of its supports and did a lot of clean up on the sander. Sanded the transom flush, as well as the bow. Cleaned up the sheer a bit, and then finally added the rudder. It's done! I attempted to make a male mold for the lead bulb, but it cracked off the lathe before I could get it down to size. Oh well... it was a good attempt and I'll try it again shortly. Overall, I love it! Now onto the real thing... next up, it's time to make the entire hull and do some RC sailing! Aloha!

While waiting for epoxy to cure on my Sun Wind II mock-up hull, I've finally been working on making a 3D model of the 1949 Rip Tide. I started with some curves that were drawn in AutoCAD by a gentleman named Roger. For now, I'm simply calling it the Rip Tide II. After a false-start a few months ago, I now have a nice 3D model that is almost ready to create some laser cut frames. Here's an update... First, these are the lines that Roger made based on the original lines. I've seen the original lines that are going around the internet, and they are pretty crude. So Roger did a great job! Then, from Roger's 2D CAD drawing, I have made a 3D model so that I could test the fit of all the parts and frames. I've also made changes to the design to make the Rip Tide a "High Flyer" RC sailboat. So I dropped the draft to 16" and added a spade rudder. Here is what it now looks like... I also built a building base for the frames to help with a...

I found a great way to clamp planks while making my Star 45's and Vintage Marblehead's. My building boards are 8" wide. I hammer in strong thumbtacks into the side of the building board. You could also use nails or brads. (See pictures below) The idea is that you can loop rubber bands over the hull, or through the hull, or around specific planks as needed to keep pressure where you want it. The rubber bands simply hook onto the tacks. See my pictures below. The pictures below are from a Star 45 that I built a few years back. Used the same technique then too. Good luck on your build! Peace!

I've begun the planking on my mock-up Sun Wind II. Last night I installed the outer sheer rails and let the epoxy cure. This morning I was able to fair the sheer rails and begin the planking. I'm using 1/8" x 3/8" clear cedar that I milled myself. The edges were beveled slightly on a sander, although I could have just used the table saw. Cedar is very nice to work with, and so far is conforming to the hull shape well. Will update as more planks are added. Only two so far. And I'm only doing one side. The other side will remain open so that people can view the internal structure. This is a mock-up and will be on display. The real RC boat will be built next after all the changes needed are discovered. Aloha!

Tonight I got to try my hand at laser cutting! And, get this, it worked! So cool... I only ran the first of my 8 sheets, so that I could get a sense of how my drawings were working. Glad I did because I found a few tweaks to be made. Tonights run cut the servo tray, a couple frames, and the inner core of the fin. Here's a picture of the servo tray: As a comparison, here's how it looked in Sketchup Pro... I am now completely hooked on 3D modeling and on laser cutting!!! One of the tweaks that I'll correct is that the battery holder area is too small. I made it to hold the battery holder, but it turns out that the batteries stick out more than I thought, so I'll have to bring the port side wall out a bit. Might also have to increase the holder around the larger HS-815BB servo. Might be too short to hold the stress. We'll see... More tomorrow! Peace!

Tonight I modeled the Hitec HS-815BB Sail Control Servo for use in both the Rip Tide and the Sun Wind II RC sailboats. I'm going with a sail arm servo instead of a drum winch like I used on my Star 45 and Salish 475. I really want the deck to look clean, without any sort of shock cording like I have on the drum winch boats. Yes, I can use an internal self-tensioner, but a swing arm is also much easier to use. It may not be as competitive, but on the other hand, a lot of guys swear by them and say that they are just as fast as the drums. Since I'm not into racing, I don't care and will go for simplicity. Besides, this servo is $50 compared to $300 for the RMG SmartWinch. RMG winches, by the way, are amazing! I suggest you use them on certain boats. But for the VM Rip Tide and Sun Wind II, I'm going with simple and clean. Here's how the 3D servo looks. I wanted to make sure that it would fit, and that the arm had plenty of room to swing. Looks good so far! ...

Here are the other boats I've built in the past few years: 1. A Tippecanoe T37 . These are kits available from Tippecanoe Boats in Washington State. 2. A classic, wooden, Star 45 . It has been officially measured and is class legal. The Star 45 is a pretty, classy, builders boat that has withstood the test of time.   3. A Salish 475 . It's my own variation on the Star 45. It was built from the same laser cut frames as the Star with a number of modifications aft of frame 6. It is an update of the classic look and was an attempt to mimic a modern ocean racing yacht. I've also built four Pygmy kayaks and many other projects. It's all fun... right?! Aloha! Radio controlled sailboats