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WINDWARD PERFORMANCE

Production boats try to copy racing boats windward performance. Racing boats are optimized for going to windward. Cruising boats sail passages downwind. A boat optimized for windward performance is not at its best downwind. For example deep ballast keels and weather helm is not a good thing downwind.

Exlex is optimized for downwind sailing. She has lee helm with her daggerboard up no ballast keel and balanced lug sails. I am often asked if she can go to windward. She do so very well although she will not win any races but she I hope does better than a production boat downwind with her lenght/displacement ratio of 150 and small wetted surface and square sails that outperform triangular Bermudan downwind.

Below is her track of todays sailing outside Hunnebostrand. It is 50 degrees between them and if my calculations are OK she sailed 65° close to the wind.

Regards Yrvind

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Sailing in Hunnebostrand west coast of Sweden in light winds

I am staying in Hunnebostrand with friends testing Exlex.

The natives are friendly.

Imam getting more and more used to handle her and the procedure to set and fold sails are getting quicker and quicker. To live in Exlex is very comfortable as there is plenty of space. She is very roomy. Exlex treats me very well and I am happy in her. I may stay a few weeks more here before bringing her back to my workshop on the east coast to do a list of modifications during winter. I May I intend to trail her to Dingle western Ireland then 1200 miles 25 days to Madeira then 5500 miles to Mar del Plata in Argentina 95 days, the 8000 miles to Albany Australia 150 days assuming 2,5 knots or 60 miles a day average. This is the plan a start. Reality may be very different. We will find out.

Regards Yrvind

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SIX BEAMS LONG

ENKEL BÅT ENKELT LIV

SIX BEAMS LONG

The lengths and sail area of sail boats have been taxed by governments and punished by racing rules to such an extent that these boats are inefficient.
Cargo boats naturally have to be burdensome and racing boats naturally have to be built to racing rules. Cruising boats do not necessarily have to have these restrictions, but human beings are sheeplike when they see a racing boat winning a race they think its fast even when its restricted by racing rules.
Only a few boat types, like the Cornish pilot gigs, about 10 meter (32 feet)long with a beam of 1.5 meters (4 feet 10 inches) and the whale boats about 9 meters long and 1.5 meters beam are uninfluenced by rules.
Both use oars and sails for propulsion, Using oars in a sail race is of course strictly forbidden.
The Cornish pilot gigs was used as shore-based lifeboats that went to vessels in distress. When the whale had harpooned it would often pull the boat in a “Nantucket sleighride” trying to escape, sometimes against a rising gale. In both cases seaworthy boats were needed.
Sail area are restricted by racing rules. This has led to the Bermudan rig. Its based on the airplane wing theory. The airplane has two wings they cancel each others healing moment. Sailboats are different they use deep ballast keels to get stability. Lead is heavy. Much sail area is therefore needed to propel them. The lead keel is little use downwind and cruisers sail mostly downwind. Lenght of mast is more important than sail area to the cruising man. This week my Next Design is six beam long 6.96 meter with a 1.16 beam. Hopefully my economy gets on an even keel when I get to Australia enabling me to build her.
Regards Yrvind.

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MORE SAILING IN HUNNEBOSTRAND

I have been out in Exlex more times. With crews. Problem is my eyes are now not the best or do they make the print in the charts smaller nowadays.Its a lot of rocks here and I have a daggerboard not a pivoting centerboard. I do not like to damage its so I am prudent.

Below two videos from today 19 August 2019.

Its friends that have helped me to put up this on youtube.  Its kind of to modern with music and stuff to my mind it is confusing but it has to do bucause the purpose is to show Exlex sailing so it has to do.

I will stay here in Hunnebo a bit longer. The natives are kind.

Regards Yrvind

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HUNNEBO NEW LOCATION

Exlex is now on a new dock in Hunnebo. In the previus location I violated a rule saying I could not stay on a friends place while he was out in his boat.

Here is plenty fine so I am happy.

Exlex Visit Hunnebo Its the yellow boat to the right in the picture just below the red houses

Regards Yrvind

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ON THE WEST COAST OF SWEDEN

I am now in Hunnebostrand. I hope to do some test sail.

Here is  a picture

Exlex is the yellow boat to the left in the picture

I have problems with the computer and its late so I have to come back later after asking a young person how to do

Regards Yrvind

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ODD JOBS

Doing a few odd jobs.

Saterday I think it was. Håkan and me was out sailing. The wind was Beufort 3 maybee. The picture shows my AIS speed on Marine Traffic, 2.6 average 4.3 maximum. If Exlex can average 2.5 knots I be happy so this is a happy start
Here I am making a mosquito net. A light chain is sewn on to hold it down inside the hatch coaming.
Exlex sculling oar has excellent bollard power but when the boat is making speed through the water it kind of floats up. Only rapid mowement helps. I am a spokesman for slow sculling strokes so I am making a new oar. The picture shows me using my table saw. I have clamped on the shaft to a rolling table to keep the same angle when sawing the slot. The laminating blade is standing on the table. This is slow work because first I have to wait for the glue to set on the blade then next day I glue the blade to the shaft, the next day I reinforce one side of the oar with carbon next day the other side, next day I glue a stainless steel tube around the shaft to prevent wear, but I am getting there.
A friend told me that someone has said that I should have done the roll-over test with masts. It was not practical because the water was to shallow. However I do not worry becouse as you can see the mast floats, they have lots of positive boyancy. With masts standing Exlex will have even more rigthning power. True the sails will damp the motion but that only makes the person inside more comfortable. The rightning moment even without masts is very strong when the boat is upside down all the way to 180° of heel. And yes my visitors is my friends Lena and Beppe 

Soon the sculling oar is done and more sails will be done.

The plan is to trail Exlex to the West Coast for more sailing. The future looks bright.

To be continued…

Regards Yrvind