Category: Miscellaneous

Tomorrow I drive Exlex to Stockholm to campaign her in our capital.
Trials are done. She is not perfect, far from it but with big will I think I can sail her to NZ although it ceratainly will not be easy.
Next boat be much better.
Most of the things are now fixed.
I did not get the leeboards to work to my satisfaction so I eliminated them after some consideration. Her windward ability suffered but she gained downwind. Its a balance. She now has no lateral area except her hull. Considering that her windward ability is amazing.
Persons having a positive interest in small cruisers are welcome to have a look at her, not to early in the day nor to late. I be somewhere west of Slussen east of Västerbron, thats the plan.
Below are some pictures.

The M20 boalt holding the leeboard.

Cutting the boalt.

Boalt gone.

Sculling away without the leeboards to put her on the trailer.

On the trailer next to the yellow boat with chinerunner I sailed from Kinsale Ireland to Poerto Santo Madeira to Martinique in 2011 ready to drive to Stockholm tomorrow 24 August.

Thanking those that have kindly donated to my voyage.

To be continued…

Regards Yrvind

A new text about Exlex is now published under the heading MANIFESTO. To read it go to the blogg section.
I continue to work with Exlex, sorting out one problem after the other.
Becouse I do not yet know her and becouse she is designed for open waters and not to the narrow ones here I have to take care and watch the weather.
When the weather is not good I work on trying to get sponsors. Exlex is a modell of boat ideal in reduced scale and the planned voyage is a long one.
Hopefully I can average 2 knots. The 15 000 miles to New Zealnad will then take 300 days. The prudent navigater calculates with the worst weather conditions. Some years are worse than outhers and the worst of the worst is very bad. Then my average speed may drop a good deal below 2 knots.
Its very basic but there is a big difference between average speed and top speed. Once down in the Roaring Forties a easterly storm blew 150 miles westwards. I was heading east. Then there is calms. Once I got stuck in the Doldrums for a month. Today one often read in the yachting press “There was no wind so we had to turn on the engine”. Exlex has no engine, nor does she wants one.
This is not an complait but an explanation that average and top speed are different.
I hope to be able to load Exlex with food for one year also to pay rent for my flat and workshop for one year.
In a weak or two I will trail Exlex to Stockholm. There hopefully I will find money.
In the end of April 2018 I will trail her to Dingle in western Ireland.
Beginning of May I be ready to start when the a weather window comes.
To bee contiued…
Regards Yrvind.

Second test of the the boat with a little bit more ballast and a few issues sorted out.

Exlex have now been in the water for two days.
A strategy for the initial stability has been found.
The idea is to use the cargo capacity as ballast when testsailing. For the real voyage I will bring along flexible water tanks in their collapsed state and as I eat my way down I will replace eaten food with water.
The problem was I had not any siutable tanks in the marine market but now I have found them in the outdoor market in capacity 4, 6 and 10 liter capacity.
Today I added 125 kilo ballast and one mast is removed leaving two up which I will shift araound.

I have also sorted out the some of the rigging.
Now she feels fine, now there is hope.

Below two pictures: Click once or twice to enlarge.

and one from the bow

To be continued…

Regards Yrvind.

Exlex now floats.

The bad thing is she is extremely tender, but she is a modell in reduced scale and one should not ask her to act as a grown up. The full scale boat will be just fine as stability increases very fast with scale. Still the plan to sail to New Zealand stands, although I think it will be a difficult voyage.

The god thing she has an extremely good stability range. We did a rool over test. At first she heeled over very easily but then she got stability.

At 90° she was god as with 120°, 150°, even at 180° she tugged at the lines and wanted to right herself. That was very positive.

She is of course far to heavy, still she did not float to deep, a good thing.

No water or nearly no water came in when she was uppside down, only a little that had collected in the ventilation systen may bee 0.3 liters and that drained out in the stearing room no harm.

My friends took plenty of pictures and videos in a few days I will be able to show them.

to be continued…

Regards Yrvind

I have done what I can and the weather seams to be fine so if no disaster happens tomorrow will be the day.

Launching at 14:00 at Västerviks Båtvarv

Solbergs Udde

Peaople having a positiv interest in small cruisers are welcome.

A rollover test to determine Exlex stability range will be done.

After that the boat will be rigged wich will take not too long and if the wind is not to strong a test sail

Thomas Grahn my skipper from the Vega Atlantic crossing 10 years ago has promised to assist.

Below two pictures.

below: ready to roll out:

A few copies of a 72 page booklet in swedish with colour illustrations booklet about Exlex, small cruisers and the planned voyage coming from the printer this friday will be for sale. Price 100 kronor.

Crowdfunding without middleman:

People who like to support my project are welcome to Swish donations to 0706 200 550 or use the donation button on my website.

To be contiued…

Regards Yrvind.

Exlex is now out of the workshop and in the warehouse.

Getting her out was very close. I had 3 centimeter to spare as she had to make a 90° turn to get out of a sidedoor. But with the help of a few friends it went fine.

In the warehouse she is now rigged for the first time. She has two side by side mast for her two balanced lugsails to run before the wind.

There is also a thierd mast for a Bermudan aft sail to help her getting into the wind.

There is no pulliy at the mast tops to give the hailyard omnidirectional for the lugsails, but as the sails are not big it worked fine.

In fact so far everything worked fine.

The launching is planned to Tuesday 8 August. Time: 2 pm at Västerviks Båtvarv Solbergs Udde Västervik Sweden.

Check this website monday just in case something unexpected has turned up.

Persons with a positive interest in small cruisers are welcome to watch.

To find Exlex stability range a roll over test with me inside is planned.

A few copies of a 72 page booklet in swedish with colour illustrations booklet about Exlex, small cruisers and the planned voyage coming from the printer this friday will be for sale. Price 100 kronor.

Crowdfunding without middleman:

People who like to support my project are welcome to Swish donations to 0706 200 550 or use the donation button on my website.

Below are some pictures, click once or twice to enlarge.

Running downwind the sails will be sheated out more than 90°

Vy from up aft

To be contiued…

Regards Yrvind.

The paint and electricity jobs are now done to my satisfaction. The VHF and AIS will be done during winter hopefully by an expert.

There is a few odd jobs left to do  before test sail, mostly rope work like sheets, halyards, rope to secure the leebords and rudders anchor and mooring lines et cetera, not very much.

Below are a few pictures.

Abowe a bright navigation ligt made from 4 car reversing lights.

Abowe Exlex viewed fram aft.

Abowe: Exlex viewed from bow

Abowe: Me proudly writing the boats name with a rather shaky hand.

Abowe: Me looking out from my snug, cosy cabin.

Abowe: Me having a good time.

To be continued…

Regards Yrvind