Random thoughts and rants on boat design, boat building, and other boat bits for those in the 99%...
Defunding FOX news, regarding deliberate ignorance, and a very good question...
Gaff rigged, shoal draft, and water ballasted sorta/kinda has me doing the happy dance.
More info on the Pabouk 700 can be found here.
Listening to some Tiny Desk/Globalfest goodness
So it goes...
Regarding a good cop, a commercial befitting the times, and in the "This is just so wrong" department...
Down here in what is purported to be paradise you don't often see gaff rigs much. That bothers me just a bit.
For me at least the sailplan on Reuel Parker's Pilot Cutter 31 is pretty awesome. For starters it's simple, easily fabricated, and affordable which is a real bonus for a powerful rig.
Of course, gaff rigs don't always have to be on what most would consider to be traditional boats and they can make a lot of sense. Take this modern scow design by Yann Quenet which I need to build.
Listening to a bunch of R&B/Soul coverage accompanied by an excellent article.
So it goes...
An interesting article on houseboats, way too late but still good news, and in the "Not the first time this guy has disappointed me but still..." department...
Dudley Dix has a very interesting new design.
More information can be found on the Dudley Dix website and blog.
Listening to a years best list of covers
So it goes...
Badtux with an important point, EBM musing on the subject of flat earth education, and a couple of excellent although depressing observations...
Dave Z has a most excellent write up of their adventures with the split junk rig and it is well worth reading whether you're interested in junk rig or just want to know more about how sails work.
Yeah, how sails work is a pretty rare subject of discussion these days and most folks seem to just accept that sails sorta/kinda work and that's how it is.
That said, I have had a few emails on the subject of why Michael Schacht drew a gaff rig for his new Argo catamaran design. Sadly a couple of which were somewhat negative as well as showing a profound lack of understanding of how sails work especially where the gaff rig was concerned.
Now, it seems to me, that a large part of not understanding different sails/rigs is the fact that you just don't see them much.and, for the most part, hardly anyone has actual experience with gaff, lug, junk, or other rigs.other than the standard sloop.
I get that.
What I don't get is how someone with zero experience with a rig or sail type can cast aspersions on it's viability or efficacy for cruising.
Of course, being way past my sell by date, I have the luxury of growing up in a time when there were more than a few gaff rigs sailing and had the good fortune of actually sailing on a lot of diverse and interesting boats. So, I do have a lot of opinions where various rigs are concerned but those opinions are based on a lot of up close and personal experience as well as decades of studying sailboat design and different rigs.
So, I'll go on record that a gaff rig on Argo actually makes a whole lot of sense. Even better is that a gaff rig is, as far as rigs go, pretty inexpensive and easy to build. With a little updating in terms of material and construction there is no reason at all that it won't perform as well as what passes these days as a "standard" multihull rig. With care taken with the build of the hulls and keeping the Argo light I'd bet that it would show it's transom to most production cats which would be no bad thing at all.
Need I say more?
Listening to the Derailers
So it goes...
Russians circumnavigate in inflatable catamaran, the dark-side to maritime employment, and in the "22,000 hours of taxpayers dollars going to waste" department...
Reuel Parker seems to have been busy.
Listening to Eydís Evensen
So it goes...
Some troubling medical practices, a bit of needful economic viewing, and in the "Good points being made" department...
A Dudley Dix presentation you might have missed.
What can I say but gaff rigs make a whole lot of sense.
Listening to Dark Water
So it goes...
More on the subject of the USPS, something very much worth reading in The Atlantic, and in the "Better than most news" department...
Just maybe the best comparison on the gaff and Marconi rigs I've ever come across.
That said, I don't completely agree with all of it but it's a great place to start.
Don't speak French?
Tant pis pour toi.
Listening to the Lumineers
So it goes...
Regarding the dire times we find ourselves living in, some talking points of note, and on the subject of the what America is disconnect...
Something regarding #nokidsincages, a tRumpian nightmare, the sound of war drums, and in the "I suppose you're just supposed to let them drown" department...
Two different rigs on the same hull from Reuel Parker.
The color of the ocean, something to think about, and a missing word...
Boy howdy do I like this rig.
Not as powerless as the as the bosses think, windvane politics, and in the "Boy howdy that's an impressively stupid idea" department...
So, here's the Cape Charles 32 by Dudley Dix.
Krugman gets it right, a campaign ad of note, and a warning to be taken seriously...
This is a very cool boat.
Some profits being made, not expecting this will surprise anyone, and Sailing Anarchy asks the question: "Just how much more damage and disrespect for our oceans can you take from this criminal?"...
I'm often amazed at the general ignorance of people who tell me that the gaff rig is an inferior design. Especially because most of those people have never sailed a gaff rig or, in some cases, even seen one, you know, actually sailing.
So, for those folks here's an excellent gaff rig primer from "How To Sail Oceans" ( a youtube channel worth perusing).
Listening to a "Jones" playlist
So it goes...
