What is a good boat to build while stuck in COVID virus quarantine?
COVID doesn’t need to end fun things. What simple boats could be built at home during quarantine and social distancing. Here are mine.
Michael Storer
Boatbuilding in the time of Corona – a facebook group
Things to do while home isolation and social distancing are the norm
Videos Week by Week – boatbuilding videos for a Goat Island Skiff plywood sail boat
Teo’s Weekly Video series building a plywood sailing dinghy – the performance oriented Goat Island Skiff. Domonstration of building methods. He is currently up to week 18 (March 2020)
Video: Easy speed and great stability of the Viola Sailing Canoe
Just a little video showing that the Viola 14 Sailing Canoe has enough stability to stand and hoist the sail or raise or lower the mast while one the water.
Videos Handling Waves in Strong wind upwind Oz Goose and depowering lug rigs.
Videos of best speed upwind in the Oz Goose to handle large waves – a video of depowering a lug by reducing the downhaul tension slightly.
Using a windsurfer mast for a lug rig yard on a Goat Island Skiff
Replace yard on a lug mainsail with a carbon windsurf mast. Replacing a standard wooden yard for the top of the balance lug sail on The Goat Island Skiff with a piece cut from a windsurfer mast.
Talking to your Local Sailmaker – GIS sails and other lugsails
Some of the decisions that have to be made before ordering Goat Island Skiff or other lugsails.
Freestanding Mast, stopping it from falling out in a capsize.
Question was how to stop a freestanding mast from falling out on a small sailboat? A few simple fittings and a neat solution
Why Plywood breaks – Real wood for Centreboards and Rudders
One recurring problem with plywood foils, centreboards, leeboards and rudders is that over time they tend to break unexpectedly.
Glassing timber sailboat foils for smoothness and accuracy
Make excellent and accurate foils (centreboard, leeboard, keel or rudder blade) adding way more performance for not much effort and no cost – series
Controlling Sail Twist on Balance and other lug rigs.
Controlling sail twist on any boat is critical for performance. Here we describe two methods for getting more performance all round and safer handling downwind.
Vote! Best Goat Island Skiff photos of this year!
They get put in our 2020 Calendar for the GIS facebook group – just click “Like” or “Star” for the photos you like most.
Add hydrofoil stabilisation to a sailing dinghy – specs and methods
It is not difficult to build a hydrofoil stabilised dinghy – Also a model for information sharing so everyone is not always reinventing the wheel
Homebuilt Hydrofoil for Sailboats test sailed – end to hiking out?
Hydrofoil sailing is possible for homebuilt boats. It can be used to reduce heeling so the crew doesn’t have to work so hard.
Review of Viola 14 Canoe from Hungary
Read Jenő’s experience with the Viola 14 sailing canoe which is Michael Storer’s latest design – the second and the third boats were built in Hungary by two members of the Hungarian Amateur Boatbuilding community (hajoepitok.hu).
Ketch and Yawl Rigs for Norwalk Island Sharpie 18
Early design work. Ketch and Yawl version Norwalk Island Sharpie 18ft. Prompted by development of mast tabernacles and folded mast overhang
Article Le Chasse-Marée – Goat Island Skiff article
Editorial and Article praising the simplicity and performance of the Goat Island Skiff in “Le Chasse-Marée” magazine this month – France’s premier traditional and wooden boat magazine.
Sailing Fundamental Lesson 2. Sail Trim – Finding sail power and feeling it!
How to get power from the sail quickly and simply in this lesson works on your direct feeling of power and acceleration. Yes! you can FEEL it
Tacking, Turning Around – Free Online Sailing Lesson
Tacking and Gybing can be simplified by prioritising the right parts. More security by delaying swapping hands until the boat is going again for smooth boat handling
Sailing Fundamental Lesson 1 – Correct Tiller Extension Grip makes Boat handling much easier
Free Sailing Lessons – Prerequisite – Essential first principle of holding the tiller extension correctly so both hands can control the sail.