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General Sail making Construction Blokarts Events & Competition

Robi

9 posts

Robi

9 posts

28 Dec 2007 12:59pm

Hi name is Robi and I am interested in trying out Landyachting.

It is non existent in my area, and ive been dabbling on building my own.

I already have a simple design sketch, overall it measures 7ft long by 5ft wide made with probably 2" or 1.5" square aluminum tubing. The specs for the aluminum is 2" X 2" X .125" or 1.5" X 1.5" x .125" 6061 T6. I am thinking about a 14 to 16 foot tall mast. I still have no idea on wheels, steering (I have noticed some foot steering setups) seating!!?? or even sails. All I have for now is a simple frame design.

Ive been searching all over the net and find close to nothing new. This forum is the one with the most activity that I have found.

Any input is appreciated.

Robi

9 posts

Robi

9 posts

28 Dec 2007 1:02pm

Forgot to mention, I am a very active Formula 16 cat racer, been doing it for around three years now. So in essence I am very familiar with sailing angles, sail trim and all that good stuff.

I hope to incorporate some of the stuff Ive learned from catsailing into land yachting. Crazy? Indeed but for ORDER, there must be a CHAOS and I am ready for it. [}:)]

landyacht

5921 posts

landyacht

WA, 5921 posts

28 Dec 2007 4:34pm

if you weld the T6 it will anneal and bend later.my suggestions are. look at some photos of MANTA landyachts .made from 2"ally but fairly thin wall.. or have a look in the photo section here at the mini and class 5 yachts. these mostly use steel tube. often a simple triangulated frame can be welded from1 or 1 1/4 square steel. .
prepare to be stunned that your home made yacht will be faster than your cat. I would start off small in size and find a beach or large carpark to sail on first.
for wheels I would suggest 4.00x8". these would be the most universally available wheel in the world. Quality varies,but look for one that can take a 2"/1" or 50mm/25mm bearing,preferably high speed sealed.

bazl

704 posts

bazl

WA, 704 posts

28 Dec 2007 4:38pm

Welcome to the forum Robi, where in Florida can you sail? Do you have a big area like Ivanpah Nevada or a tidal beach?

www.fisly.org/ is the governing body worldwide, and you should find official specification requirements there.

www.nalsa.org/ and www.windisfun.com may also help you out. I will see if I can track down some drawings and send you what I can.

www.blokart.com/dealers_list.php?country=USA&distRegion=US may also be of interest, the FL dealer might even know of other Florida landsailers.

hills

1622 posts

hills

SA, 1622 posts

28 Dec 2007 6:17pm

Welcome Robi!! There's a couple of very experienced designers on here, so hopefully they'll be along shortly and answer your questions.

I also came from yachting and recently got into landyachting, you'll love it, its a real adrenoline rush!!

My landyacht just uses wheelbarrow wheels, but with the cheap bearings removed and good quality ones put in. The foot steering is a simple set up and leaves your hands free to trim the main. I got used to foot steering very quickly.

Come back with as many questions as you have as some of the guys on here just about invented landyachting

EDIT: oops they posted while I was typing this, that's them

Robi

9 posts

Robi

9 posts

28 Dec 2007 5:11pm

You guys are giving me a warm and fuzzy feeling, usually not the norm when a new guy shows up on forums.

Anyway I will not weld this thing together. Everything will be bolted together using plates.

The tubing I will use is 2" squares with 1/8" wall thickness. I want to start small to get a feel for it. I totally understand that it will be much faster than my cat, and I honestly cant wait for the rush.

As far as where to sail? Well I can in Desoto Park located only 7 miles from my house.
www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1o3cGujxi9ukWaZbrOPZyPAxRh70&msa=0&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=27.633808,-82.720012&spn=0.05376,0.080338&z=14&om=1

As far as the local dealer here in FL, I honestly do not want to purchase. I am a tinker and I love to fiddle with stuff, so I am set in building my own design to my own specs. I will not be sailing with anyone else here for a while. Who knows maybe I can start my own small localized class of landyachts.

landyacht

5921 posts

landyacht

WA, 5921 posts

29 Dec 2007 6:13pm

there must be something wrong with all that water if yuo want to go landsaling. question.can you get hold of a pice of ally that will fit your 2" ally into it. this would suit the design I am thinking of for your new yacht. if you could find such a pipe then a sailboard mast will fit into it and a sailboard sail can be recut to fit that.
Us tinkerers have got to stick together!

Robi

9 posts

Robi

9 posts

29 Dec 2007 7:00pm

Landyacht, there is nothing wrong with the water around here. I just want to sail more often and setting up in less than 10 mins and not getting wet is a very attractive option. Specially having the ability of going 20+mph ill take it anytime.

We are currently in our "offseason" here in FL, so I have plenty of time to think of things to do.

Anyway back to topic:
Do you think a 7 foot long by 5 foot wide is good or should I go bigger or smaller?
Also do you think 2" squares by .125" thick walls is overkill?

Initially I wanted to do a 10ft by 8ft yacht, but I have been cutting down to keep prices within a budget.

Here are some specs:
The design I have so far needs 24 feet of tubing.
2" X 2" X .125" - 1.126lbs per foot; totaling to 27.024lbs - $6.24 per lb. Total cost=$168.51USD

1.5" X 1.5" x .125" - 0.825lbs per foot; totaling to 19.8lbs - $6.71 per lb. Total cost=132.88

This prices only reflect cost for the aluminum frame. I am more inclined with going with the 1.5" square due to its cheaper and the frame is not very long.

Robi

9 posts

Robi

9 posts

29 Dec 2007 7:09pm

Things that I would really like to do:
Avoid a sailboard rig
Use a rotating cat mast - maybe 12 ft tall
Side and forestay it
Build an aluminum frame

I would like to build a rig, that if I crash and burn it will not break. I love to push the envelope all the time sailing so this thing MUST be tough. I am not a small guy im tip the scales at 190lbs (85Kilos?)

warrend

19 posts

warrend

WA, 19 posts

29 Dec 2007 8:51pm

Just a thought...

Have you looked into the fed5 design plans from england ? I bought one a year or so ago, and it produces a cost effective, easy built landyacht that I believe is raced as a seperate class but also in class V in the USA. The beauty of the fed5 is part of the frame is steel tube (lower $$$), and everything in the design you can build yourself.

It is a proven, popular design that will allow you to move the yacht on if you decide landsailing is not for you.

Otherwise look for a second hand blokart which again will give you an easy option for selling due to it's proven design, and 7500 or so of them that have been sold worldwide.

I'm a former dinghy and cat sailor, I'm sure you will find landyachting a buzz. I've put a few local nacra cat sailors on my blokart and the speed blew them away. I'm also 85 kg's.

Cheers

Warren.

landyacht

5921 posts

landyacht

WA, 5921 posts

29 Dec 2007 10:47pm

dont buy or cut anything yet please!. the Lake Lefroy Landsailing Club specifications commitee. met this afternoon and came up with a set of measurementsfor our Lefroy MINI yacht class. I believe it would suit your location ,budget,and Philosophy..
dont bag sailboard sails and masts yet. We recut sails to . .suit landyachts and dont use the wishbone booms at all. the finished sails are remounted on glass masts. recommend a 4.6 metre if you can find one. Our American contact reckoned that they are common and cheap in the US as people have gone off to fly a Kite. Look at some of the MINIyacht photos in the landyacht photo section.
as a guide we are using a wheel base length (axle centres)of 1640mm and maximum width of 1510mm. sail area RECOMMENDED is 4m2.. this should be plenty for your weight.
over all weight should be 30-35 kg.
These size specs will most likely be a bit bigger than a BLOKARTas the yacht has crept in size during the development

Robi

9 posts

Robi

9 posts

30 Dec 2007 1:37am

Awesome feedback. I havent purchased anything yet and do not plan to until I either make or find a good design.

At first I was at a total loss trying to figure how to make this happen. But with your suggestions everything is falling into place nicely.

Wareend, where can I find more information on the designs you speak of.
Lanyacht, will the design you folks are speaking of, will those be available for home builders?

hills

1622 posts

hills

SA, 1622 posts

30 Dec 2007 10:20am

IMHO it would also be worthwhile thinking about a cheap arc welder and start practicing. I hadn't welded since I left school, but once you get the basics its really not that hard.

Admittedly I got a mate of mine to check and go over the critical joins for me. (He used to be a specialist boilermaker at the submarine plant here and builds ultralights in his retirement) But now after some more practice and guidance I can do it on my own.

This really speeds up the process and the designs you can now use are unlimited. Plus its a really handy skill to have.

Just food for thought

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