Bow beam for 50 foot cat

[dennisail]

Awesome. I am a fan of Kurts work. I even ordered is little design booklet, which was a little disappointing for someone who has read his whole website as there seemed to be little to nothing extra in it. I loved the 45 that was posted up on his blog with the new styling. Your boat seems almost like my ideal boat. Will it be foam or ply? What is the target racing weight (IE everything needed to sail the boat but no cruising cargo).

The important part is if you are installing the hard points for the stays now. If you are it will pay to have it designed with the anchor bridal in mind. Raising the stay attachment points and OR moving them forward will make it possible to run the anchor bridal under. Your design seems like it will be easy to do this. Quite probably its done right anyway, but I have seen so many issues with other cats. As you can see in my pic above there is not much bow forward of the beam in the Crowther 226A, but in your boat there will be.

[peter-lillywhite]

I use my prodder stay anchors for my anchor bridle, this seems to have overcome and conflict between them. Its vital that the attachment for the prodder stay is constructed to take massive loads, think able to pick the boat up by them especially if you intend to use a masthead code zero (screecher? or genikker?). My anchor bridle (8mm single braid) is permanently attached and led to the mast beam where the anchor and rode is stored.

[dennisail]

I am scared of my prodder attachments. Stainless steel underwater.

[quickcat49]

Dennisail:

The boat is at the fairing stage, and was built using Corecell M foam and resin infusion. The design weight is 5400kg, I'd guess, with all the changes in design, ours will come in at around 6000kg. So far, my purchase records support this. We hope to pull the boat out of the garage this summer, so we'll have the crane tell us her mass.

Peter-Lilliwhite:

I like your setup Peter, more scope with less rode. Did you say that your snubbers end at the mast beam? I like that idea. So they just go through a fairlead at the prod anchor points, then on to the rode? Brilliant. That allows adjustment from the deck, and helps to increase the scope too. I guess I'll install those anchor points before we launch then. What kind of fairlead is it? A block or a shackle?

Thank you both for your ideas.

Cheers.
Paul.

[peter-lillywhite]

Paul, I've attached a couple of photos to show my setup. The anchor bridle is fixed to the prodder anchorages using an eyesplice just looped through the anchorages. These anchorages are approx 150mm above the static waterline, I wouldn't want these anchorages to be at or below the waterline not only for the reason you gave but also from an inspection and maintenance point of view, when low they also increase drag and spray. They need careful positioning as the vertical angle of the prodder waterstay decreases the loads can go through the roof (or bows in this case). The inboard ends of anchor bridle also have eyesplices and where they come together a 10mm double braid tail is tied on. This can be seen to the right of the anchor, its position when sailing. To anchor I remove the yellow coloured (proper english there;-)) cover, its there to stop crew from falling down, and the anchor is lowered away to the required rode length. The bridle tail is tied on with a rolling hitch with an extra turn or two and then fed out until the bridle takes the load. I've avoided blocks and tackle on my prodder as any failure on the waterstay system could be disastrous given the loads imposed by a code sail.

[quickcat49]

Thanks for the photos and explanation Peter. A photo really is worth a thousand words. Your boat looks very capable, any comments on the Spade Anchor?

Peter, I've sent you a short PM.

Cheers.
Paul.

[Peter]

"any comments on the Spade Anchor?"

Cheers.
Paul.

My second anchor is an aluminium Spade and it is excellent. I have used it on crusted sand when my Bruce has been unable to penetrate. It would make a fine primary anchor but it would need to be steel.

The "other" Peter

[peter-lillywhite]

I've owner the Spade for nearly 10 years and its never dragged or let me down and I usually spend at least 20 nights at anchor a year. I initially intended to buy the aluminium version but the importer had seen cats bend the stock under extreme conditions so I went with the 20kg steel version. Expensive but I've never regretted it, if I lost my current one I would replace it with the same.

[quickcat49]

Thanks, to both of you, for your comments regarding the Spade anchor. It is my intention to go with a Steel Spade as our Primary anchor, but I have no experience with one. First hand information is priceless when researching these sorts of things. I've talked to many Spade anchor users, and every one likes them.

Cheers.
Paul.

PS; to the "other Peter". My Primary anchor was always a Bruce, but my old Bruce is smaller than I'd like as a Primary on this boat, so it will be relegated to a secondary position.

[44C]

I've owner the Spade for nearly 10 years and its never dragged or let me down and I usually spend at least 20 nights at anchor a year. I initially intended to buy the aluminium version but the importer had seen cats bend the stock under extreme conditions so I went with the 20kg steel version. Expensive but I've never regretted it, if I lost my current one I would replace it with the same.

Interesting. 200 nights without dragging. I'd say it's been around 900 nights at anchor since we last dragged. And we've dragged twice in maybe 1900 nights at anchor, once entirely my fault, the other due to difficult anchoring conditions.

But if you hadn't been so honest, people would see - one boat hasn't dragged in 10 years, and the other has dragged twice in 6.

[quickcat49]

Old thread, but I thought I'd post a photo anyway.
Just have to fair and paint it now.

[quickcat49]

Covering the bow for painting, and the painted bridgedeck. I must admit, the fairing under the b-deck isn't the best; but if anyone else worries about the fairing under there, they really ought to bugger off anyway...

[Peter]

Looking really nice. I have to ask if your garage had a centre door would you have built a trimaran?

[quickcat49]

Hi Peter, thanks for the compliment.
What's a trimaran?

I'm lucky it had two, or I'd have been stuck with another monohull!

We had the garage built to suit the boat, or nearly suit. It should have been 10m x 20m to really suit. One side was made to be disassembled, for removal of the boat.

Cheers.
Paul.

[44C]

The shed must get some comments from passersby!

Paint looks great.

[quickcat49]

Thanks 44C. It's more a credit to the paint than the painter...

I've been building for 7 years, and had the bows sticking out for 6 years, and the total number of unprompted inquiries... ONE.

Even the guy who cuts my lawn never said boo, until I asked him to use the snipper under the bows. "What bow?"

I think a boat that size, in downtown, is so incongruous that no-one clues in. And, it's not that obvious from the street.



As you can see, it's only in view at very limited angles, between the neighbour's house blocking the sterns, and the trees blocking the yard, except just in front of the house and driveway.

As a matter of fact, that speck of white, seen within the trees, is a CS27, which cannot be seen, even from this angle.

In any case, I'm happy enough for the privacy.

Cheers.
Paul.

[SteveH]

I think everyone will know when you come to move her

[quickcat49]

I'm looking forward to that!

Paul.

[Peter]

In any case, I'm happy enough for the privacy.

Cheers.
Paul.

Yes, I once built a car in a garage with the only door opening directly onto the street. I spent more time discussing it with passers by than actually working on it. This way you only have to discuss it with us lot.

Peter

[quickcat49]

Yes, but I'll bet you enjoyed the one in a hundred passer by that actually knew something about building cars. It's the other 99 that I'm glad not to see. I'm slow enough as it is!

Cheers.
Paul.