On 11/17/2016 1:25 PM, John Schinnerer wrote: Hi John, Back in 1968 to 73, we would have our Tripp-Lentsch 29 trucked from the lake in Germany to the Italian Adriatic coast for our vacation cruising. Then it was; across the Adriatic to Yugoslavia and explore the island chain south of the Istrian Peninsula. These crossings were anywhere from 40 to 65 NM, one way. That's when I got interested in self steering. The British had a windvane design that I built and installed it on our boat and also used it on a friend's 35-footer (sloops). It worked very nicely after you learned how to set it up, and it held a course about +/- 5 degrees after proper adjustment. The major problem with this system was that the cockpit was crisscrossed with all the various operating lines; plus the stern pulpit was filled with the windvane. We lived with that solution for several years until I read John Letcher's book on sheet-to-tiller steering. This reduced weight at the stern (heavy lead weights to counterbalance the wind vane itself) and eliminated all the clutter of the lines. Yes, it will work for keel boats; and my guess is that Whaarram's version is just about the same as the one I built (and he probably got it from the same British sailing magazine as I did) Ciao, Connie
Speaking of windvanes, James Wharram (of Wharram catamaran fame) has a low-cost build-it-yourself wind vane design available: https://www.wharram.com/site/catalog/building-plans/self-steering/windvane
What I'm not sure of is whether this will work on a monohull. I think it will functionally, and, where/how to mount on something as small as an M17 might be an issue. Probably would need to hang it off the transom as the more expensive manufactured vanes do.
It definitely works, on Wharram's boats anyhow - Rory McDougall has used it on his Tiki 21 on transatlantic crossings, there's at least one video I've seen where he has the vane working on a brisk reach in the north Atlantic. http://wharram.eu/live/article.php/20100414170141573
One of the old-timers in the Hilo sailing club, who used to be a delivery skipper among other things, was heard to say: "My favorite kind of sailing is when I don't have to touch anything for three weeks."
cheers, John S.
On 11/17/2016 10:49 AM, bownez@juno.com wrote:
Dear Connie,
I'm sure you are familiar with the adage : "tyranny of the tiller"" used to describe the long hours required at the helm to cover distances.
Since all of my sailing has been on large lakes, self steering has never really been a priority.
My M23 has a Navik windvane, which works like magic, but I have never really used it for a long voyage (yet). It is fascinating to watch it in action.
I'm downsizing back to my M17, which has prompted all these questions about sheet to tiller steering.
As always, thank you for your knowledgeable input.
Bones
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