Introducing Tarka the sailing dinghy
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- čas přidán 15. 07. 2024
- Meet Tarka, our Westray 16 sailing dinghy. Find out why I chose her, come on a little tour of the boat, and hear about a few of the issues on my long list that I need to solve before she is really ready for our family adventures.
#dinghycruising
#sailingadventures
0:00 Intro
1:00 Why I chose Tarka
10:00 Tour of Tarka
18:08 Trying to fix the jib furler
Music from Epidemic Sound www.epidemicsound.com/
Jon Bjork: A Day Together
Jon Bjork: A World of Possibilities
You're getting about 270 degrees of rotation at the bottom of the jib because of the soft attachment. The rest is almost certainly coming from above. Furl/unfurl a few times watching the swivel, my guess is it isn't spinning freely and the halyard is getting wound up. I had an beautiful old bronze Wykham Martin furler for years, re-rolling meant it was time to re-grease the top swivel. Tara is a lovely little boat, looking forward to following your updates/adventures.
Thanks your suggestions, and for looking so closely! It might be a while before the mast next goes up and I have a chance to look at it again, but I will watch the top carefully. What kind of grease to you use for your bronze swivel?
Just a bit of waterproof wheelbearing grease. @@joelwalker81
Centerplate vibration can often be caused by too sharp a leading edge rather than an aerofoil shape.The furler curling itself back is probably due to a twist in the wire luff of the sail.Take the sail off and stretch it between two fixed points,then relax the tension and see if the wire twists itself.
Thanks, they sound like great tips. I will try your suggestion for the jib luff. For the centreplate, I think the next thing is to see what the boatbuilder says in a couple of weeks, I’ll ask him about the leading edge.
Fantastic thanks for sharing, cheers Paul
Thanks, hope you’re enjoying summer!
Great show, and you are a very good photographer as well as a sailor.
Very kind, thanks, glad you like it!
Truly epic soundtrack!
Haha thanks, just needs some epic sailing now!
Very nice!
I bought a wooden Tideway 12 a few months ago, and have been sailing with my wife and 4 year old daughter. Great fun!
Excellent! Where do you sail that?
So far, only on the Cam near Cambridge.
Always on the lookout for places we could take Tarka - the Cam hadn’t occurred to me - I’ll add it to the list! Downstream of Cambridge I guess?@@jakereich
@@joelwalker81 yes, downstream of Cambridge. I would say you need at least 10 knots of wind, otherwise the tree shadow means you won't be going very fast.
Thanks, I’ll give it a look! 🙂@@jakereich
I really enjoyed your video. So refreshing to watch a nice 'ordinary' guy discussing simple sailing boat matters with no nonsense. I hope you and your family have endless hours of fun to come. Thanks.
Thank you very much, glad you enjoyed it 😊
Tank you for this video.
Your jib furler is not working too bad. But it would work even better if you would control the two lines at the same time (one on each hand). It would prevent the little line to make a jam in the furler.
I hope you will excuse my english : i'm calling from France (Brittany to be more precise)...
Thank you! And yes I agree, the jib furls much better with a bit of tension on the jibsheet, I have had the rope jam, or fall off the furler, when I’ve left it too slack.
Nice one mate 👍
Thank you 🙂
What a boat!!!
Thank you!
Nice boat! I have a german Jollenkreuzer with a seperate forstay and jib stay. I like the solution because I can tighten or loosen the jib without compromising the security of the mast. I was also pretty annoyed at first when the jib tangled around the forstay when furling, but this only happens when the forstay is not set fast enough. Having a seperate forstay also helps to not over or under tention the furler when furling.
Your current furling problems might be because it's missing the shackle which would hold the furler in the correct position (without so much torsion) while furling.
Thank you! I will experiment with ways to move the jib a bit further from the forestay.
You could improve the uphaul of the center board by putting a turning block on the mast then lead the uphaul aft and have the tackle alongside the centreboard case.You do end up with more tackle and rope floating around. Its a system I have used on a few boats and it makes recovering a heavy centreboard quite easy.
Thanks for the suggestion Mark 🙂 It does need a bit of a heave but to be honest it’s not too bad. The new cleat has made adjusting it much easier, and the new fairlead has stopped the rope cutting into the bottom of the thwart. Like you say, it’s a compromise between ease of use and too much clutter. The current setup will definitely do for now.
Welcome to dinghy cruising Joel. Investigate whether the jib refurling is related to the luff tension. Looking forward to further adventures.
Thank you! Too much tension or too little? There is no purchase for applying a lot of tension, so the jib luff tension is mostly related to the load on the sails. I’ve only had the problem with very little tension I guess, as when there has been lots of tension there has also been lots of wind to blow the twist out!
@@joelwalker81 yes, I thought not enough tension, but I'm no expert.
Hi. Looking forward to following your adventures with Tarka. Lovely sailing dinghy. I would love to camp in a boat like that myself. Just a friendly word to the wise, though. Would it be possible in your future videos to have less talking to camera and more footage of Tarka herself? Maybe you could do the talking as a voice-over while showing us video of Tarka actually sailing? I expect learning how to make the videos is a skill in itself, like learning to sail! Still very enjoyable to watch, though. Best wishes. 👍
Hi Antonio, thank you very much for your comment. I completely agree with you - I would love to include more footage of Tarka sailing in the videos! Unfortunately I didn’t get very much footage last summer - the idea of starting a vlog about her only occurred to me in September. We would have sailed her further into the autumn if it hadn’t been for an unfortunate accident resulting in a broken tiller at about the same time. As you’ll see when you (hopefully) watch my Norfolk Broads video (Episode 4) there is a section where I do exactly as you suggest, and run some sailing footage while I talk.
Tarka is at the boatbuilders now for some minor repairs and modifications, so until she comes back later in the winter it won’t be possible to make any new footage of her sailing. There are some other preparations for our adventures which I can make while she is away, and they may make material for another video or two, hopefully they will be interesting, and then in the spring there should be a lot more actual sailing on the channel. And as you say, making the videos is definitely a skill in itself, so hopefully I will improve over the winter (planning to get some new equipment - action camera, better microphone etc), and will fully prepared to make the best sailing videos I can next summer! 🤞
@@joelwalker81That sounds great, Joel. I love your introduction to the video. Good choice of music, and some great shots of Tarka. It sets the scene and whets the appetite for what follows very well. Quite professional, like the start of a blockbuster movie! 👍
@@FunkyMonkey-p9c thanks very much! Glad you like it 🙂
When the wind fills the jib, it will pull the last bit of tension from the furler. You don't need to worry about it.
I'm sure you're right. It's just a bit annoying in light winds - looks untidy even if it makes very little difference to performance! Hopefully my tweaks will reduce the problem, but I'll try not to worry about it too much!
Your trailer has a box section on the end, by getting a suitable length of similar (450-600mm) that has a slightly smaller cross section and will slide inside the original, or larger that will slide over, lock in place with a bolt or bolts through the two sections, or weld, transfer the hitch and jockey wheel to the end of your new extension piece. This might be a relatively easy and economic way of doing the job, Good Luck and bon voyage
Thanks very much, I will have a look to see if I can source anything like that
I would dare say your issues with the furler are both overblown and caused by the sail itself. I saw overblown because when sailing in any sort of breeze, the sail will be kept from furling back onto itself. The fact that it is curling back up is from it being stored in that position for some time. I have a furler on my GP14 that after a long winter's nap, will do the same for the first sail or two. Again the breeze keeps it all ship shape when actually out sailing.
I happen to agree with user-cs1um9yf8z about finding a suitable piece of metal to fit in that box section of your trailer. On my Montgomery 17 (I have too many boats) the trailer is set up with a sliding tongue. Normally it is kept close, but can be extended if the depth of the ramp needs it to. This aids in towing by shortening the length of car and boat, makes it easier to store, but allows for the trailer to be completely submerged without soaking the car.
Thank you, I’m sure you’re right about the furler - it’s not a huge issue, just a little bit annoying to see the jib furling itself when sailing downwind in a light breeze. Maybe storing it differently will help.
Your trailer set up sounds good. I will look into finding a suitable bit of metal for extending my trailer slightly - I think a sliding tongue might be a bit beyond me though! Thanks for the advice! 🙂
Re the jib furling around the forestay i had a similar problem with my Cornish Cormorant but wanted to keep the forestay in its proper place. I solved it by using 2 soft shackles at the top of the mast, one to lower the point of attachment by about 4" and another to keep the attachment close into the mast. This served to just keep the jib sufficiently far away from the forestay. ( I did not want to start drilling holes in the mast.) It depends on if you have a short enough jib that can still be completely hoisted with a lower attachment point. From a brief glimpse of the foresail in your capsize vid it looks like you have enough space if you want to experiment.
Thanks, that sounds like a good idea, I think there probably would be room, as you say. Was your reason for wanting to keep the forestry just to have a second line of defence against the mast falling down?
Hi 2 reasons really, as you say 2nd line of defence against inexperienced hands loosening the wrong piece of 'string' and bringing the mast down and 2ndly my boat is normally kept at the waterside so it allows me to remove the jib when parked, to protect from sun damage, but leave the mast up, so speeding up launching next time. Plus it was quite interesting and useful learning how to make soft shackles from 12 strand dyneema.
I very nearly made the mistake of loosening the wrong rope on Sea Bear the Cornish Coble, nobody noticed while I propped the mast up with my shoulder and tied it off again! At the moment there is no jib halyard on Tarka - it’s just tied at the top. She doesn’t spend much time stored with mast up, so no need to drop the jib without dropping the mast. I will give your idea some thought though - it’s new option - thanks 🙂@@philj3727
Think I have a Tufnell Rachet block would be happy to swap for the jammer block you took off.
Thank you, that sounds like a v good offer! Let’s see if we can arrange that please, my email address is joel_walker100@yahoo.co.uk
Hello mate Robin from stewartby with the K1.
Your furling problem is you need a spinning attachment at the top of you jib to allow the forestay to spin? At the moment your unwinding the forestay in the sail and you will knacker the wire if you continue to use it. If you have a chat with me at the club I can help you with most problems cheers 🍻 from Mr Gadget p.s every one knows me there.
Hi Robin, thanks for watching, and for the suggestion! I don’t think the problem is exactly what you say, as there is a fitting at the top of the jib which spins freely - you can get a quick look at it on 26:01 in the video about the trip on the River Deben - and there is no forestay, the jib has a stitched-in luff rope. It’s working ok at the moment but I’m still not 100% happy with it, so open to all suggestions! Hopefully see you at the club soon 🙂
Interesting to see the way how these 16-17 feet boats seem quite big by the looks. I have opted in for a microcruiser, 20 feet, motor on the transom. I never understood what is the benefit of having the motor inside of an already compact boats. As for the forestay-furler -> you are on the correct track, just have one stay in the front that also holds the furler, way more comfortable than other options. If i ever downgrade in size i will go for a goose explorer instead :)
Thanks for your comments. I’m sure you have a valid point about the motor taking up valuable space. I suppose if you don’t mind having a boat two feet longer than it would otherwise need to be, it just makes it all a bit tidier. I think I am coming round to having just the jib as the only forestay, but still not fully decided!
The outboard being in a well is for safety. No hanging over the stern! I have the same jib rolling issue on my Dabber. Furlers make us lazy. The sail should really be removed and the luff coiled.
I had the same problem with my roller furling, the sail was probably stored rolled for too long and the sail itself was trying to roll itself back up
Could be… It’s not a huge issue, if there’s any decent breeze it blows the rolls out. Just a little bit annoying!
I'd say it's sail 'memory' too. With our Westray we would take the jib off in the winter to store at home, and roll up the luff wire from tack to head, making the sail into a tube. That way the sail didn't develop a memory.
@@paulincumbria That’s very easy advice to follow, thanks, I will do that 🙂
Enjoyed this, thanks and subscribed! Thinking about your furling problem, have you checked to see if your top swivel is working well? It might be getting stuck!
Thanks very much! I did check the top swivel, and I think the twisting seemed to be going from the bottom up rather than the top down, but I will check again next time the mast is up 🙂
There will be two locations that can take twist when unfurling: the luff wire and the halyard. If the top swivel has more friction than the resistance of these two wires (to take twist), one or both will likely torque up and then rebound - drawing the sail back on the wire and pulling in the line onto the drum. I'd propose that the solution is a function of the resistance of the halyard and luff wires to rotate - versus the friction of the top swivel. The rig tension will be a factor that moderates this function. Some tape on these locations above and below the swivel (back to back to make a projecting tab that would be easily observed) could assist with determining what is causing this.
Thanks for the video and keep them coming!
Thanks very much! I think the swivel at the top is fine. I’ll check the jib luff wire for twists when an opportunity to spread the jib out on the floor presents itself@@ChrisLocke
Thank you!@@ChrisLocke
Lovely boat. Did you ever fix the vibrating centre-plate? What would this boat be like for a single-hander in a force 4?
Thanks! There has been some progress on the vibrating centre plate but I haven’t tested it yet. Single-handed in a force 4? Fine with a reef I reckon. Very stable boat.
Try a smaller diameter line in the center plate block...
I might experiment with that. Got to be thick enough to grip though. Could taper I suppose… Everything’s a compromise!
Admiring from the US, not sure why these types of boats are so uncommon here.
Thanks very much! There aren’t many boats of this exact type in this country either. A fair number of cruising dinghies of various types but in general they are I think a small niche in sailing world dominated by yachts and racing dinghies. Being part of a small niche has benefits and problems, as I am discovering!
Starting your children young at 23:10-ish! Nice!
No time to lose!
The jib sail itself might be holding some memory...
Thank you, yes, someone else has also suggested that. The jib is off the boat and I will unravel it on the floor and see what happens, might include in the next video 🙂
Ez Az ..Szabad. Élet..dingy..
You lost me at "electric motor"...
Sorry to hear that! It would be nice to have no engine at all, but they do come in handy sometimes!
Have you experienced an electric motor…what are the problems? Thanks
I haven’t used it much yet. So far no real problems. Not a lot of power, 3hp seems about right for the engine I’ve got, maybe it feels like less because it is so quiet! It has got us where we wanted to go. I guess the biggest problem might be that you always need to know where you can charge it up next, whereas with a petrol engine you can take as many cans as you might need. I’m happy with it though. Clean and quiet 🙂@@grahamskilling2147
@@grahamskilling2147 No problems so far. I guess range could be an issue, in that you can’t carry spare batteries as easily as spare petrol cans. But quiet and clean are huge pluses for me.