EJ's Lightning sailboat

[PT-2]

A problem with what is sold as "Mahogany" is like saying candy bars: there are many subspecies and each with its own grain and coloration. If you order any ask the seller what the name actually is and then look it up. Happy sailing or I guess don't get too tied up at the dock to lose the fun. PT-2

Late in the build for you but since you are going to begin running rigging, the centerboard lines are active all around the course so if you can do a ninety degree hole to drop that pivoting pin on top of the centerboard trunk as low as possible, then the lines associated with raising and lowering it will make sense. Lowering as though it could drop under its own weight when reaching the lateral pressure inside the trunk requires that it be brought up with a line, loop actually, for both up and down, along the trunk top accessible to the skipper or crew. The diorama sounds like a fun project in itself. PT-2

 

[MM2CVS9]

Do you have a pic or drawing of the centerboard rigging?

EJ

 

[PT-2]

Do you have a pic or drawing of the centerboard rigging?

EJ

I will have to do a sketch this weekend to send. Google up the YouTube for the World Champion explaining his Lightning rig and that for his centerboard. Modern "Plastic" hulls do not give me the same feeling that I get/got from the old woodies but don't take the same maintenance. PT-2

 

[MM2CVS9]

Thanks for your help. I'm not very lucky finding stuff on YouTube, or anywhere else for that matter. Most of what I find is pretty generic.

Having no sailing experience, the combination of sailing terminology and lack of hands on are a detriment to an accurate build.

I have found lots of pics of lightnings, but most are from a distance so the whole boat shows, giving little to no detail shots. Same with all the drawings. They are very simplified, again showing little or no detail. Many show one end or the other of a line, but not both or the path taken, so you get no detail of how it actually works. I have tried to contact the Lightning association several times looking for drawings or pics of what I need, but have had no reply. Unfortunately, when I visited the guy with a lightning and took pics, I missed taking shots of some of the details, not realizing I might want them later.

EJ

 

[PT-2]

Thanks for your help. I'm not very lucky finding stuff on YouTube, or anywhere else for that matter. Most of what I find is pretty generic.

Having no sailing experience, the combination of sailing terminology and lack of hands on are a detriment to an accurate build.

I have found lots of pics of lightnings, but most are from a distance so the whole boat shows, giving little to no detail shots. Same with all the drawings. They are very simplified, again showing little or no detail. Many show one end or the other of a line, but not both or the path taken, so you get no detail of how it actually works. I have tried to contact the Lightning association several times looking for drawings or pics of what I need, but have had no reply. Unfortunately, when I visited the guy with a lightning and took pics, I missed taking shots of some of the details, not realizing I might want them later.

EJ

Part of what you may see in the closer cockpit view depends upon your know what to look for and what it may look like. I did an hour of hunting last night and saw some but they were not fully what I wanted to reply to you. I had forgotten that the keel in a Lightning may have been a metal plate, heavy, so controlled lowering was needed but even more so with a good pully system to brig it back up. The pin that you placed on the top corner of your keel would have been a preventer when trailering but more often those were placed further back where the trunk turns down for better leverage. My photos are mainly in my Blue Jay which would have been rigged similarly to the Lightning but don't clearly show the full arrangement which I will put into sketch to send. Every Lightning that I saw had the same fully open cockpit aft for fore under those decks for storage, mainly sails forward, like the spinnaker. Even if yours is dockside, I recommend that you place a spinnaker pole connection (U-shaped rod and plate to the mast) as the pole had snap-shackles on each end to pivot in the U-shaped part. Go to Harken fittings to see all of the hardware which is also shown diagrammatically by location. PT-2

 

[MM2CVS9]

This is what I came up with for the centerboard. The boat I saw had two lines, one to raise the board, one to lower it as sometimes the board would not go down on it's own when underway.

Very rough drawing, but you get the idea.

I'll have to do what I have to do. As you can see, about 30% of the bottom has been removed to waterline it, so the lower part of the board and trunk, including the pivot pin is gone. It is what it is.

EJ

 

[shota70]

Dear EJ
The Lightning sailboat you are building and the door come out professional and beautiful.
I quite agree with the decisions you made, sometimes during construction we identify the gaps between the drawings and the reality in construction. in our design I believed that the experience should lead.
Well done

 

[Kurt Konrath]

Looks much like my 14’ Lido sailboat, except the Lido class has aluminum mast and boom.

My center board pulled up level inside the center board box. It has metal curved attachment that gets pulled by cord to retract the center board and simple line to assist gravity to keep board down!

Mast has similar stays with front and two angles to rear forming triangle design of stays. And some simple spreaders on side of mast to keep mast straight!


Mine is fiberglass hull

Kurt

 

[MM2CVS9]

The seat boards "popped" out pretty well with no damage. The floor boards however are really glued down. I'm gonna paint the existing mahogany panels and make new "boards" in mahogany color to lay over them so it looks like slatted duckboards.

Got the boards laid out for cutting.

EJ

 

[PT-2]

This is what I came up with for the centerboard. The boat I saw had two lines, one to raise the board, one to lower it as sometimes the board would not go down on it's own when underway.

Very rough drawing, but you get the idea.

I'll have to do what I have to do. As you can see, about 30% of the bottom has been removed to waterline it, so the lower part of the board and trunk, including the pivot pin is gone. It is what it is.

EJ

There were no Lightnings present at they yacht club. An abandoned Thistle was all that I had access to shoot and that was too complicated without explanations. I did some photos of a trainer which has a very simple CB rig and will also attach positions sketch which you already have in hand except that the CB is much longer than your more broad and shorter version which doesn't matter now. Also, sails are 95% only attached just before setting out and if furled between matches they are dropped and held with bungie cords not a fully wrapped main on the boom as I saw in only one photo, not stored a such furled for you diorama.

 

[PT-2]

The seat boards "popped" out pretty well with no damage. The floor boards however are really glued down. I'm gonna paint the existing mahogany panels and make new "boards" in mahogany color to lay over them so it looks like slatted duckboards.

Got the boards laid out for cutting.

EJ

Typically floor board were 1x4 and those across the CB trunk were 1x3 or 1x4 not solid plywood or plank but builders had different approaches to woodies quite different than the fiberglass boats of today. . . which were all well covered at the yacht club and no one around to expose those. PT-2

 

[MM2CVS9]

Got "boards" ripped for the seats, and a pile of narrower ones to make the "duckboards", and some skinny ones for cleats.

Ripped them from sheet stock on my new inexpensive MicroMark table ripsaw. 10 minutes work to make the strips. NICE! The seat boards were cut on the scroll saw and sanded to finish size.

EJ

 

[PT-2]

Got "boards" ripped for the seats, and a pile of narrower ones to make the "duckboards", and some skinny ones for cleats.

Ripped them from sheet stock on my new inexpensive MicroMark table ripsaw. 10 minutes work to make the strips. NICE! The seat boards were cut on the scroll saw and sanded to finish size.

EJ

Nice work. Smooth even curves for the seats. have a MicroMark Scroll and a Prxon table saw. Did the same thing last night ripping the accent planks for my canoe build. My eye problems gave me fits trying to cut the canoe forms correctly as I would lose sight of the saw blade. Used my sander to touch them up and then used the plastic hot glue to attach them. Big problem. . a number were not correctly attached and came loose today when trying to pin down the starter planks. Fell back to my Tightbond original but had not removed enough of the plastic on the form bottoms so there is some minor vertical variance in the first steps of the forms. I can live with the smooth curves that ended up and will, after sanding some more clothes pins to clamps begin "walking the planks" up toward the keel. Hopefully I won't go off into the deep as I have not yet been sewn into my hammock and weighted down with cannon shot for the deep six. PT-2

 

[MM2CVS9]

Well, I think they look mahagonyish. Said so on the container. Penn Stain - mahogany. I used to use this on cabinets and trim work.

This was the original kit wood, clearcoated.

The slats for the duckboards; under fluorescent light,

the seat boards, under 5000K LED light.

From real life, to camera rendition, to computer, to Imjur rendition, to your computer screen, colors can change a lot, BUT, they sure look good to me.

EJ

 

[DocBlake]

Very nice job!

 

[MM2CVS9]

Very nice job!

Thanks. This has become a personal build, as well as a learning experience regarding small boat sailing. I'm getting close enough to finish now I can taste it.

EJ

 

[PT-2]

Very nice job!

Nice trim work. If you can taste the end. . . what will the diorama have for a tide level where we can smell the seaweed and kelp??? Guess that I am just close enough in Oregon to be at the coast fairly regularly for that experience. The Stellar Sea Lions really have strong odor of their own. PT-2

 

[PT-2]

Thanks. This has become a personal build, as well as a learning experience regarding small boat sailing. I'm getting close enough to finish now I can taste it.

EJ

From my past in dinghy racing I am attracted to the schooners as the big daddies of fast beautiful boats and the path that I will be following, after a planking learning experience with a canoe or two, with Bluenose and other schooners. Here is YouTube link into a medium sized schooner rig Viola with a good commentary of wood boats sailed hands on without modern technology: Les Voiles de Saint Tropez – Film – The Spirit of Yachting
Lightnings were never like this but my 5-0-5 trapeze mono-hull on a reaching plane with main, jib, and spinnaker up gave the same adrenalyn rush!!!! I just don't get the same feeling about the multi-deck, large number of cannons, and elaborate decorations that are build so well by many SoS builders. I admire their skill but I guess that I am an adrenalyn junkie at the helm. PT-2

 

[PT-2]

Looks much like my 14’ Lido sailboat, except the Lido class has aluminum mast and boom.

My center board pulled up level inside the center board box. It has metal curved attachment that gets pulled by cord to retract the center board and simple line to assist gravity to keep board down!

Mast has similar stays with front and two angles to rear forming triangle design of stays. And some simple spreaders on side of mast to keep mast straight!


Mine is fiberglass hull

Kurt

Elsewhere I mentioned my past racing in Lightnings, Thistles, and my own 5-0-5 which was the pinnacle of my rush, which drives me toward schooners as high sail powered mono-hulls of beauty and speed. The type of yacht that I will be following in my builds other than some canoes, also a younger experience. To give you an idea of the planning power of the two man trapeze 5-0-5, you may be able to link into this short series of clips from recent world championship. Back in 1970 I qualified from the NW USA to race in the world championship at Santa Cruz, CA but decided that completing my architectural theses project and degree must take priority. Lucky choice because of the five boats from the NW none finished, two were badly damaged in high seas and winds, and four crew were injured. Here is the rush of a 5-0-5 that you can watch on Google or other venues by entering

Followed by several others and great clips. PT-2

 

[MM2CVS9]

Duckboards done. Seats next.

EJ