Open water 6M Design

[Riv]

I sail dinghies on the Dart.

Often while sitting on a Race committee boat it would be nice to have a Model Yacht to sail.

For open water use/choppy conditions winds up to 15mph are there any 6m designs that are better than others?

I'd expect to build my own.

Riv

 

[Mike Ewart]

Hi Riv

in general the six is quite a good open water design most of the modern designs would suit your requirements, possibly the Romanza design from Sails Etcor Frank Russel design have a Cerberus 

[Riv]

Thanks Mike, a useful lead

Riv.

 

 

[Riv]

Just had a look at both and the Romanza design is really contorted it will be much more difficult to build, also it just does not have the visceral appeal that the Cerberus sign has, so Cerberus it is.

[tiggy_cat]

1 hour ago, Riv said:

Just had a look at both and the Romanza design is really contorted it will be much more difficult to build, also it just does not have the visceral appeal that the Cerberus sign has, so Cerberus it is.

I bought a licence to build a Cerberus from Frank Russell but never proceeded with it. I have a friend who is an expert hull moulder living locally. He built a plug and mould for the Cerberus and made a couple of hulls in carbon. He was showing me his when I visited last week and reckoned that it was the best sailing 6 metre he had ever had.  I bought one of his Romanza hulls ( see pic) last year and that sails well. Just need a bit more time on the water to get used to it and a couple of more sails for it.    Just to say that all the hulls built have had the appropriate fees paid to the designer.

 

Edited November 28, 2021 by tiggy_cat

[Riv]

Looks great, I'll be doing it strip planked. What would be a normal plank width and thickness for a 6m. Do most people make their own or buy it?

[Mike Ewart]

the Cerberus is a great choice, cant help with planking details sorry

[Eric Finley]

Riv

Have a look at the 6M website ( http://sixmetresailing.weebly.com/ ), There is an article on planking a hull which I think has details of the planks the author uses.

[Mike Ewart]

Hi Riv

I have been contacted by Andrew  he is fairly local to you and he has a Cerberus hull which needs finishing which he is looking to sell if you send me a PM  then I can give you his contact details mikeewart@btinternet.com

[tiggy_cat]

Hi Riv,

Should you need materials, this is a starting point.          http://www.cedar-strip.co.uk/model_boats.html#content6-ay

[Riv]

Thanks for the link.

[Riv]

I have ordered the Cerberus plans from Frank Russell.

I found the 6m site and the blog posts on the Romanza design enlightening.

Quite a step up from the bread and butter hulls I used to make in my teens, but all quite manageable.

[stevevw]

There are a set of drawings on Franks site for the Serene that should satisfy you on the aesthetic front.

I will be building one at some point, but it will be a while 2 x 6m to finish and an A Class to restore.

[Riv]

Thanks Steve,

I'll look at it.

Riv

[Dave Kent]

I’ve sent you a message Riv.

[Riv]

The Cerberus plans show a side view of the keel with "cant 1°" on the plan.

I assume that this is relative to the waterline. Is it up or down? Is 1° actually useful?

Riv.

[Mike Ewart]

With regards to the cant on the keel, some time ago various studies were done on this and and the conclusions were 1 degree up at the forward end was benificial and this was in relation to the waterline, there are others who know a lot more who will probably clarify this more

[John949]

In theory all angles should be measured relative to the drawing baseline (the line at the top of the plan used to align the sections on your building board).  This may or may not be parallel to the waterline.  Again theoretically positive angles are clockwise (remember ACTS from your O level geometry).  Having said that 'cant' usually refers to a sideways lean (as in illegal canting keels).  The correct term for a fore / aft angle would be rake (as in mast rake).  I agree that one would expect the keel to point up at the bow end slightly.  This is because a force on the sails causes a bow down rotation of the boat (particularly in a gust) and so pointing the keel up reduces the drag a bit as the boat accelerates.

[Riv]

Thanks, interesting, info to digest.