MilliBee with a haircut?

[adminHBBR]

These times of austerity demand cut backs across the board - a slight remodelling of MilliBee comes to mind to:

1) Reduce windage, something you will appreciate when she drifts sideways into a river bank at the most embarrassing time possible.

2) Get rid of the underwater brakes (bilge cases) that Chris W. thinks should be replaced by an efficient shaped centerboard.

3) Give more clearance for the rig.


Its a quick mockup - the most amusing reply gets a free pint at Beale (if I can remember which bus to take). Serious suggestions are welcome also



-Paul

[Timmo]

Less windage, centreboard, rig clearance... sure, very interesting and sound like great ideas.

Much more important is the antigravity! Getting it to hover 30 cms above the trailer is an amazing achievement.

Tim

On 8 Feb 2012, at 22:20, adminHBBR [via UK HBBR Forum] wrote:

> These times of austerity demand cut backs across the board - a slight remodelling of MilliBee comes to mind to:
>
> 1) Reduce windage, something you will appreciate when she drifts sideways into a river bank at the most embarrassing time possible.
>
> 2) Get rid of the underwater brakes (bilge cases) that Chris W. thinks should be replaced by an efficient shaped centerboard.
>
> 3) Give more clearance for the rig.

[Anders]

You forgot one thing: It looks so much better. Very close to the original and actually better.
I can imagine that its all about how much you use the cabin. Shaving 15 - 20cm off and having a centerboard case in the cabin means less space, so I can imagine you dont use it so much. Is it mostly for the kids.

[alopenboat]

You need a bit more ballast, methinks.


On 8 Feb 2012 at 14:20, adminHBBR [via UK HBBR Forum] wrote:

>
>
> These times of austerity demand cut backs across the board - a slight
> remodelling of MilliBee comes to mind to:
>
> 1) Reduce windage, something you will appreciate when she drifts
> sideways into a river bank at the most embarrassing time possible.
>
> 2) Get rid of the underwater brakes (bilge cases) that Chris W. thinks
> should be replaced by an efficient shaped centerboard.
>
> 3) Give more clearance for the rig.
>
>
> Its a quick mockup - the most amusing reply gets a free pint at Beale
> (if I can remember which bus to take). Serious suggestions are welcome
> also
>
> http://uk-hbbr-forum.967333.n3.nabble.com/file/n3727803/milli.jpg 
>
> -Paul
>
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--
Hoping for calm nights

Alastair Law,      
Yeovil, England.
<http://www.little.jim.freeuk.com>          

[Chris Waite]

"Is it a boat, is it a plane?"

Will that do?

And when do you start?

CW

[adminHBBR]

Anders wrote

You forgot one thing: It looks so much better. Very close to the original and actually better.
I can imagine that its all about how much you use the cabin. Shaving 15 - 20cm off and having a centerboard case in the cabin means less space, so I can imagine you dont use it so much. Is it mostly for the kids.

Anders,
The cabin was certainly over-engineered, but somewhat accidentally. She was built in a U shaped space boxed in by my shed and two fences so it was impossible to get a true side view of her profile during construction. I raised the roof for more headroom, extended the cabin thinking that the kids would enjoy the extra space made even bigger by the bilge cases hidden under the bunks. I hoped that would make them feel more comfortable hoping for family based cruising.

However, the cabin has obviously turned out to be a tad big. Some people said that is a good thing for such a small boat and they like the roomy interior. Hard core open boat sailors immediatly remark about the higher windage she will suffer and they are infact correct. No boat is perfect though, and in reality I am the only person to have slept in her despite carefully planning the cabin to sit 2 adults + 2 kids, with the kids sleeping in a boom tent. The kids have grown up now, so streamlining for just one or maybe two people is probably a good thing.

The "Chainsaw Massacre" might make its way onto You Tube ...but probably not this side of 2013.

-Paul

[adminHBBR]

Timmo wrote

Less windage, centreboard, rig clearance... sure, very interesting and sound like great ideas.

Much more important is the antigravity! Getting it to hover 30 cms above the trailer is an amazing achievement.

Tim,
Anti-gravity was easy. I picked up a mothballed Star Wars speedster on ebay and stripped it down to the essential hardware (plans available if anyone is interested).

<

-Paul

[Anders]

Paul, Its the classical problem: ¿making sailboats or sailcaravans?  On 14´ even 10cm higher looks big.
Am a right when I read that you´re not a big fan of Paul Fisher L shaped bilge centerboards? Is it one of these things that look fancy on a drawing but doesnt really work in reality?
I ask because maybe in the VERY far future, I could be interested in building a pocket cruiser.

[Timmo]

Cool!

Even beats an electric bicycle. can it be solar powered?

Tim.

On 10 Feb 2012, at 21:08, adminHBBR [via UK HBBR Forum] wrote:
> Tim,
> Anti-gravity was easy. I picked up a mothballed Star Wars speedster on ebay and stripped it down to the essential hardware (plans available is anyone is interested).
>

[adminHBBR]

MilliBee is indeed an excellent sailcaravan and the L shaped bulge boards certainly work - less rudder is needed when one or two are lowered.

She sails upwind better than a Paradox, but a Mirror beats both. She is poor in light winds, I think that is due to the Enterprise rig lacking power due to inefficiency of rigging over the bulky cabin - hence it struggles to overcome the higher hull drag caused by the bilge cases.

But in medium winds she flies, the chines dig in as she heels so I can point higher with good speed.

My biggest grumble is the high ride height on a trailer. To recover her the trailer often must be totally submerged and she must align exactly with the bilge rollers - there is no element of self centering that you get with a traditional roller setup. The bilge rollers take all the weight so the brackets bend, perhaps U channels lined with carpet would be a stronger solution.

However no boat is perfect and I can say the accommodation is first class, and she is excellent in a river or harbour.  

I have no idea how the performance improves with a centreboard. A rather dramatic experiment is needed to find out the truth! However logic says that, with all things considered, the change would be positive.

Cheers
Paul

Sent from my HTC