Question:
I'm ordering the plans/video package for the Weekender sailboat
tomorrow, but I've got a few questions that maybe some of you could help
me with.
The boat looks like it uses a wooden 4x4 for the mast. I'm kinda
jumping the gun on this, but I try to go into the building process in my
mind before I bring out the saws. Why not use an aluminum pole for
this? I would think two 4x4's would be extremely heavy for a mast. I
used to work at a rental company setting up tents and whatnot before
going back to school, and some of the 40 foot tents used some nice
aluminum poles. Seems like this would be a better choice. Even better
than that, why not use a 4x4 aluminum pole? (1/8" or so?) Is there a
reason for using a round pole, seems that a square piece of tubing would
work much better. (Easier to mount to - everythings square) It would
seem to be much easier to place a hinge on a flat mast to have the mast
fold, than onto a round one. I'm not trying to be odd, but I just don't
know much about sailboats. I'm really looking forward to this project
however. The only bonus I would think a round mast had was when
raising/lowering the sails they would slide easier.
Another question...solar panels. I plan on installing a 12 volt
battery, running lights, radio, depthfinder, and maybe later on a VHF
radio (not much need for one in West Texas.) for all of my electrical
needs. I know the depthfinder and radio don't pull much, and the
running lights probably don't as well, so would a solar panel be worth
it? I figure the boat will be used for weekend trips (imagine that),
and I would be on it for no more than a couple days at a time. Would
the battery just be ok without a solar charger, and throw a little 1.5
amp trickle charge on it when I got the boat back home? The only time I
could think of using the running lights would be the mast light when I'm
anchored for the night somewhere in the lake. If a solar panel (which
they seem really expensive) would be ok to mount and take care of the
charging duties - and was relatively inexpensive where I could wire it
up and forget it about it I would - or would this just be more of a pain
than a help?
The boat looks easy enough to build, and I'm looking forward to any
suggestions you might have, especially anyone who's already built this
slick looking little boat.
Answer:
The Weekender is a nice little sailboat. I am presently in the process of
building one. (It is at the stage where it at least looks like a boat -
recently completing the hull)
I guess you could use an aluminum mast no problem. On the Stevenson Project
home page there is a picture of a fella standing in his Weekender. He put a
aluminum mast on his boat and also raised the cabin. He also installed tiller
steering instead of the wheel.
An aluminum mast would be fairly expensive. You would definately have to use
a round mast as the sail guides (which are round) would have to be huge. The
mast on the Weekender is fairly short so I see no problem with a 4x4.
Personally, I think the plans, as designed by the Stevensons, is the best
way to go. They do however explain and illustrate the different upgrades that
can be done to the boat. They also discuss the pro's and cons of these
upgrades. If cost is no object, then the sky is the limit. The Weekender is a
boat that allows a person like me to build a sailboat for a reasonable cost
(as buying one is totally out of my financial ballpark).
Back to your original question. I would stick to the 4x4 mast. Quite a bit
of it is tapered thus cutting down quite a bit on the weight, and put the
extra bucks you would have to spend on the aluminum mast into the finishing
materials!!
