Blade Trailer Layout

Hello:
I'm new to this forum and soon to the F16 and Blade community. I've just sent in a deposit on a boat to Vector Works.
I'll be getting a trailer locally, Orange County, CA, so need to know what I should be looking for. Do any of you have a good photo of a well thought out trailer for a Blade?
What is the distance between the centerlines on the hulls?
Where is best place to support the hulls?
I home built my first fiberglass cat in 1965 and have owned a B-Lion, Tornado and presently a Shark. I'm looking forward to a boat I can actually beach launch by myself!
John, Shark US 421, soon to be Blade #?

I'd talk to Matt about this. His trailers have double rollers on the back and cradles in the front. See if he will supply you with those.

I've only trailered a few hundred miles with this set up, but no complaints so far.

I'll get you some pictures in the next few days.

Robi: What do you have on hand?

I dont have any photos sorry guys.

My trailer was a hobie 16 trailer. I removed all rollers and I have two rear home made cradles, and the two front cradles are Vector Works Special Edition blade cradles. Make sure you ask for the special edition cradles. Tell Matt, I sent you. lol <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Hi Guys,

I recommend what is quoted above. On my trailer I have the normal roller on the back and then a removable cradle that slips over it to support the hull once the boat is on the trailer. Rollers alone can gradualy wear the hull at the point that they touch over time.

Tiger Mike

I have cradles in the front as well and rollers at the back. I too have removable cradles that fit on top of the rollers at the back. I fit these before I start driving. So my boat rests on 4 cradles. Many aussies prefer to not have the hulls be touched by the trailer and suspend the boat on its beams. I finally decided to go with the cradle option and my hulls are surviving very well indeed. I have a timber hulled F16. Spread the load out well and you'll be fine.

The rollers make it very easy for a singlehanded sailor to load and unload the boat (singlehandedly)

Wouter

Tiger Mike,
I would do the same if I supported my boat on its hulls when on the trailer. There is not much weight on the rear when on the trailer still I wouldn' let them sit on rollers while trailering.
At the very least I'd slip some pads between the hulls and rollers.

Regards,
Phill

Welcome to the F16 class John, please put your location pin on our world map at :

http://www.frappr.com/formula16classgroup

Best of enjoyment with your new boat !

Wouter

Here ya' go! Blame Robi for the bad pix. He insulted my camera as an antique and it hasn't worked right since! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

Trailer Dimensions:

overall length- 240"
cross bar width- 96"
rear bar set forward- 15"
front bar set forward of rear bar-68 1/2"

side view

side

cradle

cradle again

rollers

roller again

rear

Very nice Pete, but what stops your boat from moving sideways off the rear rollers? (apart from the tiedown)

Nothing.

Here's a rubbish photo of my trailer. I use 4 cradles, no rollers as I'm not a big fan of putting rounded hulls onto a flat roller, and anyway, it's pretty easy to get the boat onto cradles single-handed.

I don't normally put it on the trailer backwards. It's something I tried once, but it's easier to get on and off the other way round.

Cradles are from Vectorworks. The only thing to watch out for is to make sure that you have enough clearance below the dolphin striker if you're going to put a box on the trailer. As you can see, I've got some extra 50mm x 50mm on the arms to lift it up a bit, and to give a wider base to bolt the cradles to.

The arms are adjustable and can be removed which makes it less hassle to tow without the boat or leave in a crowded car park. Also, it adds a little more greyness to the legally grey area of towing 2.5m wide loads in the UK (as in, "the trailer's only 2m wide, officer, it's just that the load is overhanging" <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> )

Paul

Jim Boyer and Greg Goodall strongly recommend trailering the Taipans (and their Flyers and Auscats) supported by the beams not the hulls. To that end I made up a front beam support for my Taipan that bolts to a "standard" cat trailer and a rear mast support that also supports the boat by the rear beam (there is very little load on the rear beam, as you can imagine most of the weight centers very close to the "front" beam- which is actually very close to the middle of the boat). I'll try to attach a photo.

Kirt

Here's hopefully a photo of the rear support- note the cat wheels are used as the rear "cradles" when loading the boat (actually I place the wheels under the rear beam and tie off, lift the boat by one bow and wheel to the trailer- load the bows on the front cradles then walk to back of boat, lift boat and wheels and slide boat up until the front beam touches it's "cradles" and set the wheels down in their "cradles", then go forward and lift boat slightly and pull forward so front beam supports boat. Then place rear mast step which also traps wheels, untie wheels and use a line to lace rear beam up to mast stand. Mast is lowered over the front into telescoping mast stand utilizing mainsheet blocks to assist in lowering.)

Kirt

I bought the same trailer that Tiki showed, except I put cradles fore and aft. Also moved the wheels forward about 12 inches to give it a little better balance.

My front beam sits about 12 inches behind the from cross bar, about the same for the rear. This position seems to fit the ride of the trailer and rear quarter panel of the two vehicle (big GMC Yukon XL gas guzzler) better.

proudly presenting my trailer

Jaap Haasnoot

Tried but it didn't seem to take.
User error?

Thanks folks for all the great ideas and photos.
You have made it much easier for me to visualize the task and possible options.
I knew there was reason I like cat sailors best.
John D, right next door to Surf City, USA

Whoa! You just got started! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> Do a search on this site for sailboxes. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Now you're talkin' options!!

Huh that is weird.

I'll look into that.

Wouter

Hi ,

The way Jaap is moving his boat is my upinion the best way to do, you are carrying the boat on the more stronger parts of the boat and not on the weaker hull parts. It is also easy to put the boat on the trailer. So this is also the way i do trailering my boat. I will make a picture from it and put this on the web.

Folks,
It is also the way I trailer my boat.
I used to have photos of my nine year old sone putting the boat on the trailer on my web site. Not sure if they are still there.

Regards,
Phill

I had the double rollers in the rear and cradles up front setup but I added a 1 inch thick foam pad (a cheap cut up swim toy from Walmart) between the rollers and hulls after loading, to cushion any bumps and spread the load.

I once saw a brand new Inter 20 on a single rear roller setup that had been trailered to a boat show. It had two round dents in the hulls where it was bouncing up and down on the single rollers. Ugly sight on a brand new boat!

Got it to work.
I guess I was using the Caps key for the letter in the code. When I entered it lower case, it worked.
Thanks

Alright ! Well come to our world member map.

Wouter

I'm in simular possition as JJD. Have Blade ordered and should be done in next few weeks. bought an old Highlander trailer which was used on TheMightyHobie18. Am curious about JAAP's trailering but don't visualize easy loading as Hans sugests. sailing solo. Will Lints

Will,
I assumed Jaap's set up is similar to mine.
Jaap please speak up if I'm wrong.
I came up with this for two reasons. I don't like my boat sitting on some pads tat will eventually degrade the finish on the hulls where the pads arfe and second is I wanted a system that would allow me to rig and derig including getting the boat on and off the trailer all by myself.
I will attach a couple of pics that show the loading.
Basically the beam comes down on a couple of slides that support the boat as it moves forward on the trailer.
Like Kirt mentioned on an earlier post my beach wheels go under the rear beam. The trailer takes both boats and once my Blade is rigged I just use the spinnaker pole as a handle and pic it up to move the boat around. The pics I'll attach are of my Taipan going onto the trailer.
They were taken a while back and my son (9 at the time) easily picks the back of the boat up.
Hope this helps,
Regards,
Phill

Picking up and sliding on.

The loading can be very easy with that setup. Phill himself and Geert use s similar setup.

Pretty much you have two beams which acts as rails and you have two cars that move along the beams (rails)

Some make sliding cars others just used a U-profile with bolts and small wheels. It alls dependent on how nice you want the system to glide/roll.

The cars are at the back of the boat when loading the boat to the trailer. The cat track is underneath the sterns. You grap a bow and walk up to the trailer laying the mainbeam onto the cars. Sometimes you can the tweak a little so that the dolphin striker is clear. Then you walk to the back of the boat, untie the cat tracks, and you lift the boat by the rearbeam. This is very light as the beam is already supported partly by the mainbeam. You lift the platform so it is horizontal and walk the boat onto the trailer while the care slide or roll forward. Then you gently put the rearbeam onto the beams that also acted as rails. Before driving and tying the boat down your lay same formed foam blocks underneath the rearbeam so you don't damage it.

That is it.

Wouter

My trailer has also the sliding construction.
When I used it for my a-cat I could put the boat on the trailer on my own.
Jaap

Will you all please expand a bit more on the slides/wheels?

I'm going to use this galvanized, welded, U-channel for the rail.

Where did you find channel like that? It looks like great stuff.

A quick peek at the image properties reveals

http://www.unistrut.com/Browse/pages/P1001.gif

So I am guessing ??Unistrut?? <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" />

Yup, didn't know you could do that. Neat trick.

Thanks for the pictures and explaination. I live in New Mexico which is simi arid and we don't have those beatutiful green lawns for rigging. I've always rigged my H16 on the trailer and i think that is common practice. but, maybe a beam supported boat can be rigged while on the trailer?.....Will Lints

This is probably a dumb question, but I'll ask it anyway....

Doesn't "hanging" the boat by its beams put undo pressure on the the 8 bolts/nuts/connection points that hold the beam to the hulls? Are the hulls so light that this pressure is negligible? Seems like, over time, the threading for the beam bolts would weaken.......

Personally, I'd rather sit in a chair - rather than hang from a chin up bar <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

My boat lives on the trailer and I try to reposition it a little after each use. It makes me feel better about "wearing" out the areas where the cradles are.

Just curious to see if others have this same concern about "hanging" boats for storage....

Tom,
In my book there is no such thing as a dumb question.
Just dumb answer. Hopefully this isn't a dumb answer.

This is just the way I see it.

One hull weighs between 20 and 25kg.
It is supported by 4 bolts.

If the load was even between front and back it would be between 5 to 6.25kg per bolt.

I would expect each bolt would be capable of taking over 100 times that weight.

Compare this to the tension load applied to the hulls at the rear beam when fully powered up upwind and double trapped. This load can be so high that I know of boats that have snapped inner rear beam bolts that were 8mm in dia. If really concerned look up the tensile breaking strain of an 8mm bolt just to see the type of loads involved when sailing and then compare it to trailering.
I personally don't see a problem with trailering by the beams.
Regards,
Phill

Tom,

If you look up the shear (side load) strength of bolts you'll find it is incredible, so as Phill says hulls simply "hanging" by bolts is no problem.

The uni-strut product is used for mechanical and electrical support in construction, and is available at the next step up from the Home Depots of building supplies. I also found that a trolley/car is available (P2570) for the 1 5/8" stuff. It's rated for 100 pounds but meant to be used in the inverted mode and for it's limited use (movement) in this application should last for years.

Had planned on using this Aussie beam support on my old Hobie trailers (patiently waiting for used/affordable T4.9/F16/?) and may have some concern with hull weights in 30 to 35 kg range, but seriously doubt it, and/or I'm going to find out.

Following Phil's reasoning: my cradle's are apporimately 144 sq. inches in area, x 4 is 576 sq. inches. Divide that by the 240 lb. boat weight= 2.4 lbs/ sq. inch.

If the experts say "hang" the boat I would consider that "best Practice", but it isn't high on my priority list. One day though! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

My 2 cents.

Yes Pete, but are the cradles 144 sq.in. equally supporting the load? Or is the boat sitting on the bottom of the cradle and the sides just limit sideways slip.

Didn't Kirby Haws have a second hand Taipan 4.9/F16 (with extra's) on offer for 5000 USD ?

I call that AFFORDABLE !

Wouter

Typically steel can take 60 kg / mm^2 that would be about 85.500 lbs (say 86 K lbs) per square inch.

A single 2 mm trapeze line (1/10 inch) is enough to suspend 7 F16 boats

No worries here.

Wouter

Ok. You convinced me on the bolts. What about the glass/kevlar/carbon joints where the bolts attach to the bolts? Completley different scenario, but I've seen where people had to reseat beam landings on old old old old Nacras because the bolts pulled out/got stripped out.

Compeltely different hull builds, weights, etc.

While sailing the loads on these areas is MUCH higher then when suspending a 25 kg hull of it.

Don't worry.

Wouter

dunno', but I'm still not all that worried. If I were less cautious when driving, maybe.

Tshan, I too am more concerened about the glass than the steel. Either way the bigger factor may be the bumps and pot holes in the road, the rail road tracks, the cattle guards, the graveled roads. It isn't the smooth road that wears out a car's suspention. I went out and bounced on one side of the TheMightyHobie18 trailer with my 150 pounds (56 KG) and i don't think it moved up and down an inch (2.5 cm). Of course it depends on how much weight one carries around in the cat box, but it just seems like it's too stiff for something that is designed to float in water. wondering, Will Lints

I'm with you, Will. If the boat is suspended from its beams, the road vibration alone, not to mention the bumps, is going to cause the connection between beams and hulls to always be "working."

Using Phill's photos as a starting point, I came up with my trailer setup--easy to load/unload solo, very secure over thousands of miles so far, low friction Trex for the beam rails, and a clever way of integrading the dolley. See photos attached.

2

3

4

5

Nice trailer!

Is the only thing keeping rear lateral movement minimized the CatTrax?

But...if the beam support is approximately 4 to 6 inches from the hull, how much flection can there be? I can't see how there would be any significant movement.

Need the physics boys again.

Eric, very nice work!

Will, were you born in Missouri, the "Show Me" state? <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Yes, but there is no movement--I've even followed the trailer on the road and the boat is rock solid.

tback,

It's not only the cat trax resisting lateral movement.
You will notice the dolphin striker strap drops into two slots and the there are two retainers that go over the front beam.

Take the cat trax away and put the back of the boat on a slippery surface and you still won't get any lateral movement.
The cat trax are just an added bonus.
Its a good setup.
Regards,
Phill

Hi all,

have to back up Phill, here I carry my boat and store it supported only by the beams front and rear. A lot of Aussies carry their boats on the beams and I have never heard of a problem. In fact "Altered" snapped a beam bolt but that happened on the water, but no problem on trailer. I think I travel more than the average sailor and living in the country, I get plenty of rough roads, do recommend soft springs though, many trailers springs are not designed for light weight F16's.

However I have seen fibreglass and timber boats blistered, where they rest on cradles on long Aussie road trips.

Hopefully you will find some photo's of my system attached.

Regards Gary.

it rolls on one set rollers at rear and another set just behind beam supports.

then a small lift of the bows puts the main beam in the front cups.

and

then another small lift as you swing rear cups on to back beam.

and then tension the back cups into place.

then if required you can slot in a second set of racks which can carry another cat upside down again on beams or

your son's mono <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> Now it's all ready to go.

another angle.

and the last one.

Gary, MAN ! Do YOU have an immaculate shine on your hulls.

I'm just down right envious ! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Wouter

You should consider putting nipple rings on your bow bra's. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

<img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Mary-
I set my trailer up to support my boat by the beams since Jim Boyer and Greg Goodall both told me I "must" do this and sent photos of their recommend trailer setup. According to Jim the worst "working" (he called it "racking") the beams/hulls go through is when the hulls are strapped down tight to trailer crossarms (regardless of whether you use rollers/cradles/etc.) since the trailer will flex while under way and this will "work" the beam/hull connection much worse. Jim also espoused a heavy steel trailer to both decrease trailer flex as well as improve the ride- he said the light aluminum trailers were bad for cats. This is the reason I support my boat at both corners of the front beam but at the middle of the rear beam- that way if the trailer "twists" there is no induced twist on my beams/hulls <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />. I think the critical difference here is we are used to thinking of hulls that weigh a lot (ie Hobie 16 or 18 hulls for instance) vs the very light F16/ "A" cat hulls. If you want to see how much a trailer flexes under way just follow an empty cat trailer for a few miles OR put some upright tubes bolted to the end of your crossarms and watch them in your mirror as you drive- they are all over the place! Strapping a (preferably heavy) boat down actually dampens this movement because the flexion is transferred to the boat! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

Kirt

Hi Forum,

There has been so much good information and generous contributions regarding trailers for F-16. Gary's design looks like it facilitates ramp launching and loading which I usually do. I also like the softening the springs. The TheMightyHobie18 trailer I have is over sprung for a 230 lb. F-16. It has a main leaf and a shorter helper leaf which I'll remove. I think that'll get it in the ball park.

I think I understand that Pete Pollard's trailer is by Vectorworks. Matt McDonald has told me that the cradles are available. He mentioned the double rollers but not if he had them for sale? I like Wouter's and Tiger Mike's removable cradles for the rear, although i'm not quite sure how they do it. I like Gary's "cups" because he is caring the load out wide near the hulls which puts less stress on the beams which are designed for loads going in the other direction.

Probably, I'll do something like the pictures Pete Pollard posted, with some removable cradles for the rear. Then if I still have energy, I'd like to follow Gary's idea for supporting the forward beam. Talk's cheep, it'll be different than what I'm thinking now. Thanks for everyone's input, there's a wealth on knowledge in this forum.

Removable cradles is actually very simple.

All the cradles come with a "seat" that will take the axis of the cat tracks. And the diameter of the seat fits the round rollers very well. So lift your hulls up and slide the cradle onto the rollers and underneath your hulls. Some people also clamp or tie down the cradles the the rollers, I don't I just tie down the boat to the trailer and that keeps the cradles in place. But I have excellent roads all around me.

I personally heavily favour Eric Poulsens setup as I think that can easily be homemade and it will work very well. I'm looking to rebuild my own trailer and then it will be like Erics.

Wouter

Will:

My trailer is pure stock, as delivered from Vectorworks. You could probably buy all those components from a local supplier.

The trailer manufacturer is "Magic Tilt", I think.

When is your delivery date?

Does this type of set up hinder loading the boat with spi pole in position?

Here are photos of the AHPC factory set up (A-cat shown; F16 would be the same.

2nd photo--very clever "no tie down" fixation for the front--a custom fabricated T-nut is tightened down on the mast base--end is male (A-cat) or female (Taipan) of the cone/socket.

3rd photo--rear beam fixation (similar to Gary's set up) but with only a central cup.

Wouter, I too like Eric Poulsen's ideas, like the capture of the striker rod (or strap), but I think the beam rails make it hard to ramp launch and load. I see that there are rollers down below so there must be a way to have it work either way, hull carrier or beam carrier. Can it be loaded using the rollers and then be shifted up onto the beam rails?

I also appreciate Kirt's comments, "According to Jim the worst "working" (he called it "racking") the beams/hulls go through is when the hulls are strapped down tight to trailer crossarms (regardless of whether you use rollers/cradles/etc.) since the trailer will flex while under way and this will "work" the beam/hull connection much worse

Pete Pollard, i'm thinking that it will be done this week or early next, then some over night letters and packing and shipping. I think i'll have it by the 23rd or 30th.

Yes.

The trailer was originally a very stout steel Hobie 18 trailer I revised. Also, the beam rail supports can be adjusted if needed (eg stacking). I love the Trex material the rails are made of--it's that deck material made from ground up plastic and wood. It has the strength and workability of wood but the weather-resistence of plastic. And best of all, it is low friction--so the beams just slide across it without abrasion to the dolphin striker or beams.

Hi Tom,

the system I use for Altered, would require having the crossbar between the two front uprights lower, but if you lifted pole ropes over the front uprights you could leave it rigged up I think, as long as you where clear of the mast support which is easy to fix.

Regards Gary.

I found putting all the pieces together a big job. Of course I'm the most mechanically challenged male in the U.S. At any rate, if you have ANY questions, let us know.

And don't worry about asking stupid questions, I already did that!

See ya on the water.

Not to hijack but I need to vent. I ordered the Blade in January with an April ETA. This shifted to Mid-May. Then it was being crated on June 5th. Now it is the 14th and with Matt non-responsive to emails/faxs/voicemails I had to phone the receptionist today to find out that the boat hasn't been shipped yet. So that officially puts me down so far for 1/4 of my 2006 sailing season.
Don't I know that customer service will be peachy if I need anything. I am starting to feel like the guys in the Mystere forum.

Eric and Kirt,

Are the transoms of your boats resting on the beams or the cat trax? If so, why? I am working on some modifications to my trailer to allow me to "hang" 712. I am pretty close (almost exactly like Eric's, but no beach wheels).

Not related to trailers, bu how do the smaller wheels do in sand?

Kirt, are you going to Island Hop (back at OSYC)?

I don't think Eric uses rails and sliders at all. He uses the rollers while holding the boat by the ows. That is how I do it on my normal trailer. We far enough on the trailer he puts down the mainbeam on its rests and then lifts the boat at the rearbeam putting the cat tracks in their rests.


Wouter

Tom-
I have front cradles on my trailer to support the boat as I slide it forward (by picking the boat up at the stern, wheels and all and pushing forward until wheels "seat" into their "L" angled spots, then go forward and lift front beam into their "slots"- this puts the hulls above the front cradles slightly. Then the rear mast support is pinned in (this traps the wheels down) and the wheel ties loosened so a line is then used to slightly lift the rear beam into contact with an inverted "L" angle where the beam is lashed into place. Again, the boat is now entirely supported by 3 points so the trailer can pretty much flex all it wants (actually the front beam support is quite substantial and flexes very little) and none of this flexure is transferred to the boat.
Loading the boat on the trailer can all be done with the spi pole in place IF the front mast support is far enough in front of the front beam supports that the boat gets seated in the slots before the spi pole hits the mast support. This is NOT the case on my trailer so I take pole off before loading the boat. Alternatively you could have a swing away or pinned front mast support that would be removed/folded down while loading the boat.
Would love to go to Island Hop- When is it?

Kirt

I understand the trailer part. As I undertake the modifications, I will snap some photos, so you guys can tell me where I screwed up <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Island Hop is 7/1 and 7/2. I am cannot promise anything, yet. I'd try harder if the T4.9 was going to be there, but it is pretty poor timing for me.

I spent last weekend with my 8 year old as he was learning to sail Opti's. He had a good time. Crew in training.....

Did Edderer get the T4.9 or A? I thought I saw somewhere that he got the A.........

Did you see the JPOR photo? A guy had 3 little ones aboard, all looked younger than 8 to me.

Sure they are. But, at the rate I go swimming "she who must be obeyed" forbads it until THEY know what they are doing - not me. One day.....

Wouter, don't confuse Eric's posting about AHPC trailer setup to his own set up. He definately has rails, look a few pages back. The rails would let me slide the boat on without taking the spi pole apart (remember, I sail off a boat ramp and not a beach - yep like motorboats).

Tom,

If you're launching straight from trailer to water off a ramp, I would suggest making the uprights shorter and thus the rails lower than my set up. (Only downside is that the boat will have more exposure to road debris on long trips.)

BobCat,
Thanks for the "heads up". Did you pre pay the full amount, and if so, when?

I was thinking of only raising the hull height by a few inches and maybe making some "socks".

My biggest problem is (I think) that the box of the trailer frame (the rectangular rear part of the trailer) is not long enough for rails to properly support for the beams. I may have to get creative. Example: length from outside rear beam to outside front beam is 86 inches, but the outside of the trailer from rear to where it starts to turn inward to the tongue is only 59 inches. meaning my rails would overhang the end supports by 13.5 inches on each end. And hang off the back of the trailer.

I may have to go back to Kirt's plans, but put the front crossbar (that goes between the beam supporting uprights) low enough so that my spi pole clears it.

Once I get back from vacation, I'll put some more thought into it.

Thats sort of the funny thing. I flew down to Florida in January with my checkbook. Matt didn't seem too interested in a deposit. Two weeks ago I was finally able to force my credit card on him. Last week when I was a little perturbed I managed to force my way out of the voicemail system and threatened to stop my credit card. They told me they hadn't charged it yet and, oh yeah, the boat should be shipping in a day or two.
Well, I still haven't received shipping confirmation so I guess my club's Open regatta this coming weekend is out of the question.
I received a lot of moral support from my fellow forumites and thank them for that.

Personally I don't think there is any ill will on the part of Matt and VectorWorks Marine section of the Vectorwork company. Hence the reluctance to charge you. Matt and VWM is really trying to do their best to get stuff done properly. But sometimes the Gods really do seem to have other plans. Sometimes it is even a bit tragic. I really do hope the stuff is sorted out soon as the boat I test sailed this weekend is definately worth it. It is also time to cut down on the order listing.

I also really wish for you to have the boat soon Bruce, it is definately time for that. I feel it is a real pitty you got what seems to be the full broadside of the mishaps.

If it is any consilation, I just fully rigged up my boat yesterday (didn't get to sail it, no wind) and hence haven't sailed this year. Halve my season is over. Back at the beginning I only needed to replace one bolt and have an eye in my trampoline repaired. Not even an imported eye and the bolt had only a rusty nutt on it and I could have continue sailing like that. But I decided to do things right and get these things sorted out. Although I really did need to improve on spreading the bolt loads on my hulls, so I decided to do that at the same time. Minimize the boat-out-of-order time so to say. Well the end of the story you guys know. I rigged up my boat only yesterday and haven't sailed it this year. Actually yesterday I manually repaired the trampoline after it was "repaired" by a professional sailmaker who had it for weeks. It was the only way to get the boat ready now and not have to wait another two weeks for the repair to be repaired professionally.

I'm expecting the last ordered items to come in this week and then she be fully race ready. Sometimes little things (and suppliers) can really hold you up.

Wouter

After much weeping and gnashing of teeth <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> I have finally gotten the good news. It appears that Hull#716 is on the way and is scheduled to be hitting Chicago this evening before moving northward again. The sails and battens have been shipped seperately and should be arriving soon.

Outside chance of making your Club Regatta?

If not, don't fret ... I'm sure you won't have come down off the high mountain after Edmonton beats Carolina tonight.

And by no means should one consider constructing a Blade after too many Sleeman's, Moosehead, Canadian or Molson beers.

Aferall, with a Blade you're always on the edge.

Good Luck

About as good of a chance as for the bottom seed in the NHL of winning the Stanley Cup <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

I fear that there are still many shipping depots ahead this week. I will also have to deal with Customs, so even as an optimist I wouldn't expect delivery till Friday afternoon. Not much chance of uncrating and building the craft by Saturday AM. If I tried, I would be like the Cat in the Hat crew at the Tybee 500 who hit the beach after 22 hours on the water and were faced with the next start in 2 hours.

Reply to BobCat and Wouter,
Glad to hear the good reports. I too flew to Florida, in March, to meet Matt and Gina (and Ian) and to see what a Blade was and is. My impression of Matt is that he is of high character, very thoughtful and thorough. I'm glad that my impression is shared by others. Thanks

All well worth the wait. It is truly a cool boat. It is faster with the shiny side down, take my advice on that.

The folks at VMI (and Gina) are standup peeps. The kind that you count as friends after a weekend encounter.

More pics of USA 712 coming as I got a new digital camera as dad's day gift...

Waterproof?

Tom-
The check was mailed yesterday for the USF16 assoc. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Unfortunately I will be at the USGP <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> (Hey! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> I like fast cars as well as fast boats!!) over the 4th of July weekend so can't make it back to OSYC then. Are you planning to make the Halloween regatta there or any other regattas this direction? I think Memphis has a regatta sometime??

Kirt

Phill
I am intrigued by your trailer. Care to show a pic of the moving parts? How did you construct the sliding bits?

Will:
Some months back you were discussing making some alterations to your trailer suspension.
Did you remove the helper springs from your trailer and did it help?
I have a Carnai trailer made for the Hobie 18. With the Blade on cradles and travelling at 55 mph, I observe considerable up and down movement of my bows on cement pavement. The rig rides a lot smoother on asphalt surfaces. The movement seems to be caused by the flexing of the trailer tongue and frame as it absorbs bumps rather than the springs.
I'm thinking of making two adjustments, take the smaller leaf off to soften the springs and moving the axle forward to move it closer to the mainbeam of the boat. That should reduce the hobbyhorsing effect I'm seeing in the rear mirror. I've attached a side view photo of rig to give you an idea of the trailer as currently configured.
Anybody have similar experiences?
John D.

I would fear that moving the axle forward would remove your "weight on hitch" while only adding a little onto the trailer suspension.