Model yacht and boat kits

We have looked at this idea in the past, it would seem that a licence to copy existing plans could be the issue with current designs?

One that is free to use will be the Optimist class racing dinghy, so we will start with that one first.

This was an Optimist built from one of our CKD Boats cc kits.

The kit will be cut in A4 sized panels, so posting it to you world wide will not be an issue.
The jig will be included.

If we also include our fourteen page builders guide you can work as if the build is the real thing
prior to ordering and then building a full sized one.

How easy is that !

Roy

Sailing in the Hout Bay area waters

The picture shows the Admirals Sword fleet sailing in Chapmans Bay, Hout Bay being to the left of the fleet.

Click on the picture to enlarge it.

A fantastic shot and I will credit the person who took it when I have found out.

This is the news on who took the picture and what camera too.

BTW – the picture of yachts from recent Admirals was one of the set I compiled for the club website – unfortunately we didn’t have a dedicated race photographer so I snapped a few from the mark-boat, with my G12 as it happens.

 They can be found in the “Photos” section of the website – under Admirals 2015. Actually the photos from Admirals 2014 are WAY BETTER – use them as you please.

Cheers

Justin Phillips HBYC member and mark layer on the day.

Roy

The Dudley Dix web site can now be accessed via the App's listed below.

Dudley Dix goes live, please click on the link below that is in pink http://dixdesign.com/mobile/

DDYD Mobile Website

Last night we went live with a new section of our website, optimised for mobile devices. You can access it via a link to it on our desktop home page or via the direct addresshttp://dixdesign.com/mobile.

A new Hillman Imp for sale

Hillman Imps have been around for some fifty two years (52) and I have had the pleasure and good fortune to have owned my first Imp around fifty years (50) ago, so my understanding of them is vast.

Now and again I am asked to re build or service them, the last re build was a year in the making but much of that time was done as outworks. A new one will of course not be possible but a totally rebuilt one should be.

Rootes Car Co, Scotland press release picture.

The problem now is not finding the spares, it is finding the car to rebuild, there are maybe one or two that I know of in South Africa that may be for sale, bare shells and that kind of thing.

The picture of the blue car shows the last Imp Saloon done by me, its is a 1971 model and a one owner Hillman Imp Deluxe. The car was turned upside down for a number of months while the bottom of the car was restored, plus the cars suspensions.

No expense was saved on this cars restoration, we had a very good body and floor pan, suspension mounts, the original engine and transaxle so all numbers match, plus as a one owner car the buyer will become only the second licenced owner in 43 years!

Upgrades such front a disc brakes are all undertaken.

The red car interior is the car being worked on now, some eleven ( 11 ) months on and while the car is a daily driver if required, it is not quite complete, this one is a 1967 Hillman Imp Californian coupe, it is said there are less than sixty coupe's left world wide , if that as some say there may be fifty five left ( 55 ) only?

This Imp Californian is my own car, one other coupe exists in South Africa that I know of, it may be for sale?

Contact me if your wanting a restored Hillman Imp.

Roy

Yanmar spares service and prices in South Africa?

I will leave the reader's to make up their own mind as to how we are given service by the local supplier of Yanmar parts.

This is a starter motor off a Yanmar GM10 diesel engine. The engine is about sixteen years old but used as a back up power unit, both 12 volts DC and 220 volts AC, it has done no more than 450 hours or so.

The make of the starter is Hitachi, the model number of the starter motor is S114-303, I see no sign of a number on the solenoid but a USA site gives me AHSH16010 and a price in the USA of just U$12.33, which will now be R151.00 plus our local Vat @ 14%.

The starter motor is fine, the solenoid is faulty and knowing that a service shop will charge by the hour plus the parts I though it may be best just to buy a new solenoid?

The agents are Seascape ( ex IMS) near Cape Town, on phoning them I am told that the solenoid is not offered as a spare part, I must buy the complete unit, even before I asked the price I thought this to be bad news and in fact very poor service from the main importers into South Africa.

Here the complete starter motor and its solenoid costs R8658.00 plus Vat at 14% which will add R1212.12, giving a total of R9870.12 !!!  which is U$805.72 at the very poor exchange rate to the U$ we have right now.

So why do I find that in the USA prices for the starter motor and solenoid start around U$67.00 and up to U$97.00 ( estimate average ) we are poorly served here I think?

So in South Africa we pay U$805.72 and in the USA U$97.00 , read that again, these prices are shocking and just do not add up, or is there a huge import surcharge  we know nothing about?

Found today and on Amazon.com

New STARTER FITS Yanmar Marine Diesel 1gm

---

List Price:	$110.34
Price:	$72.42 FREE Shipping
:

Roy

Using some motor trade friends I was able to locate the correct 12 volt solenoid, the cost was R250 and that included 14% Vat (tax) so before tax I paid around U$17.90, which is fine by me, so why do the Yanmar agents not stock them I ask?

Bad service?

The starter motor is now at a well known auto electritians for a full service, brushes etc, before being refitted and back into use.

University test tank project

We have cut the first set of three panels to make a two meter long boat to test in a tank, the idea is to check on wave action and related issues.

There are three sheets of okoume marine ply in this model kit.

Once the model is built and being tested we will add more pictures and info on the project.

Roy

Hout Bay's winter storms

Winter as ever brings a change in the weather, right now we have a very un seasonal South Easter gale, this wind is normally a summer trade wind.

The winds whip up the sea and that in turn breaks off the Kelp sea weed, some has found its way right into our harbour and the HBYC marina.

Its also cold and the distant mountains now have snow.

Roy

Dix Design jig saw joints

The jig saw joint is now being offered on some of the Dix Design offerings.

www.dixdesign.com

This speeds up the panel joints and removes the need to plane scarph joints by hand.

Its really neat!

Roy

South Africa, Hout Bay Yacht Club marina today

For the start of winter we had a decent day, colder than a month back but no rain today.

Picture was taken with a Sony Cybershot digital camera.

The boat on the right is a Dix 43 in wood/epoxy build, the boat is loaded for cruising, contact me for the details.

Roy

The Vuvuleza double scull

The Bombaloza is the single scull, Dave the boats designer named the double scull the Vuvuzela.

The hardware should be available from the designer, CKD Boats cc supply the CNC cut kits and epoxies, etc,

Kits available on application, plans are very detailed and take you through the build process step by step.

Roy

Bombaloza and Vuvuleza rowing sculls

We recently supplied Myles a kit for the Bombaloza single rowing scull, two days back Geordie phoned me to say it was seen out on False Bay and looking good.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vn2hozidY3U

This clip shows the original boat, not the one on False Bay.

Geordie was so impressed he and his rowing club are thinking of building the Vuvuleza double scull over the winter.

He has now got the quote to the kit, plus the required building jig, let's hope he orders and we can get some pictures of the building and the result.

Plans are very detailed and 45 pages long, full of instructions and pictures.

British Seagull gear box parts

We have been asked to supply a British Seagull Forty Plus drive gear, that one has 35 teeth and is the larger one in the picture.

With a good selection of used British Seagull spares and engine parts now in stock we have one but does it form part of a stripped down engine is the question?

Then we cannot sell the gear without the rest of the engine.

Not so easy this time?

We now need to find out if the part is spare or not.

How easy can this be?

We have British Seagull engines that can be rebuilt to your order.

One we sent off last week brought the comment below, I need to add the mans British Seagull was a wreck.

Roy,

Got the little motor on Saturday . It is beautiful – excellent job !Well done !

Regards

Wikus  

Roy

Vice Commodore Taffy's HBYC winter cruise

Taffy decides that as so many HBYC yachts now have a COF ( certificate of fitness) its time to get out on the water, five boats sailed, which is not many but we made a start and did have a fine afternoons sailing.

Yacht Flying Cloud on her own HBYC marina berth is a Dix 43, built and fitted out for blue water cruising, she is for sale.

With the power cable to the HBYC having been stolen, the yachts 60 watt solar panel and 6amp wind charger are really earning their keep these days.

Athol sorted out the mainsail, Owen too but cannot be seen in this shot.

Rear Commodore of the HBYC Taffy steers the course out of the bay, while Jean watches he is heading the right direction?

Shirley was with us too and it was she who fed us all with some wonderful snacks served up on a large tray she and Taffy bought in Trinidad!

The solid teak table was made by CKD Boats cc, Taffy and Shirley took one around the world with them on their fourteen year circumnavigation, We can still make them to special order for you.

Owen joined us for the day also, he has done two transatlantic crossings now?

The wind was very light to start the afternoon but when it blew up to over 20 knots later on, the boats hard spray dodger was good protection for those in the boats cockpit.

Sailing out towards Chapmans Bay and the course which took us around Vulcan Rock.

This rock is un marked and needs careful consideration when sailing in the area of Chapmans Bay, there is a second and normally submerged rock named Taffelburg, that rock is on the landward side of the rock in the picture and to the right of the image. Both rocks break waves in rough weather so can normally be seen quite easily.

Athol sitting on his favorite perch. The yacht is a Dix designed Dix 43 in wood/epoxy.

What a nice afternoon we all had!

Roy

Teepol Orange detergent

This was posted by myself recently on a forum I subscribe to, its really boat related so should be of interest to those who view my own blog?

I have mentioned Teepol Orange a number of times, there is a very strong reason and it revolves around a steel boat keel shoe, the keel was 4.4 mtrs long and 1.1 mtrs high, with the five tones of hot poured lead inside it, the weight was six tons.

The keel shoe was originally sharp grit blasted then sprayed with International Paints Intergard etch primer, this was done by a local shipyard.

There was a two year period while the boat the keel was to be fitted to was completed, the keel was kept outside during this time. The yacht was finished and a tie coat was applied to the Intergard primer, over the tie coat went Interspeed antifouls.

About five years after the boat had been in the water, it was seen that there was rust in the steel, the Intergard had failed but why? contamination had to be the cause.

A pro team used UHP (ultra high Pressure) at about 2000 bars or so of pure clean water, all paints were removed in short time, the keel was now clean and could be re painted with etch primer, the guys used Sigma Coatings green etch primer. The next day a tie coat was applied but only after the paints of the day before was washed down with Teepol Orange (clear) I asked why, the reason was we do not know what happened to the paints over night, possibly it was fouled by exhaust smoke or similar?

I joked what about the large ships you service, do you wash them the next day also? Yes was the reply.

Today I never overcoat any similar paint without Teepol Orange, I wish I had thought about it before I last sprayed the roof of my Califorinan?

I did this yesterday and today I have a rather good smooth paint surface, was it down to Teepol Orange? I would like to think so  

Note: Handy Andy, Fairy Liquid, Teepol Green etc etc must not be used, they have additives and they will cause problems.

 

 

 

An African Imp Hillman Californian ( circa 1967 )

Dove Tail joints and Ocean Planet

Ocean Planet was based on a GRP hull Endurance 37 designed by Peter Ibold. In England I had designed and built my own design the Bahia 34 but sold it as an incomplete hull when I then returned to Cape Town.

After Jean and I married, we placed an offer on a home here in Hout Bay, then Jean happened to say that if I would rather build a yacht well why not?

This was long before the days when CNC machines and computer cut boat kits were even thought of, so I bought a bare Endurance 37 hull with the cockpit fitted and worked on from there.

The boat was fitted out using what ever wood was to hand, time was that I would use other folks scraps, they still made nice joinery really. One feature I put into the boat was 'Dove Tail Joints ' if you ever find Ocean Planet you will see those joints in the deck combings and also in the draws in the galley which is on the port side of the boat and at the foot of the companion way steps.

 

We later sold the boat, last I heard it was in Ibiza, Spain and seemed to have no owner, I wonder where it is today?

 

Other yachts were made but I never did repeat the details of hand made dove tails iin any of them (smile)

 

My own tool box was another matter of course.

 

 

 

How easy can this be?

 

Very really you just need to want them.

 

Roy