I could live with the lack of a wing section on the chassis
Just reading that again it seems as though 16 inch bmx front wheels would be out also even though the diameter would be OK
Hi folks, Reference to wing section refers to both mast and sail / no wing sections! Yes, 16" front wheel would be out too - more or les a barrow / launcher size wheel is the max .
!
Yes its the KISS approach and lets see how it develops within these parametres , whole idea is to keep it simple and encourage people to join in the fun rather than over complicate things.
Gets more people involved in the sport before they get technical !
Alan
The experimental broken light axle has been thrown away already and replaced by the original heavier ones Shame really as I liked the extra spring from the light ones 50 cents worth of axle thrown away how can we afford it?! Yes it was a great day yesterday we need more of those
I guess in the interests of knowledge gathering I should add that I think the lighter ski axles were OK
I had sailed all afternoon in fairly hard winds and the one that broke eventually broke where the screw holes were that are used to hold the bindings on
The skis can be cut to avoid these weak spots I just didnt think it was that important when I made them. Lesson learnt
Heres some shots of the axle not sure how it happened as I wasnt sailing the yacht
at the time
The top is unbroken but has a permanent bend
Heres the break through the binding screw holes and just outside the chassis mount
Cheers Hiko
could it be that the metal layer needs to be in tension and the the composite in compression?
so each ski used must still have its upside and underside
I dont know too much about Skis but the ones I have managed to pick up vary
hugely in construction some have what looks like vertical grain timber cores and some have cores that are some sort of plastic matierial of various colours
The strength comes from the skin and some of them say on them kevlar or carbon etc etc The metal you can see in the pics is the steel edges which they all have to carve turns with and are very sharpedged
Some of them also have aluminium imbedded just under the skin sometimes in strips
and some times right across
I have one set of skis here which are brand new and have never had bindings screwed to them so dont have any screw holes in them
I have been saving them for when I know a bit more about these things before I cut them up These Skis must be highly fashionable or something as they are very expensive new and practically worthless secondhand
It could be that they should be both right way up rather than the way I had them
for maximum strength Makes sense I suppose but wouldnt look as pretty
Ah the fun of learning
Cheers Hiko
well your getting 10/10 from me for doing the experiments. It makes you realize what a great thing the construction furum has become, that we can think up,try out, break, and rebuild these ideas, and share them , so easily
Get a loop of rope 5.6m long and see what it fits, you might just be surprised to see that this rule is all about having Fun !
IKPSA, the lads were refering to a standard blokart having a 12" diameter rim on the front, and the European rules allowing up to 8".
. I would be happy allowing rims up to 16" ,which gives the same overall diameter.
for us , the bike wheels are very cheap and available
If you are looking at setting wheel size rules you really have to look at the tire sizes that are readily available and are suitable for the job. These days the cycle industry has a good selection of 16" & 20" BMX, and 24" & 26" Mountain bike tires which are ideally suited for landyachts up to Class5 size. The 4.00 x 8" wheelbarrow tire in 2ply (which has the same overall diameter as the 16" BMX tire) is also an ideal choice for landyachts and probably the cheapest. We have had BMX wheels on the front of our class 5s for years and had very few problems. The only thing you have to watch out for is some of the cheaper plastic wheels become brittle over time if left out in the sun.
[}:)]
I reckon the mini would be the only one that would fit in that shed should I post a photo of your back yards TP1
One observation Ive had on the front wheels is that the skinny 16" wheel wasnt as nice to steer in really tight places. yesterday on a carpark , the 16" gave a sudden , jerky handling, whereas the WB wheel was easier to manouver. I suspect it might be to do with precession and flywheel effects
As i dont store my landyachts outside go right ahead. Re 16" wheel with barrow wheel i think its the width and large cross section curve which allows greater contact area and therefore greater grip assists in turning control.
maybe that is why the standards now use wheel barrow size front wheels, I will be fitting one to aus230 to try next season at Rockingham
Hopefully stop me from heading bush in strong winds
you have a bit of a collection there clem
The blokarts have 6" wheels on the rear and 12 1/2" x 2 1/4" (or is it the other way round) on the front with the option of fitting the "Big Fork" and having the same wheels all round.
Many of the blokart racers (including Paul Beckett) are using that configureation.
The X-Sail looks to have that configureation as standard.
The blokart branded rear wheels seem to be made of a harder and more brittle plastic than the earlier "off the shelf" wheels they were using. I have busted two of them when the rim clipped the concrete edge of a path I was sailing on and went onto the grass.
They are precision manufactured though and have good balancing. It is hard to find tyres that balance well. Blokart use the "Deli" tyres which are not bad on balance but are only 2 ply, can be worn out in a session on tar seal or concrete and puncture quite easily (dry grass stalks are their enemy)
The "Deestone" tyres have stronger construction (4 ply rated I think) and tougher compound but balance in them is poor which is the enemy of speed.
All round I think the Fallshaw 8" wheels are the best for a mini yacht in Australia.
From what I have seen of them the 8" wheels on the Seagull and other European yachts would be the highest quality of all. In Australia I believe they can be bought at shops that sell kite buggies but expect to pay more for them than the Fallshaws.
