Yes bamboo could be more fun and it would be a shame to have that effort taking off the twigs wasted
Some one on this forum was making a whole yacht out of the stuff !
Not sure about the wheels though there could be an opportunity there to break new ground 
I'm getting a seat belt. And a windsurfer mast. And eventually a sail. Wondering how big the sail should be. I expect that the large soft wheels and will need more power. The wheelbase is pretty wide. As per some suggestions here I'm thinking at least 5 square meters? The winds tend to be 10 - 20 knots during the winter on the beach. Almost all of my sailing will be on a beam reach.
I also wonder if the wide high float tires will make the boat tend to slide sideways more than the narrower tires. It could make turning fun. Hopefully they will not slip too much with the lateral power of the wind.
I'm getting excited, in case you guys couldn't tell.
Select to expand quotesearunner said..
I don't need to go this fast. Wow.
that's what you think now..
you will change pretty quick! 
aint no such thing as too fast
stephen
Select to expand quotesn said..searunner said..
I don't need to go this fast. Wow.
that's what you think now..
you will change pretty quick!
aint no such thing as too fast
stephen
I'm wondering if a beach stroller warning device would be a good idea. We do get zombie beach walkers sometimes. Risking my own life is one thing....
That clip was taken of Darren on Ohope beach New Zealand some years ago
His Yacht has a large seat and he managed to get another Bod in there to hold him down !
The tide looks to be fairly well in That beach is usually wider
Beach goers can be a worry... fishermen ,dogs ,walkers ,horses,bikes,hanggliders not usually all at the same time though!
Well this is probably too good to be true but....I just bought on eBay, from a seller with no reputation, Used sails(2), boom(1) and masts(3). All have had light recreational use but are in good condition. Neil Pryde 7.0 and North Katana 6.0
for free. Plus $51 shipping.
Paid with Paypal so I should be covered but...
Am I crazy?
The seller supposedly has 4 other sets. Perhaps he is trying to establish reputation. http://www.ebay.com/itm/181926618111?_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
edit;
ebay will cover the shipping also if not received, so looks like I can't go wrong
Go for it! a compressed gas can horn might be a good idea!
And as always seat belt and helmet 
Yeah I was thinking the same thing about the compressed gas horn. Seatbelt is on order. I have a helmet for skiing that would work.
A seven meter sail sounds scary. Maybe I'll cut off the bottom? Don't know what I'll do about the boom.
I got a learning curve here. 
The Fed Ex guy delivered some 16 x 7 inch polyurethane low pressure wheels/tires. I wasn't excited at all.
They will definitely float on the beach. Even the soft deep stuff. They should roll over the smaller rocks like they aren't even there. Should make for a comfortable ride.
The SS ball bearings are ahem, a little rough. It seems like they are in a plastic race. They recommend special sealed bearings for high speed work. I guess I'll find out how long they last. Good to know that I can get real bearings if I need them.
I'm relieved to see that the tires seem pretty fast. I was worried they would be thick and stiff but they are soft and pliable. They are bouncy. Now this might good or bad. I can foresee it getting too bouncy on the beach.
Good thing that seatbelt is on it's way.
2 b cntd
Thanks Geoff.
So, I took my acetylene torch and heated and bent the bike fork to fit the new wide wheels. Glad to see that it worked. And I remounted them to more of a layover type steering. I used the highly technical engineering method of "it looks about right" to determine the precise angle.
Here is the basic unfinished idea of how it is looking. Still need to cut and put it all together. I have some 1 inch diameter solid aluminum axles on the way.
The wheels use 2 to 4 pounds pressure and that's so low that a regular pressure gauge doesn't work. I need to get a special low pressure one. It remains to be seen if they withstand the forces . They are basically just tubes on rims. I hope that they stay on the rims with the side forces involved.
It does seem a little bouncy. Hopefully that will not be a problem. A windsurf mast and sail will eventually be mounted. And a seat belt.
The conventional thinking on the geometry of the steering on these things is to have the line of the steering pivot meet the ground
right under the centre of the wheel It looks from the photo that yours will be in front of the wheel which is called trail
The effect of trail is the side forces when sailing will want to make the yacht turn down wind this may or may not be a problem
Maybe try it and see If it is a problem at least you will know the reason and cure
Those tyres look real floaty you should be able to skim over the top with those
Keep us posted we are keen to see how it works out
Select to expand quoteHiko said..
The conventional thinking on the geometry of the steering on these things is to have the line of the steering pivot meet the ground
right under the centre of the wheel It looks from the photo that yours will be in front of the wheel which is called trail
The effect of trail is the side forces when sailing will want to make the yacht turn down wind this may or may not be a problem
Maybe try it and see If it is a problem at least you will know the reason and cure
Those tyres look real floaty you should be able to skim over the top with those
Keep us posted we are keen to see how it works out
Thanks Hiko, I guess I don't fully understand this layover steering thing. I thought that it involves a shallow steering angle. But I guess it also needs a long steering fork so that the pivot is then under the front axle? Slowly it is dawning on me. Yeah, I'll see how this works, if I'm fighting it all the time I'll change it. I guess this like what they call weather or lee helm on a sailboat. A slight weather helm is preferred so that wind gusts make the boat point higher and reduce heeling.
This might help clear it up for you.
On your softer sand try for about 40mm (axle behind tyre contact point) of trail, but it's not critical. Layover steering head angle (measured from along the chassis) can be from around 25 degrees to 30. Probably even more, but I haven't gone beyond those parameters on my yachts or kite buggies. 
Cruiser motor bikes also use shallow head angle to give them more stability because of the extra wheelbase length and more self centering steering that incorporates up to 100mm of trail.
I'm keen to know how your wheels go, as I have another project I have been asked to make that they might work well on.
Well Done Sport! Definitely constructed on the KISS principle Great. She may not last a long time so make it enjoyable and a great Learning experience. Keep firmly in mind as well, You have now been nipped by the LY sailing Bug, to which you will either become immune to or more likely become all but Fatally Infected.
So Go sail and get back to this lot of Hairy Salt Encrusted Maniacs.
Thanks Chook. So as trail goes longer and toward self steering it also can lead to being pushed downwind. I think.
Thanks Nikrum. Hairy salt encrusted maniacs huh? Well you've got the "mania" right there in Tasmania right? "Tasmania" seems so exotic to me . Yeah, my sailing will be right next to breaking salt water waves being blown at me. So I probably will get encrusted. I may become "white man".
********************
I received my low pressure Bourdon tube type pressure gauge (the round dial type) so I was able to accurately inflate the high volume tires. They were quite low and was glad to see some hardness on them at the max pressure of 4 psi. I have a lot more confidence now that they will work and they should even withstand heeling over.
I also received the two piece 50% CF mast from ebay. It's a 430. Wow it's tall. Until I get a windsurf sail my short genoa will have to do. It's going to look silly. I mean sillier.
Monday I pick up my axles and Thursday they predict 15 knot winds onto the beach. I'm scaring myself. You people are crazy!
Well guys, maybe it's a good thing that I did not have it ready to go for today. The winds on the beach were gusting to 27 knots. Just walking into it was a chore.
But much good progress has been made. The axles and wheels are installed and I like how it looks. It rolls very easily despite the rough bearings. At one point a gust caught the sail while I was on it and I suddenly was moving forward on my patio. Yahoo!! This thing wants to go!
The windsurf mast is the real deal. I wrapped it in strapping tape, mostly just to stop any fibers coming off into my hands.
The boom is now the old bamboo mast, cut down. It should be plenty strong enough. No more bending boom.
The mainsheet rigging is still a work in progress and I'm using cheap poly rope from the local home improvement store. It's pretty horrible stuff but I want to be sure about the length first before buying pricey line.
To get it back up the bluff I have a post with a boat trailer winch attached at the top of the bluff. It's public property so I can remove it when done. I buried a plastic pipe to keep the hole for the post and then just cover it when done. I have yet to test this but I don't see why it wouldn't work. It's fifty feet of winching but carrying it up is out of the question. Did it once.
So hopefully within a week I will have some video to post here of it cruising down the beach.
2 b cntd
john
Glad to read of your progress The winch idea sounds like a practical solution to your retrieval problem
I know what it can be like sometimes getting a yacht back up the dunes Some times you can get some assistance
from the sail but it tends to push the front wheel down into the sand and can be more of a hindrance than a help
The winch should work I have seen a battery drill used on a boat trailer winch Keep us posted!
I'm using cheap poly rope from the local home improvement store.I wouldnt worry about better rope then it doesnt matter ifn it gets damaged
Hey guys, advice please. I have the chance to buy a windsurf boom for $75 to go with the windsurfer sail I'm getting. Is that usable for my yacht or should I just use the nice bamboo stick I have now, or something else.
I'm not racing and this is just for fun.. Obviously. lol
I'd go with the windsurfer boom that way you know it will work as a unit. Keep the bamboo as a spare
Chook on this forum has got standard windsurf sails to work well on landyachts Have a read of his posts on the subject
You will need a lot of down haul on the luff to make the sail set properly but should work well
If you use a conventional boom you may have to modify the clew of the sail somewhat
Thanks for the advice guys, I'm going to get the boom and two sails. One a 6 and the other a 7. Maybe a little large? I might be trimming one or both of them down. The wind on the beach is usually over ten knots and often up to 25 - 30.
you need power in soft sand but also control so start with the smaller unit. Having said that, chook a big boy uses a large windsurfer rig and having sail shape preset gives greater control. On a normal sail as you release the sheet your sail shape changes & gains power but with the windsurf rig the shape changes very little and so you can use its shape better :- control
Select to expand quoteTest pilot 1 said..
you need power in soft sand but also control so start with the smaller unit. Having said that, chook a big boy uses a large windsurfer rig and having sail shape preset gives greater control. On a normal sail as you release the sheet your sail shape changes & gains power but with the windsurf rig the shape changes very little and so you can use its shape better :- control
That's interesting about the windsurfer sail/boom preset shape. Didn't know that. But wouldn't a sail with a more variable shape be better? Not that it will matter much to me.
It's starting to sink in that in a few weeks I may be hurtling down the beach at thirty miles per hour.
Something else I'm realizing. I guess I need a mast base? Don't have one. Also thinking that sail will be too long. It has to be above the upper mast support and these windsurf sails seem to use the entire mast. Maybe a mast base extension?
Its probably easiest for you to make a mast extension that pokes a fair way [a meter or so] up inside the mast.
We have to stiffen the bottom of the windsurfer masts anyway or they snap off near the bottom.
A solid length of straight grained timber, planed and sanded to fit snug inside the mast, but long enough to pass through the mast yoke and drop into the lower chassis.
Give the top 6" of the mast extension / stiffener a bit more taper to reduce the chances of snapping your mast.
If you only need 12" or so extra mast length, nick your families vacuum cleaner pipe, and bung it on top of the mast.
stephen.
you could always lower your top wheel braces and put some gussets into the crossover of the spine and axle
Select to expand quotesn said..
Its probably easiest for you to make a mast extension that pokes a fair way [a meter or so] up inside the mast.
We have to stiffen the bottom of the windsurfer masts anyway or they snap off near the bottom.
A solid length of straight grained timber, planed and sanded to fit snug inside the mast, but long enough to pass through the mast yoke and drop into the lower chassis.
Give the top 6" of the mast extension / stiffener a bit more taper to reduce the chances of snapping your mast.
If you only need 12" or so extra mast length, nick your families vacuum cleaner pipe, and bung it on top of the mast.
stephen.
Select to expand quoteTest pilot 1 said..
you could always lower your top wheel braces and put some gussets into the crossover of the spine and axle
Ah yes, I was also thinking that I could extend the tip, but I guess the windsurf masts are not designed to have loads put on them like that, so the beefed up bottom is probably the better way to go. I could also maybe lower that top mast brace on my yacht a little.
I've made spars in the past comprised of four quarter round moldings epoxied together. Makes for a very strong spar.
"Nick" the vacuum cleaner pipe? I love it. Here in the states to "nick" something is to give it a small wound or "In the nick of time" means just in time.
I can see it now...."No honey, I did not take the vacuum cleaner pipe.....I nicked it"
Thanks for the tips guys. The sails and boom are on the way and should be here next thursday. They were free but the shipping was around $170. Still a good deal. I have a feeling that when I see them on the yacht I am going to be scared.
The foot of Windsurf sails are quite often cut up quite high so you dont want the tack above your mast brace or the sail will be very high
I would suggest you cut off the sail mast sleeve at the foot enough to clear the mast brace that you have and fasten the tack of the sail at the mast base
You will definitely need a mast stiffener inside the mast at the base for 800mm or so and extending above the mast brace that you have
Your standard windsurf sail should then be long enough without any more modification and use the windsurf boom as is
Standard windsurf sails need a lot of downhaul to make them set right
As long as the clew of the sail is above your head you should be fine
Chook on this forum has a good bit of experience with standard windsurf sails on landyachts perhaps you could send him a PM
