Outrigger "Short Dragon"
Tacking outrigger, launched August 2008
This canoe's vaka (main hull) is a one-piece hull, sharpie style, 16 ft. long, 22 in. wide at
gunwale amidships, 14 in. wide at bottom amidships, 24 in. depth amidships, about 3 in. rocker.
The ama (float) is 14 ft. long, v-hull style. Built heavily -- too much glass and epoxy, and two
sets of stringers (not including chine log and gunwale) at waterline and thwart-level. Weight is
~200 pounds for vaka (canoe hull; with mods detailed below), 90 pounds for the ama (float hull),
and 15 pounds total for akas (cross-beams).
Materials: Both hulls: exterior grade Fir plywood (gaps filled with syringe and epoxy) glassed
over exterior and inside bottom to waterline with 9 oz glass cloth; two layers on bottom, final
coating of epoxy-graphite on bottom. Stringers are pine strapping, uprights and aka-stressed
cross-thwarts are Douglas Fir. Akas are laminated from Douglas Fir tongue-and-groove
flooring (cheap, easy source of clear, dry material after the grooves are sawn and planed out).
Rudder and leeboard cut from strip-built glue-up pine desk/shelf-top bought at Home Depot,
planed to foil shape, and glassed with 9 oz cloth.
2010 modification: I decked in the boat at the thwart-stringer: the ends have isolated
compartments (accessed by 6 inch ports), the center section is now a large storage and flotation
chamber accessed with a 9x14 Bomar hatch, and the aft cockpit foot well and space under seat
is left open (under-seat area has shelf for chartbook, and under that a shelf for emergency
signalling gear and binoculars, and from there down I can stow a cut-down plastic bucket for
bailing and bodily functions). I also changed from a quarter-rudder to a kick-up aluminum-plate
stern rudder on a tiller linkage.
Typical Sailing Rig: Currently it is a tacking boat (right now, a cat-ketch with standing lug sails,
54 s.f. main, 37 s.f. mizzen standing lugs from The Wooden Boat Store), but its fore-aft
symmetrical hull could enable conversion into a shunting proa (as I had intended originally). With
small jib on bowsprit, 111 square feet.
I have also used: a 20 s.f. jib and 20. s.f. jibheaded mizzen, (the jib on a bowsprit is too often
buried in the steep chop I sail in around New Haven), and a 114 s.f. balanced lug (cat rig), and
recently purchased (as of Jan 2012 not yet used a 75 square foot battened mainsail (14 foot luff,
6 foot bottom), to experiment with other possibilities for this boat.
Sail rig(s) Notes: This cat-ketch configuration is highly recommended as a versatile rig (though
not recommended for speedy windward sailing, where 55-60 degrees is the best on-wind angle
that gives acceptable speed; I can pinch up higher if I want to go 3 knots; I do need a bigger
leeboard with better foil shape).
The 91 square foot rig is good for all-around sailing, perhaps underpowered for typical light
new England winds. Used the jib on this rig only once (thus 111 square feet) so I reserve
opinion.
Putting all that area and a bit more in the taller balanced lug is interesting: a good light-air sail, but
rather overpowering in 20 mph winds.
The 74 square foot rig (54 main, 20 foot jibheaded mizzen works fairly well in 15-20 mph
winds. This was my Everglades Challenge 2011 rig, where it was good for the rough conditions
at first, then much too small for the zephyrs later.
Fall- Winter or Heavy Weather Sailing Rig: A 20 s.f. jib-headed mizzen and the 37 s.f.
standing lug used as the mainsail; balances well, enables relatively confident control in nearly
consistent 20 mph winds with 30 mph gusts.
Leeboard: The adjustable leeboard helps with rig reconfigurations (it moves fore and aft about
40 inches). The leeboard needs to be bigger: right now its 2 square feet (free under the boat) is
not quite enough for 90 square feet of sail, and perhaps a bigger board with better shape will help
getting to windward better. I finished it 4/2012; NACA 0010, 5 feet long, 14 inches wide, epoxy-
graphite finish. It is rather heavy, and its length will add a lot of strain on the rails. We'll see.
Rudder(s): The Indonesian-style quarter-rudder I started with worked OK but was too floppy in
its lashings; it went through iterations but I wasn't entirely happy with it so changed to a stern
rudder with a tiller linkage. This works OK though the linkage to get around the mizzen mast is
awkward; I capsized it with a push-pull-pole and went back to the linkage. Still not happy, and
am planning a better quarter-rudder or a return to the push-pull pole but with a longer (~24
inches) yoke to increase leverage and reduce rate (to smooth steering).
Speed: The boat is fast enough in a close-reach: 2.5 knots in zephyrs, 3-5 knots in light winds,
6-7 knots in 10-15 mph winds, often some faster runs of 8-9 knots at the 15-20 range, and it has
hit some 12-14 knot peaks during 15-20 mph winds in flat water (all GPS measured) -- but those
peaks were under perfect moments, very iffy (safety-wise), and cannot be sustained long (my
outrigger float, or ama, is buried at those speeds and disaster seems near). I often sail in rough
New Haven coastal water with its frequent 2 foot (and higher chop) -- the narrow hull permits a
sustained 6 knots on a close reach even through this chop, which makes a good day.
Modifications: I used Watertribe's (Watertribe.com) 16 foot inflatable amas for a trimaran
conversion for the 2011 Everglades challenge. The 10 foot curved box-beam akas were to allow
the boat through the bridge-filters of this race but still provide comfortable stability for good
sailing performance. They worked very well; my need to abort the race had nothing to do with
the configuration (lost my rudder blade). This mode could have stood up to a LOT more sail
area, but I rigged conservatively, expecting the worse, but the worse turned out to be light air!.
The trimaran as built is too wide to store in my garage or carry on my trailer, but it was a great
safety factor for a sailor exhausted after a 22 hour day and sailing in unfamiliar water in
potentially hard weather. I loved it but would need to design a folding aka system (perhaps
similar to a Brown/Marples Seaclipper system) to use it.
Summary: The boat was hastily designed and intended to be a practice boat to hone building
skills for a "real" boat" (20 foot outrigger), but I put so much into it that he became "the boat." I
love Short Dragon and sailed him enough to back up love with experience. If only I had built
lighter, and if only the windward performance were better, but apparently that is a generic
challenge for cat-ketches with low-aspect-ratio sails. See my other sites: www.wikiproa.com,
www.instructables.com ("Build a Short Dragon"), and some basic videos on YOUTUBE (search
'wadetarzia').
This canoe's vaka (main hull) is a one-piece hull, sharpie style, 16 ft. long, 22 in. wide at
gunwale amidships, 14 in. wide at bottom amidships, 24 in. depth amidships, about 3 in. rocker.
The ama (float) is 14 ft. long, v-hull style. Built heavily -- too much glass and epoxy, and two
sets of stringers (not including chine log and gunwale) at waterline and thwart-level. Weight is
~200 pounds for vaka (canoe hull; with mods detailed below), 90 pounds for the ama (float hull),
and 15 pounds total for akas (cross-beams).
Materials: Both hulls: exterior grade Fir plywood (gaps filled with syringe and epoxy) glassed
over exterior and inside bottom to waterline with 9 oz glass cloth; two layers on bottom, final
coating of epoxy-graphite on bottom. Stringers are pine strapping, uprights and aka-stressed
cross-thwarts are Douglas Fir. Akas are laminated from Douglas Fir tongue-and-groove
flooring (cheap, easy source of clear, dry material after the grooves are sawn and planed out).
Rudder and leeboard cut from strip-built glue-up pine desk/shelf-top bought at Home Depot,
planed to foil shape, and glassed with 9 oz cloth.
2010 modification: I decked in the boat at the thwart-stringer: the ends have isolated
compartments (accessed by 6 inch ports), the center section is now a large storage and flotation
chamber accessed with a 9x14 Bomar hatch, and the aft cockpit foot well and space under seat
is left open (under-seat area has shelf for chartbook, and under that a shelf for emergency
signalling gear and binoculars, and from there down I can stow a cut-down plastic bucket for
bailing and bodily functions). I also changed from a quarter-rudder to a kick-up aluminum-plate
stern rudder on a tiller linkage.
Typical Sailing Rig: Currently it is a tacking boat (right now, a cat-ketch with standing lug sails,
54 s.f. main, 37 s.f. mizzen standing lugs from The Wooden Boat Store), but its fore-aft
symmetrical hull could enable conversion into a shunting proa (as I had intended originally). With
small jib on bowsprit, 111 square feet.
I have also used: a 20 s.f. jib and 20. s.f. jibheaded mizzen, (the jib on a bowsprit is too often
buried in the steep chop I sail in around New Haven), and a 114 s.f. balanced lug (cat rig), and
recently purchased (as of Jan 2012 not yet used a 75 square foot battened mainsail (14 foot luff,
6 foot bottom), to experiment with other possibilities for this boat.
Sail rig(s) Notes: This cat-ketch configuration is highly recommended as a versatile rig (though
not recommended for speedy windward sailing, where 55-60 degrees is the best on-wind angle
that gives acceptable speed; I can pinch up higher if I want to go 3 knots; I do need a bigger
leeboard with better foil shape).
The 91 square foot rig is good for all-around sailing, perhaps underpowered for typical light
new England winds. Used the jib on this rig only once (thus 111 square feet) so I reserve
opinion.
Putting all that area and a bit more in the taller balanced lug is interesting: a good light-air sail, but
rather overpowering in 20 mph winds.
The 74 square foot rig (54 main, 20 foot jibheaded mizzen works fairly well in 15-20 mph
winds. This was my Everglades Challenge 2011 rig, where it was good for the rough conditions
at first, then much too small for the zephyrs later.
Fall- Winter or Heavy Weather Sailing Rig: A 20 s.f. jib-headed mizzen and the 37 s.f.
standing lug used as the mainsail; balances well, enables relatively confident control in nearly
consistent 20 mph winds with 30 mph gusts.
Leeboard: The adjustable leeboard helps with rig reconfigurations (it moves fore and aft about
40 inches). The leeboard needs to be bigger: right now its 2 square feet (free under the boat) is
not quite enough for 90 square feet of sail, and perhaps a bigger board with better shape will help
getting to windward better. I finished it 4/2012; NACA 0010, 5 feet long, 14 inches wide, epoxy-
graphite finish. It is rather heavy, and its length will add a lot of strain on the rails. We'll see.
Rudder(s): The Indonesian-style quarter-rudder I started with worked OK but was too floppy in
its lashings; it went through iterations but I wasn't entirely happy with it so changed to a stern
rudder with a tiller linkage. This works OK though the linkage to get around the mizzen mast is
awkward; I capsized it with a push-pull-pole and went back to the linkage. Still not happy, and
am planning a better quarter-rudder or a return to the push-pull pole but with a longer (~24
inches) yoke to increase leverage and reduce rate (to smooth steering).
Speed: The boat is fast enough in a close-reach: 2.5 knots in zephyrs, 3-5 knots in light winds,
6-7 knots in 10-15 mph winds, often some faster runs of 8-9 knots at the 15-20 range, and it has
hit some 12-14 knot peaks during 15-20 mph winds in flat water (all GPS measured) -- but those
peaks were under perfect moments, very iffy (safety-wise), and cannot be sustained long (my
outrigger float, or ama, is buried at those speeds and disaster seems near). I often sail in rough
New Haven coastal water with its frequent 2 foot (and higher chop) -- the narrow hull permits a
sustained 6 knots on a close reach even through this chop, which makes a good day.
Modifications: I used Watertribe's (Watertribe.com) 16 foot inflatable amas for a trimaran
conversion for the 2011 Everglades challenge. The 10 foot curved box-beam akas were to allow
the boat through the bridge-filters of this race but still provide comfortable stability for good
sailing performance. They worked very well; my need to abort the race had nothing to do with
the configuration (lost my rudder blade). This mode could have stood up to a LOT more sail
area, but I rigged conservatively, expecting the worse, but the worse turned out to be light air!.
The trimaran as built is too wide to store in my garage or carry on my trailer, but it was a great
safety factor for a sailor exhausted after a 22 hour day and sailing in unfamiliar water in
potentially hard weather. I loved it but would need to design a folding aka system (perhaps
similar to a Brown/Marples Seaclipper system) to use it.
Summary: The boat was hastily designed and intended to be a practice boat to hone building
skills for a "real" boat" (20 foot outrigger), but I put so much into it that he became "the boat." I
love Short Dragon and sailed him enough to back up love with experience. If only I had built
lighter, and if only the windward performance were better, but apparently that is a generic
challenge for cat-ketches with low-aspect-ratio sails. See my other sites: www.wikiproa.com,
www.instructables.com ("Build a Short Dragon"), and some basic videos on YOUTUBE (search
'wadetarzia').
Photo #1: A nice day chasing a
schooner sailing out of New
Haven, Connecticut (photo
courtesy of sailor Chris Seluga
who e-mailed it to me and of
his mother who shot the photo
while babysitting Chris's child
on shore as he sailed his Nacra)
Photo #2: interior structure
before the 2010 modifications,
which added bulkheads, decks,
and a hatch..
Photo #3: The boat resting at
Bantam Lake, Connecticut,
ready for its first test.
Photo #4: 2010 mods, decks,
hatches, bulkheads. The
varnished board is my side-seat
when sailing in brisk wind with
the ama to windward. On the
"trimaran tack" I sit comfortable
(and dry!) on the orange
cushion, facing forward.
Photo #5: 94 square feet of sail
in a new arrangement, tried out
2010 (Bradshaw jib and
mizzen); for this to work well I
need the leeboard to move
forward another 6 inches at
least, and I got lazy this summer
and just focused on sailing. I
put back the 37 s.f. lug mizzen
which is enough to balance the
jib with the current leeboard
rails.
schooner sailing out of New
Haven, Connecticut (photo
courtesy of sailor Chris Seluga
who e-mailed it to me and of
his mother who shot the photo
while babysitting Chris's child
on shore as he sailed his Nacra)
Photo #2: interior structure
before the 2010 modifications,
which added bulkheads, decks,
and a hatch..
Photo #3: The boat resting at
Bantam Lake, Connecticut,
ready for its first test.
Photo #4: 2010 mods, decks,
hatches, bulkheads. The
varnished board is my side-seat
when sailing in brisk wind with
the ama to windward. On the
"trimaran tack" I sit comfortable
(and dry!) on the orange
cushion, facing forward.
Photo #5: 94 square feet of sail
in a new arrangement, tried out
2010 (Bradshaw jib and
mizzen); for this to work well I
need the leeboard to move
forward another 6 inches at
least, and I got lazy this summer
and just focused on sailing. I
put back the 37 s.f. lug mizzen
which is enough to balance the
jib with the current leeboard
rails.
See also the current
trimaran conversion
project for this
canoe. Click on the
link below:
trimaran conversion
project for this
canoe. Click on the
link below:
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