Sailor Hans Schipper shares some details below about his boat. Up to this point, we’ve known her as the Cool Finn.
Hans has enjoyed sailing it, but also likes his other boat, called the Triple A. (He talks about both boats in this post).
An update of Cool Finn’s center hull has become necessary though. And in the process, has become a new craft.
Thanks for sharing Hans!
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End of Cool Finn, Beginning of a New Finn
by Hans Schipper
Although the cool finn looked beautiful, it did not meet what I had in mind. I therefore continued sailing with the Triple A which with the canards up to 5 Beaufort is sufficiently stable and spectacularly speeds up to 13 knots.
Last winter, the cool finn was blown off the trailer with 10 beaufort and damage with a crack in the deck. I have not started repairing a boat that it was not for me. I was offered a piece of hull by an acquaintance from an unfinished paraw.
So I am building a brand new center hull for Cool Finn.
I cut the finnjol hull with a reciprocating saw in pieces. And with the empty trailer and the saw I collected a piece of the new hull. You understand that I can still keep the name Cool but I have to replace the Finn part of the name. I am still thinking about a new name.
The maximum length that I could carry on my trailer was 5.75 meters( nearly 19 feet) so that will be the length of my new Tri. I was able to use the amas and the beams that slide past each other and even the trampolines.
I was able to make the cockpit and the rear mirror outside in a beautiful late summer.
I assumed an estimated waterline before making the cockpit and rear mirror. In reality, the boat was slightly more forward. But with one or two people on board, the angle of the water line was correct. I am considering whether I will add canards to it.
The Tri will be about ten feet wide with a mast from 31 feet, so stability can be a point, despite the buoyancy of the amas.
I think a small tri and canards are a perfect combination. I try to find out what is the best shape for canards,minimum resistance and maximum lift without picking up waterplants.
What other readers have experienced, I will be pleased to hear about it.
In the meantime it is too cold here to work with 2 component materials and I finish the boat in the spring.
That is a long wait when you are curious about how it will sail. But also something to look forward to.
It is just as important to admit that the original design is not as successful as I thought beforehand. It took me a year to come that far. And now I’m happy to build a better version, at least that’s what I think ;-).
And luckily I was offered a nice piece of hull at the right time so that I could remain loyal to my reuse principle. There are a lot of used boat stuff in our water-rich country. For a few hundred euros you can build very nice things. Because of this experience, I also appreciated my triple A design even more.
That is the fate of the amateur designer. Sometimes it is not so bad and usually it is a little less than you had in mind. So I must also let you know that I have disassembled my rowing machines on the triple A again.
They worked well but the tips of the flappers who stuck in the water for a short while in a stowed position turned a knot in speed and sometimes a wave caught the flapper and hit him with a bang to the ama. There was also a lot of work in that which did not lead to the intended result. I use the electric motor again with a battery and solar panel.
I hope that my story will also encourage others to let the less successful sides of their work know. That makes this site even more valuable.
