The 30 year old Deerfoot II recently had the thickness of her hull plating surveyed, and we thought the results might be of interest. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (July 21, 2015) | Comments (0)
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FPB 78 – Plating Thickness, Factors of Safety & Emotional Comfort
We hate to waste displacement on sloppy interior construction, poorly thought out systems, or excess structure up high, where it does nothing to help us. But from the deck edge down we want all the impact resistance and factors of safety we can get. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (August 9, 2013) | Comments (0)
Plating Models – How We Used to Do It
We’ve been gradually reorganizing our offices, and in the process trying to figure out what to do with out hull models. This plating model was in hand yesterday, and we got to thinking it might be of interest for the secrets it reveals.
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 8, 2013) | Comments (0)
Let The Plating Begin
It is that time when the real fun begins, the execution of which separates men from boys, and where the wheeling is now in earnest.
Posted by Steve Dashew (March 7, 2013) | Comments (0)
Hull & Deck Structure
“The key to this design goal was the ability to deal with heavy weather with a margin for operator error.”
–Bluewater Sailing Magazine
Engineering a boat is a mix of science, numbers, black art, and experience. You have to first establish a set of guidelines to use.
Posted by Steve Dashew (October 14, 2011) | Comments (0)
Controlling Metal Hull Shape – Part 2
We found a series of photos showing the actual process that Circa uses for shaping hull plate. Their approach is relatively sophisticated and allows us to chose hull shape and plating thickness that are optimized without worrying if the design can actually be fabricated.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 12, 2010) | Comments (0)
Hull Plate Thickness
Steve,
I believe the hull plate thickness on the FPB65 is 12mm.
Can you tell me what you used for the FPB83 and Beowulf?
What was the deck plate thickness?
Thanks,
Henry
Posted by Steve Dashew (August 10, 2009) | Comments (0)
“End-Plating” the Main and Mizzen
You probably know that the induced drag on any foil (water or air) is proportional to the aspect ratio (actually, in some cases this is a logarithmic relationship-i.e., you get big changes in induced drag for small changes in aspect ratio).
Both mizzen (shown here) and main on BEOWULF have “deck seals”. These are small sections of sail cloth which create an end plate effect between the underside of the sail and the deck.
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 29, 2003) | Comments (0)
FPB 70 Update: Expectant Owners Weigh In
Proud owners of FPB 70-1, Stan and Val Creighton, have kindly agreed to periodically share their thoughts with us during the FPB 70 build process. Read on to find out what it’s like to be expecting… Read the rest »
Posted by admin (May 26, 2017) | Comments (0)
FPB 70 Construction Update: A “Stan”dard Sense of Scale
This just in from Circa Marine in Whangarei–Stan Creighton, who with wife Valerie has laid claim to FPB 70-1, is down in New Zealand for various projects and to check on build progress. Read the rest »
Posted by admin (February 14, 2017) | Comments (0)
FPB 78 – Get Your Dancing Shoes Ready, And Other Updates
Having previously entertained you with photos of the great room sole, we thought its support and isolation would be of interest, along with a few other tidbits. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (April 3, 2015) | Comments (0)
FPB Construction Progress Update: August1, 2014
It is the first day of August and time for an update, starting with three shots of the FPB 97-1 forepeak, looking here from inside the chain locker and aft. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (August 1, 2014) | Comments (0)
FPB Construction Update: FPB 78 Taking Shape while FPB 64-10 and FPB 97-1 Draw Closer To Launch
FPB 78-1 is now framed, deck plating is on, and hull plating begins soon. Which is good because we are depressed with this enforced stay on land.
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 14, 2014) | Comments (0)
FPB 78: Dream Machine Comments
The following is a compilation of the comments and dialogue we have received from various posts on the new FPB 78 Dream Machine: Read the rest »
Posted by admin (December 11, 2013) | Comments (0)
Tactics For Dealing WIth Groundings – A Reevaluation
A while ago we wrote up the details on the FPB 64 Iron Lady’s interaction with a Fijian Reef. She is in New Zealand now, hauled out near Circa, and we’ve been studying the photos and talking to her owner, Pete Rossin, to get a better feel for the conditions. What we have learned has caused us to rethink our normal tactics when aground in difficult situations for the FPB 64s.
Posted by Steve Dashew (October 17, 2011) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 #5 Topped Out – #7 Construction Starts
We have been behind in our reports on how the FPB 64 production is progressing. This batch of photos were taken during August and the first week of September. The lead photo is, in construction industry parlance, the “topping out” of FPB 64-5. The jig built roof structure is being lowered over the window mullions. Very precise construction is required for these elements to fit together.
Posted by Steve Dashew (September 8, 2011) | Comments (0)
Prop Parameters
There are numerous propeller variables in displacement yacht design. Given the restrictions of draft, and the massive drag to be overcome with most ocean crossing yachts, props are forced into a predictable pattern.
However, the efficiency of the FPB, and the low cruise power needs, allow a variety of options.
Posted by Steve Dashew (March 19, 2010) | Comments (0)
Exterior use of 6061 alloy
Hi Steve,
As a long time builder, user and owner of aluminum alloy boats perhaps you can answer this question: How does the odd bit of raw 6061, above the waterline , but on the exterior, fare visually over time in comparison to 5086? In particular, we’re building a Dix 43 Pilot House and I’m looking at using a 3″ half pipe extrusion as a rub rail down each side and it is only available in 6061. The hull plating is 5086 H116. The alternative is to buy vastly more expensive 5086 schedule 80 pipe and rip it on the table saw. I don’t mind spending when it’s justified but don’t want to waste money. We love the look and practicality of unpainted alloy, but my experience in non-salt environments with 6061 is that it can look pretty nasty after awhile. Perhaps it’s just a matter of an occasional scotchbrite rub-down.
The other place we’ll be using 6061 is for the rudder shaft . It’s a spade rudder with a 115mm diameter shaft and Jefa self aligning bearings. Appearance is not an issue here, and I think the 6061-T6 will be stronger than 5086 . Do you think corrosion could be an issue on the 6061 rudder shaft? We will have a comprehensive anode system.
Thanks so much-I love the new site format!
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 16, 2009) | Comments (0)
Heavy Weather Tactics For Power Boats: Big Waves and Small Details
FPB 97-1 Iceberg running before a stiff breeze during sea trials.
The post that follows this introduction is a chapter excerpted from the FPB 70 and 78 Owner’s Manual. Everyone who goes to sea thinks and/or worries (or should) about heavy weather, and how their vessel will handle different conditions. It doesn’t matter whether you’re on a 25,000 ton container ship, a moderate-sized sailing yacht, or one of our FPBs. We think it is better to discuss these issues openly, rather than ignore them and hope you never get caught. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (July 12, 2017) | Comments (0)
FPB 78 The Dream Machine: Reality – Updated May 24, 2017
The Next Generation of FPBs is here, cruising even farther, faster, more comfortably and efficiently than their predecessors. With the first two FPB 78s rapidly racking up sea miles, read on to find out how, in a world full of empty claims, FPBs do what they are supposed to do.
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 24, 2017) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Owners Do It Right!
This is the story of everyday folks, who dreamed of distant horizons and made it happen. If you look at our FPB 64 owners, they are a normal group of yachties who started without ocean crossing experience, who have turned themselves into true voyagers. How did they do it? Why did they do it? What is it that makes it possible for them to accomplish what other people only dream about? Why are they out there doing it while most yacht owners sit in a marina? Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (December 19, 2016) | Comments (0)
FPB 97 – Code Name “Wicked”
Slicing through the barriers of what can and cannot be done with a large yacht, the Wicked FPB 97 redefines the cruising paradigm.
Posted by Steve Dashew (July 15, 2015) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 – Introduction
When we wrote this introduction six years ago, during the depths of a marine industry depression, we had no idea that the summer of 2016 would have 11 FPB 64s in the water cruising. For all the latest FPB 64 updates, click here. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 8, 2015) | Comments (0)
FPB 78 Series Construction Update June 20, 2014
The first of the FPB 78 series now has all of its bottom plate in place, a major milestone.
Posted by Steve Dashew (June 20, 2014) | Comments (0)
FPB 78-1 The Dream Machine Is Taking Shape
After all those thousands of design and engineering hours, innumerable three dimensional images, and years of noodling on this ltest FPB series design, you would think we’d be tired of it. But these photos represent the high point in terms of buzz factor, and it won’t be equaled again until we see this latest FPB sitting on her lines, afloat in the waters of New Zealand. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (April 3, 2014) | Comments (0)
FPB 97-1 Plated Up
FPB 97-1 is well along now, with the main framing and plating of the hull almost complete.
Posted by Steve Dashew (May 17, 2013) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Introduction – Basic Specs
“When the Dashews finally decided to resort to motive power, Steve Dashew designed a boat with the spirit of a yacht that could take on the roughest seas…”
–Boat International Magazine
Every now and then in yacht design, the thousands of details involved to produce a boat combine in a unique way, creating a vessel which performs substantially better than projected. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 7, 2013) | Comments (0)
FPB 97 – The Foundation On Which Successful Cruising Is Built: Part One
When it comes to creating a successful yacht for long distance voyaging, you have to start with the fundamentals, and build from there. Get the foundation right, and everything else falls into place. Get it wrong, and regardless of how cool the boat looks, or how much you like the interior, the real world experience is guaranteed to be less than optimal.
We’ve disclosed the exterior of this Wicked new FPB early because it is fundamental to how the boat functions in a holistic systems engineering context. Likewise the Matrix deck, which is also fundamental. Now come the details about what makes possible the cruising dream to which we all aspire.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 15, 2012) | Comments (0)
Heavy Weather Issues
If you’re thinking about heading offshore at some point, the comments which follow may be of interest.
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 5, 2012) | Comments (0)
FPB 64s – Heating Up
A new year is upon us and we are in catch up mode. We are a month behind in posting FPB 64 photos from the production line, so we shall endeavor to bring you up to date in one huge post.
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 4, 2012) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 – Structure
The hull, deck, and house structure for the FPB 64 are engineered to our normal high standards, with exceptional factors of safety.
Posted by Steve Dashew (October 17, 2011) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 # 5 and 6 Update July 22
Here is a batch of photos from last week on FPB 64s five and six. We will start with putting lead into the bottom of number five.
Posted by Steve Dashew (July 27, 2011) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 – Theory & Reality
FPB 64 – Theory & Reality
We are two weeks removed from sea trials on the FPB 64, Avatar, the Arizona desert is abloom with spring foliage, and the reality of the FPB 64 is slowly coming into focus.
Posted by Steve Dashew (April 22, 2010) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Update #31
The final assembly of the first of the FPB 64s is at a fever pitch right now. The head and hull liners are now installed, and the last of the furniture modules is in place.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 26, 2010) | Comments (0)
Controlling Plate Shape On A Metal Yacht
The one question that comes up more often than almost anything else is how do you get a round bilged metal hull? The simple answer is with a great deal of design and engineering thought, and careful work by the builder. We’ve got a series of photos here to briefly walk you through the process.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 7, 2010) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Update 24 – Seeing the Light
One of the more difficult design areas on the FPBs has been the forward “mast”. It does a number of jobs, some of which conflict with each other and/or different requirements. We’ve been fiddling with this on the FPB prototype Wind Horse since launching. What you see here is the result of that thinking and experience.
Posted by Steve Dashew (December 18, 2009) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Update 17
The sun is headed south towards New Zealand, and although spring is a little wet right now, soon it will be summer in the Southern Hemisphere. Progress continues on the first four FPB64s, hulls one and two of which are shown above in the fit out bay (one is on the left with its windows in place). From here on out as the interior goes in the photos will show a degree of visual chaos which will continue right up to the day before launching.
Now to some details.
Posted by Steve Dashew (October 1, 2009) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Update # 16
We’ve got lots of photos to share in this update so make yourself comfortable. We’ll start with FPB 64 #2 making a brief journey from the metalwork shop to the fitting out area.
Posted by Steve Dashew (August 26, 2009) | Comments (0)
FPB Structural Grid
Since we have been showing you photos of how the FPB 64 is being built, we thought it might be helpful to have a look at how the pieces fit together on a macro basis. The 3D images above and following are based on the cut files for the FPB 64, from which the boat is actually built.
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 7, 2008) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Construction Update # 2
Spring is on its way to New Zealand after a stormy winter, and the first FPB 64 is on its way as well. The second hull is about to start (plate is being cut now). We have been remiss in updating the website, so this is a long, detailed report.
We’ll start with this photo of the bow just before it was closed off with the final topside plate. This shows the structure which supports the centerline girder in a collision, forming a watertight tank in the process. Note the vertical solid round bar from the middle horizontal web. This is the Sampson post which exits through deck and is used for towing and other high-load situations. The second bulkhead forms the aft end of the chain locker, and then you have the storage portion of the forepeak.
Posted by Steve Dashew (October 7, 2008) | Comments (0)
Open 40s
Checking out interesting design details on some Open 40s that just raced from Boston to Halifax.
Posted by Steve Dashew (June 10, 2008) | Comments (0)
Minimizing Discomfort of a Rough Passage
I have enjoyed your site very much for a long time. Into the Light (by Dave & Jaja Martin) has been "the book" for me. Both have been a major help in turning me from dreamer to setting the goals and schedules to make it come true. An amazing content of worthwhile reading from all authors.
My wife and I are contemplating a charter from Puerto Vallarta to Cabo San Lucas April 15-21 and the Captain has been straightforward in saying it will be an upwind and uncomfortable passage. He adds that it is only 300 miles. He has now departed Natal and will be out of touch for a time. We are left wondering about how long the actual passage might be. We are willing to endure a bash for a few days but wish to be up for enjoying Cabo to the fullest also. As we don’t personally know anyone to ask I thought maybe SetSail could help. Any advice or even general opinions will be greatly appreciated. Till my next order, Thanks, Everett
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 30, 1999) | Comments (0)
Custom Build Sanity Check
My basic question to you is in regard to my sanity along with that of my wife…We are dreaming of sailing, selling the house, sticking a chunk of money in an untouchable fund (for our eventual return in 10-15 years) and launching. But, we don’t just want to buy some fiberglass yogurt container for our trip. That would not fit our style. We want to build our yacht ourselves. I do have an engineering degree (although I have not used it) and an MBA (definitely a negative). My wife is a graphic artist with experience in interior design. Well, here is my plan. Is this do-able??????
1) Create detailed specifications and drawings of what I want. I am 50% there now after many drawings. (FYI: 55′-65′ modern aluminum hull, deck to include a classic pilot house and a sloping sheer line, modern schooner rig with marconni aft and gaff fore sail. Fore and aft cabins, bulkheads fore and aft with a water-tight, center, engine room. It should have a fin keel and a skeg hung rudder. Goal: Long-range, comfortable, easy-to-sail, high-safety factor, classic looking schooner built with modern components.)
2) Hand my plans/specs to a qualified naval architect/engineer to create the actual designs. IMPORTANT: Architect should have proven ability to produce complete “CUT” files for all Ribs, Stringers and Hull Plates. Complete hull.
3) Have these “CUT” files delivered to an Aluminum fabricator in the Austin/Houston area for CNC cutting.
4) Deliver these “puzzle” pieces to my enclosed shop for build.
5) Use certified welders (myself included), friends, family and an experienced boat-building consultant (can be remote) to assemble the hull.
6) Select components and build-out the remainder of the yacht using friends and family. Did I mention budget…Can I get the DESIGNS with CUT files under $20K??? My hopes for the entire project cost would be in the $150K range. (tools and facilities not included) I see that you have used experienced boat yards for all of your builds. Even with your experience you choose to leave the assembly to others. So, am I attempting something that I shouldn’t? I don’t think so, but then again, I have never build a boat before…other things, but not a blue-water home for my family. Any advise, suggestions or a sanity check would be greatly appreciated. Sincere Thanks, Andy
Posted by Steve Dashew (November 30, 1999) | Comments (0)