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Deck Stepping MR3125Andy Hayes discusses why he wants to convert an older boat, and the initial steps in reinforcing her - Summer 2003 |
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PART ONE Not what the designer intended! Go buy yourself a newer Merlin! What me, never one to make life easy! The reality for me is good club and open meeting racing, on a budget. Having bought Footloose three years ago as my introduction to Merlin racing at a sub £1000 figure and in good original condition, several issues came to light. Footloose may well have won the National Champss in 1978 in the hands of its builder, Spud Rowsell, but the speed is a bit lacking now. The high bow tank and aerolite glue system would not accept a modern high rig tension. Someone in the dinghy park was making snidey comments about aerolite Merlins exploding!! The may be true as I spent the first season 'westing' popped hull frame mitres and carling planks!!. It soon became apparent that good second hand sails for hog stepped masts were getting difficult to find as all the fast guys have bendy deck stepped M1's or carbon gear. What to do? Change the boat? No, I like the boat, name, history, and to buy a better modern Merlin would be beyond my set budget. Okay how about tackling the problems of increased rig tension and a deck stepped rig to enable my to buy good second hand modern sails to improve the club racing. First how to get the hull to cope with a 400 lbs rig tension with the existing hog step mast. Is there a straightforward way of resolving the tension and compression stresses of the mast pushing down and trying to pull the shrouds into the boat? My solution (see photo) was to use ali tube connected to the hull frame shroud exit area and the hog at the base of the mast. The tube is stiff enough to carry the forces exerted by the shroud tension. The increased downward load on the hog due to mast compression is resolved by using the modern adjustable rig tension system which is connected between the hog and the deck just forward of the mast. Any downward compression in the mast is balanced by the opposite tension force in the shroud system.  Does it work? Footloose raced through the whole of 2002 season and at the wet and wild 2003 Starcross Steamer event with the new rig loads and we didn't break the boat. Well I didn't!!! Last summer I lent Footloose to our local Michael Schumacher - Dave Lee - who promptly pulled the port shroud sheave out of the deck half way through the race!! Having fixed it he commented on the good term of speed Footloose had for an older design. Now confident that the hull carries the rig load without exploding, the second phase is currently under way - deck stepping. How to tackle the mast load? The old heavy strut system has been removed to allow for the puller. A twinned mahogany post is fitted between the hog and the deck to support the mast. I considered a short ali or carbon mast section but rejected this as rather fiddly. The existing ali tube space frame is extended by an additional tube between the existing shroud sheave strut end and the top of the new mast strut each side. This forms a ridge frame within the hull without having to reinforce the existing deck or hull. The new struts also carry the blocks for the lowers. Now then - let's see who will sell me a good main and jib to fit the M1. See you on the water! See also: PART TWO Dave Fowler's Deck-Stepping instructions Tuning Tips for Older Boats (getting the best out of an old rig) Photo Gallery - other DIY projects |