The MkI (both transom and double enders), has had a make over!
The first MkI models had a single mast step, then came two, along with a few minor tweaks in the thickness of the hull, the beam width and a little more ‘run’ under the stern. Now, perhaps the final design, it is a little longer (full 12in at the waterline) with two extra mast steps aft of the trunk. Four mast steps give you the ability to make schooner designs like its big brother, the MkII.

This little schooner ‘Seawiz’ combines the old gaff style with modern ‘roach and batten’ sail for the main. A downsize version of the first schooner model I posted on this site way back when.

The model has no hull modifications, red paint on the hull and a spar varnished deck and centre board. The main sail mast is full (stock) length, set into the third mast step. The forsl’ is 10in long and is set into the first step, each have a 5in boom length. The jib length (at the foot) is 4in.

I wanted to rig the model with laced up plastic sails, and a hefty, but not extreme sail area. The sails were made from low cost plastic table covering, durable, but much heavier than poly bag.

The extra weight and sail area, (more than any MkI I made so far) would put the new design to the test. This model after all, would be the one that would give the consent to the new design. As it turned out, the day I put the model to the test offered a variety of wind, and it sailed fine until the wind really began to pick up, (note the water surface in the pic).

After a spirited run, heeling and bounding like mad, about 200 ft out into an even stronger wind.... a knockdown.

I knew it was coming, (we sometimes do it anyway, right?) ....after a long retrieval, it was time to reduce sail. The simplest sail reduction was to lower the gaff forsl’ cutting the sail area down by a third. The loss of the forsl’ did not effect the sail plans centre of effort much, the combined centre is somewhere in the void between the two sails. The gaff rig is easy to lower, just pull the line free at the top of the mast and let the sail fall.

Once the sail is lowered and bunched to the boom, the line that rigs the gaff to the mast head is lightly turned around the boom and given a quick single hitch, no ‘reef knot’, just enough to hold the sail together. A tug on the bitter end tightens it when it starts to come loose, and there is no hassle undoing the bundle, just pic the lines apart.

After that, it handled the wind just fine, with a few close calls.

If the wind had been a little stronger, I would have taken down the main and jib, each would be bound (lightly) with a length of line. And then just sail with the gaff. But, reducing sail that much, really requires wading ashore, where you can sit down, and fiddle with your knots and do rigging out of the wind, and set things down (like your spool) without them floating away or sinking. Later the wind died down, and the gaff, as easy to set up as it is to take down, was raised and went under full dress for the rest of the day.

Lets not forget this is a schooner that’s only a foot long, and could sail without ballast in winds that would challenge a larger MkII model.
The smaller hull size is a little more challenging to rig multiple sail plans, a closer look at this model and you can see there is nothing complicated, just time consuming, this one took all afternoon.

Working with the new MkI hull is going to be fun.

__Performance Rating:_____________________
Vertical Stability (no ballast)...Good
Windward Ability... Good
Swiftness...Good
Manoeuvrability...Fair
Sail Adjustability...Good
Ease of Construction... Fair

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This model was posted a while ago, and now brought back, refitted with a cabin, larger sails, and a much longer bowsprit, making it a little more true to the design that inspired it in the first place.

Another early design from the Chesapeake, ‘buckeyes’ were ketch rigged double ended working boats ranging in length from 40 to 60 ft. Most were centre-boarders, but some just had a long keel running along the length underneath. The masts were well raked, and the headsail was rigged to the end of a long bowsprit.

Flush decked, there was a tiny cabin just behind the mizzen providing enough room to stand upright when below, but not much more. Much like another early type of sailing craft of the region, the Chesapeake sailing canoe, the early buckeye ketch was formed out of three large logs dowelled together and then hewn to shape. One log for the bottom and two for each side. This was when huge logs were available, (before 1900) and labour was cheap, and sawn boards were expensive.

No doubt, many were made by the fishermen themselves, like the farmer, fishermen were 'Jacks of all trades' and there was never a shortage of things to do, or skills to master. Later, as large trees became scarce, these craft were planked like other boats.

It became a distinctive habit among the fishermen who used these boats to paint eyes on the sides of the bow, thus many referred to these boats as ‘bugeyes’.

__The 'Bugeye'_________________________

This ketch uses the MkII-D (double ender) hull design. I left the hull unmodified, just a few coats of blue paint, tung oil rubbed onto the deck and of course, eyeballs painted on the bows.

Both masts are raked on this ketch. The main is full length, and the mizzen is 14in. long. The bending process begins by soaking the masts in a tall glass or jar of water for a day or two. Then the (bottom half) is set in boiling water for about 20 minutes.

I recommend starting with fresh 1/4in. dowels from the hardware store, the dowels we supply with your kit have been treated with an acrylic sealer that will slow water from penetrating and softening the wood. (A light sanding will probably help water to soak in if you want to try)

Another good reason for starting with a fresh dowel is that it is easier to bend wood away from the end of the stick, and then trim off the excess, rather than trying to make a bend in the last two inches. You will see what I mean if you try to bend just the end of any stick, dry or wet, then try to bend in the middle. The longer the length, the more flex and ‘give’ there is.

After boiling, the dowels are carefully bent into a mould to keep the rake angle the same, and let dry for a few more days. The mould is a board (1x4) with screws or nails set as in the illustration. When dry, the extra length can be cut off by rolling the dowel under pressure with a sharp knife, or use a fine tooth saw.

There should be enough length beneath the bend to not only set the mast in place but enough to accommodate the goose neck. Also note the sail will be set higher on the mizzen mast to clear the cabin.

Bending wood does weaken it and the wood will swell, you will probably have to sand it a bit when its dry. Also, apply a finish to prevent water from penetrating the bend, at least wax the end.

The sails have no roach, or battens, just a straight leech, so they are easy to make. The sails were cut from lightweight plastic table cover, attached to the masts using plastic drinking straws (1/4in) the straws were first covered over with 1in. masking tape to give the appearance of wood, and then split down one edge.

__the cabin_________________________
The cabin was made from a small block of cedar, a roof was made from a thin solid piece of wood slightly larger in width and length to give it a bit of overhang, and glued in place with exterior grade glue.

The cabin can be attached using the wood screw (supplied) or as in this case, I used a dowel that sits in the last mast step, and a hole is drilled underneath the cabin that the dowel sits into. A 3/16in. hole is drilled straight through the cabin, off to one side, to avoid the screw (or dowel) that the sheets for the jib and main sails run through. The inside of the hole can be sealed by using paint or varnish applied with a cotton swab (just stuff it through the hole).

To add a bit of detail to the cabin, I decided to add brass portholes to each side, I made these by taking a pencil that had lost its eraser, and twisted the metal end into the wood, leaving a round hole. Brass wire was bent around the end of the pencil, to form a loop (you need to pull the wire tightly), and snipped off just a little smaller than the outside diameter of the pencil, so that it would fit inside the hole.
A little bit of wood glue was applied inside the hole (using a toothpick) the brass rings were carefully put in place. I then squashed the porthole (ring) into the wood of the cabin using a metal vice! Wipe off any glue with a damp cloth, and paint after the glue dries.

The wood inside the porthole is painted black, then after it dries, the porthole is buffed with a coarse cloth or very fine sandpaper to give it some shine, a coat of clear varnish inside the porthole will make it shine like a window, and coating the brass will keep it from tarnishing.

Pieces of wooden match sticks were also glued onto the front of the cabin as a window frame.

__rigging_______________________
It pays to plan out your rigging, note on this model, the jib and main sheets, pass througha hole in the cabin, the mizzen sheet does not, so the three lines should be joined last, after the sails are all rigged. Join them far enough behind the stern that the knot does not jam at the aft fairlead when on a beam reach.

Booms for all the sails were made from 1/8in dowel. Each boom fitted with plastic cleats on each end, an extra for the main, one for the clew, the other for the sheet, keeping the turning radius for all sails the same. (The jib and mizzen booms are the same length.)

The large jib will require that the main mast be rigged with shrouds.
The jib is attached to the stay using a strip of reenforced tape. And the jib sheet passes through a cleat at the end of the boom and cut with a few inches left over to make adjustments.
The bowsprit was made with a 1/4in OAK dowel for strength, be carefull not to have too much tension from the headstay on any long bowsprit, as it increases the chance that it will snap. (this one extends 4in. beyond the bow)

The rudder is deck mounted, on our double-enders there are two pilot holes, the foremost is for the fairlead, the end one for mounting a rudder.
There is a simple trick to designing a deck mounted rudder in a way that aligns the rudder blade with the mounting screw. The tiller, or arm, is slightly askew as seen in the illustration.

It's a smooth sailing model, and there is a notable change in its sailing characteristics now that its sail plan spans further beyond the stem and stern. Now, the difference between the hulls lateral resistance and the sails effort is increased.

And so, the model is more apt to change direction, when encountering shifting winds, this is noticed more when letting the model sail off at a distance, and actually makes sailing it more interesting, on more than one occasion, wind puffs have caused the model to jibe and reverse course, and come sailing back to me.

How much detail you put into a model is up to you, a simple version of this model would skip the mast raking and cabin details.

The double enders break overtaking waves at the stern without lurching forward as much as the transom models do. They have inherently good laminar flow, and manoeuvring characteristics.

__Performance Rating:_____________________
Vertical Stability (no ballast)...Good
Windward Ability... Good
Swiftness...Fair
Manoeuvrability...Very good
Sail Adjustability...Good
Ease of Construction... Fair

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