CVRDA

YES IT WAS.

With his historians hat on David may or may not know that the rules did not prohibit smooth skin construction untill about 1949/50. G O'brien Kennedy design and built 2 smooth skin boats one no 75 was 2nd in a championship the other (with a double bottom even.) broke up leading a race another champi...

David may remember at least four merlins that had planks radiused at 1/4" in old money 6mm in new and the lands were filled to an equal amount all were sailed by David's! Some time after I left the class in 1970 probably when the rules were amened to permit moulded contruction the in fill was r...

A quick look at the rules confirms what I thought that on the inside nothing againsy outside as long as the land is radiused no more tham 6mm as it always was and the "corner" of the land no more than 3mm which allows a fair bit of filler.

No John, THe cure for piles it go to sea on a very very blowy day just to test conditions for the PRO (One Owen Delaney!) in a Dragon, the only way to stop yourself being thrown across the boat will be to wedge yourself for and aft on the cockpit coaming, well it worked for me!

Tempting fate this, but another example of improved kit, when did you last break a fan belt?

Hate to take issue or try to improve on Ed's advice but if it is a metal mast and you do through bolt it, do be carefull you do not distort the tube, better a wrap round thingy Holt or is it Allen do an angled one specifically for this job, rivets rather than self tappers unless you do not have a ri...

"Quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten."[/quote]

Exactly, in this as in all things including boatbuilding and repairing.

Would an epoxy fillet on the inside of the hull in the lands, indeed on the outside too beef the whole thing up, I am sure it would.

Hate soccer yes I can agrre on that, tennis (It's Wimbledon again.) is just bashing a ball with the guts of a cat whilst the sun never sets on the umpire, two weeks of very little else on TV anywhere in Europe! At least there is Henley to look forward to in between the sailing.

One other factor to consider is that up to 1959 jibs were small (And cotton ones shrunk too!) 26sq ft was not unusual, by 1960 30sq ft was a norm (29.52 sticks in my mind!) by 1968 we were at 32-33 sq ft which; I think; is where it still is but the modern Merlin Rocket Class, has until now been deve...

I should have added congratulations and good luck, good to hear of Merlin Rockets going back to South Cerney.

The Proctor Mk was Ian Proctors River Boat they never had a chance people were already discovering that you could make a boat with little rocker tack they never had a decent driver should have done better essentialy a Mk6 with the ends pulled up so Ian said in his design blurb at the time.

Not a Rocket Rig at all. Just cutting down the tall rig, after all the Merlin Rocket Team Racing Trophy the Topmast TRophy is just that the topmast of Geoffry Saffery-Coopers Merlin Rocket 97 Joy when he cut the rig down. As Chris has demonstrated so well you can glue a bit back on! THough many just...

There is presumably a date somewhere near the tack? Anyway being Terylene/Dacron they will post date the merger by many years. !959 being the MR adoption of artificial fibres. It is simply that Livingston-Armstrong who owned Gently at the time was like many Tamesis sailors of that generation seeing ...