Low Tide

Yacht Designer Tad Roberts' Web Log

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LEVIATHAN II TSB REPORT

I just finished my first quick read-through of the Leviathan accident report from TSB. Initially I’m totally disappointed. Usually I’m impressed by these reports but I know there is at least one lawsuit underway and this report leaves out (In my mind) some critical information. While the report states that an inclining was done and[.....]

Framing Wooden Hulls With UHMW-PE

Wooden boat building, like all construction methods, continues to evolve with availability of skills and materials. But I have to come down against the wholesale replacement of bent oak ribs with UHMW-PE. As a semi-temporary sister frame repair in isolated cases, the use of UHMW-PE makes perfect sense. It’s easy to install and holds fasteners[.....]

LOOKING AT STABILITY CURVES

Stability information presented to the public is usually simplified to the point of being useless. When I see a published stability curve like that above, my reaction is “That’s nice and it looks good, but it tells me almost nothing.” It’s a nice graphic but key information is missing, mainly data on the conditions under[.....]

BLUENOSE AND COLUMBIA

Bluenose and Columbia raced against each other in only two races in 1923. Bluenose was then 2 years old and Columbia brand new. Bluenose won both those races but the committee awarded the second race to Columbia due to Bluenose rounding a mark improperly. Angus Walters took exception and left Halifax without the issue being[.....]

TAD ROBERTS RECIEVES LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

CAPSIZE OF THE YACHT BAADEN

This article was originally published in Western Mariner November 2015.

LAUNCHING CALCULATIONS

This article originally appeared in Western Mariner September 2014.

Aluminum Tug Cruiser, T-Cup; a new design

T-Cup A 25’ Aluminum Power Cruiser LOA = 25’3” LWL = 24’0” Beam = 8’6” Draft = 2’7” Displacement to DWL = 6500 lbs Power = Yanmar 3Y30 Diesel Cruising Speed = 6.5-7 Knots Construction Plans and patterns = $750.00 T-Cup is a family cruiser in the “Tug-type” style. This boat is far closer to[.....]

Sheerline Problems

Many think the sheer is the most important line on any boat. Get it right and all else is forgiven, get it wrong and nothing else matters. To some extent this is true, this one line in 3D space, must be attractive when viewed from any angle. If it’s filled with humps and hollows from[.....]

Change in Stability with Dinghy Aboard

I’m often asked about the advisability of adding a heavy dinghy stored on the roof, people wonder how much difference this will make to stability. The answer always involves a lot of questioning about the particulars of the boat and load condition. So today I made a study of a typical 1985 “trawler” yacht, the[.....]

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