New Bowsprit?

Seagreen

Seagreen

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I've a wee problem. The 'sprit on Cleone is a single piece of Columbian Pine, but is too big in diameter to actually fit between the horns of the bitts when run in, and instead, sits on top, rather getting in the way. At 18' long, it's a bit of a trip hazard.

I've a notion to make a slightly slimmer one out of wood, but made of composite woods, so to be just as strong yet slimmer and a lot more robust. Remember that the 'sprit sticks out horizontal and gets quite a battering from being slammed into the sea. Can anyone point me to published info on how I do this, please?

TIA.
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Googling got me here. Fantastic. Now all I need to do is find out how to make it in hollow section.

I recall somewhere that hollow mast were made up of 6 or 8 sectional pieces, each having a 45 deg point mating with a 90 deg rabett in the back of the next piece. Is this correct?
 
If you go for just rounding a Sitka Spruce plank then you could save yourself a whole load of work. Sitka is stronger than aluminium so I reckon you will get away with a smaller diameter.
 
I'm afraid that you're looking to make a simple job difficult. There's nothing wrong with a single piece of timber, but if you're going to reduce the section area then I'd recommend that you use a hardwood such as ash or oak. It's not going to be up in the air, so weight is not a problem. In this location, strength is everything. Yes, I know about keeping weight out of the ends of the boat, but we're not talking about serious weights like anchors and chain here.
Peter.
Peter.
 
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we're not talking about serious weights like anchors and chain here.

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Its 6" in diameter and 18 feet long. I can just about lift it, and I'm no 7 stone shrimp. Getting it small enough to run in, and a bit lighter is quite a priority. Trying to run it in or out in anything over a flat calm is a 3 man job, usually done by just me, and I'd like to make it a bit easier.
 
Go for spruce, lioghter and strong, or pitch pine. I personally would just slimm down the one you have and see how it goes. Nothing ventured etc.
 
Look in Duckworks for Birdsmouth spars if you need the 8 stave hollow. Just don´t follow their advise to use resorcenol glue. Use epoxy.
Re: Wooden Boat Forum. I asked a question about reinforcing such a mast with carbon tape in the joints. Got a lot of flack, mostly from peeps who didn´t read the post properly. There was some good comment from Burnet on a link someone gave me.
Lot of work tho´, but my spars are a lot lighter.
Andrew
 
Well, Carlotta and all, I'd ideally like to have a roller fitted into the Gammon Iron, but I really don't want to go the faff of getting a new one made up, but I think that may become one of my upgrade choices in future years.

I'd like to make a new spar, purely so I can keep the old one on the boat and still keep sailing. I understand that Sitka is the best wood, and I may well just source a log of it from the forestry commission and just noodle away on it in quieter moments. I could shave down the existing one, but that was made larger as the original- which fitted the bitts- snapped in a wave. All of this sounds like a bit of a circular argument.

Ideally I'd like a lighter smaller, stronger one as I wouldn't need to change the gammoning, and it would be easier to move, hence my needing to understand how hollow spars are made. I've found great info on how to round off solid spars, but I've yet to find any good info on making hollow spars.

I've now found the birdsmouth technique - just what I was after, so thanks everyone for your help.
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What you want is rollers!
Victorious bowsprit at about 25 feet and 7 ish inches in diameter is supported by a roller and kept up by a roller above it on the bitts.
Luke Powell uses them on his cutters too.
I am currently installing a similar addition on my new 'sprit, also now 25'........
Dont make one out of oak.....
 
Essex Smacks and Bawleys had rollers 100 years ago. Takes less than a minute to run out and set up tight. Set the bobstay to port, ideally to a knights head, and the jib outhaul traveller to starboard. That then acts as bowsprit shrouds.
 
I'm going halfway on this. I'm going- as a stopgap- to fit low friction nylon around the bottom of the gammon, just to ease the sprit back in. I'm actually putting strips of this round my forefoot to stop the chain sawing away at it in nasty wind vs tide days, but any spare will go on the gammoning. I'll let you know how it goes.
 
Essex?

So using the bobstay and outhaul as shrouds really works? Does the splice on the traveller not dissapear into the sheave and get jammed in as the load comes on?
I can see the bobstay working as a shroud though. It would be nice to lose 10mm stays....
Now I think about it Vigilance has rollers, and her 'sprit must be 9x9 plus.

Seagreen, if you only go halfway, you will only get half a result !!
 
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