D5 Dinghy Questions

Boats up to 15' for oars, power or sail. Please include the boat type in your question.
Jeff
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D5 Dinghy Questions

Post by Jeff »

This question arrived via email earlier this morning: Hi, I have two simple questions. What causes the side panels of a D5 dinghy to be wavy on the bottom side of the hull?
How can this be corrected? Best," Jeff

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Jaysen
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Re: D5 Dinghy Questions

Post by Jaysen »

In my opinion ... (opinions are like...)

Assuming it is on the bend plane...
• Frames may be misaligned.
• Variance in the wood grain or glue layer.
• Optical illusion

Try running a string from bow to stern pulled tight. If the high spots align with frames then check all your measurements. If the string touches the side the whole way it is an illusion. Anything else would make the wood suspect.

A picture would help a bit.
My already completed 'Lil Bit'. A Martens Goosen V12 set up to sail me to the fishing holes.
Currently working on making a Helms 24 our coastal cruiser.
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sailboats18@cs.com
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Re: D5 Dinghy Questions

Post by sailboats18@cs.com »

Thanks for your response on the D5 Wavy question. This boat was built by a group of 9th grade high school students and as such was left in their care to
construct and complete. Upon closer examination I discovered that the Transom is misaligned by 2 inches on the right - hand bottom side. The framing in this area is
also misaligned. It would also appear that the lumber used to build this boat is of different types- marine plywood for the transoms, exterior grade plywood for the
bulkheads and lauan for the sides. This was determined upon removing some of the encapsulated epoxy and fiberglass cloth used in the boat's construction.
I suspect that these factors have contributed to the wavy bottom problem. At any rate I can use this boat as a teaching tool to
explain how not to build a boat, teach the students how to correct the errors, emphasize the importance of taking and applying accurate measurements, and how to
properly align frames and bulkheads. I have come across this problem once before several years ago. However, it was not as severe. We merely had the students in
that case replace the side panels with new skins. Thanks for your help. I'll keep you posted on the corrective action taken.

Best,
Henry

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Jaysen
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Re: D5 Dinghy Questions

Post by Jaysen »

sailboats18@cs.com wrote: Tue Feb 08, 2022 7:55 am lauan for the sides.
That would be the problem. Luan typically has voids and unknown quality/consistency of glue. This will result in unpredictable bending even with all other factors being perfect. That said, I recently saw a "luan skiff" used as a boat dinghy for a moored sailboat. Ugliest thing I've seen, but the groceries and laundry arrived at the boat with no problems.
My already completed 'Lil Bit'. A Martens Goosen V12 set up to sail me to the fishing holes.
Currently working on making a Helms 24 our coastal cruiser.
“Mark Twain/Samuel Clemens” wrote:Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.
Jaysen wrote: Mon Apr 29, 2019 3:44 pm I tried to say something but God thought I was wrong and filled my mouth with saltwater. I kept my pie hole shut after that.

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