Source
r/boatbuilding•
RobinBennett

Something a little different - a Wa'apa proa

I've been building Gary Dierking's Wa'apa outrigger sailing canoe for the last few months and finally took it sailing.

My blog starts here: http://sussexwaapa.blogspot.co.uk/2015_01_01_archive.html

It's not very long, but you can skip to the sailing photos here: http://sussexwaapa.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/sailing-at-last.html

The thing that really attracted me to this design is that I could get it on the water fairly quickly, but there are loads of options for future development - for example I can build another 8 foot section for the middle if I want a bigger boat, maybe with seats long enough to sleep on and a tent, or I could try a traditional shunting rig, or I could just build a rudder and a nicer centreboard.

Posted Aug 12, 2015, 8:07 PM UTC

62
esbenab•

Looks like fun, and a nice finish.

2
cerveza_fiesta•

Good work! That thing looks like it's a blast to sail.

Have fun with the add-ons as well.

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BravoFoxtrotDelta•

How did you shunt, or otherwise change direction?

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RobinBennettOP•

At the moment I don't, it's a tacking rig. The laser mast is in front of the front beam, so the centre of the sail is roughly in the middle of the boat (so it goes straight)

I'd like to try a shunting rig next, but I wanted to get on the water this year, and the laser rig was the simple option.

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BravoFoxtrotDelta•

Cool, thanks for your response. I'd forgotten about your project, just caught up on the design and your build. Nice work! I'm a big fan of the white finish and brightwork, and well done balancing the sailplan. Looks like a joy to sail! Laser rigs are terrific - I'm considering a very similar approach for a future build.

How would you describe her sailing characteristics? I'd love to know what you think.

I imagine she might slap/pound in the chop going to windward. Do you allow her to heel on a starboard tack (to present a "V" hull to the chop)?

Perhaps my greatest hesitance around tacking proas is the drag and structural stress of burying the ama on the opposite tack. Any observations from your outings so far?

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RobinBennettOP•

You might be interested to know that the 'brightwork' is actually Internation WoodSkin - it's basically a marine version of the woodstain/preservative that you paint fences and patio furniture! Up close it's not as nice as varnish, but it's much easier to use, allows the wood to breath and doesn't peel.

The last time we sailed it was a good force 4 and the lasers were capsizing occasionally. It was on a lake, so the waves were small, but where the lasers were throwing up spray, it felt as if the water as completely flat to us. Even with waves, the bow section is so narrow that I don't think it would slam. It wouldn't add too much to the construction time to build another chine if you wanted. You could have a strip of ply that was horizontal at the bulkhead and twisted to vertical at the bow, but I don't think there's any need.

We flew the ama on one tack and buried it on the other, and both were completely uneventful! In both directions, only the front half of the ama was affected, due to us struggling to bolt the ama together properly so it was flexing in the middle. Also, once the boat heels, the force in the sail is reduced, keeping things stable. By comparison we had capsized a couple of times before, lifting the ama when the sail wasn't helping, and it was very sudden (and the vaka is completely unstable on it's own). I think that with both of us sitting on the hiking bench, we could have handled a lot more power but I'm not sure what would happen in sudden gusts or lulls. I've got a 3m long 110mm pipe that I intend to use as a safety ama to give us a bit more confidence.

We had the full size laser sail on our last outing. I was steering with a oar from the vaka while my daughter moved from side to side to balance the boat. This was significantly bigger than the 5 square meter sail recommended in the book, but then it's often windier at sea. We were sailing at about the same speed as the lasers, but while they looked fast, it felt pretty gentle to us. There was a nice bow wave coming off the ama but no spray or wake from the vaka.

I think that for a 16' tacker, the laser rig is fine, but if we went any bigger we'd start to want shrouds and the big advantage of a proa is being able to take a lot of power through a shroud to the ama, even with a low-tech rig. The 24' design has a 12 square meter sail, almost twice as much power!

BTW, another big difference to a normal dinghy is how slow the steering is - it's a knife instead of a bowl shape and wants to go in a straight line. It's much easier to sail rudderless than a normal dinghy and you have plenty of time to move react - but it takes a long time to tack.

The biggest hassle for us is bolting the ama together (the vaka isn't too bad because there's more room) because we were transporting it in a short trailer. A new trailer is planned for next season.

2
NormBrous•

Hi, This is a pretty late comment I know. I have had Gary's book for quite some time but I haven't had time or a place to build until now. I'll begin purchasing materials this weekend and I am very excited.

You mentioned options. One of my favorite configurations for this design is the double:

http://outriggersailingcanoes.blogspot.com/2011/01/double-waapa.html

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RobinBennettOP•

That's ok, it's taken me a month to log into this account and see it! How are you getting on?

The double outrigger is pretty cool, but it's almost twice as much building for the same length of boat (and length determines speed and the smoothness of the ride in waves). I'd be tempted to build a 4 section (32 foot) main hull with an enlarged ama.

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