Schooner, R/C
I built a scratch built R/C schooner about 2 yrs ago. I didn't want a deep keel because the only available place to sail is rather weedy, and a deep keel would catch weeds. I looked around till I found a ship to model. It was Wawona, a west coast lumber hauler. I didn't like wawonas hull shape, so I used the below waterline hull of Cutty Sark with a few changes. The result is a hull about 37 in long, with a 12 in bowsprit and three 20in masts. Draft is about 3in, displacement about 8lbs, beam about 8in. The hull is made of 0.07in produce crate wood, fiberglassed. Ballast is a solid lead plug made to fit. It sails rather well, but with two defeciencys. One is that it does not turn well despite a large rudder, so I have plans to enlarge it more. The other is that I wish I had made the masts 3in taller, for more sail area. She needs a good 12ft to turn about and at least a 10 knot wind. But, she points pretty well and gets a lot of attention and is fun to sail.
Some years ago, I tried fiberglassing an existing hull. The hull was made of fiberboard, the same stuff clipboards used to be made of. Not very waterproof. Water got to the fiberboard in spite of the fiberglass and it swelled up and split the fiberglass at the seams. Should have just kept it as a display model. I eventually scrapped it, there was no saving it. My point is that what the hull is made of is of vital importance. The produce crate wood works because it is real hardwood, not glorified reinforced cardboard. If you fiberglass your boat, you must strip off any existing finish down to bare wood so that the resin can soak in good for good adherence. Make the fiberglass good and thick so it won't crack. Regardless of what you do on the outside, polyurethane the h.. out of the inside of the entire hull, esp the bilges. The right amount of lead shot for ballast will probably work, but just in case, line the hull with saran wrap in case it just is not sufficient and you have to go to an add on deep keel. Hope this helps.