Spinnakers
 

I am new to this forum and RC sailing, but am a full-size sailer and have flown RC planes for over twenty years. I have often wondered if it were possible to engineer a spinnaker set up for
an RC boat. Any of you veteran RC Sailboat "gurus" tried this or know of anyone who has? Is
it mechanically possible to do this on an RC boat?

Regards,
Mike

RE: Spinnakers
 

Never say never, it's possible, but with a large amount of hassle: roll in the jib, unsleeve the spinnaker, set the boom, adjust the lines...

It's doable, but quite hard to RC the whole operation, and it has to be in relative close range to see what's happening.
Or make use of an on-board microcomputer to control the whole spinnaker operation.

I'm sure it's a magnificent sight, but I'm not sure if I would go to the trouble of figuring it all out...

Regards, Jan.

RE: Spinnakers
 

Yaaaa go real sailboats!!!
i love sailboats but not the rc ones.
pompebled what kind of sailboat do you have. my dad own a mcgreggor 21 ft and it rocks!!!!!

RE: Spinnakers
 

I am no big fan...but some years ago the M's used a spin...a bit heavy...all the system and so....I also read that a new class called F100 might use spins

heres a link: (dont tell any1 I gave this to you)[8D]

www.microsail.com

RE: Spinnakers
 

Yeah.... that site... hehhehehe... R/C sailing's equivilent of vaporware.

Spinnakers.. do work.... but they have so many moving parts that it invites problems. The next thing is the amount of performance increase vs. the amount of weight penalty (which is constant) and the added mechanical breakdown factor... means most people will not goof around with them.

We are goofing around with them on the J boats and the AC boats since they are class legal there.... and getting mixed results. There are some significant gains in performance so far... but the mechanical bug is biting me a lot.... time will tell. I will probably put it out there before I have it worked out because I will get too excited and someone else will come along and perfect it and then I will say... I wish *I* had thought of that. That's usually how theses things go.[&:]

RE: Spinnakers
 

on a very personal point of view....working or not??? performance or whatever....controlling a spin (I think) can be really great.

I did make a spin...just for fun..of course the thing wasnt control-able...but it was ton of fun....anyway....it looks great....(and NO I will not post a pic....someone might call me "hostile" again LOL )...lets just say that it was some "special" design...I guess you see what I mean:D
Last but not least:

Lets not forget the fun factor!

But; for sure on a J...the thing could work great....I really hope; that one day it will become available (did I just say that???)...

RE: Spinnakers
 

When I first read this post I thought of the microsail site. Was going to post a link but was beaten to it :D
A spinnaker on a model yacht is way cool, but a lot of trouble.
I guess an asymetric design would be best. One winch for up and down and one for control. A bit of work would go into it, making the downhaul and uphaul work off the same winch could be a challenge. Same said for the control winch. But hey if someone wants to give it ago I'm willing to watch.
P.S I aslo sail fullsize. I sail a Cherub.

RE: Spinnakers
 

Thanks for the input on spinnaker systems. The Microsail site is a great reference. It is interesting to see it done. I would imagine keeping it in trim via an RC transmitter from a distance, especially in a strong breeze, would be a real task.

Regards,
Mike

RE: Spinnakers
 

I know its French but...

http://voiliermaxiwor.free.fr/

RE: Spinnakers
 

Guys have been playing with spinnakers for a long time now, mainly with mixed results. The biggest advantage seems to be the cool factor. I have been experimenting with an asymetrical setup for a while that is super simple. All it requires is a third channel to raise the sail, the sheeting is controled from the same servo as the main. Will have to get some pics up one of these days.

Kristopher