Sailing canoe?

Question

Im genna make a thing for a canoe for it to sail and after looking at some sail kits on the internet i understand that i need stabalizers on each side but im not shure what to make it out of. Would a pool noodle on each side with like a pvc pipe in it work if not what should I use

Answer 1

The stabilizers you are talking about are called outriggers.  Their function is to increase the positive stability of the boat.  ie keep it from rolling over.  They are typically only used on long narrow boats.  some canoes have enough beam that they are not necessary.  they can be made out of anything that floats, although when in the water they will add drag if not streamlined.  a pool noodle probably does not have enough flotation if on the lee side(downwind side), and not enough weight on the weather side(wind side) this is assuming that one outrigger is used, although you can set one up one each side. although i have seen them made out of large diameter PVC pipe with end caps on them.  

lee boards or a centerboard keeps the boat from skidding sideways on the water.  They are not used in running downwind, usually raised to lower drag.  They are also negligible in stronger wind, due to the fact that hull usually heeled over preventing skidding.  center boards can also be weighted to increase stability too.

there other possibility is some of the smaller dingys have inflatable tubes around the hull to increase loaded capacities (check out walkerbay.com)

Answer 2

No. What you need is something flat and thin, plywood would work, to make the canoe go straight ahead while the sail is trying to slide it sideways. This board should extend lower than the bottom of the canoe by about 3 feet. It should be held vertical and rigidly attached to the side of the canoe.

Answer 3

A pool noodle or 2 on each side might work. Are you planning to run a 1 inch pvc pipe through them?  I have made a sail canoe from a stream canoe ,using one pontoon out 3 feet. I tied it on to the seats, and it did pull the seats out while I was sailing in a storm. I had to rebuild the canoe.  A 5 inch pvc pipe closed on both ends would work. You can use 2 ammas or one out rigger.

Answer 4

ya!!!!  what he said

Answer 5

If you were to get hold of some ABS or PVC pipe about 6 inches in diameter, roughly 8-10 feet long and seal the ends off with a hydrodynamical shaped cap your could fashion a couple of pretty good outriggers. They would need to be supported 3-5 feet from the sides of the canoe.

As far as a dagger board or keel goes, typically multihull boats don't need them as much as a mono hull do.  If you were to attach a small fin ( say 6-8 inches deep and a couple of feet long) on the bottoms of the pipes, you would make out OK.

Answer 6

You will need leeboards mounted on the sides of the boat.

Check out glenl plans --

http://www.boatdesigns.com/

https://www.boatdesigns.com/prodinfo.asp...

or:

http://www.enter.net/~skimmer/building/b...

http://www.paddlin.com/fivelakes/balrig....

do a search on "leeboard"

Answer 7

I would use Leeboards. Some people use just one and move it to the side it need on, but, I would use two and raise the one not needed. I feel it help distribute weight better, especially in a canoe.

The first two links explain Leeboards and the next two links explain sail balance. If, you can sew, you may be able to make your own sail. Some people make a good cheap sail from those Poly Tarps. They cheap enough to experiment with, but, I not sure how long they last.

http://marina.fortunecity.com/breakwater...

http://www.duckworksmagazine.com/01/arti...

http://www.boatbuilding-links.de/Jim-Mic...

http://www.sailingusa.info/sailboat_bala...

These pictures are Boats with a poly tarp sail and a picture of a tarp so you know what I talk of;

http://www.stevproj.com/

http://hometown.aol.com/polysail/HTML/si...

http://www.tarice.com/Poly_Tarps/blue_po...

This link may be of interest. It some videos. The first video (canoe1.wmv) not great, but, if you look, you will see his plywood leeboards and then he also made some stabilizers from PVC pipe.

http://members.aol.com/sailboatstogo/vid...

Answer 8

Why the h**l would you do that?? HEHEHE!

I'd look into buying a used sail boat that's in good condition. Heavily modified boats tend to drown their owners.

Good luck.