I specify butt straps because they are simpler, faster and have a neat result for amateurs every time. But I do place them in the hull where they won’t affect curvature of the ply. What are their advantages for joining ply compared scarf joints.
The Oz Goose is multipurpose. It can hit speeds of 13 knots, is an excellent trainer and teaching boat with three adults aboard or a family sailer with two adults and a bunch of kids. It is lighter than a Laser Dinghy and a fraction of the cost
Every year we do a Calendar of the Goat Island Skiff. This is the cover of the 2017 Calendar. The GIS facebook group collects over 100 excellent photos then we all vote on them to get down to the best 12 or so for a yearly calendar.
A chance to vote on the BEST Goat Island Skiff Photos from the last year. The most popular will go into the yearly Calendar
Opinions about capsize and recovery are worthless. “Safe Boats” do no exist unless the crew practices capsize. We cover the design points.
A two and a half week project – The Taal Stand Up Paddleboard is very different from the majority of SUPs out there.
Light stable and quick with much less effort than the normal surfboard shapes used.
This shows the building method to help those who have purchased plans.
Sailing lessons 1 1/2 hours south of Manila on beautiful, natural Taal Lake. Boats, SUP boards and instruction, food, accommodation and Volcano and Eco Knowledge tours.
By far the bulk of Goat Island Skiffs are built as one sail boats. Is the complication, labour and expense of the extra sail on the yawl/ketch option worth it? What types of sailing does it assist or hinder?
A great article from the Open Goose website on setting up and tuning lug rigs of all types.
Getting rid of a familiar crease in many lugsails.
I’ve been in and around wooden race and recreational boats for a few decades now. As a designer who sells plans I can really only direct people towards the most tried and true methods that work just about anywhere. This article explains a large part of experience that leads to my approach.
Traditionally we were all told that chines were draggy, induced vortices and were slow. But in restricted dinghy classes where different hull designs are allowed chines predominate. And now chines are appearing on yachts as well. Sailors seem to be voting with their feet. Is there evidence?
Year four of the high quality Goat Island Skiff Calendar is out!
Boats from the USA, France, Uruguay, The Netherlands and Greece
The OzRacers are steadily growing in numbers in Hungary. This increases the chance of meetups like this occasionon Lake Valence. Two very experienced sailors participate and enjoy the boats.
A boat for an electric trolling motor will go very fast with 2hp. I suggest that smaller power might be good for a cargo canoe, motor canoe. Not to mention the gas saved!
A camping get together for Goat Island Skiffs, other storerboats and friends and fans and other boats. Three or Four days camping by the water with friendly people. Interesting in building a Goat or actually building one … all are very welcome.
Video – Ian Henehan worked out this 12ft Goose Version and launched it into 20 knot winds. You can check the video to see that this is probably correct. It certainly is, despite the poor camera angle which changes a few times the boat is fairly smoking along
How to reef a Balance Lugsail. A neat trick of using shock cord (bungee) for the intermediate ties makes it much faster to tie in a reef as well as remove the reef after. it also minimises the risk of damaging the sail if something major breaks elsewhere.
After a week or so of bad sailing weather, Daniel in Uruguay got out on the water in Piriapolis harbour to try out his new sail from ReallySimpleSails.com in the Philippines. The idea is to halve the price of sails for my plans so that it is even more economical to build a storerboat. This can save $300 plus
ReallySimpleSails.com saves $300 or more on your Goat Island Skiff, Oz Goose or Oz Racer.
Custom sails for other boats are also available and will represent a cost saving on your boatbuilding project.
These are full quality sails that we all have worked hard to keep the price down on without reducing quality.