(This may be a repost on some hosts which do not act on delete requests as
I accidentally hit the post key while making a change to the text. It's
not a big change and won't make much of a difference.)

I've found that putting the leeboard under the rear edge (leech) of the
sail gives good ballance on narrow rudderless sailboats. you can look at
the rigs on my home made boats at www.ncf.ca/~ag384/Boats.htm. I
experimented on my Dogskiff with a keel screwed to the skids on the bottom
of the boat. Was able to reposition this keel until I got good balance.
that was under the leech. I find these small boats sensitive to sail
balance. I use daggerboards which it's a good idea to install on an angle
(as shown in the photos). It's also important where the crew sits in the
boat. I've screwed a small spirit level to the gunwale on the smallest
boat (Loonie) so I can tell when it's sailing level.

raising and lowering the daggerboards and shifting my weight around makes
a big difference to sail and hull balance. on the Dogskiff with the
original sail under certain conditions I can raise the daggerboard 1/3 of
the way up and get the boat to tack on its own without rudder or paddle.

note that a flat bottom boat it will slide off to leeward when tacking.
you have to heel the boat and let out the sail to get it to round up onto
the other tack. flat bottom boats are somewhat prone to capsizing when
tacking in a gust with the sail pulled in and the boat falling off to
leeward. it helps when tacking to move your weight forward. that was the
technique used in the rudderless St lawrence skiff sailing races. when
taking the dogskiff when it is making way I reach forward with the paddle
on the lee sied and use a bow pry, when it is not making way I reach
forward with the paddle tucked under my armpit and use a bow draw. I only
have to use teh paddle to tack.

it takes a while to learn to sail without a rudder but I find my boats to
be very responsive. to turn upwind let out sail and heel the boat to
leeward, moving your weight forward it need be. to turn to leeward pull
the sail in and keep the boat flat, moving your weight aft if need be.
there was a book published in the 1800's telling of a cruise among the
Carribean Islands on a rudderless sailing canoe.

you can move up to a bigger sail on the boat if you ever want. 60 sq ft would
not be too big.

"Ron" ) writes:
I'm having trouble setting up my canoe to sail into the wind using a lee
board. Can a canoe do this with any efficiency?





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