On Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:37:27 -0400, "Roger Long"
wrote:

"Strong as wood, light as steel."

You are being unfair to steel. For openers, it has the same strength
to weight as aluminum which is often regarded as being lighter. If
strength is not really the issue and stiffness is, everything is
bulkier, which automatically means stiffer, than steel, for the same
strength. Steel is not heavy in a large enough vessel. I figure 1/8 or
inch plating and forty feet of length. Rather have aluminum, actually.
A forty foot powerboat, 1/4 inch thick. You want cleats to be as big
as possible, so that sharp corners don't abuse the line. This makes
aluminum more attractive than steel.

Casady