imagineero wrote:
Hi David,
Thanks for the info! I had a good read through your page and learned a
few things~ The links that you mentioned seem to be down though.

How do you find your minicup handles compared with other small dinghys,
especially to windward? Im a bit on the large side myself at 6'3" and
230lbs, so im wondering if this boat is quite big enough for me. It
looks to have plenty of flotation.

when you built your boats, what ended up taking a lot more time than
you expected, and what was the biggest blowout on the budget side of
things? Im hoping to get a few friends together and all build the same
type of boat so that we can race out on the lake near us, Ive already
talked my uncle into it and may have acouple of guys from work. If
things dont turn out right in the end though, I run the risk of being
drowned in the same lake by this group of guys ;-)

Thanks,
Shaun

I love my MiniCups and I built two of them, a trailer to haul them and
a dolly to carry them to the water. I have built several iterations of
sails for them. They sail very well.
So, get the plans but do not strictly go by them because they are for
1970s era boatbuilding methods.
Here is my site for MiniCup building:

http://home.mindspring.com/~ohara5.0/

At the time I wrote it, I did not have much experience with epoxy and
fiberglas so I couldnt properly glass them. I am now glassing them.

The visqueen sails work ok but soon fall apart as the duct tape fails
in water. I tried various things as I discuss in the site. Currently,
I am using sewn polytarp sails that work very well. My next project
for them will be reefable sails. I have used my MiniCups so much that
they are nearly worn out which is why I am now rebuilding them with
glass.
Andrew Butchard also has good info on his MiniCup building.

Good Luck and have fun

David OHara

Windward performance? Well, She does better in more wind, say about
12-15 mph although I have done a lot of tacking to get places in very
little air. With the lateen sail, I have difficulties judging how
close I am to the wind. I really like the lateen sails cuz they are so
simple.
BTW, one of the best things I did was to place tie downs for a small
paddle on the deck forward of the cockpit. I have used this paddle a
lot when the wind died and I was waaaaaay out in the lake. She
actually paddles well.
As far as what cost more than expected, that is hard to say because I
did so much experimenting. The polytarp cost more than expected but I
forget how much but it wasnt a real factor. I think the MiniCups
should be epoxy/glassed with 4 oz glass and if you do so you will
probably surprised at the cost of epoxy and glass.
I have recently taken all of the foam floatation out of my boats and
have sealed the floatation areas very well with glass and epoxy. I
have put in screw-in access ports because I think you need to be able
to look in to see rot and other problems.
I weigh about 187 lbs and I have easily carried myself and my 130 lb
wife in her too.
Definitely reinforce the tiller, the rudder box and the method used to
fasten the rudder to the hull. The way the design call for the barrell
bolts to be fastened directly to the hull will cause quick failure. I
think you must use very robust fasteners here backed up with something
strong.
My 16 yr old son says he likes the MiniCups better than the sailing
clubs Laser because it is easier to handle and has a lot less
"adjustments".