"Garland Gray II" wrote in
news:zD5kf.26955$ih5.3190@dukeread11:

Larry,
Are you talking about that trimaran with the rotating vertical
cylinders ? I saw that (at least was told it was Cousteau's) at a
marina up the Chickahominy R off the James R in VA maybe 8 years ago.
Don't think it's there now.



Yeah, that's the one. Has like 4 rotating cylinder sails that catch wind
from any direction to power the boat. The vanes in it look like and S if
you look down from the top of it.

There was a great documentary made of it, but I can't find it.

I was thinking the drums were perfect cylinders. Maybe not, but I thought
the principle was that wind past the rotating surface created a pressure
differntial. Makes sense, but I can't think there would be much resulting
force.
I might drive up there some dreary day to find what happened to her.

"Larry" wrote in message
...
"Garland Gray II" wrote in
news:zD5kf.26955$ih5.3190@dukeread11:

Larry,
Are you talking about that trimaran with the rotating vertical
cylinders ? I saw that (at least was told it was Cousteau's) at a
marina up the Chickahominy R off the James R in VA maybe 8 years ago.
Don't think it's there now.



Yeah, that's the one. Has like 4 rotating cylinder sails that catch wind
from any direction to power the boat. The vanes in it look like and S if
you look down from the top of it.

There was a great documentary made of it, but I can't find it.

"Garland Gray II" wrote in
news:PC7kf.26965$ih5.11538@dukeread11:

I was thinking the drums were perfect cylinders. Maybe not, but I
thought the principle was that wind past the rotating surface created
a pressure differntial. Makes sense, but I can't think there would be
much resulting force.
I might drive up there some dreary day to find what happened to her.



No, the "vanes" are, looking at them from the end, cup shaped between the
outer and center, I think. It would make sense if the shape of each of
them were a vertical wing on Bernoulli's Principal with lift as it goes
by the proper wind angle for lift (rotation power).

The vanes in it look like and S if
you look down from the top of it.

There was a great documentary made of it, but I can't find it.


I rememebr the article in Popular Mechanics, or Popular Science several
years ago.

it was interesting indeed!