Our 3D-printed IOM, Alpha Sabre, participated in its first club regatta yesterday, with Selwyn Holland at the helm.
In the first race, Selwyn got a good start and led to the end. Here’s a picture of our boat 167 heading for the finish line being chased by a Fusion and a Britpop.
Racing was in B-rig conditions, and Alpha Sabre proved up to it. Nothing cracked, distorted, or pulled out…nice and rigid and no leaks. The boat handled beautifully, both upwind and down.
There is no doubt that this technology is a viable alternative to other build methods.
Certainly more interesting then footy or Nano.
Can tell you more about the overall characteristics like DSPL, Hull draft, overall weight, Corrector weights, etc. Thanks !
ClaudioD
Claudio, If Brad got some things wrong on Britpop, he sure has done a great job of fooling everyone for the last few years that it’s been the boat to beat.
Claudio, I agree with your opinion of Brad’s sailing skills. But I also think he is one of the best designers around, and the track record of the Britpop in the hands of other skippers seems to validate the design.
IOM is almost a monotype design since the only free parameter is the Beam and as such his contribution to winning potential as ‘system boat’ is low.
When at a racing event out of 30 boats, 15 are BP, the chances to win is rather high. Fashion effect as always !!!.
There is very little that can be done on a IOM design to make it superior above others IOM except Rig adjustment, Sail quality.
Interesting to note that often the successful skippers are also Sail Manufacturers.
Claudio, the second part is a extremely simplistic statement, there is definitely more than sails and rig adjustment in IOM design/development. There is a lot that can be done to improve an IOM performance, otherwise we would not have seen so many designs disappear from regattas …
Gio,
the IOM success is due essentially to economical issue derived by the material constraints.
I do not see what can be done to improve performances above the existing ones.
Sail Area/Mast height are blocked, Displacement is blocked, Draft is blocked, Keel is blocked…!!
Left free beam and colors and 3D to help reducing costs
Well, without going into the class rule reasoning and idea, yes, a lot of parameters in the IOM are fixed (rig) or have max and min tolerances (hull, appendages), but there is still a lot that can be shifted and moved around to improve performances independently of the rig … and a lot that can be done to mess the boat up to. Just look at the foil development during the years, or boat balance, or even sail development all done within the constrains of very strict rules (no one will still use a 10 years old keel and claim that it performs better in terms of lift and drag than a brand new creed keel … ).
You mentioned Brad, and beside being an incredible sailor/builder and designer, he is been also working on improving the performances of older boats (M and IOM) and just by updating the foils and little less he could make an old windstar perform better and by small hull modifications, re-balancing the hull and new sails, make it actually sail well at a club level, and we are taking about a hull that no one in his right mind would have even sailed when it came out …
yes the are limitations in the IOM rules, but there is ample play within the rules to play/improve performace and boat design, and while 3D printing will most likly not be the future of RC sailing, its definitely a powerful tool that can help in boat design and development, potentially you can modify and play with your hull and have a prototype in the water (sailing) within a day or two … and that’s a quite somenthing …
Gio,
You mix up too many things.
Tell us what can be changed to IOM to improve the performances, since this was the subject. I’m sure Brad and others will be glad to hear about…