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Friday, May 8, 2009

Wind vane steering tips

Scott & Sue on Enee Marie are researching wind vane steering options for their 30 foot sailboat on which they will be traveling to (possibly) Panama shortly. Do you have tips for them? Leave a comment on their blog.
I find the whole thing mechanically interesting. The wind vane moves in response to a change in heading. That force is too small to steer the boat directly so the vane's motion is transferred to a 'servo-pendulum' in the water. The force of the water on this pendulum is a huge force and can be used to steer the boat via ropes and pulleys. No electricity and we all know how much I like that idea!

Here's a recent video of Christian Allaire showing the performance of his Monitor aboard Christa.

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