Classic Yacht TVvideo
Building the schooner MALABAR IV: Lofting begins – a call to arms Ep01
January 11, 2025 · 19 min · 30K views
What this video covers
A boatbuilder in the UK has begun lofting Malabar IV, a John Alden racing schooner design from the early 1920s, with the goal of completing the hull and having her race-ready for the 2027 Fastnet Race — 100 years after a Malabar schooner raced Tally Ho neck-and-neck on that same course.16:12 The builder has accumulated timber over years of professional boatbuilding and is now working from Alden's table of offsets, painting a loft floor, drawing waterlines and body plan, and fairing curves with battens to produce patterns for the keel, stem, and sternpost.2:11 Remy, an intern from L'Atelier de l'Enfer boatbuilding college in Douarnenez, France, is assisting with lofting and has built a half model.10:58 The builder explains the lofting process in detail: scaling errors from the designer's drawings are expected and corrected by eye and batten, with the batten treated as the authoritative fair curve.7:49 He covers the schooner rig's advantages for short-handed sailing — dropping the main to balance on fore and staysail in heavy air, setting a fisherman staysail or golly wobbler in light air.14:19 The build is open to skilled volunteers in exchange for accommodation; financing beyond existing timber remains unresolved, and the boat is available for commission or sale at any stage.17:32 With two people working, the hull, deck, and rig could be race-ready in 18 months if fully funded.18:35
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