I have started on the Goblin sailing yacht and have now reached the same stage of build as that by another forum user, Peter Havens, as he shows in his photo of Goblin posted on this forum in 2009.

The plan is from MM and was designed by GG, and i like the design a lot. I think the design is simple and easy to build and, whilst it looks like a yacht, it has a character that sets it apart from looking exactly like a real yacht. There is something a little quirky but endearing about it.

I have enlarged my Goblin by about 30%: in the original plan the length was 24 1/2 inches, mine is 32 inches ; the beam was originally 7 1/2 inches, mine is 9 inches ; the original draft was 5 inches, mine is 6 1/2 inches. I haven't come round to starting the mast and sails yet and as they were noted as 28 inches high in the plan then I guess that with my enlarged version of Goblin if the sails are to grow proportionaly, they will be about 9 inches taller.

Before I come to that I need to do the fins, and this is where i would like to ask the opinion of any readers about a certain idea of mine. I wish to change from a single fin to that of a twin fin. The reason being is that they will act as a stand for the yacht when its on 'land' and save building an actual stand. More importantly I wish to detail the interior of the cabin. A single fin extending inside the hull for purposes of strength as per plan will get in the way of detailing the cabin. The twin fin design would also have to extend into the inside of the hull but as they will be more to the side I can build a detailed cabin between the two fins.

Do you think that the twin fins can afford to be shorter than a single fin? On real boats they appear to be shorter. One advantage of real boats using the twin fin (or bilge fins as they are also called) over their single fin counterpart is that they can sail in shallower waters (as well as stand unaided when the sea is out). However, one disadvantage is that they can be more susceptible to leeward motion than boats with a single fin which lies deeper in the water, if they sail in the open seas. Hence most bilge fin boats are sailed close to shore. On my enlarged plan the single fin measures 12 inches below the hull but am wondering how shorter should the twin fins be? Like the real boats having them shorter would enable me to sail Goblin in shallower waters.

I have quite an ambitious idea for my Goblin to include R/C control for the sails, something not in the original plan, and something I haven't tried before, and to have lights and sound added to what is to be a pleasure boat, including figures of about 1/12 scale seated in the well (also a modification from the plan).

I enclose photos of Goblin's kitchen furniture and bathroom suite, before painting.

Above, I enclose photos of Goblin's bathroom suite and kitchen fittings.

Sorry, this message is down here twice ; I thought the posting had gone elsewhere in the forum after I posted it the first time and didn't see it underneath the photos. So I retyped and posted it again. Instead I'd failed to see that my first posting had rolled over onto the second page. Now I don't seem to be able to delete it.

Edited By Who Boot on 08/05/2013 09:09:42