Hey Everyone,
One of the things that annoys me with my Nacra 5.2 is the rope loop that acts as handle on my daggerboards. Putting them down in easy but raising them can be frustrating (especially when you are coming into shore and get hit with a gust). It has gotten better since I fabricated some sideloaders but I would still like a more solid handle on the boards. I have noticed that newer Nacras have a cutout at the top of the boards. I have several questions:

Do the newer daggerboards that they sell as replacements for the 5.2/5.5/5.8 have this handle?
Do you think this is a worthwhile modification for my current boards? Should I just drill a second hole and put a 'suitcase' type handle on the top.
Other than 'cut a hole with a jigsaw' would there be any more fiberglass work required?
I'm assuming they have a foam core so a coat of resin to seal it would probably be in order. But do I need to wrap the handle in fabric, glass it in and fair it?




edited by: Wolfman, Jul 14, 2010 - 01:13 AM

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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Yes the new boards come with the handle. I think you would need to cut and then glass and gel coat the cut outs. Sounds like a lot of work.

I have a lovely new set of 5.8 boards I cannot use since previous owners glassed in the bottoms of the boxes for racing and thinned the current set.

Ah, does that imply that you may wish to part with them for a reasonable cost? :) Because if it does, I would be very interested in them.

Oops, that might not work, it looks like the 5.8/6.0 daggers are different than the 5.2/5.5/18sq daggers. Unless someone can confirm that the 5.8 daggers would work.

Regards,
Dave



edited by: Wolfman, Jul 14, 2010 - 01:16 PM

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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You could always tie a small line onto the existing rope with a trap handle on it. I did that to my 5.2 and it was a nice feature for the price. I put a couple pieces of clear hose around the trap handle so they didnt beat my boards to death. Makes it much quiter when they bounce around too.

Quote

Ah, does that imply that you may wish to part with them for a reasonable cost? :) Because if it does, I would be very interested in them.

Tempting but no, what I need to do is grind out the fill in the trunk openings and apply some finish coat. If I ever break the current boards, I'm screwed. Thankfully their strength and Marine Tex keeps us going. I started playing around with the idea this spring, quickly realized this is major surgery and I had a roller furling jib to install which was more important.

With the cutout handles, wouldn't you run the risk of smashing your knuckles if you lowered your daggerboards too quickly or too far?
The PVC inserts on mine shattered when I did that once. I was sure glad it wasn't my fingers caught in there...

Very robust stops in the new boards. No chance of that.

Larry,
I have destroyed many stops on the new boards, actually the crew has, and collaterally damaged the decks.
5.8 and 6.0 are different size boards than the others. Also, the new style does not go as deep in the well as the old style. Not a big deal but worth mentioning. I have several of the new style 5.8,6.0 boards if someone is interested.
I wouldn't bother trying to modify.

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Philip
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