Patrick,
Great post.
Let me begin by apologizing for not answering the question of study plans
properly (got caught up in the other questions).
We don't have study plans, however, our construction manual (104 pages with
several hundred pictures) does a pretty good job of describing the entire
process and is available for US $75. As Greg pointed out, their are a lot of
pictures on the website www.swiftsolo.org and in the various publications
(Sailing
World, Wooden Boat, and Epoxyworks magazines).
The manual describes the need to complete the cradle (trolley) before pulling
the boat off of the frames for the reason you described (your post supports
what we preach in the manual and is an important step).
The daggerboard case is a good issue which we have spent a lot of time
dealing with. We now use glass covered wood inserts in a rectangular opening
(top
and bottom) that allows us to change board designs easily. These inserts have
the board cutout hole shaped to the individual board while the outer edges
remain straight and rectangular (contoured to fit the curve of the bottom of
the
boat). This technique by itself provides a lot of impact absorption and
transfers the impact load over a much stronger structure. While you may have
to
replace the insert blocks after serious impacts, it would take a serious hit to
do any significant damage. We encourage our builders to hold the top (deck)
insert block just a bit high to keep sand from washing into the trunk since our
decks are flush with the top of the trunk (like the 49er). Using cedar core
also makes the boat about 50% less susceptible to damage than the typical foam
core construction methods.
I hope this helps and appreciate your input and questions.
Best regards,
Bram
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