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DS1 Design Changes

PostPosted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 12:51 pm
by ctenidae
Does anyone have a list of design changes and the year they were made? Seems like this would be useful for trying to date boats without HINs or other paperwork.

Moderator wrote:I have made this thread "sticky" to make it easier to find. The spreadsheet is here


For instance, I think mine (probable sail number 1114) is around 1962, based on no motor well in the transom, no floor stringers, molded seats, original color (beige deck, white hull), and no evidence as yet of foam in the floatation tanks. However, it does have molded in mounts for a wire traveler, rather than blocks for a Crosby (which I also have, but they seem to be a later addition)

One interesting design element that I don't see in any other pictures is the location of the aft ends of the rub rail- on most pictures, the rail appears to end just around the aft corners. On mine, the rail extends all the way to the middle of the transom, with about a 1 foot gap between the endcaps, spaced just far enough for the rudder to hit them when turned "lock to lock." Just went through all of Rob Bergh's 2009 DSNACR pics (great shots, btw), and found sail # 1098 with the same configuration, and #1660 with the wider lay.
Does anyone else know the year of theirs and have this layout?

PostPosted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 1:49 pm
by GreenLake
No such list appears to exist. Here's info for mine, perhaps we can get others to add to this list, or link info from older posts.

Putative sail # 1404 (from state registration) Uncertain date, but likely '63 if sail number is correct. The design features:

Motor well, wider separation of rub rail, no evidence of wire traveler, evidence of deck prepared for blocks to enable jib-leads through coamings, but no such evidence on coamings (mid-transition in terms of that feature ?), swimming pool blue / green for deck and white hull, foam present.

Jib sheet blocks were on tracks with cleats (most likely) on the CB trunk.

Every other feature same as yours. (Perhaps you could document what you know about the original jib sheet arrangement).

PostPosted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 2:30 pm
by ctenidae
My jib sheets run through blocks, through the coamings, to cleats on the CB trunk.

I've started a spreadsheet on Google Docs that you can go in and enter the data for your DS1 on here:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key= ... HRWc&hl=en

Should be editable by anyone. If you can't access it, let me know. If everyone would enter their particulars, we could get a good database going here. If there's an element that you think is a good year identifier, go ahead and add a column.

Let's see what we can get.

PostPosted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 6:33 pm
by algonquin
Tried to update my data on the spreadsheet. Could only view it. Brad

PostPosted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 6:43 pm
by ctenidae
algonquin wrote:Tried to update my data on the spreadsheet. Could only view it. Brad


Might have been someone in it (probably me) in the sections you wanted to update. If the problem persists, put it the info in the thread, and I'll update.

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 8:26 am
by seandwyer
Worked for me - this is great. I don't know why, but I'd really like to meet people with boats very close in number to mine - as in the one just before or after especially. Silly I guess, but they would be like siblings.

Spreadsheet

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 8:35 am
by kokko
This would be good to keep available as a "sticky"

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 8:45 am
by ctenidae
seandwyer wrote:Worked for me - this is great. I don't know why, but I'd really like to meet people with boats very close in number to mine - as in the one just before or after especially. Silly I guess, but they would be like siblings.


Absolutely agree. Of course, the downside is the potential for numberism, but competition is healthy. It'd be cool to have the first hull out of the molds with new design changes, though.

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 6:00 pm
by algonquin
Just updated my data. It does appear that my boat may be older than I thought. Last owner said he believed it was a 1963 and he thought the sails were original. Spinnaker number is 818 and no numbers on the main which seems as old as dirt. Correction-water! Brad

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 6:26 pm
by ctenidae
algonquin wrote:Just updated my data. It does appear that my boat may be older than I thought. Last owner said he believed it was a 1963 and he thought the sails were original. Spinnaker number is 818 and no numbers on the main which seems as old as dirt. Correction-water! Brad


Based on the rub rail configuration, yours has to be pre-1963, I think. The next earlier change is, I think, the molded seats, but I don't know when that occured.

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 6:45 pm
by ctenidae
I think we can identify 2 model years with major changes, at least:

1963: Rub rail switched from narrow gap to wide; Motor well was added; wire traveller was replaced with Crosby rig

1965: Screw jack was switched to tabernacle step

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 7:19 pm
by ctenidae
Clicking through pictures on the Sailing Texas website, seems like there may have been changes in teh shape of the CB trunk, as well. I think the changes went from fixed width all the way along with rounded top corners to having a sort of shelf on theaft edge for a mainsheet block to a cap.

From this: http://www.sailingtexas.com/soday17116.html

to this: http://www.sailingtexas.com/soday17117.html

to this: http://www.sailingtexas.com/soday17d.html

PostPosted: Wed Oct 28, 2009 11:04 pm
by algonquin
Not absolutely sure about the early days of our DS but I thought some variations may be from different manufacturers that built the boats. ?? Brad

PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2009 2:21 am
by MrPlywood
The trunk on mine has rounded corners, with no "step" for the main block, similar to the 1961 Roberts Point boat (the first link). But mine does have a flat face above the front flotation tank, with bungeed doors. This boat has a shelf. A lot of mix and match.

PostPosted: Thu Oct 29, 2009 9:23 am
by seandwyer
Mine definitely matches most closely to the middle link.

As for doors VS. shelf, I bet the 1961 is simply missing the panel with the bungee doors. I have the doors, but have noticed that in a couple of minutes I could convert this to a shelf with nothing more than a screw driver. Just a shelf over the flotation tank with a panel in front containing two holes for the doors. Seems like I've seen boats of this age and older - some with and some without. My guess is some think its unnecessary weight for a racer.