If you do end with the blowie and your mates still want to build,I wouldnt recommend trying to replicate the blowie construction. go with a lefroy mini style set up
Hi Sudsy, with the Blokart you can attach an extra seat to carry kids, grandkids, wife, friends, and people you dont want to lend your yacht to. 1st time out with my 12 year old daughter we hit 75 kph on lake Lefroy.
G'day crew,brought the blowie and the copy . Of course there's been no wind for 2 days .Would appreciate if the guru's would look over the photo's.Front wheel is crap,should the front fork be lower than axle,like mini drawings,fitted the 6m2 windsurfer rig using a piece of hardwood inside mast and inside mast support tube.The blowie masts fit straight in
Yup! It's a Blowie al right Sudsy.. Don't understand why anyone would use a rusty old bold with SS though. It is a starter for you and the family.. What's wrong with the front wheel.. It ain't much but it will do the trick untill something better comes along and the machine will give you a taste of things to come. Ron
Now I ain't pickin' on your purchase as like I said it is a starter at least but what I think you will quickly learn is that with the narrow-ish rear wheel spread and the sail being so high up the mast it that it will not be stable in fairly strong winds.
The only way to lower it would be to cut the sail foot/reshape it for head clearance and use a boom at the foot, but persevere and start learning why many of us prefer the lower C of G machines.
Tomorrow I will post a new thread on Anthony Beach and the value of low C of G. Ron
Thanks for your feedback Ron, I bought a blowkart and the [bad] copy in the photo's.The windsurfer rig is too high, pretty unstable ,just playing around with stuff .Need a better spot to try them out, trying to scope out a couple of local spots before we go to sandy pt. The main reason I posted the photos was to see what you guys thought of the copy. I'm happy to spend time fixing it up , needs new front wheel and front fork [ out of alinement ] obviously replace rusty steel bolts .Would it be worth trying to bend the solid rear axle to angle's shown in mini plans. It would seem a pity to scrap it, unless you guys reckon it's completely useless or dangerous .The s/s welds apart from being messy appear to be ok ,no cracking ,I dont think its ever been rigged or used ? I suppose I could build a mini in the time it takes to fix this thing ? Please no "I told you so's ". I'm already having fun and the young blokes pretty interested .
Hey! That's what it is all about. Repairing/Upgrading isn't a problem, I'd say the bloke that built it was a bit excited or didn't have an eye for detail (I can be a bit like that) Just so long as it is strong and serviceable.. Just looking at the pic I would say that the "Patch" i e the point at which the line of the steering head intersects the the wheel and stops with the ground and the point the tire actually touches are a bit out but could be easily fixed. There is a thread somewhere on it but one of the Gurus will explain it better then me but general when you are fixing the alignment the Fork could also be bent up a little to lower the steering head. I do not think that bending the rear axle to angle the wheels in at the top would do any harm and would help to keep the chassis level when you do the alignment. A little dressing up and alteration on the sail and mast should improve it a lot. In the meantime go out there and ENJOY>>
the "copy" looks fine to me. I would exchange the mild steel bols for some SS ones quick smart, and lower the rig till the sail , when fully tensioned is just touching the top of the upper frame bars, other than that it should sail fine keep an eye on bearing condition. all good from my perspective
Sudsy, I will leave further comment on the Front Forks to Paul but I have a couple of remarks on wheels for you.. Given the type of wheel that machine is running I would be inclined to purchase a product called Inox (Better than WD40) I Heavily Spray my wheel bearings after a day at the beach and also give the wheels a light spray with it as well.. Inox, I find, is a great rust/corrosion inhibitor and lubricator it also seems to have an anti static action that keeps dirt levels down. I would look closely at the wheel bearings $30 or there about is not a great cost to keep you machine in good nick as the bearings can suddenly collapse or seize up through rust and dirt. Something else I have done is to put a Large washer and thin shim between Bearing and nut and likewise on the inside, it helps to reduce the amount of sand that gets into the bearing area. Ron
. It is a starter for you and the family.. What's wrong with the front wheel.. It ain't much but it will do the trick untill something better comes along and the machine will give you a taste of things to come.
