02 Sunscape LSV 21' (freestanding) Bimini

[SkipGundlach]

Me again...

So, the shipper heads out, and, careful fellow he is, checks the rig after about 50 miles.

Oops.  Hot hubs.  Back to the broker, who takes it to a tire joint; shipper goes on to other adventures, mebbe back in a couple weeks or so.

Sigh.  To quote Emily Latella, "It's always something!"

But, in 2013, after over a year's work on our Morgan 461 sailboat on which we lived and cruised, I called it the Shake-and-BreakDown cruise, as literally every stop resulted in a problem which prevented our moving on without remedying whatever problem it was which arose.

So, no biggie; even if it's new bearings, and I've asked for Bearing Buddies to be put on at the same time, we'll have it soon enough.

However...

(You knew I'd get there, right?)

We don't need any form of tower since the boat comes with a Skylon pole. Which means that the extra-large bimini required by the son's wife has no place to live - and likely would have to be dropped to use the pole, to boot, as its strain relief is via a cable to the bow, with a strap over the sides, and a clip on the eye.  I expect the aft-mounted Skylon isn't tall enough to avoid contact with the bimini if it's any taller than the windshield-ish.

Musing:  On Flying Pig (the aforementioned sailboat) we had a very large bimini, as well as full enclosure windows, making foul weather interesting rather than uncomfortable.  We aren't voyaging in this boat, but for cooler weather, having some form of enclosure, or even just an added-height windshield, might be nice, when we figure out the bimini.  The boat has the center air dam under the folding center windshield...

Which brings me to the point: Has anyone done a free-standing bimini with a Skylon, particularly with a Sunscape 21 (or Wakesetter, as the configuration would be the same)?

And, in a thread long ago, and far away, I'd asked for gunwale and front-of-windshield spreads, in order to figure out the size of the tower I'd need to order.  That's now moot, but the circumstances are the same, as that likely would be where the bimini bows would mount.  Stupid me, I neglected to bring a tape measure to my survey - because I was focused on seeing into difficult spaces and got a flamethrower flashlight and a mirror, only - to make those measurements myself.  And the boat's apparently not yet back at the broker's as we've heard nothing from him, or I'd ask him to measure.

So, adding another beg to my askit, would someone measure the centerline of the gunwale-gunwale distance behind the windshield and the deck in front of the windshield on a similar boat?  And the distance between those points fore/aft?

TIA, as this group is KILLER for newbies like me.  So much that I ordered another long sleeved promo shirt to proclaim to those who didn't see the sticker(s) on the cars enthusing over this site ☺

L8R

Skip

[SkipGundlach]

Update:

New bearings and brakes later, the boat is again roadworthy on its trailer.

So, I again begin the search for bimini suggestions as well as dimensions so that I might hit up providers for quotes...

[SkipGundlach]

Well, what I thought would be a pretty inexpensive (like under $100 parts and similar labor) fix was a pipe dream.

A total redo of both axles: 

New bearings, new races, new seals, new brake assemblies, grease the bearings and bleed the surge brake lines (only $15 for brake fluid and grease; 2.1 total labor hours) and tax included, $716.49 later, she's ready to roll.  No bearing Buddies as requested, however, which means I'll want to do that before dunking warm hubs.

As I'm not doing that part (my son's working with the delivery guy), I don't know when it's actually expected, but we'll want a bimini pretty quickly; still waiting on someone's measurement of the gunwale flat part behind the windshield so I know the spread on the bimini bows.  Mulling how to minimize the intrusion in the side entry locations for where to attach the bimini.

Anyone have no-tower bimini installations they find effective to share?  Bimini vendors suggest minimum deck-to-cloth clearance 72" which I find surprising given that my huge cockpit in my very-much-larger/wider sailboat had little more than that height, and we had to walk through the cockpit on the way down the companionway.  The higher it is the less likely the strap/cable from the Skylon would clear the front of it, too...

Thanks for any intel I can gain...

[oldjeep]

Well the min height is likely based on your (MN) average 6ft tall person wanting to walk under it  

That being said - pretty sure the bimini on my inlaws Nautique 200 is a lot lower than that

Edited May 16 by oldjeep

[asnowman]

Ski partners of ours have a Tantrum with a skylon (or flyhigh) pole.  Their bimini has a zipper and hole in it, almost identical in set up to the way the bimini is on our wakesetter.  Their bimini is not walk under height, as it is really only to give a little shade to the driver and spotter.  In theory, you should be able to modify a bimini to allow the front brace to pass through it, via a re-inforced slot, or a zippered opening.  

something like what is seen here.  https://www.planetnautique.com/vb5/forum/nautique-topics/general-nautique-discussion/24966-10-foot-pole-on-a-97-snob

I would think a canvas shop should be able to do this pretty easily.

 

[SkipGundlach]

Thanks for the bounce on that - but our pole is astern, being a Vdrive.

However, your point is taken about a slot; we had that on our conestoga-wagon-look full-length cover/shade (ShadeTree brand) for the sailboat and its backstay astern and the inner stay forward.
We'll have to rig it before designing; I'm guessing, with the nature of the bimini vs the ShadeTree (which used flexible fiberglass wands like a pop tent for camping) that it would be a velcro'd slot through which the line was passed during setup.

Still looking for ideas/examples on the bimini itself, and hoping to not have the straps or pole-solids (a pole section could be vertical rather than the strap on an angle, further back attachment) astern be in the way of entry from the dock/sides...

And, of course, the higher the space under the bimini the further intruding into the strap line path the bimini would be...

(I have to quit thinking like a cruiser; this won't be a transportation vessel, and the bimini won't primarily be for keeping the weather out! ☺)

 

Edited May 16 by SkipGundlach

[asnowman]

1 hour ago, SkipGundlach said:

(I have to quit thinking like a cruiser; this won't be a transportation vessel, and the bimini won't primarily be for keeping the weather out! ☺)

 

Yeah, the big issue with biminis is that they don't do very well in strong winds. Running a boat at 25+ generally creates a bit of a breeze. I have seen some boats without straps to their biminis, but they are for sitting or slow cruising. 

The straps are so important on our response, I keep extras on board after having a couple break last year (the straps were origional from 2005).

I think straps are fine, the rear straps can be more vertical, which should not impede access to getting in and out of the boat

[SkipGundlach]

19 hours ago, asnowman said:

Yeah, the big issue with biminis is that they don't do very well in strong winds. Running a boat at 25+ generally creates a bit of a breeze. I have seen some boats without straps to their biminis, but they are for sitting or slow cruising. 

The straps are so important on our response, I keep extras on board after having a couple break last year (the straps were origional from 2005).

I think straps are fine, the rear straps can be more vertical, which should not impede access to getting in and out of the boat

On our sailboat, the front bow was secured by the corner clear vinyl ("Strataglass" is one brand) windows (center rolled up or down for full windshield) snapped to the decking  around the cockpit.

The aft bow was secured by SS tube sticks (whole frame was 1" stainless).  It allowed a full enclosure, or just a windshield, and a very stiff/secure 4-bow cover (10x15 total).  Tough standard to meet on a ski boat, but I really liked the stability; we went through several 50+ knot wind experiences with the enclosure down, and just sailed on (reefed, of course)☺

Depending on how it turns out, perhaps strapping to eye clips just aft of the windshield would give the same effect, if the straps could be tightened (ours had eye-ends, similar to the typical foot arrangement of the center bow mount point on most rigs, so we could pull down on it and insert the locking pin, making the entire structure stiff).  If the strap came down from an intermediate position on the rear bow's outer arms, it would allow a fair amount of shade astern of (to allow for sun angles) the driver/observer seats, and perhaps the same with the bow.

Pix still sought from those having biminis without towers...