Lucky Town 7 "Tiny Tyke"

Article by Jerry Coulson

I have just built a small sailing vessel called the Lucky Town. The following is an evaluation of my boat. I have had the pleasure of communicating with the designer of the Lucky Town project, Mr. William Longyard, who has produced the plans for this incredible little boat.

My wife, Shelley, and I have built and sailed our boats from the shores of North America to Europe and beyond. This design is the smallest boat we’ve ever built. The interior boasts two 77" x 28" berths. It has a macerator toilet, and a single-burner Swedish Svea stove that burns a variety of liquid fuels. 

Our boat is named Tiny Tyke. She is powered by a 4-horse diesel that drives an alternator connected directly to the battery, which in turn powers an electric outboard motor. The alternator also powers just about everything else on board. The boat is very strongly built and is equipped to go to sea. To give you an idea of the storage area, there is 72" x 28" x 18" of storage under each berth.  Forward of that are two long-life batteries. Farther forward reside two anchors and 300 feet of rode.

Overhead near the ceiling are a radio, navigation equipment, and a radio direction finder. The sextant is kept in one of the berth’s side shelves, along with 409 tables. We take duffle bags and wash in the cockpit. Outside, underneath the cockpit, there is 6 feet by 4 feet by x 18"of storage. Our water is here, contained in two one-gallon containers. Abaft the cockpit are two lazerettes. The first houses the diesel and the alternator. The second will house the outboard (we’re still in the process of purchasing many of the above items). The outboard will be in the well of the lazerette as I don’t like anything hanging off the transom. This just about covers this part of Tiny Tyke.

I must apologize to Bill Longyard for two changes I made to his design. We sail extensively on the Great Lakes, so we tend to overload our boat. To make her sail well with the added weight, we’ve extended the stern another 9 inches so that the transom is now out of the water. This helps her come about nicely in her own length.

The second change was an alteration to her sail. The plans called for 10-foot battens from boom to yard. I should tell you that the sail is a junk rig. I extended the sail horizontally one foot from boom to yard. So instead of it being 10-feet wide it’s now 11. This brings her about quickly and she sails to windward like nobody’s business.

Mr. Longyard has placed the keel and mast in the most perfect position for going to weather. I find this especially true for the chinese lug sail, which is not good to windward as a rule. We had the sail made in Toronto, at Triton Sails. They are expert at making this kind of rig go to windward. We have been out in winds from 8 to 20 knots and she appears to pace herself between 4 and 5 knots—no faster though. She is a heavy boat—about 860 pounds. We think this is an incredible little cruiser and we hope to enjoy her for a good many years to come. She would probably be a good contender for the Texas 200, or even the Everglades Challenge. It certainly would be a race undertaken in comfort, not fast mind you, but not causing the crew to be fatigued.

 I am enclosing photos I’ve taken over the past nine months, and I hope other readers will be inspired to build this wonderful little boat. •SCA•

First appeared in issue #73. Plans will be available from Duckworks.com