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Help needed- Bimini 33RH

CSMcKillip

Moderator
Moderator
Does anyone have a Bimini on the 33RH? I looked on Bills Blog and see he has one, going to send a pm.... if you have photos of your Bimini handy- any model- I’m looking for design ideas.
Thanks!
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Seriously. Only up when you need it. Base stays in place against binnacle. Easy storage below. $100.

Not actually saying a permanent Bimini defiles a racing boat. Just, er, sayin'....

DSC_0231.JPG
 
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CSMcKillip

Moderator
Moderator
The mounting hardware is already installed on the deck from the PO, not that it matters. Also, in my 10 years of ownership the boat has never been raced as there are non scheduled on the lake we were at. We moved last year to a new lake- we are in Oklahoma, they have a sailing club but I have had my fair share of being around racing and right now I’m just wanting to sit back and relax at the helm.
 

Bill Baum

Member II
Chris- Yes, a Bimini is tough on a E33.
The boom is low and long ,IMG_20200729_132950.jpgIMG_20200729_132950.jpgIMG_20200729_132715.jpg extending almost back to the wheel.

I'm just over 6', so for a Bimini we just have a 2-bow Bimini, above my head, that is aft of the boom-end. It means that it is just 3' fore-and-aft, so very often it does not proviyall the shade we would want. We did consider re-cutting the mainsail ( we're just cruisers now), shortening the leach and raising the boom to allow for a longer Bimini, but decided against that, not wanting to permanently lose performance.

Of course the other issue in cockpit shade is the traveller on the bridge deck. To be able to tack and jibe freely there's no obvious way to connect the Bimini and dodger for full shade.

What we have done, as shown in the photo, is make a "connector piece" of sunbrella which we can zip between the Bimini and dodger when we're not sailing. We can install this connector in just one minute by disconnecting the mainsail tackle from the traveller, tying it to a stanchion base, which moves the boom outboard, and then we zip in the connector.

With a few minutes more effort we deploy the folding fiberglass tent pole shown in the photo, and the connector peaks well above my head. This connector piece had ties on its underside to hold the tent pole.

The Connector is of no use while sailing, but it has made a tremendous difference in comfort living on the boat. After the anchor is set the Connector Piece is almost always the next step!

And Christian!- We may be defiling racing boats, but cockpit speakers on an ocean-going boat ?!?! Just saying...
 

CSMcKillip

Moderator
Moderator
Chris- Yes, a Bimini is tough on a E33.
The boom is low and long , extending almost back to the wheel.

I'm just over 6', so for a Bimini we just have a 2-bow Bimini, above my head, that is aft of the boom-end. It means that it is just 3' fore-and-aft, so very often it does not proviyall the shade we would want. We did consider re-cutting the mainsail ( we're just cruisers now), shortening the leach and raising the boom to allow for a longer Bimini, but decided against that, not wanting to permanently lose performance.

Of course the other issue in cockpit shade is the traveller on the bridge deck. To be able to tack and jibe freely there's no obvious way to connect the Bimini and dodger for full shade.

What we have done, as shown in the photo, is make a "connector piece" of sunbrella which we can zip between the Bimini and dodger when we're not sailing. We can install this connector in just one minute by disconnecting the mainsail tackle from the traveller, tying it to a stanchion base, which moves the boom outboard, and then we zip in the connector.

With a few minutes more effort we deploy the folding fiberglass tent pole shown in the photo, and the connector peaks well above my head. This connector piece had ties on its underside to hold the tent pole.

The Connector is of no use while sailing, but it has made a tremendous difference in comfort living on the boat. After the anchor is set the Connector Piece is almost always the next step!

And Christian!- We may be defiling racing boats, but cockpit speakers on an ocean-going boat ?!?! Just saying...

Thanks Bill, I searched thru your blog and knew that you all had a Bimini. We have the hardware on the deck from the PO so I know one was installed at one time, Some connection hardware is in the drawer in the nav table. I was looking at several different options on Ebay and Amazon that I could modify for our use, One I found was 4' in length vs the 6' long 3 bow. It has the rear support poles and I can horizontally tie the poles together as you have done. It will require a hole for the backstay. For us we are on a lake, we like to sit back at the marina at times, eat some food and have a cocktail with the AC on.... Kids can be down below or swimming at the Pier. Thank you so much for the photos, these will help give me a better idea of what to order.
 

beachologist

Member I
Something to consider, the most shade possible while at anchor, in the slip, or sailing with just the genny is a nice big awning that goes above the boom. Mine extends 1' past the beam on either side and runs from the aft lowers to the topping lift 12W x 10L. I use 2 1.5"AL tubes for support because they're rigid enough to keep the awning flat and makes deployment and rolling up easy.
 

shepherdsond

Member I
I like Bills setup allot.

Here is ours which was installed by the PO. The Bimini overlaps the boom by about 3" so with sail down we have to raise the boom a bit with the halyard attached as a topping lift. The bimini extends quite a bit behind the helm which increases shade from behind. The blue tent/tarp (stiffened with PVC pipe) fills in the space between the dodger and Bimini at anchor/dock. When racing I remove the canvass and fold the bimini frame back to the back stay (it does look a bit ugly..) or for more serious (offshore) racing I remove it completely. This is a bit problematic as the two main hoops are very large and difficult to transport and store (maybe they could be split?). Still, for cruising in the summer a bimini sure is nice to have.


E33Rh bimini.jpg
 
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CSMcKillip

Moderator
Moderator
Took some measurements today as well as last week. There really is no room back behind the wheel- 32” to the backstay. I’m getting 69” of clearance from the boom to the floor and 49” from the deck to the boom. I have mounts on the deck that are 94” across and at the aft beam railing right where the lower life line attaches is 88” and that is 14” off the deck...

Lots to think about...

Thanks for the input so far.... it was 84 at the boat today!!! Come on fall.........
 

K2MSmith

Sustaining Member
Thanks for posting. I have not seen many pics of other E33's especially with a Bimini. It also looks like your mast control lines have been fed back to the cockpit. Mine still have spinlocks and winches (undersized) at the mast base.
 

CSMcKillip

Moderator
Moderator
Yep, I figured that I will have a opening for the backstay. Also, all of my lines run aft to clutches on the cabin top / cockpit. This winter I will be running my main sheet aft to the wheel to let my wife just deal with the forsail.
 
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