Client : TS Pelican, Graham Neilson
Project Objective: The TS Pelican is a full-scale, 150ft training ship lying in Weymouth Harbour, Dorset. CU Phosco Lighting was approached by Graham Neilson to detail and manufacture the three masts, up to 33m high, and the spars required to recreate this Xebec style sail-training vessel.
Graham Neilson was Project Manager for the recreation of the Xebec in the form of a sail-training vessel suitable for both able and disabled young people.
Normally, the exciting downwind performance of a square rigger is offset by an inability to go to windward effectively. This can frustrate plans to reach upwind locations and increases the risk of becoming embayed. The desired upwind performance can be achieved with fore and aft rigs but these can become very threatening downwind, in severe conditions. The compromise, then as now, was to use a Xebec rig combining both the square rigging on the main mast with lateen fore and aft sails. Philip Goode, yacht and sail designer, based in Majorca, as the Lloyds agent had a particular interest in the Barbary coast Xebec and was responsible for the adaption of the Xebec / Polacre (meaning single pole) rig design. The Pelican has five sails at the front that mimic the geometry of a huge, triangular, lateen sail, but which provide greater flexibility and control in varying wind conditions. The front sails give the boat lift, and the square sails give it thrust.
This made the Xebec the most successful corsair of the Mediterranean for two centuries and, arguably, the fastest displacement sailing vessel of all time for its size, performance characteristics which made the Xebec popular with the Barbary coast pirates right up until the 1820’s.
CU Phosco Lighting was pleased to be able to assist in the recreation of historic vessel form. We applied our experience gained in high mast lighting design to this unique problem. We assisted in the design process by providing calculations for the mast given the anticipated rigging loads.
Historically, the masts were always stepped on the keel, emerging at the weather deck through mast collars, with wedges, packing and aprons to prevent leaking. CU Phosco Lighting were able to manufacture stump masts, which are integral with the TS Pelican’s hull and deck structures, which are Lloyds' preferred option. The stump masts terminate in a flange, a half metre above the wooden deck. The masts, up to 33m high, with an identical flange at their base, are then bolted to the stump ensuring continuity and water tightness.
Having detailed all the various rigging and tackle fixing points on the masts, they were manufactured in our Westgate works in Cleckheaton.
After transport to the construction berth in Portland, the masts were successfully craned into position. The masts easily slotted into their correct position with no remedial work required, a testament to the careful efforts of the designers and the exacting standards of fabrication.
Once the masts were installed, the yards and spars required to support the individual sails were detailed and fabricated. Again these were successfully completed on time and shipped to Portland to be raised on the vessel.
TS Pelican took its maiden voyage in January 2007 and has exceeded the expectations of the designers in terms of its speed and upwind ability.
Mr Neilson said: "The crew on Pelican are sailing as no one has done for 200 years. Sea trials have been extremely successful and I think we can get more out of her. It could really tear up the field in a tall ships race."
More information about TS Pelican can be found at www.adventureundersail.com. News articles about this unique project have been published in The Times and the Daily Telegraph also the Daily Mail
