30' Sailing tri

[LeeV]

Also be sure to divide your "free time" so that you have time for loved ones, and see how much time you'll actually have to build. Then look at actual time needed for building (add minimum +1 yr...), cost +15%, and compare to cost of a used tri. Lots of used tris out there!

Best regards and welcome to the tri world!

[Little Otter]

Thanks for the info Redreuben, I'll have to look at that picture.
Valhalla, I've taken her onto a few boats and the truck I took her on was apparently her favorite despite the internal constraints, she loves boats and has helped me with repairs on my Ranger 22 and has done a lot of work on the Lido 14 I gave her as for the Caribbean being starting small our plan is to eventually sail around the world and the short passages in the Caribbean and the opportunities for stuff like that while still being relatively close to shore will be good for getting her aquatinted with watch standing and stuff.

[Little Otter]

And thank you for the warm welcome LeeV

[haiqu]

Originally Posted by Little Otter

So the admiral has asked me to modify my searching for a suitable boat and says that she wants to start smaller and do some Caribbean cruising to start with and see if she likes it and as this is going to be a two part question i'm going to post it here and in the construction section in it's entirety so everyone knows whats going on. in light of her request I am now obliged to see if anyone has plans for the Cross 30 (it's a long shot I know) or at least the construction sheets for the LAR keel used on the Norm Cross designs. one of my main questions here is that I'd also like to know if anyone has experience with the Piver Nimble or Herald designs that wouldn't mind sharing their knowledge. I am looking to build the boat myself as I love to make stuff, and I like the looks of the Piver designs better than the Brown multihulls, even though the Searunners are really good from what I hear the admiral wants it to look really good as well so that's what we're going with :P I know I can get the Nimble plans from the Mariners Museum and I think they also have the Herald plans digitized as well. Personally I would love to see all of his plans but the guy I talked to in the archives (who was awesome BTW) said that a lot of the original stuff is in deep storage and they only have the ones that were digitized available currently. Thanks in advance for any information.

Don't know about the Pivers but plans are still available for the Hartley Sparkle (aka Lively) 28'6" trimaran and they are still being built.

Hartley boat plans 'Lively 28' trimaran
http://www.toluvaa.eu.pn/

[Little Otter]

Thanks Haiqu I'm thinking if anything I'll make an executive decision and go with one slightly larger than 30' probably in the 32-35' range, do you have any experience with the Hartley designs?

[Cavalier MK2]

If you are going to build in wood I'd suggest double diagonal round hulls versus chines and sheet ply. Either the Cross or Horstman designs support this. The reason being in a solo build you can handle the pieces by yourself without a helper. Of course planking parties can speed things up if you go the sheet route. Skinning the hulls could be done in a weekend or 2. The Tristars are good boats and can take a decent payload.

Alternative suggestions for sheet ply tris are to look at the Brown/Marples designs. Searunners can be pretty involved to build as are the constant camber designs, I'd suggest John Marples Sea Clipper series tris as being a easier and more economical build with much more modern lines than a Piver.

In any case, if you haven't done a big project like adding onto or building a house etc..... or worked in production/manufacturing it will take longer than you expect. In your size range 3 years could disappear pretty easily.

Cruising tris are great boats but not well understood in today's market place Same with useing wood, great stuff but lower resale value. Both the Cross and Horstman round hull tris can be built in foam.

Another alternative would be something like Richard Woods cats. In the same size range you will use the same amount of materials but have more space and load carrying as well as increased resale value.

If you want to get out sailing sooner a used tri like any of the above is very economical and can be upgraded as you go.

[Little Otter]

Thanks Cavalier, one of the reasons I'm looking for a glass on wood design is I have extensive experience with building houses as well as wiring and plumbing, my dad says he will give me a hand if I need it and we have built their house and added on to it multiple times as well as renovating and older house for renting, however I have little experience in foam, if building in foam will it reduce the overall weight enough to change the performance or load capacity?

[Cavalier MK2]

You sound like the kind of guy that can build a boat and stay the course, that experience helps.

Foam actually doesn't come out lighter usually because it has to be glassed on both sides with a heavier lay up than what wood needs for abrasion resistance. Of course you'll want to use epoxy throughout for glue and coating. An interesting comparison is of the 60' Newick tris made for the late Phil Weld. Gulf Steamer was made in conventional foam/glass and Rogue Wave was made of wood. Rogue Wave was over 4000 pounds lighter when launched.

Every thing has it's pros and cons, in timber country wood is quite a bit cheaper and will last if properly built and cared for.

[Cavalier MK2]

For a more complex multichine build check out Ray Kendrick's tris at Team Scarab. Someone on the forum is building one and posting links of the build. Also visit Outrig.org to download the free Searunner construction manual and get lots of info. The other thing you should get is the Gougeon's WEST system boatbuilding book available as a free download on the WEST site.

[smj]

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ld-149500.html

[Little Otter]

Thanks Cavalier, I have the searunner manual, I'll have to get the WEST system book. Thanks for the link smj! I've been looking around and I was thinking of probably going to go with a Horstman 32XR but now I'm going to have to do some more research on the Scarabs, do y'all know if anyone on the forum have one they have sailed?

[44'cruisingcat]

Originally Posted by Little Otter

So the admiral has asked me to modify my searching for a suitable boat and says that she wants to start smaller and do some Caribbean cruising to start with and see if she likes it ......

Problem with that plan is if you do both decide you like it, you might soon decide you want a bigger boat.

[Little Otter]

lol well if that's the case then I'll start another project. Plus she'll probably need a couple years of land in order to want to go back out lol. In all seriousness though I figure if she likes it enough to want to do a circumnavigation then we can use our experience to make modifications to a new boat

[Cavalier MK2]

Look at some ads and do some math. You could get into a big used tri and upgrade it for what it will cost to build a smaller one. A Cross, Kantola. Horstman etc...around 40 will go anywhere with room for the extras. I'm still sailing my interim boat because it turned out to be ideal for what I do.

[Little Otter]

That was my first plan, however I could never find one that I thought was worth the effort to refit for the price I wanted. I am currently trying to decide between the Horstman 32XR or 35XR as both are bluewater capable and big enough to be lived on for extended periods unlike the 30' she originally wanted.