Trimaran - Especially Searunner - Owners

[snort]

Are you going to get another one? The good thing about these boats is that they're relatively cheap when compared to fiberglass production trimarans.

[longjonsilver]

Originally Posted by aquavitae

Well, one less Searunner in the world now. During Hurricane Irma, My 37 ft SR broke out 3- 6f ft sand screws from the bay bottom and dragged them and 3 more anchors, chain and rode 600 ft to hit a concrete pavilion on the beach on St. Thomas. The impact tore off the port ama, the mast having already been torn out of the cockpit and left a man sized hole on the port side of the main ama. My dreams of retirement cruising were crushed as well.

I enjoyed her for six short years and wish I had sailed her a little more and worked on her a little less, but that is the nature of these boats.

This is truly sad. To see your dreams crushed like that brings back memories of a boat i once had. i am very sorry for your loss. May your dreams rise again like a phoenix from the ashes.
blessings
jon

[Jimske]

Originally Posted by Roy M

Don't forget that older boats can be retrofitted with lighter materials. I am in the process of replacing all my floorboards, from plywood and wood, to aluminum box tubing (with lightening, not "lightning", holes, and honeycomb/epoxy skins. By the time I'm all done, I will have saved three hundred pounds. Curiously, equal to the custom refrigeration and freezer system I've installed. And, one day, when the lightweight batteries come into reach, that will save more over the 740 amp hour L16 batteries that currently power my boat. And one day, perhaps electric drives....

Can you comment more on the honeycomb epoxy skins? I mean are they just the kind of plastic Honeycombs you pick up at Home Depot and such?

[ThomD]

Originally Posted by Jimske

Can you comment more on the honeycomb epoxy skins? I mean are they just the kind of plastic Honeycombs you pick up at Home Depot and such?

There are lots of different products. The one I have used the most is "Nida-Core H8PP. Polypropylene honeycomb with an impermeable felt-like scrim thermofused to the surface." And, yes, it looks a lot like the stuff they make light covers on fluro tube lights. Of course it could be mountains different on specs.

I think I have also used hexcel in guitars, and also made lumber lattice cores in guitars.

The Gougeons liked resin sealed craft paper honeycomb cores between skins of ply, and if you have ever handled those, they are crazy light and stiff. You sometimes see unsuitable but cool paper core used in cartons.

There are now so many optional products in the market, it is difficult to know where to start. All can reduce weight a lot, but one has to be careful as cores are not always lighter than wood, or wood composite options, and almost always a lot more expensive. If one is doing the "engineering" oneself, one needs to understand that the stiffness increases a lot faster than the strength, and one sees lots of boats that are constructed by amateurs with insufficient strength in the skins.

Working with wood is easier, perhaps, as 1) you are always on your own when working with wood as every piece comes down to your judgement as you add it to the boat, so not all that different a responsibility if you take a detour into core. And 2) a cool diversion might be to replace say a 3/8" ply panel with a 3/4" panel using skins of 1/8" ply and a 1/2" core of balsa. That will be 4 times stiffer and as much as 2 times stronger depending on the direction and nature of the load. That doesn't save any weight, but it can improve the boat, and you could trim the weight too, without cutting too close to the bone. It is a lot better to know how to design structures, but sometimes it is enough to manage them.

[Cadence]

[QUOTE=aquavitae;2540637]Well, one less Searunner in the world now. During Hurricane Irma, My 37 ft SR broke out 3- 6f ft sand screws from the bay bottom and dragged them and 3 more anchors, chain and rode 600 ft to hit a concrete pavilion on the beach on St. Thomas. The impact tore off the port ama, the mast having already been torn out of the cockpit and left a man sized hole on the port side of the main ama. Two weeks later, Hurricane Maria and its storm surge tore off the starboard ama and cut the main hull in half. What was left was crushed by a track hoe and hauled off. My dreams of retirement cruising were crushed as well.
I had engine problems and was unable to tow it off the mooring. There was little safe haven in the USVI as many boats in the mangroves flipped or sank, including many in the "hurricane hole" anchorage in the National Park in St. John. Many , many multihulls flipped over in the 160-180 mph winds, a force of nature against which there is no defense.
I enjoyed her for six short years and wish I had sailed her a little more and worked on her a little less, but that is the nature of these boats.
I have enjoyed the wisdom on this forum very much and wish you all the best with your wonderful Searunners. I have all Jim Brown's books if any one is interested.[/QUOTE

My condolences!

[rossad]

Very Sad news about the loss of a 37ft Searunner. Merry Christmas Everyone

[longjonsilver]

Just finished reading Mark Johnson's excellent book on anchoring for the second time and i have a couple of questions on the use of moorings.

i can understand how the mooring ball can get under the wings on our Searunners or other multihulls, damaging the topsides, and i can understand the theory of how a temporary anchoring bowsprit, like a carbon fiber mast from a windsurfer could function to prevent damage to our hulls by the steel mooring ball. My question and concern is that this would have to be really stout to prevent it failing at the worst possible time. i have a carbon fiber windsurfer mast in the garage and i doubt that it would be sufficient to handle a 34' tri, much less anything larger. An aluminum mast from a 16-24' boat would probably be sufficient, altho i don't know if it could be made removable or not. Thots?

Secondly, the use of multiple anchors to a bridle to make a mooring or to anchor in an area of reversing current (or approaching thunderstorms) raises a couple of questions in my mind on technique. On the drawing of the mooring with the three anchors to the double swivel oval, i notice chains coming off the oval, and it says "Tail to rode, 2 line bowline knots". Can you explain how the anchor rode is set up? Is it set up without a chain? What do you mean by "2 line bowline knots"? Also, in the photo of the double swivel oval, i see that two rodes are spliced into a thimble and the other is tied into the shackle. Can you explain the difference?

Thirdly, on the bridal end Bahamian moor, your pic shows a ring with three ropes thimbled to it. Are two of them anchor rodes and one is a tail? Or are all three tails? Is one tied to the anchoring bridle? Are these tails tied with a two line bowline? (again, please explain the 2 line bowline). If one doesn't have a motorized dinghy, (by choice or by circumstance) how can one set the second anchor other than using the engine on the mothership?

Thanks Mark for all your help and please forgive all the dumb questions.
jon

PS check out my new avatar

[Cavalier MK2]

Cheers all on the holidays. Condolences on the Searunner loss. A Vagabond MK 2 in Oz went on the beach this year, a famous boat, but it looks like it will be saved. In these days of changing weather we have to be extra vigilant for sure.

[slowbat]

Hey All,
I'm looking for some ideas around a cockpit centerboard plug with drains. I currently use a closed cell foam block jammed in the gap as tons of water gushes out under sail. The issue is the cockpit fills up when sailing in the rain.
Has anyone come up with some neat solutions using duckbill or joker valves?
Thanks!

P.S. I do NOT recommend using the same hatches I used in the floor of the cock-pit (leak like crazy-redesign in process)

3rd photo: The late Jo Hudson & me in Victoria last summer at the end of stage one of R2AK

[Boatguy30]

Bruce and his son are in Abacos on Schrimshaw. Said they had a rough crossing with port (repaired) ama down taking solid water the entire way. Took on a quart of water thru the hatch seal.
https://www.instagram.com/scrimshaw_searunner31/

[Jimske]

I was happy to meet both of them here in Port St Lucie before they crossed. These cold fronts have brought some funny weather.

I'm hoping to meet up with them on my 31er in February.

[magentawave]

Hey guys, I'm interested in getting a Searunner 34 and 37 and am looking for ideas on where to store my sups / stand up paddle boards. In my case they are stand up surfboards meant for surfing waves and are therefore shorter (8' to 9') than flat water sups.

I could put them in board bags and lash them to the lifelines but I doubt the bags would last long in the tropics, plus it would be nice to stow them below during storms.

So, questions...

1) Any unique suggestions for how and where to store sups on a 34 and 37 Searunner? The ideal would be to store them in the ama's but I'm not sure how to go about doing that without seriously messing with the structure. (I was a cabinetmaker/finish carpenter for years so I can do most anything with wood, fiberglass and epoxy though.)

2) Does anyone have experience with board bags lasting a long time in the tropics while being exposed to the intense sun and rain every day?

3) Would it be possible to put a 9' long x 30" wide sup through the forward or aft hatch so I could stow it inside during storms?

Thanks

[snort]

Originally Posted by magentawave

Hey guys, I'm interested in getting a Searunner 34 and 37 and am looking for ideas on where to store my sups / stand up paddle boards. In my case they are stand up surfboards meant for surfing waves and are therefore shorter (8' to 9') than flat water sups.

I could put them in board bags and lash them to the lifelines but I doubt the bags would last long in the tropics, plus it would be nice to stow them below during storms.

So, questions...

1) Any unique suggestions for how and where to store sups on a 34 and 37 Searunner? The ideal would be to store them in the ama's but I'm not sure how to go about doing that without seriously messing with the structure. (I was a cabinetmaker/finish carpenter for years so I can do most anything with wood, fiberglass and epoxy though.)
I think you could find a way to store them on top of the amas. If it's a sold deck Searunner, there's plenty of space for them

2) Does anyone have experience with board bags lasting a long time in the tropics while being exposed to the intense sun and rain every day?
Sunbrella quality material will last, but not sure about the bag material you're working with.

3) Would it be possible to put a 9' long x 30" wide sup through the forward or aft hatch so I could stow it inside during storms?
You could easily slip them in the fore or aft cabins. They'll be in the way though
Thanks

Just my 2 cents there, never having actually tried to place anything that large in my boat before, but conceivably very much in the realm of likely to be accomplished, no problem.

[Roy M]

For those who haven't seen them before, here is a collection of great cartoons from several years ago. They were created by an old friend of mine, Bob Ocegueda, who had a Searunner 37 back in the day. The subjects range over several adventures and trips Bob took.

Cartoon stories about Nautical Tales

[Seabeau]

Originally Posted by Roy M

For those who haven't seen them before, here is a collection of great cartoons from several years ago. They were created by an old friend of mine, Bob Ocegueda, who had a Searunner 37 back in the day. The subjects range over several adventures and trips Bob took.

Cartoon stories about Nautical Tales

Great cartoons. Thanks.