Wharram Tiki Sailors..........

[w32honu]

I have always been a monohull sailor........

Curious if the Tiki sailors could comment on the general sailing qualities of the larger Tiki designs (30, 38).

Curious what the steering qualities are and what sort of pressure (wx helm) is on the helm??

Ability to self steer? Vane or AP?

How well will the boat heave to?

Saw a recent video of a Tiki 21 lying to a sea anchor in storm conditions..... Any idea of the drift rate lying to a sea anchor?

Finally, anyone have any experience with a Tiki 38 that is sloop rigged?

Lots of questions I know. Thanks in advance. I've been having loads of fun researching these boats!!!

[salticrak]

This site is probably the most active for tiki sailors.

Wharram Builders and Friends

[melissajenks]

Honu,
I have many of the same questions about qualities of the Tiki designs. The Wharram Builders and Friends website seems to have more answers about building the Tikis than sailing qualities. Let me know if you find any answers.

M.

[boatsmith]

I build Wharrams. I build em cause I likes em. OK
My I have sailed a Tiki 26 and a Tiki 30 extensively. I have also sailed a Tiki 38. The T38 imo is VERY under powered. Neither boat will sail well to weather in light air and any slop. The T30 has a larger rig proportionately than the T38 which has a split rig and more windage. Once you crack off a bit the boats move along very well. I like to sail fast. I also like to sail upwind.

Tiki 8m Sailing from Islamorada to West Palm Beach - YouTube

Wharram Tiki 8m | Bahamas To West Palm Beach | December 2012 - YouTube

BoatSmith Wharram Tiki 30 Gettin' It - YouTube

[boatman61]

I've owned two Tiki's... the 21 and the 26.... loved them both...
Would I go bigger... if/when I could afford one.. in a heartbeat...

[melissajenks]

Do you have any video of spending three days in the hull during a gale? Not during a sweet weather coconut run? That's what I'm concerned about (and I want a Tiki).

[tamicatana]

I used to have a T21'. Best storm boat I've ever been aboard so far. I rigged an active traveler and made better to weather. Although Wharrams in general not a very high-pointing boat, the Tiki (as all Wharram) certainly is seaworthy, esp for her size.

Rory MacDougall circumnavigated in a T21'. There used to be video of him in a Tasman Sea gale. Look up "Rory MacDougall" or "Cooking Fat" and see what you find.

[boatman61]

LOL... don't have 3 weeks footage of me in a 22ft mono in a Biscay gale Nov/Dec... about the same overall space as 1 Tiki 26 hull...
But the 26 has competed successfully in Transats.. the 21 has circumnavigated via NZ... they ride a sea anchor like a rock..
If your dry and warm what's to worry about.. read, learn guitar, knit... whatever turns you on
Its only a problem if you make it one...

[w32honu]

Originally Posted by boatman61

LOL... don't have 3 weeks footage of me in a 22ft mono in a Biscay gale Nov/Dec... about the same overall space as 1 Tiki 26 hull...
But the 26 has competed successfully in Transats.. the 21 has circumnavigated via NZ... they ride a sea anchor like a rock..
If your dry and warm what's to worry about.. read, learn guitar, knit... whatever turns you on
Its only a problem if you make it one...

Boatman,

any idea of the drift rate lying to a sea anchor?

One maybe two knots???

Tx

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by w32honu

Boatman,

any idea of the drift rate lying to a sea anchor?

One maybe two knots???

Tx

I can't honestly say... never tried it in anger or for long enough to get an estimation...
Just something I tried once on a mono... and decided on more pro-active.... then once on the Tiki 26 with a bridle.. thanks to the tunnel effect of the high deck and hulls she points her nose well into the wind... I felt happy enough with the trial to consider it an asset at sea... but playing for a couple of hour's in Christchurch Bay in a F4-5 is no real gauge..
The beauty of them is they offer little underneath for the sea to grab.. in real life cross waves/sea's have yet to be experienced..
The Tiki 21 was/is my favourite ever boat... the 26 was just that little less fun.. but both sail beautifully in reverse if you ever want to blow some ones mind...

[w32honu]

Any load on the rudders with the anchor bridled up over the bow??

Seems to me one could just as easily (maybe easier) deploy over the stern and any surge would be a surge forward and not load up the rudders.......

Tiki's being narrow double ended hulls with companion ways facing inboard...... I see no real problems with this. But I am not a Tiki sailor.

Trying to figure if the drift rate is similar to a mono that is properly hove to. That would be good. Hove to on a cat might not be a good idea in really strong conditions. Might risk capsize. And I am a bit skeptical of the Tiki's ability to sail off of a lee shore. But maybe its not a prob...

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by w32honu

Any load on the rudders with the anchor bridled up over the bow??

Seems to me one could just as easily (maybe easier) deploy over the stern and any surge would be a surge forward and not load up the rudders.......

Tiki's being narrow double ended hulls with companion ways facing inboard...... I see no real problems with this. But I am not a Tiki sailor.

Trying to figure if the drift rate is similar to a mono that is properly hove to. That would be good. Hove to on a cat might not be a good idea in really strong conditions. Might risk capsize. And I am a bit skeptical of the Tiki's ability to sail off of a lee shore. But maybe its not a prob...

The bog standard Tiki's weakness... at least with the 21-26ftr's is the water tight integrity and strength of the hatchways... fix that and all is good... reason I prefer the bow on is I had a hood that protected my hatches and deck area from weather... meant I could get in and out without soaking everything below... also the most buoyant part of the boat.
If I need to 'Cut and Run' I don't have to do a 120 in sea's and wind... exposing my beam to get her round to sail...
As for the rudders... lock em central.. if the lengths right you'll not do that much surging.

[melissajenks]

Interesting. It seems the thing with a catamaran in general and a Tiki in particular is that storm conditions involve completely different strategies--although I know it's possible to heave to in a catamaran. I also worry about the cross-wind and cross-sea issues.

But the question is really: *if* I buy a Tiki, and *if* I decide to do more than coastal cruising and overnight passages in good weather windows, and *if* I decide to cross an ocean, say--will she be seaworthy. Clearly the boats are seaworthy if McDougall can circumnavigate in one, not to mention the south seas sailors who originally crossed oceans in such boats.

My question is always, yes, but what about for a normal person? Based on all feedback, I think a Tiki 30 is still at the top of my list. Anyone on Massachusetts/Maine/New England coasts who wants to let me sea trial in one?

[motogon]

Originally Posted by melissajenks

My question is always, yes, but what about for a normal person? Based on all feedback, I think a Tiki 30 is still at the top of my list. Anyone on Massachusetts/Maine/New England coasts who wants to let me sea trial in one?

I'm also very interested in Tiki 30 and would love to at least look at actual boat not just pictures.

[salticrak]

james Wharram is reputed to have been asked by a young sailor with stars in his eyes as to the seaworthiness of a tiki 26.

His reply was on the lines of '' The tiki 26 will take you wherever you want to go.''

Glenn Tieman a bloke who has made long voyages thru polynesia on a small classic design wharram is an advocate for a drogue/anchor off the back end of the boat.

storm tactic - Wharram Builders and Friends