The boat is hand built from
wood and
fiberglass - it is probably more rugged and slower than most
commercial boats similar to it in size.
The
mast is only 42' from where it sits on top of the bulkhead that separates the
salon from the
cockpit. This is a bit far back but Nigel gave me a choice of where I wanted it and I didn't want the
mast (support) in the
salon. This means that the
mainsail is not as long as it might be - but since Nigel rigs his boats without a
mainsail I didn't see this as a problem. If you compare with other
commercial boats the mast is about 10' shorter - Nigel explained why but you have to ask him -
safety and rig tension. Nigel says that they are 'downwind' boats and primarily designed for comfortable living rather than sailing.
Originally the boat was going to be rigged to sail with a half height
jib on the centerline and a
genoa from each forward corner stay. Nigel has since changed his mind and is planning to rig the boat with a
single genoa (or some such) on the centerline along with the
jib (I think). Stays go to all four corners and there were originally plans for some side stays (shrouds?) - I will know more when I see it rigged. I figure that once I have some experience I can
experiment with the sail plan and try the double genoa rig from the corner stays. I also think that it would be relatively easy to mount a small (200sqft?) mainsail using a bolt
rope or hoops and leaving it footloose. My only experience has been sailing with a
Bermuda (jib & mainsail) rig so I will just have to learn how to sail all over again.
The boat has four double berths and two singles (if you do
galley up) but on my boat one of these is the
galley and the other will be a workbench. Of the four double berths, starboard-forward will be the owner berth, the starboard-aft will be
storage, port-forward will be guest/storage, and port rear will be for the maids.
There are three heads - one in each
hull and one opposite the
helm station in the
cockpit - but the port
hull head will not be finished immediately. The
shower is in the cockpit
head - its main function - and also gives the girls some privacy to pee.
The cockpit has a hard cover that goes back to the forward side of the rear box beam - the aft side of which is the transom. The transom mounts a 'duckboard' between the hulls and supports the dingy
davits and the LPG tank. Both hulls have swim steps leading down to the
water.
Three large box beams connect the hulls - one has
storage, one has/is the water tank, and the third has the
diesel tanks and more storage. Storage is everywhere - under the seats, in the steps, and along the hull bulkheads.
Alll of the windows are tinted plexiglass that are sealed and do not open. For ventilation there is a large
hatch above each of the two forward berths - to which I am going to add air scoops. The salon on the bridge
deck also has two ventilation hatches that will also have scoops. Air will
exhaust via the rear double berth hatches and the salon door. Since an anchored or moored catamaran tends to have its bow into the
wind I am hoping this will give good ventilation. As a backup I have 32 12 VDC brushless 5" computer fans that are being deployed singly, in pairs in the berths, and in quad arrays (galley).
The foredeck goes quite far up the bow so the trampoline area is only about 5' deep. There is a flotation compartment just aft of the bow and a number of chain and sail lockers up there. I will know more when I start stowing stuff.
The
helm station is on the starboard side and has a
hatch above and a large sliding plexiglass window so one can see out the front windows.
Lighting is all white 12 VDC LED with red LED also at the helm and cockpit head.
Steering is by cable to a
rudder under each hull - I believe that these have a
core stainless plate welded to a stainless
rudder post and then covered in
fiberglass. The tops of the posts have been squared off to take an
emergency tiller.
There are no dagger-boards, just V hulls with a short vertical extension for the boat to rest on if it is beached.
There is a 22 hp
Volvo Penta marine diesel in the port hull. This will help charge the
battery bank nearby and Nigel says it will push the boat at around six knots. The prop has some kind of cage around it to keep debris from fouling it (if not, that is what the AirLine hooka is for) . I guess this is how one goes upwind. I was thinking about
solar panels over the
davits but so far this year there has been precious little sun and these things are expensive. Once I have some experience living aboard I can evaluate getting a
wind generator - I would like to find a vertical axis mag-lev unit (totally wishful thinking - I can't even get an HX-750s
VHF here). Until then I will likely live with a small 'suitcase' genset for supplemental (or main)
charging.
Electrical requirements should be minimal - there is no
refrigeration, no appliiances, and no
radar (or
SSB, chart plotters, and such). I do have a navagation program on each of my laptops but no experience with them. My
depth sounder and
GPS run on 'AA'
batteries.
I had Nigel build me a companion
wood and fiberglass sailing dingy (cat rigged so no jib). It has oar locks so it can be rowed (although Liza is pushing hard for an
outboard - more
money, more weight, more gas). The original thought being that I could brush up my sailing skills while the catamaran was being compoleted - but the little boat only has a main and the big one no main at all, and the big boat is likely to be rigged before the small. Likely I will use a local paraw rig with the mast and boom 'permanently' inside a fold in the luff and foot of the sail. I think that I can just fold the boom up against the mast and wrap the sail around the pair prior to putting a cover over it. Who knows - things change.
As far as I know, all of Nigel's boats are still in use. If you can send me an
email I can forward a file on one that is/was on offer some time ago. Nigel's resort is just a stone's throw from the boatyard and I did stay there for three weeks (P400/night), and I anticipate going back soon. It has taken Nigel 2.5 years to build the boat so I have been traveling about and not pestering anyone (the build might have gone faster if I had but the area is somewhat isolated and my pinay gf gets bored quickly. I keep telling her that when you live aboard a boat there is always something to do - but she doesn't believe me.
I have a fair number of pictures but I am new to this site and don't know how to post them yet. I have sent pictures to others who have asked when they sent me an
email that I could attach pictures to on a reply.
If you have specific questions, I will try to answer. Have a good day.