What Would You Do Differently when Designing a Monohull ?

[dennisail]

I too like the Southerlys and wish I could afford one. But there is a price to be paid for that lovely swing keel, starting with reduced interior volume.

I struggle to miss the lost interior room in the pics of most models on the southerly website, but I agree most of the time you will lose a fair bit of room. However you will probably spend much less time on your boat since you will be able to step right of your boat onto the beach at will much of the time.

Since I grew up on trailer sailers, this is the cruising I am used to. Sitting hundreds of meters off the shore with a PITA dingy trip to get there is a huge disappointment when compared to what I am used to. But obviously the benefits of a large boat with all the interior comforts is great to have too.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by dennisail

I struggle to miss the lost interior room in the pics of most models on the southerly website (...)

Nay, none lost on the Ovnis either. The keel is in the sofa's backrest - neatly separating the sitting area from the cooking area.

Is the interior more noisy because of the trunk?

b.

[Curmudgeon]

Originally Posted by barnakiel

Nay, none lost on the Ovnis either. The keel is in the sofa's backrest - neatly separating the sitting area from the cooking area.

Is the interior more noisy because of the trunk?

b.

Of course it's lost volume. In another boat that would be storage space, even if the interior was configured similarly.

As for the Ovni, it's just another centerboarder, not a swing keel boat. There is no weight in the board on an Ovni.

[barnakiel]

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Of course it's lost volume.(...)

OK. It is lost volume, technically. But practically, how much does it matter? There is plenty of space/volume left anyways. I never heard any Ovnis' owner complaining about having too little space / volume.

In the smallest one:

http://www.alubat.com/medias/gamme/ovni365/photo1.jpg

In a bigger one:

http://www.alubat.com/medias/gamme/ovni445/photo03.jpg

Cheers,
b.

[Curmudgeon]

The Ovni has a centerboard, which takes up considerably less space than the swing keel in the Southerlys. My Bristol 38.8 is also a ceterboarder, and is very spacious.

[Sailor g]

[QUOTE="Eleven[/QUOTE]
Agree with most points and would even buy hull #1 when you go into production but will add a couple features:
All handholds/grab bars, etc MUST be above the max. height of people to avoid ramming your head into them (usually me!)
No netting- I love to lay at the bow to watch dolphin's play on our wake. 
And all metal parts will be titanium (strong but light) and all plastic recycled, strong and flexible. So NO maintenance except cleaning filters (no replacement or cost only rinsing out)
And heads will be composting- no emptying as it empties into sea odorless and not harmful (or degrades into beer so I have less trips to the store!

What a dream! Shhh don't wake me up 

[dennisail]

Ovni has a substandard AVS the Southerly has well above average AVS, that will make for a stiffer, faster and safer boat.

[stevewrye]

Here is another centerboarder made in Europe. Great outside lockers for storing outboard on long passages even the inflatable fits in stern locker. The interior storage is not as good as our Mason 44 was, I think we had 98 lockers of all different sizes on the Mason. Our boreal 44 will start construction next week, done in June 2013. There are a lot of things we love about the Boreal and some things we are not crazy about like the galley but the company will help us make it more sea worthy for our needs. The Mason galley was very seaworthy and cooking in most seas were possible. I guess like the French we will prepare meals for rough weather before heading out on passage. We plan on carrying less on the Boreal, we had a lot of things aboard the Mason that never got used and we always seemed to have too much stored food on board.
www.varen.be/nl/a/2

[dennisail]

That looks like a great boat. Very similar to ovni. What stops it falling to one side? It appears to rest on a narrow skeg? Since we were talking fantasy designs I will still want a weighted retractable keel so that all the weight is 8 foot down when the keel is down rather than stuck to the cabin sole. Either way I would love to own that boat.

[Kettlewell]

Someone said something about in the Med. marina space is billed on square footage, not length. I can't speak for the Med., but I have never paid on anything other than overall length anywhere on the eastern seaboard of North America to the Panama Canal, so yes length does make a difference here in marina costs, haulout charges, a lot of boat yard charges are by the foot, and even mooring rents most places.

However, back to the OP, we have to allow for the fact that most monohull boats are not designed for long-distance or crossing oceans, or even for a trip to Bermuda. The huge cabin that looks great at the boat show is a nightmare to get across in heavy seas offshore. I want my offshore boat to be designed so that I can go from one handhold to the next throughout the boat, with the overhead just barely above my skull so I can put one hand up there if I need to. There should be at least two sea berths that are narrow and parallel to the center line, near ventilation, yet out of traffic. The head should face fore and aft so you can use it on either tack when sharply heeled. The galley should have the stove in some sort of tight alcove where you can belt yourself in and be out of the way of the hot stuff at the same time. I prefer lots of storage lockers of all sizes to lots of open space. Tanks should be big and centered as much as possible to avoid throwing the trim off. The deck should be designed so that you can just open the water fill during heavy rain and it all will go right into the tank. The fuel fill should not be next to the water fill--it should be on the opposite side or well removed--everyone mixes up the fuel and water fills at some point.

Lots of small practical stuff like that is not found on most boats, because most designers are not long-term cruisers.

[MikeinLA]

Dear Monohull Builders:

1. Some of us are claustrophobic. Please build more boats with the head in the forepeak and a nice roomy pullman berth. Under 40 feet, the "aft cabins" are usually only good for cushion storage.

2. Think about the size of dinner plates and pots when designing your galleys. I was on a $ 375,000 36 footer in Annapolis and the kitchen sinks were 10" square. Whatcha gonna do with that??

3. Two heads on a boat under 50 feet are a waste of space unless you're incontinent.

4. Boats are boats and condos are condos and never the twain shall meet. What's with all the cheap looking laminate surfaces? A boat should look like a boat.

5. Main halyard winch on the mast, please, preferably with mast pulpits. Some of us aren't afraid to leave the cockpit.

Thanks, Mike

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by MikeinLA

Dear Monohull Builders:

1. Some of us are claustrophobic. Please build more boats with the head in the forepeak and a nice roomy pullman berth. Under 40 feet, the "aft cabins" are usually only good for cushion storage.

2. Think about the size of dinner plates and pots when designing your galleys. I was on a $ 375,000 36 footer in Annapolis and the kitchen sinks were 10" square. Whatcha gonna do with that??

3. Two heads on a boat under 50 feet are a waste of space unless you're incontinent.

4. Boats are boats and condos are condos and never the twain shall meet. What's with all the cheap looking laminate surfaces? A boat should look like a boat.

5. Main halyard winch on the mast, please, preferably with mast pulpits. Some of us aren't afraid to leave the cockpit.

Thanks, Mike

Good comments all!

Cheers,

Jim

[ozskipper]

WARNING incoming sexist comment. (bearing in mind this comment is made with deck jewelery/champagne clenching wives in mind- not the ones who actually sail).

Lots of Vanity Mirrors with ample "make up mirror" style lighting. Larger shower area. Shoe locker. Good storage and ample power for hair dryers and straighteners. Easily accessible clothing lockers. Not stuff shoved under a bunk. Plenty of hand holds below decks (thats sensible anyway)

[Chief Engineer]

Nothing wrong with Aluminum Blocks as long as you don't use Nalcool in them

[klem]

How about designing the boats so that they sit well at the anchor and don't veer around? Whenever there is any real wind, it is alarming to see how some modern boats behave at anchor (yes some older ones do to but not as much). Even with drogues and riding sails, some are simply not liveable in over 30 knots.