Trimaran - Especially Searunner - Owners

[magentawave]

His link was messed up. Go here: https://buildingmytrimaran.shutterfly.com/

Originally Posted by Roy M

No joy, couldn't access the site. Congratulations on getting out the CB. What materials will you use on the new one?

[magentawave]

Is your 35' Searunner a stretched 34'? That is so cool that you are resurrecting her.

[Boatguy30]

I guess I always look at the cost. What does it cost to build a ply or cedar board?

[blewett_john]

My boat is a 37. It seems to be built closely to the plans which makes planning easier.
I'm guessing the cost to build will be about $400. Bear in mind I live 20 minutes from Jamestown Distributors, and many other suppliers. This keeps costs down. As for plywood, the last time I bought 3/8" okume it was $150/sheet. I bet a plywood board would cost about the same.

[Boatguy30]

Hard to see how you could buy the foam alone for $400.

I paid about $40 a sheet for Plum Creek AC fir 3/4" for my hull bottoms locally. You can get 9mm okoume plenty of places in quantity for around $90 per sheet.

Anyhow, good luck. I think it's crazy to make a super nice board unless you're only cruising in rock free deep waters. I honestly would use 3/4 pressure treated only glassing the edges. Will last you at least 5-7 years and if you whack it up no worries.

Is it just me or on you pics, does it looked like you replaced all those bow panels and then you replaced the stringers?

cheers,
Jeff

[smj]

Originally Posted by Boatguy30

Hard to see how you could buy the foam alone for $400.

I paid about $40 a sheet for Plum Creek AC fir 3/4" for my hull bottoms locally. You can get 9mm okoume plenty of places in quantity for around $90 per sheet.

Anyhow, good luck. I think it's crazy to make a super nice board unless you're only cruising in rock free deep waters. I honestly would use 3/4 pressure treated only glassing the edges. Will last you at least 5-7 years and if you whack it up no worries.

Is it just me or on you pics, does it looked like you replaced all those bow panels and then you replaced the stringers?

cheers,
Jeff

Are you saying you would use standard 3/4 " Home Depot pressure treated ply to build a centerboard?

[Roy M]

Thank you, magentawave. Wow! Another reason for making EVERYTHING removable with little effort. Murphy's Law hasn't been repealed yet. Maybe, when replacing the pedestal, it might be a good idea to simply move it to the side of the cockpit sole and not have to destroy the boat in order to save it?

[blewett_john]

Originally Posted by Boatguy30

Is it just me or on you pics, does it looked like you replaced all those bow panels and then you replaced the stringers?

cheers,
Jeff

Yes, that is exactly what I did. I was going to leave in the hack job framing someone before me put in but once I started digging into it I decided it all had to be replaced. So, when the deck was off I replaced everything, new stringers, new bulkheads, new king plank, new deck stringers, new deck. I saved about 60 pounds. The deck piece I replaced was fiberglass coated 3/4" pressure treat ply that weighed 30 pounds by itself.

There is a reason the boat is named Princess Pupulei. Pupulei means crazy in Hawaiian. crazy - Pupule, lōlō, hehena, hewahewa. Also: ʻūlala, uluāhewa, ʻōpulepule, pahuluhope. Cf. feeble-minded.

Princess Pupule's Got Plenty Papaya - with Ukulele Chords - YouTube

[Boatguy30]

Originally Posted by smj

Are you saying you would use standard 3/4 " Home Depot pressure treated ply to build a centerboard?

The best product would be the treated fir ply made for pontoon boat decks, but that stuff is quite pricey. You do need to shop around, i got some nice treated ply at a local lumber yard in Michigan to replace a Zodiac transom. On average the Home Depot stuff is not great, but sometimes better than other times.

For example, I needed to make my mast compression post a few weeks ago. I went around several places including traditional boatbuilders with a large quantity of air dried woods. Best stuff I found was 2 by 12 stock at the local lumber yard. Was much better than the "premium" "clear" fir they were selling for 5x the price. That's a good tip actually since a good portion of the 2 by 12s come from older, bigger trees to get the size. Especially in the longer sizes. I actually found some long leaf pine at the same lumber yard in 20' lengths of 2 by 12 to make my cross beams. Was quite a task running a board that size thru the table saw!

[Boatguy30]

Hey John-

I only spent about 1 hour on that boat in Miami (enough for me) but I recall the trunk logs under the centerboard pins were in bad shape. I seem to recall sticking a slot screwdriver into them quite easily.

Glad to hear you also repaired the main strength forward bulkhead. That guy that owned that boat id quite the repairs!

Jeff

[blewett_john]

Originally Posted by Boatguy30

Hey John-

I only spent about 1 hour on that boat in Miami (enough for me) but I recall the trunk logs under the centerboard pins were in bad shape. I seem to recall sticking a slot screwdriver into them quite easily.

Glad to hear you also repaired the main strength forward bulkhead. That guy that owned that boat id quite the repairs!

Jeff

My winter project is to repair the centerboard trunk. The plastic thru hulls for the pivot pin are "wobbly". The good news is that the trunk itself is ok. It seems like I can remove the bad and replace it without major trunk surgery.

Yes, the repairs were amazing. I couldn't believe the structure up in the bow. There was junk plywood held in with cheap steel brackets, perhaps home roof hurricane ties. All that junk then had fiberglass rammed in with resin slopped on, most of it not bonded to the wood. It was horrible. Also, there is fairing putty on the deck, everywhere, some of it is up to 3/4" thick. Underneath is good original deck, at least where I have stripped off the fairing putty. I'm hopiing not to find any surprises but at least the deck is much easier to repair than the hull. The PaintShaverPro is lightning fast taking off the fairing putty. That machine was the best tool investment I've ever made.

I am really tired of doing boat repairs. I think the boat yard would like to see me gone too. However, I do get many comments on the improvement in the boat. One guy said, "I was on the crew that hauled the boat out. I thought it was going to break apart." My service manager once said, "I was sure I would see you out here with a chain saw." So, there is some satisfaction in bringing an old boat back to life.

My goal is float by 1 June and do some sailing, perhaps even a roundtrip Newport, RI to Bermuda.

[smj]

Originally Posted by Boatguy30

The best product would be the treated fir ply made for pontoon boat decks, but that stuff is quite pricey. You do need to shop around, i got some nice treated ply at a local lumber yard in Michigan to replace a Zodiac transom. On average the Home Depot stuff is not great, but sometimes better than other times.



For example, I needed to make my mast compression post a few weeks ago. I went around several places including traditional boatbuilders with a large quantity of air dried woods. Best stuff I found was 2 by 12 stock at the local lumber yard. Was much better than the "premium" "clear" fir they were selling for 5x the price. That's a good tip actually since a good portion of the 2 by 12s come from older, bigger trees to get the size. Especially in the longer sizes. I actually found some long leaf pine at the same lumber yard in 20' lengths of 2 by 12 to make my cross beams. Was quite a task running a board that size thru the table saw!

Good to hear there may be some treated plywood that's actually usable. I stopped using treated ply for anything to do with home construction over 20 years ago. Always had problems with delamination and warping. Maybe the newer treatment process is not as harsh on the glue used.

[Cavalier MK2]

Be careful with the pressure treated wood, the process reduces the strength somewhat. Good wood and epoxy sealing with ventilation does wonders.

[Randy]

Regarding the recent discussion on centerboard construction; Gougeon Bros have and excellent booklet on centerboard and blade construction on their website. I was going to cut and paste it here but thought it might be problematic. This I believe remains "state of the art" in regards to technique and material.
Building disposable centerboards goes back to the 60's/early 70's theory of slapping some plywood together and go sailing which resulted in much of the problems with the early multis and poor reputation.
Build it right, don't waste your time or money.

[Cavalier MK2]

The big problem with ply for boards or rudders is having half the grain running in the wrong direction. The article by Watson on the Gougeon site is an excellent method. For more strength layers of carbon uni can be used between the center edge glued strips.