Trimaran - Especially Searunner - Owners

[magentawave]

Jon, your Searunner looks beautiful! What an immense task you took on there. What was the reason for painting under the wings black? Also, the link to your blog doesn't work.

Originally Posted by sassarassa

Hi all,

It has taken a while but I finally had a chance to organise all my pics from the last 2 years.

So thought you may be interested in the progress pics of my 10 weeks on the hard in 2012 ... with all that sanding I almost grew some shoulders

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...1&l=eca82640b8

Highlights

1. Engine room tidy up (no where near as neat as yours Roy but still a big improvement)
2. Sand blast and repaint the engine beds
3. New 2nd hand 3GM30F
4. All new bearings along the prop shaft ... interesting that there was actually no cutlass bearing in the stern tube?? PSS shaft seal
5. outer decks stripped back to glass and all soft spots removed and re-glassed
6. Wooden ama hatches replaced with custom Cule hatches. Same for front hatch
7. Below waterline sanded back to undercoat. Antifoul was up to 10mm thick in places!
8. Above waterline, topsides, coach house sides and cockpit stripped faired and painted with 2 pack Jotun
9. All Stainless hardware on rudder replaced/rebuilt and new chainplates (apart from forestay chainplates buried in the deck)
10. RIB deck cradle glassed into the aft deck a'la Mark's design

Still heaps to do but while I sit in the marina dreaming of the next trip she looks pretty and gives me warm fuzzy feelings every time I look at her

Big thanks to everyone who contributes to this thread as it has helped me so much and continues to do so.

cheers

Jon

[sassarassa]

JohnB: We live aboard so the canopy was a must. I'll take some more pics and add detail later but in the meantime this video shows it in action.

Also see the vids on outrig.org on JB's Scrimshaw. His setup inspired my design.

NB: You will probably want to mute the sound ... you have been warned

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdQvP0RD1KI

I would like to try building something completely air tight like others on this forum have done, some day. Mine drips water around the mast and in wild weather the cockpit is still wet but it is great for keeping the sun off us; maintaining excellent vis and airflow; and is very light and simple.

Magentawave: Not sure what you mean. Underwings are a darker shade of the deck colour - not at all black. Maybe the pics are displaying funny on your computer. If you mean the anti foul then I have no reason. It was the cheapest

Cheers

Jon

[Roy M]

Jon, that's a terrific video. I especially like the "scrapbook photo album" effect you achieved. What a great demonstration of the Searunners! And thanks for the additional inclusion of Jim Brown's insect netting improvement for his cockpit. It seems to typify Jim's approach to cruising: keep it simple, make it work, and enjoy it. Thank you.

[sassarassa]

Ok so here is my canopy design sketched out and photographed for what its worth. The blurb below is repeated in the pdf.

Width

Had to be wide enough to cover most of the cockpit.*
The curtains drop down on each side and only in the worst driving rain or sailing conditions do the cockpit seats get wet.

Front hoop

* Made high enough so I have headroom when at the wheel.
* feet positioned to allow easy interface with the dodger
* Juggled placement of feet to allow inner jib sheet access
* In front of the mast
Secured forwards by cord to the standard lifting points in the main bulkhead.*
Front awning zips on so can be removed fully or just lifted to allow visibility forward

Rear Hoop

* Angled aft for looks*and to create tension
* height is lower than front hoop to help water to shed
* Designed to cover as much of the cabin as possible without shading the solar panel … too badly
* I was using cord to provide lateral support but changed to solid struts this year to add more rigidity

Problems*

Accessing the main sail will be hard for anyone shorter than me. I’m 6’4” and I still have to stretch to reach the head of the main. If front hoop was made of stainless or a something more solid then steps could be added. Its easy enough to drop the dodger and stand in front of the mast or unzip the front awning a bit and stand on the dodger.

I had to add battens to stop water pooling. No way around this with the lengths involved. While we were cruising it was ok but sitting in the marina with no movement it only took a slight sag to allow water to pool and then create a bigger sag etc..

Added vertical supports either side of the aft companion way to stop sag front to back. Maybe stainless tubes wouldn't sag as much? The supports are useful to run wires up to my cockpit light and as hand holds so I’m not too worried.

Hole around mast leaks. Could run halyards into mast under the canopy and then it will be possible to make a waterproof collar

A fancy composite arch to replace the front bow would solve a lot of problems and look sexy but I don't currently have the skills required to build one.

This goes for the rear arch as well.

The link below is a pdf with pics and a brief blurb. 2.3MB is too big to add as an attachment sorry ...

Canopy PDF

The attachment is just the sketch design on its own.

I won't insult anyones intelligence by adding a disclaimer. Just don't do anything dumb and blame me :big grin:

PS: When I was making this I used sailrite.com heaps. They have great "how to" vids and everything you need is there for sale as well. I went from never-sewed-a-thing-in-my-life to almost straight stitching in 7 days.

cheers

Jon

[blewett_john]

Jon, Thanks for all the information. This is good stuff.

I have one question, and this kind of takes us away from the awning discussion: How are your jib sheets led and does the awning pose a problem?

Here is my thinking on jib leads: On my boat I don't have tracks. My sail is set by the length of the tack lanyard, old school Searunner setup.

Staysail: My staysail lead comes back to a spot next to the forward winches.

Yankee: I have two attachments aft. I believe the Yankee should lead inboard of the shrouds to the inboard attachment.

Genoa: I believe the Genoa should lead outboard of the shrouds to the outboard attachment.

What is the general thoughts on jib leads on Searunners?

[Roy M]

John B., I can't help too much, yet. I never had the money to go for full roller furlers, the complete cutter rig, and the additional sheeting issues. That has been changing, though. The placement of the staysail sheet leads has always, apparently, been a problem for many of us since we often position the cockpit "alleyway" right where the staysail sheet block wants to be. I am getting ready to address my own solution, which is slightly different for the 40 than the 37 (though the dimensions are the same forward of the aft companionway: the 40 has an additional 40" aft of this point). Some of this is taken care of by the position of how high we place the tack of the staysail, so I am deferring this decision until I install the roller furlers this spring. Also, I'm deferring the actual construction of the hard dodger until I overhaul the mast in a couple months. I only want to do this stuff once.

I am also wondering how best to include mosquito netting. I like Jim Brown's system, but having the mast in the cockpit complicates his, otherwise, brilliant solution to a one-piece assembly. I am considering an arch over the companionway, both as a boom crutch as well as a solid support for a bimini. I'll want it removable, though, because I love being able, should I need to, to easily remove my engine or batteries using the main halyard out the aft companionway. I like the way several members of our group have made the cockpit fully encloseable. That makes the option of weather tight clear curtains, opaque curtains and mosquito net panels a real set of options.

My genoa sheet track is positioned outboard of my handrails, within a few inches of the cabinside. I have a stacked set of turning blocks on the outboard edge of the cabintop on the mainstrength bulkhead, just outboard of where the full-cabin width traveler is located. I use the second (stacked) turning block for when I fly the asymmetrical chute. It's just nice to have it rigged when I want to use it. I am replacing all my deck gear in this overhaul, so I have had some time to think about the changes and go for what has worked in the past for me. I used to have a rolling traveler assembly on the boom, directly above the traveler on the cabintop, but I found that when I sheeted the main in, it merely pulled the boom traveler car all the way forward, defeating the idea of a self aligning traveler. This time I will stick with boom bales directing the sheet to the cabintop car. My traveler control lines form an endless loop that lays close at hand on the starboard side of the aft companionway, where I can easily play with the angle of attack of the main.

I will be adding a yankee and staysail as soon as I get the hardware installed, and deal with the placement of the yankee lead at that time. I like the option of having the cutter or the full genoa to play with. Jeff Allen preferred the cutter arrangement, except when it came to tacking repeatedly up a narrow channel.

[simon fleury]

Hi Roy
Just trying to find out some info on the Searunner 40.Once i hear back from you we can shoot the breeze a little.

[Roy M]

simon fluery, are you interested in a private conversation or would you like it in open forum?

[simon fleury]

Hi Roy
A private conversation would be great if you are ok with that

[Roy M]

Hi folks, another update. We are enjoying a week or more of warm, San Diego weather, with temps in the low 70's, perfect timing for the continuation of the nonskid application. IO did something, today, that I haven't done before, and wanted to share it because it worked out so well. Yesterday, I started the actual paint and sand application to much of the port deck. I used some accelerator with the LPU, sprinkled the sand using a plastic container with 1/4" holes (so the sand wouldn't bind up and clog the holes), then finished the job by 1300, by which time the wind had picked up and things began cooling down. This morning, because of the clear night time skies, the decks were completely soaked with heavy dew. I started to sweep the excess sand off the deck, with the plan of vacuuming off the remainder. What a joke! I looked at the mess that was happening, then made a decision to simply take the hose and the high volume nozzle, and wash the excess sand off the deck with water. It was the perfect solution. I mixed up a 3 pint batch of LPU and let it cook in the increasing warmth of the morning sun, while I went off to get some more rollers. The day before, I had used the "wooly" mini rollers, since the texture of the paint didn't matter with the sand application, as long as it was uniformly thick. Well, I couldn't find my foam rollers, West Marine was out of them, so I decided to use the "woolies" to apply the topcoat. It was perfect, much better than using the foam, since one roller lasted for the complete day's application. I've been doing this for many years, and I'm still learning new tricks. So, I thought I'd pass the info along for others to try.

[blewett_john]

Roy,
Why would you buy rollers at West Marine for 3 times the price?

I tested Kiwi Grip on two hatches i built. It was extremely easy to apply, one step process after primer, and it looks fantastic. Expensive? Maybe but Jamestown Distributors sells it for$115 per gallon, not too bad considering it is marine paint.

I still want to see pictures of your progress. My progress has slowed to a crawl since we are having 10 degree weather. I did get the new centerboard installed, nice and snug, sexy looking.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Roy M]

John, the paint was mixed and cooking, I couldn't find my rollers, West was five minutes away. Besides, with my commercial discount, it came out to five bucks and change, cheaper than driving to Home Depot and losing an hour of glorious warm weather (it's in the seventies this week, as opposed to the fifties last week). I'll be sending pics soon, but I'm trying to focus on completing some of these projects first.

[freelance 83]

Hello Trihull people.

Does any one have an idea what my Norman Cross might weigh in at. 50' length 26' beam. Foam core construction, flat bottom keel. Perkins 4.236 engine. Its hard to find info. I have an original drawling but no weight is mentioned. 25 tons seams like a lot, but based on other posts. I finally might have a place that will haul it out here in LA!

[Cavalier MK2]

Cross 50 24,000 pounds with 27' beam according to my old catalog or 10.9 long tons for the ply version. I'd expect the foam version is similar as the lines aren't changed. Might be a 48 or 46 with a swim step stern in which case it would be a little lighter.

[slowbat]

Originally Posted by sassarassa

Hi all,

It has taken a while but I finally had a chance to organise all my pics from the last 2 years.

So thought you may be interested in the progress pics of my 10 weeks on the hard in 2012 ... with all that sanding I almost grew some shoulders

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?...1&l=eca82640b8

Highlights

1. Engine room tidy up (no where near as neat as yours Roy but still a big improvement)
2. Sand blast and repaint the engine beds
3. New 2nd hand 3GM30F
4. All new bearings along the prop shaft ... interesting that there was actually no cutlass bearing in the stern tube?? PSS shaft seal
5. outer decks stripped back to glass and all soft spots removed and re-glassed
6. Wooden ama hatches replaced with custom Cule hatches. Same for front hatch
7. Below waterline sanded back to undercoat. Antifoul was up to 10mm thick in places!
8. Above waterline, topsides, coach house sides and cockpit stripped faired and painted with 2 pack Jotun
9. All Stainless hardware on rudder replaced/rebuilt and new chainplates (apart from forestay chainplates buried in the deck)
10. RIB deck cradle glassed into the aft deck a'la Mark's design

Still heaps to do but while I sit in the marina dreaming of the next trip she looks pretty and gives me warm fuzzy feelings every time I look at her

Big thanks to everyone who contributes to this thread as it has helped me so much and continues to do so.

cheers

Jon

Thanks for posting Jon! Good work< I wish I was not working outside on my boat this winter (killer shop, with mast up..... only in my dreams) I'm in the start of my 4th year of restoration. guess I need to get off my ass and start working. It would have taken less time to start with plans, guess my day job is really getting in the way of searunning, I should reevaluate this at some point. Happy New Year!
Dan