Trimaran - Especially Searunner - Owners

[Close Call]

Andres and Tusitula-

Thanks to you both.

I haven’t seen that SC34 with wings, to my eyes it looks good. I always liked the shearline of the Seaclippers and CC boats over the the searunners. It looks like a boat yet not too dated without the reverse bows currently in vogue or for that matter a fat head main made out of soft dacron.

I’m torn on the wings, a complication for sure but the space could make it worthwhile. Problem is the payload is pretty tight already so another 150lbs of wings and the space to stuff things is a slippery slope.

I’m not in a big hurry so I plan to get aboard one before heading down that road, but even better would be to see that one Andres just posted for sale! I’d be on a plane within 24 hours to crawl all over it. Even if it needed some love I’ve got the trailer and a shelter to bring it home to and spruce things up.

Close Call

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by andres

Here is a couple of pictures of a SC34 with wing berths that I found in the web a few years ago. Unfortunately I don't have any interior pictures.

They would scare to hell out of me surfing down a following sea.

[andres]

I thought I had lost the interior pictures of the SC34 with the wing berths, but I have found them. The first is of the stern bunk, the two following ones are of a passage under the cockpit, then two of the saloon and the last one is of the companionway, showing the above passage in the bottom right-hand corner.

[Tusitala]

That's a really nice boat! I would guess twice as many hours of build time as a standard 34, but really nice.

[trimarannaga]

Looking for input: i have a used monitor windvane that i want to put on my searunner 40, i need only modify the mounting struts to make it work. Are there any searunner owners who have one on their boat ? And also, any particular reasoning why the servopendulum rudder should be mounted so far aft of the stern-hung rudder? Is there a minimum distance that should be maintained between the rudder and the servopendulum? I want it as close as possible to be able to change vanes or other service needed while under way, hoping i can just lean out that big rear window to reach it.

[Close Call]

Just a quick comment on the Seaclipper 34.
I guess not as common as I would have thought compared to a searunner 31 or 34. I’ve been pouring over the plans and I noticed my set is only sail number 37. Miller’s, the first one completed back in the early eighties was sail number six. I now know of 3 or possibly 4 completed.

I’ve built a few smaller boats and I’ve worked from a table offsets with a few notes on hull scantlings and have managed. Marples plans are insanely detailed with nothing to waste time thinking about. I have spent 2 weeks lofting and setting up molds and 2 weeks figuring out shroud tangs specifications and sheeting angles in past builds. Nothing to ponder here, cut wood to patterns and follow next note on plan sheet, move on. Pretty cool actually. You could be a clueless wood butcher and come out the other side with a usable cruising boat. However attention to detail is where longevity comes in.

On another note that SC34 with wings doesn’t appear to plans, the wing option only extends between the beams and does not continue to the transom. I still like it though!

Close Call

[Roy M]

Update on WILDERNESS, Searunner 40, San Diego:

It's a cold morning, here, I'm drinking hot, black coffee in the sterncastle, planning my day. Outside the boat, covid is growing steadily, almost 3000 new cases yesterday, alone, in the county. I pass my time working on the boat, limiting contact to brief, and well protected visits to buy building materials and food. Being on an endtie helps a lot to ensure isolation. No visitors means fewer distractions to production.

I have just about finished the replacement of the "windows", cabinside fixed ports to the critically-minded. After 3 or 4 replacements, over forty plus years, I finally made the decision away from acrylic plastic to tempered safety glass. It's expensive, but so much better in the long run. It's also very reassuring that my original decision to build with West System epoxy, even more costly, was brilliant forethought.

Now, I'm in the next phase. Over the last few months I've been also working on other cabintop projects, mostly prep work for the new Harken deck winches and sheet track hardware. I will finish drilling the mounting screw holes for the winches, today, then do the base coat painting with linear polyurethane, prior to final mounting (again, not an inexpensive, yet smart decision from the get go). Boat work is largely a matter of sequencing projects, to keep costs in control, and to avoid frustrating back steps. Which means I have to do all the drilling, sealing and installation of external hardware, THEN replace any overhead insulation, wiring, painting, etc., before reinstalling the headliners and overhead lighting (now, using the latest, high efficiency LED lamps). All of this has to be done before the winter rains begin in January (sorry, this was not meant as an affront to the unfortunates living in the rest of the country).

Once the rains begin, all of the cabinet work and supplies that have been piled on deck, have to come inside for final installation, and a long delayed return to living in the aft cabin. Yup! I've been coping with an overcrowded forward cabin for way too long. At least I was able to overhaul the head, holding tank and repainting. The windlass and deck hardware will get final touches after the winter rains taper off in March. So much to do...

[Roy M]

In preparation for a Springtime haul out, to install new depthsounder transducers (downward, forward scanning, and 3-D), I am considering replacing my tried and true Martec 18x12 Mark III folding prop (which is no longer in business). I'll keep the Martec as a spare, but I'd like to upgrade to a three-blade folder for improved reverse thrust. Anyone have suggestions?

[Randy]

I studied the prop question for a CC35 and felt autoprop was the best choice being more fuel efficient and just as good propulsion astern as fwd.

Originally Posted by Roy M

In preparation for a Springtime haul out, to install new depthsounder transducers (downward, forward scanning, and 3-D), I am considering replacing my tried and true Martec 18x12 Mark III folding prop (which is no longer in business). I'll keep the Martec as a spare, but I'd like to upgrade to a three-blade folder for improved reverse thrust. Anyone have suggestions?

[Tusitala]

We've have a FlexoFold 2 blade, seems quite good but haven't had anything else to compare it to on our Searunner. It's a pretty simple unit, similar to a Martec but has gears between the blades that help it lock up in reverse. This really does help a large amount as the gears wore out on the original after 13 years and pretty much killed reverse performance. We replaced just the blades, somewhere around $550 US.

A friend uses the Gori 3 blade feathering props on his Grainger catamaran. They work well, the overdrive feature is nice on windless days, very nice props. It cost a ton of cash to replace one when it was damaged, I think around $2800. Pretty complicated piece.

I did a lengthy delivery on a Neel trimaran that was fitted with a Max prop. It was really nice to be able to test and tune just by changing a set screw on the hub, but don't know if the performance is any more impressive than selecting the correct pitch from the get go. Also a compicated piece of equipment. I believe he said it was quite a bit less cash than a Gori


Pat

[Roy M]

Progress is slow, but somewhat steady. It's the damn sequences that complicate the projects. So many small details. Whenever I drill holes in the cabintop or cabinsides I have to seal them with epoxy (I use cotton ear swabs to apply it), then I have to drill out the holes again to ensure that if any water does get in from bolts or machine screws, it won't lead to dry rot. Now that I've switched to butyl tape for sealing, that's not a concern. Anyways, I've finished installing the new genoa winches, sheet lead blocks and tracks, almost finished some folding pad eyes (hold-downs for securing the RIB on the aft end of the wing deck), and I'm repainting and varnishing some interior cabinets prior to reinstalling them. It just takes so long to cross it off the list of tasks because I forget the sequences and have to sometimes undo and redo. That was certainly the case with the genoa track and cars. If you don't get the track bolts fully tightened down, you can't slide the car because the offending flathead machine screw is jamming under the car, and you have to remove the track to clear the problem.

Anyways, things have moved forward, so hopefully, in another couple weeks, I will have buttoned up the headliner (which requires installing the new insulation, overhead light wiring, and anything I've forgotten in the sequences dance). Then, the cabinets go back in and the decks get cleared of stuff, and I'll be ready to work on interior projects when the rains arrive. It will be nice to see some order restored, and to be able to return to my full access bed in the aft cabin. My forward cabin berth is also queen sized, but requires more effort to climb in and out of, tucking my legs under the cockpit seats. And not being thirty years old any more, is certainly noticeable.

[md7a]

Roller furling or hanks?

The headsails on my Searunner 31 A-frame are getting old, and I'm thinking about replacing with roller furling. Anybody have opinions one way or the other?

All my sailing is inland or near coastal, and mostly on weekends. In my home waters the winds are light and the bays are narrow. I've very rarely used the yankee+staysail combination, beautiful as it is.



The 31 has a decent foredeck, so hanking on a sail feels pretty safe even in a freshening breeze. I've thought about downhauls, but never needed them and worried about loose lines on deck.


Like many of us I've seen other boats unwind their roller furling on a dark stormy night and damage an expensive sail. On the other hand, it sure would be nice to reduce the sail inventory belowdecks and spend less time changing sail.

[Roy M]

Sounds like you've thought through all the aspects. One is much less expensive than the other, one is easier to deploy and withdraw than the other, and you've already revealed your preferences as to stowage, local conditions, etc.

I'm in the process of upgrading my SR 40, replacing the old, simple rig and going to a higher performance one. I'm older now but choosing to get back to cruising, so I'm going for furling jib and staysail, adding a Code Zero and an additional asymmetrical in a snuffer (my favorite sail) for light air work. I built the boat a long time ago, and played with it a lot, so the decision to return to cruising meant overhauling EVERYTHING, because I don't want to spend my remaining time repairing the boat in exotic ports, waiting for replacement parts.

The 31 is a sweet boat. Whatever decision you make will be a good one.

[md7a]

Thanks @RoyM -

When you get there I'd love to know how the furling staysail works for you. Seems like a natural adaptation.

Where do you attach the asymmetrical chute? On the stemhead or on a boom?

[Roy M]

I used a block tied to the stemhead fitting. But when I mount the roller furler I will need to move the attachment further forward to clear. A friend has recommended I build an A-frame with a downhaul to a block mounted to the stem, which allows the A-frame to be lifted up or down, and when deployed, moves it forward, and securely attached. I'm looking forward to playing with it. As I said, it's my favorite single-handed sailing rig. I lead the lazy sheet FORWARD of the headstay, then release the active sheet so the clew flies out forward to clear the headstay, and take in the (former) lazy sheet for a quick and easy downwind jibe. When I'm done with it, I merely lower the snuffer, then lower the mast headed spinnaker halyard. I'm going to add an additional spin halyard when I upgrade.