Regular visitors to this site know that in September of 2008 I got to spend an afternoon sailing out of La Trinite sur Mer, France on the 105’ French Maxi-Trimaran, Sodeb’O, with skipper, Thomas Coville.

 

Well, needless to say, the experience left a huge impression on me. With an eye to designing a new beach-style trimaran for homebuilders, I’ve been sketching the essential lines of Sodeb’O off and on over the past year. In the drawings, I’ve been searching for something that had the distilled essence of Sodeb’O, at a much smaller size mind you, while also reflecting my own personal take on a few key styling elements.

  

  

  

  

 

The E20 will be available as a cored, sandwich laminate boat, with glass/epoxy skins. Builders may substitute carbon for the glass cloth for an even lighter and stiffer boat, if they choose. The build technique will be vertical foam strips laid into an open, female form. The interior skins are to be wet laid-up and vacuum bagged in place, or resin infused within the closed bag, providing the highest strength to weight ratio typically available for home builders.

A small series of photos below from F-39 builder, Henny van Oortmarssen’s remarkable website: http://www.fram.nl/index.html  The whole process of vertical stripping, bagging of the dry laminates and the infusing of the resin can be seen on this page http://www.fram.nl/workshop/floats/floats.htm  where Henny builds one of the amas for his trimaran… in his garage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Henny also offers a very cool disc called Vacuum Infusion Basics, that shows the whole process, provides instructions for beginners  and it includes a starter kit of the expendable essentials to infuse a bulkhead, so that you wind-up with the basic skills to go on and do your own boat. Info on that CD is here: http://www.fram.nl/workshop/controlled_vacuum_infusion/ripackage.htm

I strongly recommend that you spend the money to buy this package from Henny, as it will save you huge amounts of time and get you rolling immemdiately.

Right now, the Europa design calls for demountable amas with attached aka beams. Utilizing an idea borrowed from the incredible, Marstrom built Seacart30; http://www.oceanlakemarine.com/ The inboard ends of the akas will have four-sided male, conical fittings and will slide into mirrored, female fittings on the vaka hull. This makes the business of setting up the boat absolutely painless, as there will be no stuck beam fittings, or bound, slip-fit tubes that can make the process a bit of a hassle.

The mast is set well aft compared to other trimarans of this size. The mast placement, along with the extended main hull, allows for the use of an assy. spinnaker without the need for a prodder and all of the attendant hardware and structure that would go with that bit of gear. A bowsprit can be fitted, however, should the owner wish to extend the luff length of their chute. Deployment of the spinny can be accomplished with either a furler, or with a launching tube built into the foredeck and drained aft and out of the boat through the cockpit.

Trampoline surfaces extend out from the horizontal seating surfaces to the amas between the aka beams. The inboard edges of the seat are comfortably radiused. There are also triangular, open mesh tramps from the forward beams out to the bow for comfortable bow access on the water.

The daggerboard slides through a trunk that enters the deck just in front of the mast. It is a fairly high aspect foil for minimal drag at the speeds expected for this boat. The aft angle of the board gives helm balance to the boat under sail and lessens possible impact from an underwater collision. With the board fully raised, locked in the trunk and used with the associated hoisting lines, it also provides for a very nice gin pole when raising the mast.

The rudder will also be a deep, high aspect foil that can flip-up, such as is seen on beach cats. If the owners are looking to fly the main hull a lot, there is a provision for ama mounted rudders that operate from the main hull tiller.

The typical rig for the boat will be from a 20’ beach cat and run around 245-265 sq. ft. in area and be of sufficient mast stiffness to fly a spinnaker. The 265 sq. ft. figure yields a Sail Area to Displacement (SA/D) ratio of 43.87*, which is right in the same performance potential neighborhood as the F-22 at SA/D 39.68* http://www.f-boat.com/pages/trimarans/F-22.html and the M23 SA/D 45* http://www.multi23usa.com/ If the E20 were pushed into a turbo mode and equipped with a rig equivalent to the ARC21 catamaran at 282 sq. ft., which it can handle if driven by an experienced skipper, then the SA/D would be more like 45.12.

* Values are approximate and will vary based upon actual sailing displacement

Europa 20 Specifications 

LOA 20′

BOA 15′ 6″

Draft 11″  (board up)

Draft  4′ 5″  (board down)

Displacement 950 lbs. (less engine)

Sail Area 245-265 sq. ft. upwind

Weight 500 lbs. approx.

Utilizing a common, beach cat rig significantly reduces one of the major expenses to build the boat and opens the potential of access to a wide variety of existing sails, as well as hardware. The typical rigs that would work for this boat would be from the following boats: Nacra 5.8 and 6.0. Hobie Miracle 20, Mystere 6.0, Dart 20, Tornado, Supercat 19, or the hopped-up, turbo setup running a rig more like that which is found on the aforementioned ARC21.

The ama hull forms on the E20 are of the latest, wave piercing bow type with inverted bouyancy forms in the most forward sections of the three bows. Immediately aft of the first three feet, the hulls return to more traditional shapes with very full sections throughout, with the largest volumes placed high for generous reserve when driven hard. Ama buoyancy is 200% of total displacement.

 

Even though the Europa utilizes flat aka beams, the water clearance is a generous 21.5″. I studied both the innovative L7 and the very seaworthy, Seacart 30 trimarans, both of which have flat aka beams. Because both of those boats also have relatively tall ama forms, they do not suffer excessive wave slap from having flat aka beams. The Europa ama-to-aka relationship is very much like the strategies used by the L7 and Seacart 30.

 

Making use of flat beams means that the homebuilder does not have to resort to more complex molding with trickier fabrication methods. Surplus mast sections of the proper size are suitable as beams, as are easily obtained round aluminum tubes. I prefer the mast sections, as they, typically, have a molded bolt rope slot in the extrusion that makes for a very clean solution for the mounting of the trampolines.

 

 

The transoms of the amas are generously radiused triangles in shape. These forms allow for added buoyancy aft to dampen pitching. The triangular shapes also present slender forms aft in light airs when the amas will be lightly pressed, reducing wetted surface and offering a more tapered, efficient form at lower boat speeds. As the amas are pressed in heavier conditions, the aft sections take on a new shape as presented to the water, immediately become fuller and wider with more power, as well as buoyant resistance.

 

Similar to the shapes seen on the maxi-tri, Sodeb’O, one of the signature design elements of the E20 is the gently down angled profile of the main hull’s shear when seen in profile. Not only does this shape assist in the wave piercing function of the overall design, but it also offers a hull form that has a significantly reduced aero drag signature when the hull is being lifted.

The Europa 20 is a very modern, performance oriented, easily demountable two-up beach tri made for sailors who are looking for that something extra from a small, fast multihull. Aesthetic and technical design features of this boat will instantly set it apart from the typical beach-style multihull and you’ll likely have many folks coming up to you asking about your exotic, mystery ride.

 

On the bank of the Macatawa River

On the bank at Lake Powell

XCR owners, Kellan Hatch and Ben Algera have been putting their boats to good use over the last couple of weeks. If you have been following this site, then you have already been introduced to both of them through previously posted pieces.

Benjamin Algera ready to push-off

Ben has just completed a very fun paddling cruise with his Dad,  John Algera, on the waters of Lake Macatawa and the Macatawa/Black River in and around the city of Holland, Michigan. http://www.bensboats.blogspot.com/

John Algera about to face the unknown

The Hatch family explore the red rock canyons of Lake Powell

Kellan’s adventure was quite a bit different, as he went to Utah’s scenic Lake Powell with his family as a part of the annual Lake Powell Messabout. http://deviantwind.blogspot.com/ 

In the original article introducing the XCR sailing canoe, I suggested that the boat was incredibly versatile, allowing for a wide latitude of coastal adventure cruising. The modular componentry of the design gives the XCR owner enormous choices as to how to enjoy a boating experience. The boat can be configured as a sailing trimaran, complete with 2 hp outboard as seen in most of the pictures of Kellan’s weekend on Lake Powell.

Sunday morning sunrise at the Hite ramp, Lake Powell, Utah

The XCR can also be used in its base form, which is a fast, responsive and very stable decked tripping canoe, such as is shown in the photos of the Algera’s paddling outings.

The XCR canoe is right at home in confined thin water

The paddled canoe and fully expressed sailing trimaran applications are fairly obvious within the modular approach. What isn’t so obvious, is the boat’s ability to be used as an incredibly stable motor launch for leisurely powered outings.

Cruising the XCR as a quiet and quick motor launch

Lily Hatch relaxes while Kellan tops-up the Honda

Kellan and Lily Hatch glide past Mount Moran in their XCR

Kellan recently returned from a wonderful, but all too short, cruise on Jackson Lake in Wyoming’s Teton National Park. Imagine a lake that is beautifully positioned at the foot of the stunning Teton range. Imagine primitive camping sites on the non-inhabited side of the lake with wilderness all around you in virtually the same state as it was when the area was visited regularly by the fur trapping mountain men of the early 1800′s.

Kellan had those images and much more running through his head when he joined his wife, Lily with their XCR, along with good friend, Mike Jackson and his Hobie Adventure Island, for a long weekend adventure of sailing and camping.

Yukon Expedition kayak on beach Jackson Lake, WY

 Some years back, I also enjoyed a beautiful canoe and kayak trip along those same shores in early October, so seeing the photos from Kellan and Mike brought back a heady rush of clear crisp air, scenery that is some of the most dramatic in the US and the shrill whistling sounds of bull elk as they called out to the opposing males during the annual rut.

Kellan and Lily hangin' with the XCR and Hobie Adventure Island

The three sailors launched from Coulter Bay and then made a big looping tour of the southern end of the lake, staying overnight at different  camping sites on the western shore of the lake.

Lily tends to the boats on the beach

Kellan heads for the bear proof steel box at one of the campsites

Soft cruisin' at the foot of the Tetons

Mike Jackson Mirages across the water in calm conditions

Scenic camp cruising in the Wild West

 If you are interested in finding out more about Kellan’s boat, he has started a personal blog  http://deviantwind.blogspot.com/  specifically about the XCR, his adventures with family and friends and the remarkable improvements he has made to his boat along the way. In one of the articles, there’s a really tasty cockpit cover that was sewn by his wife. Really great stuff from a very talented family with very diverse interests.

A fabulous cockpit cover created by Lily Hatch

With the main hull now successfully launched and then paddled briefly with his wife and kids, Ben has taken the first important step towards the completion of his XCR.

Sailing and paddling trips await Ben with this boat as it can seemlessly morph from a straight-up decked tripping canoe to a very nice sailing trimaran in minutes.

There are all sorts of photos of Ben’s build progress at his Blog site.  http://www.bensboats.blogspot.com/ 

Take a few moments to scan through his entries and you can see for yourself how easy it is to build an XCR of your own.

After a lot of input from readers of this site, I have completed the modifications to the Solo16 S design that reflect many of their
expressed interests.

The Solo16 S now has a bit more displacement as a direct response to suggestions for the use of a small 2 hp outboard and some spare fuel. At the same time, the vaka hull was given additional beam above the waterline and the shear was raised some to allow for mods to the amas.

The amas, themselves, were made slimmer and taller, while retaining the same volume. They now have a slight vee section which gives the boat a progressive resistance increase as the amas are pressed heavily in a gust.

To complete the changes, a sporty all-weather soft cabin has been designed to allow the owner a chance to sail in a wide spectrum of conditions. The new cabin is modular in its approach with the ability to address a multitude of sailing situations.

There is a folding dodger setup forward with a large PVC window for full visibility. A removable Bimini top extends aft, covering the entire cockpit from rain and a relentless sun. Side panels can be put in place as needed to protect the crew from hard spray, or to further enclose the cockpit. A reversed dodger is positioned at the aft end of the cockpit completing the full cabin system.

All panels except the Bimini have generous window areas which are backed by micro mesh screen that is small enough to keep out the No-See-Ums. The PVC windows are zip-out removable and the screens can be rolled-up for maximum airflow through the cockpit. The complete enclosure system allows the owner to mix and match the panels as needed for the best protection from the elements.

The Solo16 S is a lightweight, trailered boat with demountable amas. The aka beams stay mounted to the amas, along with the trampoline surface. The aka ends fit into composite tubes which are bonded to the vaka hull and the side hiking platforms.

When setting up the boat for sailing while on the trailer, the owner simply lifts the ama assembly, rotates and places the ends of the aka tubes into the matching vaka openings and slides the ama into place. The akas are fully seated when their internal, spring loaded snap-buttons click into place. The entire ama assembly is easily handled by one adult with modest physical strength.

In the trailering mode, the complete boat does not exceed 68″ (1.7 m) in width, falling well under every trailer width limit in the world.

Chris Ostlind
Lunada Design

Perhaps the title, Solo16 Sport, is a bit of misnomer with regards to this posting today. While this trimaran is an extension of the design aesthetics and thinking that led to the other two boats in the series, the Solo12 and the Solo14, it takes a bit of a turn with the ability to carry a crew of two by design.

While the Solo16 was planned as a logical, next-step design path for the 12′ and 14′ boats, it was pushed a bit in its development by a request from the Sailing Anarchy Mulithulls Forum for a very stable trimaran for the posting member and his handicapped daughter. He was looking for a boat that would provide a significant degree of stability while sailing and still be able to give the two of them a lively degree of speed and performance. The copy below comes directly from the letter I wrote in answer to the query.

Here are a couple of renderings for the boat that I think will work best for you and your daughter. The Solo16 Sport is big enough to carry two in the cockpit siting one behind the other. The steering is typically through foot pedal controls in the cockpit, though it can also be rigged so that the boat can be steered with hand controls in the cockpit, or sailed from out on the trampolines with a tiller extension.

The main sail is 100 sq. ft., fully battened and if you like, can be built with a reef point, or two, should you anticipate that things could get ugly quickly and you might have a distance to travel to the shore. Downwind sailing is enhanced with a 93 sq. ft. screacher on a furling setup off a sprit. The sprit comes from a used windsurf mast and is removable for trailering.

The boat is built in stitch and glue marine ply with glass/epoxy laminates inside and out for full sandwich construction. There is a water tight bulkhead up front near the bow, with a ring bulkhead at the location of the forward beam/mast mount. The cockpit has a full, deck surface that is raised above the centerboard trunk, as well as the waterline, providing a totally smooth surface for sitting. There is a pretty good sized compartment forward of the cockpit for gear and day sailing needs. Aft of the cockpit, is another enclosed compartment that is also water tight. The forward and aft compartments are accessed via a set of large deck plate hatches mounted in the cockpit.

The rotating mast rig is held up via a set of split, bridle wire shrouds that are led to each aka beam end. There is also forestay, around which the screacher is wrapped when not in use. The whole rig is light, easily setup and no hassle to stow for trailering.

The amas are sized at just under 200% buoyancy relative to all-up displacement. I sized them like this because of the need for safety with your daughter. Your boat has the same, 200% amas, because your boat will be sailed mostly from the cockpit. From this sailing position, you will not be able to quickly get to the windward side of the overall boat to help with righting moment in strong conditions. The added buoyancy of the bigger amas will put your safety and stability ahead of a more active sailing style.

There is a solid side deck outboard of the cockpit on both sides. This allows for seating (if you would like to get up and out of the cockpit), resting stuff that you might like handy during a leisurely sail and it provides a comfortable transition when boarding the boat from the trampolines. Further outboard are trampoline surfaces that stretch out to the amas, making for a constant surface on the same plane. This allows for very simple movement across the tramp to the hull and back again. It also presents a very clean appearance to the boat. The boat could also be equipped with bow nets to dampen any hard spray action while sailing quickly.

The rudder and the centerboard can easily flip-up and out of the way on beaching. This gives a nearly bullet-proof operating process and removes the single biggest hassle of sailing a beach trimaran… the business of always having to be on top of the boards and where they are in any given situation.

As a result, you can beach the boat with a nice degree of security. You may need to clean out the c’board slot once in awhile, as it can collect beach gravel and sometimes jam the board. Other than that, it’s pretty painless. The small amount of lost performance of the centerboard compared to a daggerboard is more than compensated by the simpler operating needs.

I see the final weight of this boat somewhere in the 225 lbs. region, all equipped for sailing. Any simple beach cat trailer will work with very easy mods to the trailer bunk system. You can tow it with just about any car on the market, as it will be well under 1000 lbs. complete.

If you were to use this boat on your own, then it will make for one very tidy and fairly quick coastal adventure cruiser for weekend camping trips. You’ll even be able to sleep aboard, should you not be able to locate a suitable beach. A dodger can be rigged as well as low profile Bimini. If you go that route, then it will be easy to make side curtains that mate with the Dodger/Bimini to provide for a fully enclosed cockpit. This allows for a cozy, comfortable and dry space for sleeping aboard, or even sailing in funky weather.

Solo16 Sport Specs

LOA                                  16′
BOA                                  13′
Disp                               650 lbs.
Weight                          225 lbs.
Sail Area
Main                              100 sq. ft.
Gennaker                        93 sq. ft.
Draft board down           3’6″
SA/D ratio
Upwind                             22
Downwind                          42

I see this boat as the logical transition from the smaller, Solo Series, of boats and my much more aggressive, A18 trimaran, which sports a Hobie 16 rig and the performance that goes with that substantial sail area. Even so, the Solo16 has a Sail Area/Displacement ratio of 22 for upwind sailing and a whopping SA/D of 42 for offwind work. This makes a for a comfortably quick boat upwind and a really sporty performer for anything offwind. Quite a little hotrod than can be sailed as sedately as one wishes.

For the posted goal of providing a very stable boat for a Dad and his handicapped daughter, one will be hard pressed to create a better solution. If they do decide to build it, they will see many hours of terrifically fun sailing together. I can’t see many things more important than the sharing of a beautiful day on the water with your daughter while being able to crank up the performance potential as the conditions permit.

Chris Ostlind

Lunada Design

Well, you had to know this would happen…

When the Montage Skiff/Trimaran was introduced, the Lunada Design website was absolutely flooded with an ocean of page hits every day right after the article was posted. I received several dozen personal query letters regarding the boat and sizeable slice of them were directed at the potential of a bigger version of the Montage.

The concept of being able to build your own boat and rig it with a used mast and possibly even used sails, (if they are in good enough condition) had struck a chord with the homebuilding community. The creation of a larger version of the Montage would take the specified rig choices up into the much more commonly found beach cat rig sizes and make the business of finding a used rig in great shape, a whole lot easier. After pencilling a collection of thoughts and running some rough numbers on the potential, the idea came into focus as the 18′ Collage.

The new boat is very much like the smaller Montage in many ways. The Collage has very similar lines, with the exception that it can be quickly identified by its subtle, reverse bow profile. It has  a virtually identical purpose and the same, functional conceptual pragmatism for the homebuilder. The plywood version and the strip-built design both have the same bow profiles. This profile is also applied to the amas of both build styles. I wanted to give the boat a bit more of an aggressive look without taking it too far in the direction of the out and out racing multihull designs currently in vogue.

The ama shapes, especially on the smooth hulled variation, borrow other design cues from the modern performance dedicated French designs of VPLP, as well as the very cool work of Nigel Irens. The transoms are nudged in the direction of a triangular shape, while retaining some of the typical beach cat, flat-topped U-form feeling. The volume concentration is well-forward, with the foredecks being much more rounded to provide rapid shedding of water. These shapes will help to reduce the tendency of multihulls to pitchpole when sailed hard.

Breaking away to some degree, from the single, build style of the Montage offering, the Collage is presented as a fully strip built, smooth hulled version, as well as a multichine plywood version. These choices will give builders the ability to work with the material choices and aesthetics they prefer. I am also looking at the potential for a foam cored sandwich laminate boat using the vertical strip technique, though that iteration will probably come around a little later in the process.

Collage Specs

LOA 18′  ( 5.48 m )
BOA 14′  ( 4.26 m )
BOA main hull 41″ ( 1.04 m )

Sail Area
Main 163 sq. ft. (15.14 sq, m.)
Jib 55 sq. ft. ( 5.12 sq. m. )
Spinnaker 161.5 sq. ft. ( 15 sq. m. )

Displacement 1000 lbs. ( 454.5 kg. )
Weight 380 lbs. ( 172.7 kg. )

The Collage meets all the same design criteria as does the Montage, except it’s longer and wider, has more sail area, carries more crew weight and yes, it’s going to be faster in the right hands. Faster… sometimes this term can be kinda self-defeating when speed claims are made compared to another boat. When it comes to recreational boats, I’m of the opinion that speed is a relative thing based on the overall design brief  of the boat in question. In the case of the Montage and Collage designs, speed is one of the attractive elements as long as it is kept in perspective with  just what the use application will be from day to day. From where I sit, this will be primarily recreational purposes.

The Sail Area to Displacement ratio ( SA/D ) for each of the boats is as follows: The Montage is 31.56 and the Collage is 34.88 With both of these boats being sailed at near max displacement, I give the nod to the Collage, based on waterline length, as well as the ability to punch through wave conditions that will bang-about the Montage to some degree.

I would like to see this pair of boats ( Montage and Collage ) blasting around in the hands of skilled sailors. There’s nothing quite like the feel of a performance boat and the way it can deliver the exhilaration of a spirited ride. But… I’d also like to see this boat out on the water being used by families while they have a really fun day on the water with, maybe, a somewhat toned-down speed blast tossed into the mix every now and then to get the kids chirping.

I’m looking at the potential for the Collage to create a new beach and/or lake sailing culture in which energetic hot shoe dudes, as well as young sporting families, can all mingle on the beach, out on the water and share a communal BBQ after the day of sailing. I grew to maturity on the beaches of SoCal watching the brand new Hobie Fleets do this very thing and it was a lifestyle that perfectly fit my beach kid way of thinking. It would be great to see that happen once again. Could this take place in 2009? Hey, I don’t know the answer to that one, but it is fun to think of the boat and its owners in those terms.

There’s a lot going for the Montage/Collage design approach to support such a social event concept. Both boats are affordable to build, they are easily trailered by even sub-compact cars, they make use of “experienced” parts that can be had on the open market for pennies on the dollar when compared to new parts and they are boats that are easily sailed on the first day. This last part is important, as the boat will attract more enthusiasts when they see that they can be sailed with what pretty much passes for beginner’s skills. Just because it can go fast, does not mean it has to be sailed that way. As the owner’s skills grow, the boat’s potential will be there waiting for him.

As a way of introducing the Montage and the Collage designs to the homebuilder market, I’d like to offer free plans to three individuals. These builders should be able to show me that they have a very strong interest in either design and are willing to build as I supply the plans in accordance with their progress from the previous plan set delivery.

If interested in this offer, you can write me at: Chris@Wedgesail.com or at lunadadesign@gmail.com and make your pitch. Those chosen to receive the free plans will be willing to provide construction photos of their progress and a brief written description as to how things are going. The personal accounts will be published on this website, Lunadadesign.com, so that the readers of the site can follow the projects.

Chris Ostlind
Lunada Design

I’ve drawn a lot of small trimarans in the last seven years, beginning with my A18 for performance coastal cruising. During that time period, there has been an explosion of other small, daysailing trimarans on the market, most of them coming out of France. Recently, a new trimaran/skiff hybrid has been introduced from New Zealand called the Weta.  www.wetamarine.com

This boat has immediate appeal to beginning and intermediate sailors. It offers much of the speed experience of a high performance skiff in a stable and predictable platform that is really tough to capsize. The Weta is one of the first boats to encourage family participation and reintroduces the waterborne fun of the beach sailing culture, established way back in the late 60′s with the intro of the Hobie catamaran.

A brand new, factory built Weta goes out the door for USD $11K. Realistically speaking, this isn’t an in surmountable amount of money for a factory produced, brand new carbon trimaran. It is, however, quite a lot of money for most casual recreational enthusiasts and the folks who like to build their own boats… especially when you consider the rugged economic conditions we all face these days.

So, I decided to take a whack at producing a set of plans for a homebuilder’s version of a Weta-like hybrid that could be buildable in the neighborhood of $5600 ready to sail with a new mast, sails and trailer. I’m calling the new boat Montage, as it is an assemblage of concepts that fill the slot between a performance skiff and a small, quick trimaran. This boat will appeal to sailing enthusiasts from kids to codgers who just want to get out on the water and have a fun and fast experience without breaking the bank.

The estimated $5600 figure represents a boat with a whole host of brand new parts. For the clever builders out there, the Montage could be even less expensive if they can find a used 470 rig, perhaps a used small craft, or beach cat trailer that could be modified to fit the hull design and even a collection of hardware in good condition. The Montage is a very light boat at right around 235 lbs., so you do not need to buy a heavy duty trailer.

After a dozen different sketches of boats that fit the general design motif, I settled on a plywood multichine hull design that had virtually the same dimensions as the manufactured version. When I projected the hull panels to a two dimensional layout, though, I saw that I was going to be wasting a good bit of plywood by going with a 14′ 5″ boat that mimicked the dimensions of the production version.

I went back to the drawing table and reconfigured everything so that the longest hull panel was going to just fit on a couple of sheets of marine ply laid end to end. The main hull also got just a bit wider in the process of lengthening the boat. Where the factory boat uses carbon fiber on foam cores for its structure, the Montage will be a 4mm marine plywood design with full fiberglass/epoxy sandwich laminates inside and out. The foredeck and the cockpit seating transitions are strip-built in Red Cedar to give the overall appearance of the boat a smoother, more organic feel than straight plywood panels.

The amas for Montage came from a 16′ trimaran design that I had already done and required minimal re-design to work with this boat. The amas are also designed as multichine ply forms with pretty high volume shapes well forward and a water shedding deck form that will helps to keep them riding high even when driven hard. Ama displacement is 100% of the all-up boat weight when sailing.

Montage Specifications

LOA                                15′ 6″
BOA                                12′
BOA main hull                    41″

Main                               110 sq. ft.
Jib                                   38 sq. ft.
Screacher                         102 sq. ft.

Displacement                    650 lbs.
Weight                            235 lbs.

The aka beams are anodized aluminum instead of carbon tubing. The inboard ends fit into fairly burly sockets in the hull and are held in place with quick release pins. Flat deck flanges on the ama ends are welded in place and bolted to the amas. The amas are removable from the aka tubes for repair or maintenance, but otherwise stay mounted, along with the trampolines, as complete units.

 The mast is also anodized aluminum. The boat uses the same mast section as the 470 dinghy, which is a Proctor Cumulus section. This mast is available on the used market with a little bit of hunting around. If you want it all and have the money, then there’s a very cool, filament wound Forte carbon spar available with very close specs to the Proctor that will rock your world. http://fortecarbon.com/

Making these two changes from the benchmark, all-carbon Weta to an aluminum spar and tubing keep the costs down, with but a slight weight penalty over all-carbon parts. If you find a used mast, the savings will be even more substantial.

The mainsail and the jib will be built in Dacron instead of a more expensive fiber/Mylar laminate sail. The jib is a self-tacking blade. The main is a boomless design, which will keep head bonking incidents out of the picture while sailing. The screacher is furled from the bowsprit for simple convenience.

I have found that the more expensive sailcloth laminates are capable of driving the boat just a bit faster, but for the average recreational sailor, they will hardly ever make a difference compared to more forgiving sails in Dacron. Dacron is much easier to maintain, lasts longer, is a lot more tolerant of UV exposure and can be repaired by any sail loft wherever you go. If the builder of the Montage really wanted to, they could buy a set of sails in something like Pentex laminate instead and they’d have that hot, performance boat look that some desire along with just a bit more zip under sail.

The overall design of the foils and their operation is pointed directly at the needs of a recreational sailor. The boat uses a centerboard for ease of use and pretty much no-brainer beaching. Likewise, the rudder is a flip-up style unit that eliminates the problems of hitting underwater objects. The foils will be built with template shaped cedar cores having a white ash stringer for stiffness and then glassed for durability.

The aluminum aka tubes will be sold pre-bent and ready to install on the amas. If the builder has access to a good mandrel bending facility that can handle the OD/ID specifications of the tubing, they can fabricate their own tubes to supplied specs.

The Montage is designed to be a really fun day sailing machine that can generate near performance skiff sailing speeds while offering a hugely stable platform for recreational sailing. Construction of the boat is very straightforward in marine plywood with glass/epoxy laminates and can be easily built by any sailing enthusiast who has household handyman skills with tools. The Montage has been created to offer homebuilders an opportunity to enjoy this style of family sport boat at a completed cost that is far less expensive than the manufactured version.

Chris Ostlind

Lunada Design

I have a very serious passion for sailing canoes. Principally, I enjoy canoes that are designed as small, lightweight trimarans as I feel they present the greatest number of solutions for serious, expedition sailing with few of the compromise limitations the sailing canoe genre can represent.

I wanted to design a big boat; something out around 18’+ with a modest beam for the length in the 35″ neighborhood and the ability to carry a hefty expedition load without sinking the hull too much or hammering the freeboard. Canoes that long with beams of 35″, or so, have a real chance of being quite fast under paddle if the hull is shaped correctly.

There are some really fine boats out there that could, in the right hands, become very good cross-over sailing canoes when equipped with outrigger floats (amas) and a well thought-out rig setup.

One of my favorite sources of inspiration was the John Winters designed, Cirrus.

http://www.greenval.com/cirrus.html

About six years ago, I had a conversation with John Winters in which he told me that there had been a decked Cirrus prototype built at one time by Swift Canoe. He indicated that the design had not been further explored in that manner and it’s sitting on a rack somewhere out behind the Swift Canoe shop. The idea of a hard decked canoe for adventure sailing was very appealing, so I stashed the concept while I worked on other design questions.

Like the decked Cirrus, I was looking to include an integrated hard deck on the XCR design to replace the soft, full coverage spray skirt setup typically seen on expedition boats of this type. The deck would also provide incredible strength to the hull and allow for a fairly aggressive sail rig as a result.

When I plugged the Cirrus numbers into my design software, along with a rough approximation of the hull shape, I found that I was going to be compromising a bit on the targeted design displacement of 800 lbs. So, I stretched the length out to 18’6″ to be able to handle the heavier loads.
The other standard for boats of this type is the highly respected, Kruger Cruiser

http://www.krugercanoes.com/prod03.htm

The Kruger boat is built like a tank with 11 layers of Kevlar along with a heavy gel coat. Because of the design requirements, there is a vast chasm of build level between the normal, recreational canoe and one that is ready for serious expeditions in remote locations. While I respect the boats, as well as the owners of the Kruger Company, I don’t think that most adventure canoeists will ever need to have a boat that is built to that level of expense. For the “way out there” expeditions in which your very survival is dependent on the ability of your boat to hold together in harsh conditions; Yes, the Kruger style of boat is appropriate. For everyone else, a much lesser degree of build technique is more than adequate.

With the XCR, once you meet the basic level of structural properties of the design, you get to make the laminate decision yourself. If you like, you can give the interior of the hull several layers of Kevlar set in epoxy, along with four layers of S-Glass on the high wear areas outside for an expedition layup. You will end-up with a structural toughness to match the Kruger boats. Or, you can go “expedition lite” on the layup, hold-off on some of the big dollar laminates and have much lighter, more easily portaged boat as a result.

Displacement vs Capacity Numbers

Perhaps I should provide a brief explanation of just what is going on in the canoe world with all the load numbers you see in brochures and various Internet sites.

Many designers put together a hull shape with a specific design displacement weight in mind. This is the total, all-up, weight to which the hull is designed for optimal performance. For one reason or another, many manufacturers like to give a number that indicates the hull capacity and it’s usually way up above the displacement number. While it is true that most canoes can safely carry the higher weight without too much of an issue, the boat will not perform anywhere close to the design displacement weight as indicated by the designer.

Sometime soon, I’ll write an article about canoe loading safety as there are many issues to discuss in that area and this article is not the place for the material right now.

Hull Design

The XCR is a decidedly asymmetric hull form. Unlike the more traditional styles, the widest part of the underwater shape is behind the center of the boat. This design style aids in the hull’s ability to track smoothly in a straight line among other benefits.Because a sailboat has to be responsive to helm input, the XCR has considerably more bow and stern rocker than a typical tripping canoe. Normally, added rocker makes for a boat that always wants to turn, but the asymmetrical hull counteracts that effect. The result is that the boat has many of the best characteristics for a tripping design. She wants to run straight when you have a big crossing to take on and she will turn on a dime with subtle steering input.

The XCR is designed to be built from marine plywood with 6oz. glass skins in epoxy on both the inside and out. The build techniques are straightforward and easily accomplished by the homebuilder. I estimate the building costs for this boat, complete with sail rig, amas, aka beams, foils and hardware to be right around $3000. When you compare this price to the cost of just the Kruger Cruiser at $4200 without the sail rig or outriggers, you can immediately see the value of building your own XCR exactly the way you would like.

The Rig Setup

For the rig, I wanted a setup that could be extremely adaptable to a wide range of wind and sea conditions as well as provide for some very nice performance potential. I chose to create a pair of traditionally boomed, Marconi rigged sails, each about 56 sq. ft. in area. As a rig platform, the XCR is quite versatile, as long as the intended rig does not interfere with the objective purpose of the primary mission of the boat.

The layout of the very large cockpit is such that the crew can have the following rig setups:

1. Both sails can be aloft at the same time.

2. They can be reefed equally or asymmetrically for rising conditions.

3. The aft rig can be doused completely and stored with the forward rig being moved to a central stepping location with the boat then sailed as a sloop.

4. The forward sail can be doused along with the deployment of a sea anchor and a reefed mizzen can be left up for control in very serious conditions.

Cockpit Layout

The cockpit is sized to allow for the breakdown and storage of the rigs within the hull. There is a large, cockpit rim around the opening to shed water and provide structural strength to the deck. The standard, fore/aft canoe paddling positions are left intact. There are two, glassed-in, thwart tubes at the aka beam  locations. These tube thwarts will replace the traditional, flat wooden or aluminum tubing thwarts of more familiar canoes. This approach is borrowed from the manufactured Kruger Canoes. Kruger uses these tubes for the function of joining two boats together in a catamaran style. I’m not especially fond of the catamaran mode for sailing canoes with this method. I feel that the weight of a fully loaded canoe has the potential to generate serious loadings on any potential, inter-hull connector in this manner in all the path axes. A boat designed from the beginning to be “catamaraned”,  would need to have substantially stronger, hull mounting points, as well as stronger connecting beams, resulting in weight that has to be carried even when the boat is being used for other pursuits.

The seats will be infinitely adjustable fore and aft, up and down and also in pitch, fore and aft. This means that the crew are able to set a seat height, get into a flow for an extended period of time and when their bodies start to feel the results of a fixed position, they can adjust it slightly to get into another comfort zone. The seats are also totally removable to allow for a huge range of use with the boat.Because of the rather long interior volume, one crew member can slip below to take a nap prior to their turn on watch while the boat can be sailed by the other crew member.

Foils

The two foils used on the XCR are optimized for the sailing range of the boat as well as for utility of the boat’s application. That means that the foil sections and planform are selected to operate within the sailing speeds that can be generated by the rig and the hull shape. I prefer higher aspect foils for a number of reasons; mostly because they work well when the boat is sailed quickly and there’s almost no penalty for the extra draft if they are of the kick-up variety.

The primary lateral resistance form is handled through a leeboard arrangement. The mount for the leeboard is removable from the cockpit coaming to allow the canoe to be paddled without the extra baggage of the mount. Both the rudder and the leeboard are the “kick-up” variety to keep the boat from being damaged by an underwater obstacle or when beached with the foils down. The leeboard simply rotates up through an aft arc and the rudder flips up in a similar fashion.

Aka/Ama System

The amas are designed to be crafted from marine plywood in a stitch and glue style of construction. They will be quite light and will mount to 6061T6 aluminum tube sections for aka beams. The prototype has been constructed with carbon aka tubes. Builders of the design will also have the option to construct their own, “gull wing” akas if they choose, but drawings for that adaptation are not included in the plans. Full length trampoline surfaces can be affixed between the fore and aft akas and between the vaka and ama hulls. Hard surfaced hiking platforms can be affixed to the aka tubes. The hiking platforms will allow the crew to sit out on the benches, providing additional righting moment for faster sailing potential.

The aka tubes are sectioned to allow easy take-down and setup of the outrigger assembly. They are held together with the same stainless snap buttons that you see on take-a-part paddles. There is a removable aka section on each side of the canoe hull for each aka tube. Once removed, the ama can be remounted to the hull for transport, OR, the ingenious owner can then use the canoe with the amas in place for a whole new set of possible water-borne adventures. How about duck hunting from your canoe with no danger of tipping over at all? How about taking the grandkids out for a day of fishing on the lake without having your daughter get on your case about being careful with the kids? The potential is quite wide open.

The images supplied show the finished boat, as well as photos from the first, on the water, paddling test of the hull without its deck installed. As a tripping canoe, the XCR paddled wonderfully in the test. It is fast, tracks well and responds to turning strokes like a much smaller boat. I expect this canoe to be ideal for sailing or paddled adventures. The XCR can easily take enough gear and supplies to last for a two week adventure on the water, so the horizon is really wide open as to where this boat could go.

The hull shape and construction will be seaworthy in anything from calm lakes to fairly heavy conditions. This boat can serve as a serious expedition machine and would be serious contender for a honed and fit two-man crew in such coastal adventure races as the Watertribe Everglades Challenge.

Chris Ostlind
Lunada Design
Chris@Wedgesail.com