Big Horn Solo Tripping canoe builder/owner, Stan Heeres, has put together a fantastic, step-by-step construction log with a few, teaser shots of the boat in use. http://kchsvb.com/bighorn/BIG%20HORN%20CONSTRUCTION_files/frame.htm

In the near future, Stan’s logbook will be strengthened with a full, on-the-water, report from his son, Kevin, who has taken it out into the Boundary Waters for some serious adventure paddling with his Dad. Stan has offered brief report (see below) on the boat’s specifics and some of the intriguing details of its performance capabilities when matched with the John Winters designed, Osprey models in both strip-built and multichined plywood. The Osprey is the solo canoe that served as the inspiration for the Big Horn. My acknowledgement as to the influence that John Winters has had on my work from the outset is gratefully indicated in the original article here on my website. That short piece can be seen here:  http://www.lunadadesign.com/big-horn-15-solo-canoe.html

Stan Heeres’ recent comments as follows:

“I purchased plans from you for the Big horn a few years ago. My son and I built the canoe and have since been on 2 Boundary Waters trips with it.
I promised you that I would detail the building process. I did and am just finishing the presentation up and will post it soon.
I have also built the John Winters Osprey (both the strip version and the plywood version). Here are a few details”

Strip Osprey

Lightest(34 lbs), receives the most comments by a wide margin (it looks really good), slowest of the 3 and hardest to keep in a straight line of the 3 at speed.

Plywood Osprey

2nd lightest lightest(36 lbs), very functional but does not get the comments, 2nd fastest and stays in a good straight line.

Big Horn

Heaviest(38 lbs), glides like a dream, Kevin, who uses it, will effortlessly pull away from the other canoes, tracks straight as an arrow.

It’s pretty clear that I am proud of the boat and how it has turned-out for an experienced canoe builder. Being able to say that one of my boats can effortlessly pull away from a design created by a known master in the trade is exciting. That it also has terrific tracking manners when loaded and out on serious water, really makes all the design considerations worthwhile. Stan, thanks so much for the really kind words on the boat. I’m really looking forward to Kevin’s report.

 Having not published since January, it’s pretty obvious that I’ve recently taken a break from my design work. During that time, I’ve been able to reassess my connection to the craft of boat design. The last boat I designed was the Europa 20, which is a trimaran meant for vertical strip foam construction with sandwich style epoxy/glass laminates on both sides. The Europa is a boat for very fast day sailing with a very light hull and a very big rig. A boat that is not for everyone, to be sure, as it requires a level of skill that the average guy does not typically cultivate in order to fully realize the potential of the Europa.

Stepping away from the larger, beach type multihulls, I came around to the desire to produce a smaller, very quick and sensitive boat that would appeal to recreational sailors and not just those guys who want to blast around with their hair on fire (though I do suspect that in the right hands, this boat will do just that). The new design had to be easy to build with standard, marine plywood/epoxy/glass techniques that did not rely on exotic layups with spendy carbon cloth. ( Well, maybe the carbon will sneak in there a bit on the beams for the guys who want to play with a bigger rig )

Looking long and hard at the smaller skiff-like hull designs I had done before, such as the Montage, I decided to draw the new boat in that same general size, but with a very different approach when it comes to how the boat achieves its performance potential. Where the Montage has a relatively spacious cockpit capable of taking on a couple of adults, (or a parent and a couple of smaller kids) the new, Corsica 15 trimaran would be for one adult (or accomplished kid) designed solely for a unique, one-up sailing experience within the small beach multihull genre.

Much like a performance dinghy, the Montage has a wide, flat sailing surface conducive to the planing of the main hull. It’s more like an outrigger supported dinghy in that regard, than it is a trimaran. Certainly, the Montage fits within a grey area when it comes to defining nomenclature. The Corsica 15, however, would be very much like other high performance trimarans with very slender, easily driven hulls that have the potential to achieve boat speeds well beyond the typical displacement design. There is no main hull planing function going on with the Corsica 15. It is all about pure, straightforward achievable speed via well-known multihull design thinking.

As a result, the boat has minimized clutter when it comes to excessive high tech trickery. With that approach, the Corsica 15 is also going to be a boat that has much lower maintenance requirements in order to keep it in top sailing condition.

If you are into cars, as I am, then think in terms of a nicely pumped, Mazda Miata, type of boat that would be a cool, weekend canyon racer for one person. A boat that could blast around the local waters in a good breeze and give chase to other small, fast, multihulls being sailed by crews of two.

The result of this conceptualizing process is the Corsica 15 RR. The C15RR is a boat of modest, marine plywood build techniques and is very light weight for its generous sail area. With this boat, the normal sailing position could be the skipper semi-reclined within the main hull, driving his machine like an F1 Grand Prix car. In this configuration, the boat is designed to utilize foot pedals for steering, leaving the hands free to work the sheets. But, that’s not the only way to sail this boat. Owners who wish to sail in a more conventional multihull style, can raise-up out of the cockpit and onto the vaka gunnel, or even the trampoline surfaces all the way out to the ama, where they will steer with a tiller extension.

A construction style in multichine, 4 mm marine plywood, allows the boat to be assembled in a well understood fashion that will go together quickly. With a subtle placement of minimal stringers and sufficient bulkheads, the C15RR becomes a strong main hull shell that can absorb the loads from its sizeable rig, turning the power of the sails into forward thrust in the water.

There is no fully enclosed transom on the vaka hull. The cockpit deck is slanted gently down and aft for automatic self-draining, such as is seen in sport dinghies and larger race boats. A collection of bulkheads under the cockpit deck provide structural support and watertight compartments ensuring that the boat will not likely sink even if large sections of the bottom are torn out from an under water hazard while smoking along in a gin clear lagoon.

The demounted boat can be assembled easily by one person. The gently gull-winged akas are built with a glassed box beam core.  The inboard ends of the akas slide into tapered sockets in the main hull and are pinned in place to make ready for sailing. This technique prevents binding while assembling the boat, while providing a solid, hassle-free and weight minimized demounting system. The leading edges of the akas are smoothly shaped foam blocks that are glassed onto the box beam to provide an aero component, as well as creating reduced drag from waves and spray. The akas are hard fastened to the amas as a complete assembly that is easily removable from the vaka hull. The trampolines stay mounted to the akas and amas for transport and only have to be hooked and tensioned to the main hull during assembly.

The rig is from a Hobie 16. I specify the addition of a set of spreaders from the Hobie 18 rig. Naturally, I’d prefer to see fresh sails in something like fully battened, Pentex laminate, but builders on a tight budget could also work with a loft service to recut a Hobie 16 main and jib and do just fine. The addition of reefing points on the main are strongly suggested, as well as the use of furlers for the jib and spinnaker/screacher. For those who desire fresh sails for this boat, I would recommend the folks at Whirlwind sails in San Diego, California. http://www.whirlwindsails.com/

A removable carbon prodder sets the tone at the front end of the boat. The stick originates as a carbon windsurf mast, so it is easily found on the used market and equally replaceable, should it get poked into an unyielding environment. For trailering, the sprit slides out of its socket and is stowed in the cockpit.

Corsica 15 RR Specifcations

LOA                                         14’ 11”  (4.54 m)

BOA                                         13’  (3.96 m)

Displacement                         650 lbs.  (294.8 kg.)

Sail Area (upwind)                 218 sq. ft. (20.25 sq. m)

Spin                                           142 sq. ft.  (13.19 sq. m)

Mast Length                           26.5’  (8.08 m)

Draft (board up)                     1’  (.3 m)

Draft (board down)                42” (1.07 m)

The cat mast is raised by the traditional beach cat method of physically lifting the mast with the base pinned to the mast step, or, alternatively, by utilizing the long daggerboard in its trunk as a form of a gin pole. A forward hoisting line is led over a pair of sheaves at the top of the daggerboard and down to the hand cranked winch on the trailer. Mechanical leverage quickly raises the mast so that the forestay can be fastened to the bow, stepping the mast securely. You can see a few photos of the process at Brent’s L7 trimaran site:

http://home.comcast.net/~ritakend/site/?/page/Mast_Raising/&PHPSESSID=864f3404e3f46ed29dd99b863018fc1d  This is a very simple way to raise a mast should you need to avoid the trad lifting exercise for one reason or another.

I chose to not go with tricked-out, curved lifting foils in the amas due to construction complexity and added cost for the builder. Foils of this type are hard to build correctly by hand, as are the needed curved trunks in which they slide. Instead, the boat is equipped with a daggerboard that is inserted through the deck of the main hull in front of the mast which angles aft to exit the hull below the waterline. A daggerboard and trunk of this type are much simpler forms to build and orient in the hull. It is also just one main foil, where lifting foils need to be made in pairs, one for each ama. Lifting foils also need complex control mechanisms to retract and deploy the foils and they have to work from the cockpit remotely with the foils mounted way out in the amas. The needed controls are an interesting problem when the boat is 13’ in width and the driver is semi-reclined in the main hull.

If you are on a budget, the rudder and headstock from a Hobie 16 will work just fine for the Corsica with some mods to the tiller. The more deluxe, Rudder 25 system from Dotan will also work well, should you have the coin.  http://www.dotan.com/  If you plan on pushing the boat hard, then a longer blade will be required, or you can get yourself invested in the process of putting a rudder on each ama and have stunning control at your finger tips. On the down side, that change will cost you a bit out of your pocket and at the launch ramp in setup time… though I can see a nifty rig with light alu tubing and the use of snap buttons as a cool solution.

The Corsica 15 RR will be a light boat built from familiar materials. It should be a fairly simple building experience for the owner and with the mast removed, will fit comfortably into any typical garage space, making it easy to find a building location. It will quickly assemble for sailing and be hassle free with minimal maintenance required to keep it in top form. It can be towed behind any compact car on a typical beach cat trailer and when demounted for travel, is road legal anywhere in the world. On the water, this boat should be quite quick and behave with predictable, pin-point sailing manners. With the skipper slung comfortably in his reclined cockpit seat, he will be decently protected from the effects of the weather and sea state while tearing around his local waters.

The first Gato Especial has hit the water in Athens, Greece.

Alex and his father have done a sensational job building the boat. They can now begin using their comfortable, yet compact, 21′ catamaran to explore the Greek Islands of the Aegean Sea, do some fishing if they like and simply get outdoors on the beautiful blue waters surrounding their country.

 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.

 

You can follow his progress as he builds this exciting new design on his web site through the following links:

http://buildboats.com/solo16/Solo16.html

http://buildboats.com/solo16/solo16buildlog.html

The Solo16S will provide Tom with a stable, fast sailing platform for spirited daysailing and interesting coastal adventure cruising. You can read more about the design of the boat at this link:

http://www.lunadadesign.com/index.php?s=solo16+s

The latest work on the Gato Especial build in Athens, Greece have just arrived. Alexis and his father have, once again, made significant progress on the completion of their crusing catamaran. It’s important to observe that they have continued their practice of doing excellent work with a creative set of adaptations on how they’d like to use their boat.

A cleverly built space for the porta-potti

Looking down into galley

Port Holes on port side

Foredeck anchor locker and access hatch

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cabin interior from companionway

The builders of the first Gato Especial have mades some really inspired progress with the building of the interior appointments of their boat. They have also completed the stringers needed to support the cabin roof, allowing for a foredeck access hatch from the cabin.

The cabin's center panel framing is completed

The work on the bow chamber, forward of the cabin bulkhead is also ready now and a very nice base frame has been blocked in for the anchor locker hatch.

Bulkheads and framing for anchor locker

I continue to be impressed by the attention to detail and very nice craftsmanship that these guys are producing. It shouldn’t really be a surprise, as the Father is a mosaic tile artist and his son, Alex, is a graphic designer. Both of these guys have a wonderful sense of design proportion and a real feel for the materials as they complete their boat.

Starboard hull under the cockpit

Port hull interior

Cabin interior from galley

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

Two additional stringers will be installed to stengthen the center roof panel. They will run from the mast stepping bulkhead (#4) down to the bow.