New owner, old boat Seawind 24

For quite some time I was thinking about a new and faster boat. I kinda liked the idea of building it myself. But the Admiral/CFO was not very receptive to the estimates of labor time. I even talked to the Pro-builder about the plans I've purchased and got a rough estimate for the hulls build for me.
(7.65 m cat).
During our conversation, he (the builder) compared the design to Stilettos, and that made me start looking around for the existing older cats. 3 days later I found one only 60 m away, on the trailer and the price was right.
Now, the comparison between R. Woods designed foam/glass new cat and old, 1984
Seawind 24 could be easily made, but the price was great.
So, I've got a 2 hulls, most of the outside is filled/sanded on the trailer behind my house. All the running rigging needs to be changed (no surprise there). Inside there is a peeling paint, dirty plywood berths, marine head (have to lift the ply to see the holding tank yet) and nothing else.
Mast and boom looks ok, mainsail track may need some attention (bent not broken most likely).
Both the forward tramp and the hard cockpit are for replacement. Center console with the motor well and sailing hardware looks fine (but O so heavy).
Rudders look structurally sound. Tillers are broken.
Daggerboards are different. One is just plywood and paint, another has some more shape and glassed (again, I do not know what to compare to, but these are heavy).
If anybody is familiar with the design, its quirks and shortcomings, and any other advice and all the support I can get I will use in this project.

Thank you

 

YG, great decision, you'll have heaps of fun for low cost with a seawind. here's mine..

 

Yeah the seawind 24 was a great little boat back in the day.

Holly North and I took one out for a week end overnight sail in Lake Macquarie, as a test sail for an article in the long gone magazine "Catamaran Sailor".
There is one still sailng and racing in the multihull division of the RMYC on Pittwater NSW, although with it's modest sail area it is not competitive with
the latest tris.
With a boom tent it is a very comfortable onshore cruiser.

You will have to make new daggers, but don't use plywood.
Straight grained cedar, shaped to a symetrical section and coated with 10 oz glass cloth set in epoxy.
Fix it all up and have fun.

 

Thanks, guys.
Would you have any suggestions about the tillers/tiller bar? Now I have one tiller broken, another missing. Alum tubing (assuming I find the right size) is an option, what else would work? like wood/glass composite, laminated wood (yacht style)?

 

Lots of seawinds out there and lots of dedicated owners.

Everyone I know who's been on one comments on how wet they are. That might not make the boss happy.

Even though they are only a foot longer than an inter23 they are a LOT heavier. That's a plus for cruising as they seem to be very tough and seakindly, but not ideal for speed. Still they carry a lot of beam and siff connecting structure so with some modern sails and rigging and well made foils I am sure it can be made to hoot along.

Note, while I've seen a lot of them over the years I'm yet to actually go for a sail on one, so my opinions are based on hearsay and watching them sail around me. I've often thought of getting one myself provided the price was right.

 

Aluminium tube will work you probably want to anodise it though to stop corrosion. Another good option is to wrap a pvc pipe with glass or carbon light and strong. When I made one for my old mosquito beach cat I used a light unidirectional glass tape wrapped from one end to the other on a 45 degree angle then back the other way on an opposing 45 degree angle. I taped the ends in position with sticky tape the wet out then vac bagged the tapes in position while they cured it worked really well and was quite stiff. I did not take the pvc out but if you were looking to save a bit of weight there is no reason to leave it in there. You could use a carbon tape if you prefered it would be lighter and stiffer (but more expensive of course). Note I'm not saying my layup was the best approach just what I happened to have on hand at the time.

 

Once, when I was selling a boat this guy phoned up and was telling me about how his son and his girlfriend sailed a Seawind 24 from South Australia around and up the East Coast, beach camping and living aboard. Then they were having so much fun they sailed up to Indonesia I think, then across to Sri Lanka and Africa!

 

Yea, all the way to India sounds great, we will see what adventures I will accomplish.

For now, while considering all the options I have for the hard decks/cockpit (two sides of the center console between the main beam and the aft beam), about 10x4 ft. PO had an contraption of Alum frame and ply, strong and sooo heavy. And since the ply is beaten and rotten, keeping them is not an option.
I kinda like the hard deck option. I would make it from a smaller sections, like 4 pieces (2 per side) to make transportation easier.
Would 9 mm ply, maybe some reinforcing grid and/or frame be enough to hold 2-3 adults occasionally waking on it?
While on the deck/cockpit topic, this (and some other cats same size/type I saw) offers a flat surface for crew/skipper between the hulls and the beams (hard or tramps, same thing). Maybe it is just a matter of getting used, but I see it as a bit of uncomfortable to sit on. I even saw some pics on the web with either hard chairs, racecar style bolted on the aft hull decks or garden chairs on decks, both looking not very yachty for me.
Any comments/suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

 

I had a Seawind 31 which had hard decks up to the middle (mast) beam, definitely the way to go if you wanted do any cruising. Probably help keep some of the spray down too. Mine were balsa core sheet (foam or balsa core with layup either side eg Duflex buy in 8X4 sheets like ply) hung on a aluminium extrusion frame bolted between the beams. The hard deck on such a small boat would give you a feeling of more available space, percieved security of persons and equipment and a easier place to stretch out when you're at anchor (or beached). Also much easier to get around on when tacking.