Scarab 16

[gypsy28]

Bob Forster has a new website up for the Wavelength 780
http://wavelengthmultihulls.com/
I have sailed on the first two Wavelengths and can confirm their brilliance

[Brorsan]

Eric, any design progress?

[Eric17]

A lot of doubt, Brorsan, after Merran's testimony... Is this boat not too small ?
And I have been very busy with my job, so little progress :-(

[tlar633]

I am coming late into this discussion but if you want an 18 out of a 16 why not just multiply all of the 16's measurements by 1.125?. Want it narrower? Dont increse width measurements.

Better yet The Scarab 18 plans are now just 150 dollars AU as are all of his plans.

[Eric17]

Hi tlar,
The Scarab18 seems very slim too, even slimmer than the 16' (and the 22' as well, as far as I know). I asked Ray for pictures of his boat (18' Magic Scarab) with somebody aboard, but he doesn't have any. He'll put some drawings with human silhouettes on his yahoo.group page.
At the time, I'm watching Mark Gumprecht's sea (or river-) trials on his Drifter17 (http://www.nauticaltrek.com/12552-le...mark-gumprecht : all in French, sorry, but the first quote was : "I launched and sailed Gypsy Wind for the first time! It was a beautiful day, and it was great to get out on the water again. The boat seems to sail very well, but I had a minor problem with the rudder, and couldn't stay out that long, so there is still a lot more to learn. I spent the night anchored out in the river, and was quite cozy in the cabin. I can't wait to get to try her out again") : this boat looks more roomy, and I hope she won't sit on her stern like the Scarabs do, after Merran's testimony : this was my main problem, as I'm not a skinny guy :-/
Eric

[tlar633]

I like the lines of the Drifter 17,
I am a big guy too as such probably have no business in a tri but I just love them.
I had a 23 foot monohull but my wife didnt like the healing . Cats are hard to trailer and harder to make folding.
I had been looking at the Scarabs for years and when the prices dropped to 150 dollars I bought a set for the Scarab 8. I dont like the amount of metalwork required for the mounting rings but he says they are adopting a new method using ply and fiberglass. Then looking at the complexity and the fact I dont know if my wife will like tris I started looking at the Scarab 16. Then if ok build another larger boat later.

I would like a trailerable tri with reasonable headroom and confortable enough for a week. Did I mention it would be good if it is fast. The faster the better. I really would prefer building in strip planks with fiberglass inside and outside able to use existing rig frao a beach cat so that pretty well limits me to 18 feet. I have a mast available for the 8 but for mty use a smaller boat would be better. Guess I could "shrink" the 8 to 18 feet doesnt look too bad but would have to do something about the double bunk.

Meanwhile I am looking for plans for a tri that holds one or two sitting in the main hull foot steering . Also fast using a hobie 16 rig and sail...just something for a fast daysail. Would be nice if the amas had enough bouyancy to hold me on the tram while sailing

[Eric17]

The new method with a ply mold and just fiberglass (no foam) is just for building the beams, nothing to do with the folding system itself.
But I made some trials with a grinder, and I don't think it's a big problem to cut aluminium. And if you don't want to do it yourself, you can have them professionaly laser or water cut.
After Louis, a French Scarab 22 builder (who made these arms out of SS), the system works perfectly. Olivier Blanc made a modification, in connecting the metal bits with a fiber U.

But a critical point seems to be the buoyancy of the aft part of the main hull : in his last email, Mark Gumprecht tells me : "I would add a couple of inchs more depth to the main hull if I were doing it again"...

Specialists say : " you can have a confortable trimaran, a fast one, a cheap one, but never these three qualities at the same time. Maybe two..."

Amas should have a 200% buoyancy, so I think they wouldn't have any problem to bear you, but for the accomodations, are you not seeking for a 5 legged lamb ???

[tlar633]

LOL yes maybe a 5 legged two headed lamb. When I say reasonable I am 5'10 and would like at least 1 inch over my head while sitting inside. the AMA question was related to a small 12 to 16 footer I can just play with while deciding and building the bigger boat. As to cheap well these boats seem about the same price per pound!

I just dont want to buy a set of $900 plans only to decide to build something else. I have yet to see study plans give much of any hints as to how easy or hard it is to build.

If I had lots of money I would buy a production boat but their price per pound is far too much for me. mmm maybe the lottery is the ticket.

So while we are her is there a list of designers offering plans in the 18 to 26 foot range?

[Eric17]

$900 ? are you thinking of a "design challenge winner" ?

did you see Matt Laydens's Nugget http://smalltrimarans.com/blog/?p=6071 ??

Well, she won't give you the same social status as a Farrier22, but I think she would be much cheaper (min 30.000€ for the F22). Even if the F22 is quite cosy : .... &@£#!! don't find the url of the picts... but you'll find 2 picts showing how F22 & Astus22 are cosy on http://www.nauticaltrek.com/12553-la...n-trimaran-f22 (advertising for our community website again, must apologise !!)

I asked Mark Gumprecht for pictures with somebody on & inside the Drifter17 to have a better idea

[jamez]

Originally Posted by tlar633

I would like a trailerable tri with reasonable headroom and confortable enough for a week.

Just a suggestion (I am biased as building another of his designs ) you might like to check out the Nicky Cruz Explorer, rather than going for max no. of berths, has a good arrangement for a couple with a good sized double berth with sitting headroom, space for a small galley and ample stowage. While longer than some of the other boats being considered here its still a fairly basic boat built of 4 and 6mm ply and timber, glassed over.

http://smalltrimarans.com/blog/?p=4830
http://smalltrimarans.com/blog/?p=4039

[Ray Kendrick]

Hi,
I have seen all the discussion about the Scarabs dragging their tails and have finally decided to chip in. They are small boats and should be crewed and sailed accordingly. Two crew in the cockpit sitting at the cabin bulkhead using a tiller extension and any other crew (or passengers) sitting forward on the trampoline. If you raced dinghys before you will know that the crew weight must be used to balance the boat, that includes fore and aft trim, with dinghys the aim is to keep the transom just clear of the water. This is also the reason why big heavy outboard motors should not be used on small boats. I have seen older tris with very wide transoms still dragging tons of water behind them because the skipper was sitting as far aft as he could and steering with the tiller, not using the tiller extension. If you wish to carry lots of friends aboard and have a large ob motor you will need a larger boat. I could have drawn the Scarab 16 and 18 wider but they would probably not perform satisfactorily.
If you need a bigger boat have a look at the Scarab 650 or Scarab 22, the 650 is the newer design and is easier to build than the 22, has less panels and the floats are easier and quicker to build.
Regards
Ray Kendrick

[Eric17]

to summarize: "If you feel too heavy, start a diet instead of criticizing my boat"
Ahem, well ... maybe you're right, Ray !!

[luckystrike]

Hey Brorsan,

how are you and whats your project ... my alarm clock is ringing - the summer is over, time to get up and build a boat.

Ok, no joke ... have you started building your Trimaran to go out and sail next year???? Or do you have a new playstation??

Would be very interesting hearing from you.

Best Regards, Michel