Container Transportable Boat

Discussion in 'Powerboats' started by SLM, May 12, 2014.

  1. Stumble
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    Stumble Senior Member

    The other advantage is the boats can be trucked from regatta to regatta without having to go on its own hull. A major time and cost saver over moving boats around the world by sailing them or putting them on ship movers.
     
  2. rustybarge
    Joined: Oct 2013
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    Location: Ireland

    rustybarge Cheetah 25' Powercat.

    sorry got no drawings as I bought the boat as a hull moulding, which saves about 2/3rds of the cost of complete new boat.

    I choose a cat to get over the stability problems of a narrow slim monohull, which would roll terribly; also you will notice that on this design the steering console is very far forward, leaving lots of standing headroom space....about 17' in this case between the console and the transom.

    Regarding layout, I'm thinking of installing a permanent bed between the front of the steering console and the windscreen, by cutting out the grp and opening cuddy space up, which will allow full sitting up height over half of the transverse bed; a compromise I know but it will cut out the necessity of making the bed each night.

    Roughing out the windscreen position....

    [​IMG]

    all the furniture will be camping type stuff for lightness, including a fold up galley with portable gas burners etc. The shower/heads will be in the back section up against the Patio doors giving full standing headroom, with two doors one inside/ one outside....

    A canopy over the aft section will provide a big opening for the summer weather.

    Weight limitations for roof/ furniture/heads....300kg.:(

    that's the problem with Cats..........

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  3. RHP
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    Location: Singapore

    RHP Senior Member

    I shipped a 24 yacht from the UK to Singapore and believe me, the internal width of a container door basically kills your dream. I accept you want to piggyback cheap container freight rates etc.. however it is far more important to enjoy your vessel than saving on sea freight. Build the boat you want then ship it on a flat rack container which gives you the best of both worlds, an enjoyable boat at an acceptable or compromise freight rate.

    https://www.google.com.bd/search?q=...Fship-yacht-on-flat-rack-container%2F;278;148
     
  4. rustybarge
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    Location: Ireland

    rustybarge Cheetah 25' Powercat.

    I think the container boat concept is more of an affordable small boat concept for coastal use that is cheap to transport across oceans at minimal cost; More like a floating RV than a boat.

    ...so your'e going to be tight on beam at 2.340 mtrs, that's a given. but so is a RV and people happily cruise around in those for months at a time. Nearly 8' wide is plenty wide as far as I'm concerned, it allows you to have a transverse bed laid out across the hull, and that ain't bad. ;)

    The Next question is what sort of hull is seaworthy enough to make a good coastal cruiser; with a forward located helm to give max standing headroom for accommodation..........

    I choose a small commercial fishing Cat which is very popular off the west coast of Cornwall in South west of the Uk; a bit of a cop out as I bought into the seaworthiness reputation of someone else's brand rather than building my own hull. but if you do the sums you will save very little by building your own hull, the Major saving is in the fit out and the wheelhouse structure, and the biggest saving of all is hundreds of construction hours ; the manufacturer just pops it out if the mould, hey presto!!!

    buying a hull moulding really makes sense when you consider you can start using your Cat the day it's delivered; just bolt on a couple of outboards and off you go.....build the superstructure as and when you get inspired :D
     
  5. rustybarge
    Joined: Oct 2013
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    Location: Ireland

    rustybarge Cheetah 25' Powercat.

    Here's a clever idea for increasing space on a narrow beam boat; obviously you would only lower the outside bit when moored alongside, or both sides when at anchor.

    [​IMG]
     
  6. rwatson
    Joined: Aug 2007
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    rwatson Senior Member

    As far as I can see, No one mentioned

    http://www.containeryachts.com/

    or

    http://tattooyachts.com/under-power/

    I know the request was for Power Boats - but both these have good performance under power alone.

    For the Tattoo ( or macgregor 26 ) Rusty Barges comments "I choose a cat to get over the stability problems of a narrow slim monohull, which would roll terribly; "

    are totally innacurate.

    The narrow Mac/Tattoo is very stable - you can get two people on the side with little hull movement, see http://www.macgregor26.com/safety/safety.htm


    Monohulls in containers have vastly increased interior room and load carrying capacity - more like the RV concept you wanted
     

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  7. rustybarge
    Joined: Oct 2013
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    Location: Ireland

    rustybarge Cheetah 25' Powercat.

    I'm just wondering if the stability the Macgregor is because of low hamper..... can you actually stand upright in a macgregor?

    Sitting down inside a 'plastic cave' for a couple of months wouldn't do your back much good.:D

    Maybe the ultimate box boat would be a trimaran like this: http://multihulldesigns.com/designs_stock/38tri.html

    A little trimming of the beam by making the outboard pods detachable should just make it fit.

    Length overall: 38'-0" (11.6 m)
    Length at waterline: 37'-6" (11.5 m)
    Beam: 16'-11" (5.16 m)
    Draft: 1'-6" (0.46m)
    Weight: 4,125 lb
    Displacement: 5,278 lb (2.394 kg)

    [​IMG]
     
  8. rwatson
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    rwatson Senior Member

    The stability is due to the hull form, and optionally, the water ballast.

    I am 6ft 2", and the Mac was one of the few yachts of that length that I didnt have to bend over much to walk around in.
     
  9. rustybarge
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    Location: Ireland

    rustybarge Cheetah 25' Powercat.

    That's fantastic on a 26' sailboat, as the hull still looks quite slim. ;)
     
  10. FAST FRED
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    Location: Conn in summers , Ortona FL in winter , with big d

    FAST FRED Senior Member

    I have been aboard the container yacht , and found the interior narrow but fine for a 3 -6 month cruise. About like any 25- 30 ft sail boat.

    The problem with the boat to me was it had to be assembled by a boat yard after being de-boxed.

    The engine drive KEEL and of course mast and rigging would add to the expense and offer various failure modes with an unfamiliar boat yard.

    Then to move on all has to be disassembled and stored.

    For the Seabright box keel hull the only complexity for a trawler would be raising into place the deck house sides, depending on how they were constructed.

    Storing a dozen wooden 2 inch diameter rollers on board would be easy.

    The open shipping platform does not solve the theft hassles.

    Remember a good pressure cooker is a months wages for most crew, and a few weeks on a ship is a lot of time to strip everything!!!

    The advantage of a longer boat is higher speeds and more interior volume ,no more shipping cost or much greater building expense.

    Boats are built by weight not LOA , so simple welded aluminum , or the foam core KISS would be modest for a one off.

    (www.kelsall.com/UniqueKSS/KSSMethod.htm) Foam core would extend the cruise season as it is minor insulation.

    I am no plywood enthusiast , but even stitch and glue should be OK.

    Since the boat is coastal, with ocean going ability , no big complex systems like generators or water maker would be required.

    A Propane reefer would handle the biggest load, refrigeration and freezer , so even the batt set can be minor .

    A hand held GPS , and hand held VHF and lead line might be enough for many folks.

    I would think the boat could be still built inexpensive to a DL of under 100 with common sense and no unobtainium expensive light weight items.

    The Atkin boats were claimed to be really easy to power at SL 2 to 2.5 or so.

    A flyweight diesel Kubota , Toyota or BMW should make a screamer that is easy to purchase and keep in fuel and parts.

    I think in many commercial ports having the same lifting gear as a 20 ft box mounted , built into the boat would mean it could be rolled out of its box , clear customs and dropped in the water with little outlay of Mordida.
     
  11. rustybarge
    Joined: Oct 2013
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    Location: Ireland

    rustybarge Cheetah 25' Powercat.

  12. rwatson
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    Location: Tasmania,Australia

    rwatson Senior Member

    Yes, its noticeably narrower, mainly to be containerable, and for easier towing. Its a lot more stable than some heavily ballasted keel boats on moorings. It means that sailing is done at low angles of heel, like a laser dinghy for example.
     
  13. rwatson
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    Location: Tasmania,Australia

    rwatson Senior Member

    Round bilge isnt necessary - you can do 'hard chine' with it. Generally however, you would incorporate a slight concave or convex 'bend' to the panels to take advantage of the strength brought about by a slightly curved surface.
     
  14. SLM
    Joined: May 2014
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    SLM Junior Member

    rwatson:

    Thanks. That Tattoo 26 looks to be very close to what I had in mind except that it is a yacht and not a cruiser. However with the folding mast it might be workable. I have in mind cruising the canals of Europe and there are a lot of low bridges and tunnels. Even if this design is not ultimately workable, it does help firm up my ideas on what I am looking for. The fuel capacity looks a little limited for my purposes. A good reliable outboard could work although I really prefer an inboard diesel. Food for thought though in the absence of a better idea. Cost ? I am going to talk to them and learn more about the boat (also wondering if I could find a second hand one locally). What is the history of this boat ? You mention that is is also known as the MacGregor 26 ?
     

  15. SLM
    Joined: May 2014
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    Location: Sydney, Australia

    SLM Junior Member

    In reading the Tattoo web site I have come across the following:

    ----------------------------------------------------------
    Can I buy a used boat in the U.S. for shipment to Europe?
    No, because boats built for the North America market do not comply with CE requirements. All boats (new and used) imported into the European Community from June 1998 are required to comply with the Recreational Craft Directive and be marked accordingly. Used boats not originally built for the European market cannot be CE marked. Customs agents could impound a used boat imported from North America upon importation, as it would not be legal for use in the European Community.
    -----------------------------------------------------------

    Since I want to ship the boat to Europe (as well as other places) there are obviously some hidden gotcha's that need to be worked through before committing to a particular boat. In fact this raises the question of whether you could import a homebuilt boat if one went that way ... is a CE mark required for a homebuilt boat. In fact it also raises the question of whether you are infact importing the boat if you are taking it there for 3, 6, 12 months etc. Anyone know what the rules are ?
     
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