Crowther design 226A (42 foot cruising cat)

[DennisRB]

Look at this. Is this a different model or stretched 226A?
Crowther Deguello: Sailing Catamaran for Sale | Fibreglass/grp Sail Boats | Boats Online | Western Australia (WA) - Langkawi https://www.boatsonline.com.au/boats-for-sale/used/sailing-boats/crowther-deguello/217607

 

[Bruce Woods]

Look at this. Is this a different model or stretched 226A?
Crowther Deguello: Sailing Catamaran for Sale | Fibreglass/grp Sail Boats | Boats Online | Western Australia (WA) - Langkawi https://www.boatsonline.com.au/boats-for-sale/used/sailing-boats/crowther-deguello/217607

No.

This was built by/for Ruth and Jock Main in WA. Launched 2002?

Rumour had it that the only connection to Crowther design 150 (Locks own Deguello) was that they used some of Mike McKenzies tooling after he finished his own Design 150 ,Hippo ( now in Adelaide).

Can't believe Lock would put his name to it.

 

[Murphenzo]

I certainly can't see any 150 in it anywhere. Very much looks like a stretched and widened 226a to my eye. It was built in the same place at the same time as the two 226As, so that makes sense.

 

[xriss]

Here are a couple of photos of my boat (beached for a water-line cleaning) at Mindanao, Philippines.

The wooden gang-plank was a temporary item, only carried while cruising the Philippines.

Enjoy!

hi ozjon chris here from uk i would love to hear more about the construction of andiamo have you any concact details blog vblog facbook website?? cheers...chris

 

[CloudDiver]

Does anyone know who owns and administers Crowther's designs? Did he establish an Estate or have family managing his IP? Is it possible to still purchase a license/plans to build the Spindrift 37, 40 or the Crowther 40/226A?

 

[jamez]

If you have a search around I think this was explained in more detail some time ago. Essentially the Crowther plans are unavailable to buy new.

You may be able to buy a complete plan set second hand. Copies of some of the tri plans have been made available by various individuals.

 

[Corley]

If you are fixing up a Crowther then there is plenty of help available, hard to see why you would build one from scratch. If you are on Facebook join the Multihull Appreciation Society plenty of builders and owners there who can help you out there. Maybe it makes some sense for little trimarans like the Bucc24 but even there why not build one of Kurt Hughes or Richard Woods tube tri's? Ditto with catamarans Kurt Hughes, Richard Woods, Jeff Schionning, Nathan Stanton, Dudley, Dix, Morelli and Melvin to name a few and there are plenty more. Designs have moved on imho and there are lots of great boats available now with support from their (living) designers. I'm sure if Lock was still alive his designs would have developed in accordance with technology, materials and the ongoing refinements in the field. He was a huge loss to the Australian multihull scene, his knowledge, enthusiasm and his humour have been sorely missed.

 

[CloudDiver]

If you have a search around I think this was explained in more detail some time ago. Essentially the Crowther plans are unavailable to buy new.

You may be able to buy a complete plan set second hand. Copies of some of the tri plans have been made available by various individuals.

If I were buying a second hand set of plans from someone I wouldn't be paying the designer his due and that wouldn't be right. That's why I was hoping Lock had set up an estate or his family was managing his intellectual property... I wouldn't want the plans if I didn't think I was obtaining them in the correct fashion.

 

[CloudDiver]

If you are fixing up a Crowther then there is plenty of help available, hard to see why you would build one from scratch. If you are on Facebook join the Multihull Appreciation Society plenty of builders and owners there who can help you out there. Maybe it makes some sense for little trimarans like the Bucc24 but even there why not build one of Kurt Hughes or Richard Woods tube tri's? Ditto with catamarans Kurt Hughes, Richard Woods, Jeff Schionning, Nathan Stanton, Dudley, Dix, Morelli and Melvin to name a few and there are plenty more. Designs have moved on imho and there are lots of great boats available now with support from their (living) designers. I'm sure if Lock was still alive his designs would have developed in accordance with technology, materials and the ongoing refinements in the field. He was a huge loss to the Australian multihull scene, his knowledge, enthusiasm and his humour have been sorely missed.

Thanks for your recommendations... I have actually looked at designs by almost all of those designers. I'm actually most interested in the Schionning Arrow 1280S but I also like Tony Grainger's Raku Cats, but its about 10K USD just for the plans on either of those designs. I realize that Lock Crowther's designs are dated by todays standards, but the Spindrift design kind of resonates with me. I think the performance of the Spindrift 38, and by extension the 226A which is basically the Spindrift 40, is completely satisfactory to the kind of sailing I want to do. It was just a thought worth exploring.

 

[jamez]

If I were buying a second hand set of plans from someone I wouldn't be paying the designer his due and that wouldn't be right. That's why I was hoping Lock had set up an estate or his family was managing his intellectual property... I wouldn't want the plans if I didn't think I was obtaining them in the correct fashion.

You might be able to buy a set of plans that hadn't been built from. A surprisingly high proportion of plan sales do not result in completed boats, or even in builds commencing. Most designers accept that plans not built from and/or half finished projects may be onsold, although they may elect not to provide support to a new owner - which in this case is of course irrelevant.

 

[jamez]

I realize that Lock Crowther's designs are dated by todays standards, but the Spindrift design kind of resonates with me.

I know what you mean, I've been contemplating a 9-10 meter cruising cat and I have a soft spot for some of Roger Simpsons designs around that size. The plans are available for cheap too. While I would be happy to own an existing example of say a Ground Effect, or Wildside 10, it just doesn't make sense to build one when there are more modern alternatives which would be a similar cost in time and resources to put together.

 

[Corley]

I'm not sure if 10k for plans is a barrier whether you will be able to build a boat. When I looked at my Kraken 25' trimaran build it has already set me back 15kAUD and that's a tiny boat with minimal surface areas versus a large cat build. If I had built in ply rather than Machined veneers it would have come in cheaper. You might like to take a look at Kurt's post apocalyptic boatbuilding article it's a pretty comprehensive run through of the different build methods. Cost is mostly related to weight for non exotic materials. PostApocalyptic Boat Building | Multihull Design Blog http://multihullblog.com/postapocalyptic-boat-building/

 

[Bruce Woods]

You might like to take a look at Kurt's post apocalyptic boatbuilding article it's a pretty comprehensive run through of the different build methods. Cost is mostly related to weight for non exotic materials. PostApocalyptic Boat Building | Multihull Design Blog http://multihullblog.com/postapocalyptic-boat-building/

NO .

For the style of boat you are contemplating the choice of build material is only a small percentage of the final cost of the finished boat.
The material choice can affect the build time considerably, but its all the stuff you bolt on ( rig , sails , motors, interior finish and electronics) that adds up.

Good ply is getting pretty expensive.

As usual , Kurt is just pushing his barrow.

 

[Corley]

NO .

For the style of boat you are contemplating the choice of build material is only a small percentage of the final cost of the finished boat.
The material choice can affect the build time considerably, but its all the stuff you bolt on ( rig , sails , motors, interior finish and electronics) that adds up.

Good ply is getting pretty expensive.

As usual , Kurt is just pushing his barrow.

I disagree to a point, if I vet the ply piles at my local wood merchant for cheap 3mm ply that passes boil test (Luan) good enough ply is available at a decent price, gaboon ply is much nicer no doubt but the other stuff works. If you source a second hand rig and sails and scrounge deck gear on the secondhand market as I did the costs need not be insurmountable. It's true your boat is a bit of a piece of junk to look at but it gets you on the water. So platform costs are a significant contributor to the overall cost if you are on a tight budget. For example I bought enough ply to build the two floats of my Kurt Hughes 40' trimaran for $700 AUD. If I was building the boat in the original F40 format the ply cost in Luan would be about $1200. Now it's true you still need stringers or core for panel stiffness so that adds some extra to shell costs but it's still significantly less expensive than a good Eglass/epoxy/foam core build on my numbers.

 

[Bruce Woods]

. For example I bought enough ply to build the two floats of my Kurt Hughes 40' trimaran for $700 AUD. If I was building the boat in the original F40 format the ply cost in Luan would be about $1200. Now it's true you still need stringers or core for panel stiffness so that adds some extra to shell costs but it's still significantly less expensive than a good Eglass/epoxy/foam core build on my numbers.

Now thats funny.

So you are still buying core and epoxy and sheathing the ply in glass and fairing it then painting it.

(have checked out the price and properties of the latest generation poly and vinylester resins)

Out of interest do you know what type of glue has been used in your cheap plywood?

So remind me again where the significant saving is.