Marrying Lifeboats Up - The Push Me Pull You

DC's egg analogy isn't a bad one, something that has continuous longitudinal curvature will be unsuitable.

 

I've been looking around. There are a fair number of lifeboats with significant parallel midsection. So choosing a model with that in mind is a requirement.

 

I've encountered lots.
I even skippered one, an 88 foot steel schooner that was cut in half and lengthened by 17 feet (from 71').
It sailed fine but man did it look funny from the bow.

 

It is one thing to add a mid section to lengthen a boat, another to join two chopped down boats, if the shapes are unsuitable, it will be like OJ's gloves, if it doesn't fit, you can't conjoin ! ( ok, I know it doesn't even rhyme like "convict" !)

 

If we only had to cut one hull in half and stretch it,it would be feasible but laborious.The point about unfairness shouldn't arise if the old principle of a hull with a "master section" was adhered to at the design stage.The joint could be fair but the curvature from bow to stern would change at two points.Why one might consider this amount of work is perhaps the question as there are lots of boats in need of attention that could be refitted with less time and effort required and of a length deemed suitable.The notion of cutting through a keel is a bit puzzling as most lifeboats of the last fifty years or so seem to be GRP and the keel is moulded from the same material.I have no idea if ballast is embedded as the hull form is normally intended to provide stability and the normal place to carry a lifeboat is quite high on the parent vessel where weight isn't the best thing to have.

If the OP is considering grafting the bow of one hull to the stern of another then we have a range of challenges to overcome and even if they came from the same mould and it was a case of matching the location of the cut,it would not be easy.If a hull was free,or nearly, and time was in abundant supply then almost anything is possible.Whether such a project is a good use of time is another matter.

 

Have you considered using the 2 lifeboats as big, roomy pontoons? Creating a living space between them like a catamaran? I was considering this but arrived to the auctions too late! dp