A New Beach Trimaran

Money is not the issue: the issue is inexperienced people being taken in by nice renderings and winding up buying plans from an exceedingly inexperienced designer: the blind being led by the blind.

So Doug, how do you become an experienced designer?

This subject has been
covered in great detail on the boatdesign forums. There is evidence both here and under "Sailboats", and on Dinghy anarchy and Multihull anarchy that you are ,in fact, using the forums to PROMOTE your designs-and I feel that is wrong-maybe dangerously wrong in the case of a KIDS boat!

It is the responsibility of the parents to ensure their kids sail in safe boats. What do you think is unsafe about the Cabrillo Skiff?

Nothing is stopping you from building and testing your own designs-but using others as your guinea pigs doesn't cut it. Ian Farriers experience with you IS relevant for that reason alone.

Has Farrier built the first example of every boat he has designed? No. It wasn't necessary. On your logic it could be argued that the first F41 builder was taking a chance on an untried design because I.F. hadn't built and tested the first example.

We need new designers who are prepared to break new ground and refine old ideas. That is how boat design has moved forward over the years. All successful designers have become so on the back of someone elses money. End of story. I laughed my *** off when I saw that IF had complained about Chris calling his 24'non-folding trailer cat the FC24 (for Fat Cat 24). Thats pretty damn precious in my book.

Chris, I appreciate your work and I hate to say this, but these attacks on you are, I think, largely the result of your own previous pedantry. What goes round comes round etc.

I just wish you guys could keep to discussing the theory of multihull design, which all the rest of us learn from, and keep the personal attacks off list. The ****-fights just plain unbecoming and quite frankly boring.

 

On the other hand, that was the exact reason why I decided to show support for Chris.

We had a tango the other month but I believe he is within his rights to post aa design for comments. One must move on in life otherwise it becomes awfully tedius living in the past.

I cant draw for toffee but I´d be a proud man the day I designed a yacht and posted it on here and invited comments.

 

Maybe we can ask Jeff to clean this thread up a bit and continue on the tri ?

 

Jamez, RHP...

I agree with you completely in your comments above. That is exactly why I have taken the steps to "clean-up" my commentary to Doug on this Forum. There is more powerful energy going on within this list than my indulgence in an unnecessary dust-up as one might have in the bar after sailing. I deeply appreciate the kindness I have been shown here in spite of some of the "issues" I have brought to the table in the past.

My most sincere thanks to all who have contributed to this Beach Tri Thread. Your comments have sparked a new set of ideas for me and hopefully, that process will lead to an improvement in the work I am looking to do.

 

I withdraw my previous suggestion on the folding of the ama's. This is better and will work easier.

The two sidebeams are hinged in the hull centre. Sorry about the sleek shapes there but it's just to indicate the principle.

The tri can be launched with the arms up (ama's tucked in). Once in the water, the top of the beams are pushed down and the ama's spread themselves out. The beams can be located by a veriety of ways to stay in one place. This can be done before launching too if the trailer allows it.

The way this works currently both ama's are getting in place at the same time, and it should take about 15 seconds to get them down or up.

Each beam half gets two arms that forms a V with from the joint with the beam to the hull to keep the ama's from getting pushed foreward or aftward during folding, so each beam has two guide arms, one foreward and one aftward to form the V. The left and right beams being connected by a hinge makes the folding balanced and both sides works together as one.

 

My tri's BOA is 4m, this allows me to fold it in to about 1m800 (easy fit any trailer) and height is just over 2m on the trailer. The trampoline stays in place. The front and rear arms when up could also be made to hold the mast, maybe in a sling.

 

My one friend that was here earlier suggested that by partly raising the beams when it rains (it's raining here ) you can pull a sail over to make a tent to sit under. I thought it was a cool idea.

Just note that the hull can rotate some when the beams are partly up. This could be contained by using a short rope to pull on both sides when the beams are lowered or raised.

 

How about this ?

 

......and you get a fat lass to sit across the join?

How does that work Fanie?

 

Hi RHP,

A couple of skinnier than fat lassies is certainly a tempting option

In my case the beams folds into the center hull so they are about flush with the deck. If one drill two holes per side horizontally through the beam and the beam gutter (under the deck) you can stick pins in there to hold them in place, or from the top you can bolt them into place, or you can use a rope tied to the beams to pull them into the hull and tie down there, or you can have studs protruding down from the beams where you can turn nuts or whingnuts on from below, or you can make a clip that folds over the beam that holds them down... and I'm sure I missed a couple.

I have bolts to bolt the beams down currently, but I find them a pain because of the time it takes to turn them in. I get no kick out of the assembly process, I want the setup to be done in a minute or two and go off.

I think the pins will be quicker and easier. Cannot take much longer than 10 seconds to stick a pin in there, so 40 seconds. You get some of which the one end has a 90 deg in it and the other end has an off-center swivel pin. The swivel pin hangs down and both it's ends hooks when you try to pull it out. You have to allign the pin and the swivel pin to pull it out.

 

Fanie;237392]How about this ?[/QUOTE]

Fanie - this is the Farrier designed folding arms - which is now out of patent as wonderfully described in a previous link.

Except in yours, the cross beams magically grow longer to form the apex.

have you not had a look at the Farrier design before ?

 

My beams are connected in the centre, the farriers gets lowered either side independent. The Farriers also have a double arm system. Nothing wrong with them though, I think they work ok.

Well, I'm going to build that magically grow longer in a couple of days

Print, then use your old school ruler to check the lengths are the same.
I've cadded it up, the fiberglass and the other stuff arrived yesterday. I have some things to finish for a few customers then I'm onto it.

A-hand, I've made a little model of the arms. Magic in it too

 

Oh yes - now I see it. I didnt look closely enough.

The downsides that spring to mind (because I am a contrary *******), is that you will have to take the boom off if the arms "happen" under it, and the cabin will need a groove through the middle. ( if you have a cabin happening ). But other than that, it should do the trick.

Look forward to seeing the piccies

 

I love these folding mechanisms, one thing you may not have considered is that your drawings show the frame folding in a symmetrical manner, i.e. the central joint in the beam is always moving vertically above the centerline of the boat, however there is nothing to stop that central joint from moving off the vertical centerline and the hulls from flopping about. Possibly why Farrier didn't join them in the middle.

edit .... I suppose in hindsight the weight and bouyancy of the hulls will keep them in the same plane (at the waterline) and will help to keep the mechanism quite symmetrical.

All the best

Gareth

 

Fanie - this is the Farrier designed folding arms - which is now out of patent as wonderfully described in a previous link.

Except in yours, the cross beams magically grow longer to form the apex.

have you not had a look at the Farrier design before ?[/QUOTE]


You mean Farrier used the fat lass method as well?

Get it patented fast Fanie and you´ll make millions!