Gunboat G4 with UptiP Foils

Discussion in 'Multihulls' started by Doug Lord, May 12, 2014.

  1. Doug Lord
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    Doug Lord Flight Ready

    G4

    I don't think it's the best option for everyone, but it's cool that Gunboat may offer the option to a few who want it. Many "cruising" boats just sit in marinas, maybe with the UptiP foils the excitement of foiling would inspire owners to use it more often? And more speed on a cruise seems like a good thing to me. The improved ride quality over a seahugger is another point in the foilers favor.
     
  2. Doug Lord
    Joined: May 2009
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    Location: Cocoa, Florida

    Doug Lord Flight Ready

    Gunboat G4

    According to catsailingnews the first G4 has been pulled. Interesting that the renders showing the UptiP foils(below) are not shown on the catsailingnews page or on the Gunboat G4 page today: http://www.gunboat.com/series/gunboat-g4
    So they've apparently backed off the idea of a full flying foiler and are going with foil assist with "C" foils?

    http://www.catsailingnews.com/
     

    Attached Files:

  3. Corley
    Joined: Oct 2009
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    Location: Melbourne, Australia

    Corley epoxy coated

    It appears that they are making tooling for the L type foils I guess we will have to wait and see :). A teaser photo from Peter Johnstone.
     

    Attached Files:

  4. Doug Lord
    Joined: May 2009
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    Location: Cocoa, Florida

    Doug Lord Flight Ready

    G4

    Corley,where did you find that? Nevermind -I saw it on SA. Said he got it from Gunboats' facebook page.
     
  5. RHough
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    Location: BC Summers / Nayarit Winters

    RHough Retro Dude

    Cruising boats don't get dry sailed. There is no practical way to keep the bottom and foils clean enough to foil on a cruising boat that lives in the water. My personal experience is that my boat requires a professional diver to clean the bottom every three weeks and that the bottom paint be sprayed on and sanded to a minimum 600 grit finish.

    I suspect the hydrodynamic requirements for a foiling boat will bee even more expensive/labour intensive.

    Neat boat and they will sell everyone they build. But as a practical cruiser I think the challenges are many and the solutions expensive.
     
  6. Doug Lord
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    Location: Cocoa, Florida

    Doug Lord Flight Ready

  7. RHough
    Joined: Nov 2005
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    Location: BC Summers / Nayarit Winters

    RHough Retro Dude

    That boat didn't foil with the normal 2-3 week growth of crap from living in the water in the tropics. I'll bet real money that the hulls and foils were squeaky clean at the start of any passage. Not common for the average cruiser that beaches their boat and paints with a roller at low tide because yards are "too expensive".

    The amount of trash in the oceans has increased exponentially since the 1970's when that boat sailed.

    960 miles in 6 days is only 160 miles a day and a 6 2/3 knot average speed. About the same as a much more comfortable and practical 45ft mono.

    The foils obviously come out of the water for maintenance and cleaning. A feature the gunboat does not have.

    I think the boats are cool. I like sailing fast. As far as being practical for cruising I don't think so.

    Powered hydrofoil boats never cam to local marinas either. Both face practical challenges that average boat owners just won't put up with.

    Cheers,
    Randy
     
  8. groper
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    groper Senior Member

    I agree, however the problem of marine growth is easily solved... It's not impractical to design foils that can be completely up hauled clear of the water when not in use.... I'm not sure if the g4 has this ability - it would seem not???
     
  9. Corley
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    Corley epoxy coated

    I'd imagine the "C" foil version could be removed through the top of the case.
     
  10. daiquiri
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    daiquiri Engineering and Design

    Provided that there is a sufficient clearance between the foil and the casing, and that the boat wasn't moored in a tropical marina for too long. Once the barnacles start to grow, they grow at an impressive rate.
     
  11. Moggy
    Joined: Feb 2011
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    Moggy Senior Member

    I just want to see a 40' boat with a cabin fly! We can fix the other issues later... lets just applaud the pushing of the envelope with OPM!
     
  12. daiquiri
    Joined: May 2004
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    Location: Italy (Garda Lake) and Croatia (Istria)

    daiquiri Engineering and Design

    Then you just have to buy one Gunboat G4 and make it fly. So simple.
     
  13. LP
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    LP Flying Boatman

    Reminds me of these lyrics:

    "Some will die in hot pursuit in fiery auto crashes.
    Some will die in hot pursuit while sifting through my ashes.
    Some will fall in love with life and drink it from a fountain
    That is pouring like an avalanche, coming down the mountain.

    http://youtu.be/-tGvm-Q9T3U
     
  14. Corley
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    Corley epoxy coated

    In most cases you can withdraw the C foil above the waterline and case maintenance is similar to daggerboards. L/uptip foils are going to be a problem maybe you could store the boat on a large hydrohoist. Either that or you are going to be doing a lot of swimming to keep the slime off the boards. To call the G4 a cruiser is a bit of a stretch I imagine the few (cashed up) owners who buy them will use them more as a coastal racer and return to base in a marina.

    In my thoughts in the big picture it's really all a bit irrelevant the cruising catamarans that really sell are what most people here would consider thoroughly unexciting like Fountaine Pajot's and Lagoons all fitted with mini keels.
     

  15. Corley
    Joined: Oct 2009
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    Location: Melbourne, Australia

    Corley epoxy coated

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