Long term survival boat ideas

I stand in amazement looking at Wharrams,--holding back a chuckle that I fear coud easily turn into a full belly laugh.

I had a friend obsessed by them and he bought one ,--surveyed by Warram himself who fle out to see it.

He started repairing it and it was rotten as a carrot. It finally broke up on the beach at Ko Samui.

Im not sure if he is still equally as enthusiastic about them.

Ive seen kids build better looking rafts. Oh Ive started laughing now.

 

My understanding is that the Wharram concept was to allow flex in the hulls, as the cross beams were tied to the hulls by lashings...

Present 'normal', is to have a very stiff structure, so both hulls behave as one - with MINIMAL twist/flex or movement, being one rigid structure... - - - - Which I also favour and prefer... - - - 'CNO' has minimal twist when held statically, (on hard stand), by diagonal corners there is no noticeable, (less than an eighth of an inch), twist or movement evident in the suspended ends...

 

Yes Masalai, that is exactly the concept of the Wharram designs and despite the usual negativity from "you know who," hundreds of these boats have travelled the world in complete safety. I investigated the designs fairly carefully at one time and only rejected them due to the rather cramped living space in the hulls, when at that time I wanted more comfort for a family.

Bad workmanship using poor materials should not be confused with bad design

Alan

 

I was Wharrams North American agent for several years.
Unfortunately his overweening Ego was his own worst enemy.
Myself (and lots of others) parted company from him in ugly circumstances.
That said, his original design concepts were (and still are), sheer genius.
I sold more of his plans than any others, because, like Arthur Piver he could write and talk in a very convincing manner, and he followed that up with ACTION, building and sailing his own designs to prove their ability.
I would wager that Wharram and Piver between them introduced more people to the joys of building and sailing their own boats than any other designers, to this day.
We built several Wharram designs, but our most successful was a 51ft Tehini. The owner (a movie producer) insisted on having a structural engineer specify steel I beams, which were securely bolted to the re-inforced gunnels of the hulls, in a very rigid manner. This made the whole boat very stiff and it was able to support a modern marconi rig without any understays. It became a very fast and controllable sailboat. Wharram sailed on it in 1976 but didn't comment on the alterations to his design.
Like Piver he didn't think his designs needed "Improving".
I think his 46ft ORO was an ideal "Gettaway boat" and I very nearly built one for myself.

 

QUOTE=masalai;594963 My understanding is that the Wharram concept was to allow flex in the hulls, as the cross beams were tied to the hulls by lashings...
/QUOTE

Oh --is that what they call it -- very techniocal.

I am criticized for criticizing then the critic criticizes the accommodation for being insufficient,


There is a little more wrong with a Wharram than insufficient accomodation.

Forum protocol prevents me from telling you what I really think of them but does extend to me the right to criticize.

 

"There is a little more wrong with a Wharram than insufficient accomodation."

Frosty I would really like you to expand on that.
Criticisim is very acceptable if it helps others to understand.

 

Its tied together with string, Its got tiny seperate cabins that is impracticable in rain where hacthes have to be shut and are claustrophobic. I the tropics you have no where to go you are burned. It has no engine or room for one, some owners with minimalistic tendancies come up with car engines and long tails.

Its ugly cheap and has no appealing shape. its for people desperate to get to sea without having the means, but mostly it is the lack of shade--in a case of serious sun burn this will wipe the smile off your face in no time, if you have a face left and you not lying on the deck (little deck) dehydrated no matter what you drink. It is mostly admired by the minimal cost to get shear boat footage for the buck.

I think they should be banned from use and I am amazed the American coast guard allows them on the water.



If there anything else I can help you with ??

 

Yes there is, but in the interests of good manners, I shall refrain from spelling it out in full. Why not try - just occasionally - to present some positive aspects as well as the negatives of whatever subject you believe to be within your level of expertise

As Old Sailor says, the Wharram designs have allowed a vast number of wannabe sailors to build a boat and get onto the water. They will discover for themselves the shortcomings of these, (or typically most other designs) then move onto something else if they so choose. Most of us start with something simple, or maybe just affordable. I once "inherited" a 30' Piver tri with a drug running history where the guys who bought it from Customs lost interest and literally gave it away. I sold it for next to nothing a few weeks later to a young couple who fixed it up and sailed it around Australia. Do you think they cared about the poor accommodation, third-hand sails and amateur workmanship? It allowed them to live their dream.
That is what sailing should be all about.

 

'Cause he is a grumpy pommy mechanic/engineer who seems to delight in drinking cheap, (as opposed to overpriced mouth-wash that is often more expensive than fuel or pretend water) local beer in Thailand... - - and that is the way he sees it and calls it - - and always has - Cant you handle upfront 'honesty" which I seem to recall was requested? - If one does not agree or approve - then do not reply - as one has the right to in a society where 'freedom of expression, is supposedly allowed? - or 'So he had a heavy night and is still recovering... - - - Sheesh? - - - - - - - As a 'bushie in Australia' I thought /expected that you may be a little more accepting of a gruff manner?

 

The Wharrams do offer deck pods with shade for their new and old designs now as well as updated beam systems using the lashings and modern synthetic line. The classics can still be built with the bolt and rubber bushings, some owners have used fixed box beams with good results. They aren't as roomy down below as bridge deck boats, the idea is to build a longer length for the room you need and get better sea performance. There are faster boats and roomier boats out there but none as simple to build. If it comes down to survival many things go by the wayside. Ultimately it makes the most sense to build or by the boat you want for the majority of your sailing needs, if it is a good cruiser you'll be able to survive just fine.

 

I had some experience with Wharrams
I built a Tane in the late 60's. Under-rigged when compared to the Piver Dart Amistad with which I was familiar. Neither boat had an engine and we got by. In a calm either boat could be paddled with an 8' oar. With anything resembling a breeze they sailed. If you ran aground you were in less than 18" of water. They were light enough that unless you ran them aground at speed they were easily pushed or kedged off once relieved of the weight of the crew. Someone wanted the Tane more than I and I sold her without having sailed many miles.

A couple years later I helped sort out a 51' Tehini during sea trials. Again no engine. They used the tender with a smallish outboard to tow her out of the canal where she was kept, then only sails. She handled O.K. but did everything very slowly. In Long Island's Great South Bay it was a trick to sail east down the bay, south, then west, then south to get out Fire Island inlet. She was a big slow handling boat in narrow, shallow channels. I thought she'd do just fine if she got down to the Caribbean, as was the plan.

I lived on a 27' Swedish Vega for 10+ years. I sold the engine early on and never had another. I put 25,000 or so miles on that boat and never wanted an engine enough to actually get one. One year I travelled on and off with a family on a 34' Tangaroa. The adults had one hull and the kids had theirs, they seemed happy enough with the boat. At Little San Salvador they anchored very close to the beach. Through most stages of tide you could step off the bow into less than waist deep water.

With slightly over 2' draft they could get into the small pond at high water and have shelter from all but the worst storms. I had to retreat to Georgetown or Eleuthera in those circumstances. With a tarp over the large, flat deck it was a nice gathering place.

I think several of Wharram's designs would make decent enough survival vessels, especially if you didn't need to sail in high latitudes. The simplicity would be an advantage if the world really did go to hell in a hand basket.

Probably not my first choice but if someone said my escape from the apocalypse would be a 26' to ~40' Wharram, I'd say thanks and be off.

 

The RNLI is a big sea resue system in UK with 100s of boats . They are maned by normal men like you and me ---well you.

These men leave there warm beds to go to sea and save lives, leaving their children that they may never see again because somee people think minimal is cool and they dont need engines and call mayday mayday because they cant handle it.

There is an MOT on cars to stop dangerous vehicles on the road. A Wharram needs taking away.

 

This view is inconsistent with your engineering of your own exhaust system from plumbing pipe not rated for high temperatures.

 

You are like my wife --cant stay on one thread yeah, but but you you, but.


Post that on the correct thread and I will respond.

 

I seem to recall someone in either Darwin (with reference to the annual 'beer-can-regatta'), or, was it a resident pom suggesting that people should continue to be 'allowed to put to sea in a bathtub' if that was their objective/intention/ambition and sink or whatever under their own 'authority... - in other words, recognise that you go to sea at your own risk...

There is too much expectation that someone will come and save some useless idiot that should have been left to drown... The modern 'Nanny-State' has a lot to answer for, when it comes to spending millions in otherwise valuable resources to look after the stupid idiots and suicide capable individuals who take risks beyond all normal reason - - Let them die and if they survive and another person needlessly dies, charge them with negligent homicide reversing the burden of proof......