My Folding Catamaran

Discussion in 'Multihulls' started by billgow, Feb 17, 2012.

  1. billgow
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    Location: Flagstaff, AZ

    billgow Junior Member

  2. Manie B
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    Manie B Senior Member

    jeez I am getting shy
    the lady in the swimsuit keeps on looking at me
    does she ever turn around :eek:

    ok no jokes anymore
    folding mechanisms are complex and bulky for this application
    carbon fibre and what not space age materials - folding is complex
    once your "dream" has been under the hands of an engineer the lady in the swimsuit wont have any place to stand

    let the pro's advise
    my 2 cents
    learn CAD
    dont waste time on pretty pics
    you need a seriously qualified person to help with the design
    when thats done you can draw pretty pics
    maybe a bikini next time ;)

    good luck - you are going to need it
     
  3. spidennis
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    spidennis Chief Sawdust Sweeper

    subscribed!

    and looking to see what you do.
    Your sketches were something to think about concerning my folding system.
    Mine is much smaller, less complex and easier to build and operate, I hope anyway!

    As for the naysayers, they come and they go, same old story. Water off a ducks back! but sometimes there's something to consider but usually already has! they are just farther behind curve .......
     
  4. Richard Woods
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    Richard Woods Woods Designs

    Have you seen the Crowther designed Mike Bell built Shockwave 38??

    What's different about your boat that would encourage people to buy it?? Not many bought Mike Bell's boats

    Richard Woods of Woods Designs

    www.sailingcatamarans.com

    currently at the HPCC on Lake Havasu
     
  5. spidennis
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    spidennis Chief Sawdust Sweeper

    According to this link the Shockwave is not a folding cat, just one to disassemble in 8 hours!
     
  6. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    This one? http://www.usedboatshub.com/view_boat_details.php?Stock=4445

    It looks like it may be demountable but says nothing about folding.

    Have fun at the Convention! What did you bring with you?
     
  7. Richard Woods
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    Richard Woods Woods Designs

    I don't think the folding will add enough appeal and will certainly add weight and cost. Getting a 55ft mast up without a crane seems daunting to me

    It's always the rig that limits the trailer-ablility, not the hull assembly

    The title of the video is Pocket Cruiser. Doesn't look like any pocket cruiser I've ever seen. And for those who don't know, the HPCC in my signature above stands for the Havasu Pocket Cruiser Convention. There are 195 pocket cruisers here right now. All can be/have been launched unaided down a rough beach into a foot of water, usually by an elderly couple.

    Richard Woods of Woods Designs

    www.sailingcatamarans.com
     
  8. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    She's got good taste in men!

    No interest in CAD or doing the final working plans for my boat. I just want the boat! I fully intend to hand this project off to a qualified designer and builder when the time comes to actually build her.

    Thanks for the well wishes, I can always use luck!
     
  9. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    I'd love to see what you came up with!

    My inspiration was Cat2Fold. Rafi's concept has worked out very well and C2F is currently in Mexico on an extended voyage. Her new owner is thrilled with her and she's holding up beautifully.

    I'm committed to this concept so I won't be put off very easily. I have some time before I can actually pull the trigger on something like this so now is the time to make changes! I'm all ears..... :p
     
  10. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    That's the same one I found and it doesn't look like a folder to me.
     
  11. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    That's where the trailer comes in. It does have an extension in the tongue that converts into a crane for this reason as well as helping to assemble the top. This extension also slides out to make the trailer almost twice as long for getting into shallow water, sandy beaches, mud, etc.

    I don't expect assembling this boat to be the kind of thing you do every weekend. I figure it's worth the trouble say half a dozen times a year or so. That's why it has to fold up to a 3 to 1 shape - to fit into a conventional slip. The trailer also expands to accept it in this configuration so you can keep it on the hard when not in use.

    I know where you are, I'm in Flagstaff. ;)
     
  12. spidennis
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    spidennis Chief Sawdust Sweeper

    here's youtube videos of my two models at work:
    While everyone here seems to have all that great computer modeling software
    I don't so have to rely on real models which I find very helpful.
    Remember this is a 16' beach cat,
    and I consider this to be a pocket cruiser/racer.
    I gather everyone has a different sized "pocket"?



    You can't really see it in this video of my model#2
    but I have the hinge points on this model to better help me see the folding operation at work
    I'm now looking into the details about exactly how I'm going to do this and secure it all.



     
  13. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    OK, sure. You responded to my SA post last night. I've seen those on YouTube before. I did a lot of searching while dreaming this one up! Your bridgedeck moves forward kinda like mine does.
     
  14. spidennis
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    spidennis Chief Sawdust Sweeper

    It is VERY surprising the number of views I've had on these videos, for what I thought would be an obscure kind of thing. I guess there's plenty of folk out there looking for a folding boat? so it seems! There also plenty that think it can't be done, not worth being done, or is a "has been" , etc., etc. . That's ok, not their cup of tea and they are happy with what's out there and what they got stuffed in their slip, that's all fine. Then there are those of us that want more and willing to go out and try something to achieve our end goals.
     

  15. billgow
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    billgow Junior Member

    I really wanted to just buy a cat out of the charter fleet but none of them were what I really wanted - too many compromises. I finally sat down and thought of all the things I wanted and started drawing by hand. I also set up plywood walls in my garage to get a feel for interior spaces, etc. I wanted to see if I could get what I wanted into a shipping container later on. Originally, I was at 36'X8.5' on the trailer. Getting down to a shipping container size really slimmed her down!

    The style was always in my head, open bridgedeck, warm weather use only, lots of solar panels, latest battery technology, high performance... I've been around boats a lot. No one (statistically) goes vary far in them or goes for very long. I quickly discounted the huge water tanks, hundreds of gallons of fuel, massive storage spaces... I don't need them. I can ship my boat from Long Beach California to Sydney Australia for about $5,000. Why bother sailing all the way out there? I can spend the fall in the Sea of Cortez, winter along the Central American coast and spring in Panama and instead of fighting all the way back to California against the tide, just shove her into a shipping container and be done with it.

    There is one thing I intend to do with my boat very few other sailors attempt - big game fishing. I'm not talking about dragging a cedar plug around while I'm sailing. I mean I'll be shoving off with the express intention of fishing for marlin, sailfish, tuna, etc. That's another reason for all the power. It takes a lot of power to keep livewells and tuna tubes going along with everything else. I believe Brian Eiland haunts these forums and he's got a great idea for a sportfisher/catamaran. It's a little over the top for me, though. Some day, I'd like to enter an offshore fishing tournament in my catamaran. I just have to get the crazy idea of racing back to the dock at the end of the day out of the promoters heads...
     
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