New Motor/Kite Tunnel Cat Being Tested in Brazil

[Don Brunton]

Hi,
My name is Don Brunton. I'm about to begin testing the Kite System on the "Harpoon I", a 20 ft. Tunnel Cat of my own design here off the coast of Ilhabela, Brazil. The boat's primary propulsion consists of twin 60 hp Mercury 4 stroke outboards. It features a secondary Kite system incorporated as a part of the boat's design. I would welcome any constructive input during this learning phase I'm about to go through.

 

[gonzo]

Can you post some photos or line plans?

 

[Don Brunton]

I have jib tracks, #6 winches and jam cleats mounted on re-enforced regions along the rails. The jib tracks will allow the anchoring of the steering bar in combinations both fore and aft of the boat's pivotal center.

Also, I have a removable rudder mounted between the engines that works connected to the hydraulic steering with engines up (or down with engines operating as aux. power) or steered manually by tiller.

 

[Munter]

This is a very unusual combination. The massive motors on the back are not a common feature on sailboats due to the high drag that will inevitably result when sailing but as we don't really know what your objectives for the project are you can't really be too critical. What is the purpose of the kite rig? Is it just emergency back-up? If it is more than just emergency use, what are the performance targets for the kite? I can't imagine that it would be able to make the boat plane so it will be operating in displacement mode while kiting.
An interesting project - please keep the updates coming as you develop it.