Don -
thanks for clarification - you indeed are a BIG man! Your 1.2 meter looks the size of my 1 meter when being carried!
I also think it suffice to say that multihull sailing (and it’s possible retrieval) can be most entertaining and exciting.
Dick, did you ever get your One Meter “Impulse” dialed in? I started building one (completed the foam plugs) from sections you sent me a while back, but got side-tracked on restoring a P-19 and have been on the water sailing every chance I could. Now that I almost have it the way I want it, I want to get back to the Tri.
Jack
Hi Jack - Well - yes & no !
It was shortly after completing the boat in late 2004 that I had my stroke, so for a good part of a year, there was little work done on it.
Then at work, several co-workers got bitten by the r/c sailing bug and wanted something easy to build - and cheap for first boat. They selected the PeaPod. I had mine already built and was happy with their choice. Rather than spend time fabricating a radio board, I was easily able to remove the 1 Meter’s system and slide into the PeaPod. Now that winter arrived, for the heck of it I put the PeaPod sails on the 1 Meter and headed for the pond. Somewhere between storage and this fall, two hull cracks appeared that need attention, as they are below the waterline and are letting too much water into the main hull. My plan (Ha) had been to simply smear some epoxy on the two spots and go sailing. That solution was too easy. The wonderfully warm winter we were having gave way to ice at the pond, a purchase of a new home by daughter with interior painting by “DAD” and am now working to finish a new breeding stall in the barn for her show horse who is supposed to foal near the end of this month. Darn priorities !
Once the stall is completed - just door to hang and insulation in the walls - I can get back to the 1 Meter and get it ready for a spring launch.
We are scheduled for -7 degrees here this weekend (and -35 degree wind chill) so thoughts of a cold garage are easily overcome by a warm family room, a few drinks and munchies and the Superbowl on Sunday. Just to keep me from too much enjoyment, there is a grandson’s hockey tournament to go to this weekend too. Imagine, coming INTO a hockey arena to get warm ! Ha Ha ! 
I will get back to work on the 1 Meter though. I have still photos, but want to get some video to show performance possibilities. Please don’t follow my lead. 
a pea pod i still got one half built in my shed i thinbk i need to finnish it i got as far as the hull and deck then got sidetracked as you do lol.why did i start? just simply because i liked the looks of it.
Well Dick, its too late. My wife has me stripping wallpaper and painting too, so I’m looking for anything that I can do so I can turn this job over to her. Geez, I thought I was busy. I guess what I’m driving at is, would you change anything concerning the hull sections, having sailed your boat, before I proceed further?
Jack
If I had float sections cut, but not glued up, I would add about 1/2 inch more thickness (width) to each section in the forward 2/3 of the float. The original idea works, but not much reserve there - so a bit wider by 1/2 inch times the length of about 20 + inches would give quite a bit of added buoyancy and still not make the floats look “strange”. The main hull works fine with it’s tall bow, and I’ve even thought of taking one and using it for a superslim 1 Meter monohull - just add a keel and bulb. Not much deck width for shrouds, however, so would need to add some deck spreaders much like some of the Volvo boats did to allow shrouds wide enough.
All-in-all, the penned design didn’t miss too much, but there is always room to tinker a bit. The board is quite far back, so maybe sliding the mast back a bit would also help with any bow-down floatation issues too. I was originally trying to get away from the bow being depressed deeply in every gust and in medium air I seem to have managed it. When a big gust hits, it still has that tendency however, although there was a very quick transition from bow-down trying to pitchpole to a sideways capsize. I think the narrow main hull has provided the low drag to let acceleration take place which results in less pitchpole tendencies. Don’t get me wrong - inattention to the sticks will result in quick responses! And as always stay to the deep beam reaches downwind. I know it is easy to wing-and-wing dead downwind, but with a tall rig and no counterbalance lead, it is just a retrieval waiting to happen.
;):scared:
They are a hoot to sail, very forgiving, and wonderful to hand the radio over to someone for their first sailing experience. We all built to the modified design plans that were published, and currently there are 6 of us who get together to daysail, drink adult beverages, and tell lies !
If you don’t have gear yet - I recommend the big HiTech 815 winch. It has tons of power, is very quick, and will handle any load you give it at the PeaPod’s size. The huge width of the deck (it resembles and aircraft carrier) makes it pretty stiff and we all are amazed at the boat’s performance. I think I posted somewhere it would be fun to run it in a class of 36/600 boats in medium wind as I think it would surprise many of the “carbon” boats of that class. Of course, in light air, it is simply too heavy to be competitive with the “fabric” boats out there. As old of a design - (1976 I think) she still can kick up her heels in a fresh breeze! And at a cost of less than $150 it’s a dollar-for-dollar boat that is difficult to beat. A great kids building project too if the Footy gets too technical and weight sensitive to build.
Once you get it on the water, watch out for new folks who will want to know about it and building it. Where we are, the 1/8" (3mm) plywood is most difficult to find.
Hi Dick i built the hull from fibreglass shes quite lite ,i agree this thing is wide and i had read about her performance from a guy i got the plans from.I think ill try and get her done this year and let my son have her.The guy i got the plans from took 30 yrs to finnish his build lol!!I got sidetracked as you do on other things but it would be nice to get her afloat .Do you have any pics of your pea pod? i know its a bit off topic but it would be nice to see them cheers.
Was trying to keep this thread to build commentary of a multihull - so will start new thread - although I think there are some out there if you do a search.
Thanks Dick, That was the information I was looking for.
Jack
[b]Econo-maran POST #2
[/b]With a break due to cold weather, from horse stall construction and interior home painting, I was able to move on a bit with my experiment in economy building of a set of catamaran hulls. Slab sided, they will be capped (and bottomed) by shaped foam.
Here is the second post of the project :
2a) First photo is the glue-up (CA glue) of two sheets of 1/8 inch thick x 4 inch high x 48 inch long balsa. I used oversize paper clips to hold the balsa bow together while the CA glue dried. In keeping with the theme of economy, I am trying to use what a person might normally have - with exceptions to be as noted.
2b) This is the top view of the hulls after CA glue dried. Spreading apart the stern of the soon-to-be-hulls, gives an idea of the fine entry that is possible. Total thickness at the very bow is 1/4 inch - but by using a tapered block/spacer - one can vary the fineness of the bow considerably.
2c) Two spacer bulkheads have been cut and CA glued in place according to my idea of cross beam placement. The balsa is pulled together and held in place with packaging tape (it’s clear and hard to see) to hold the shape until the glue dries. This width is the widest part of the hulls - and measures 3-1/4 inches wide at each bulkhead. It is important these bulkheads are properly located to allow a point of secure fastening of each cross beam. For those wanting to emulate the build - the front bulkhead is located 26 inches back from the bow, while the stern bulkhead is located 40 inches back from the bow. Both are 4 inches high.
2d) A combined top / side view of the hull more easily identifies the general shape of the hulls at this point in the build. Eventually, the side view (profile) of the hulls will be cut to eliminate a lot of the windage from the rectangular slab sides. This will be seen later, and the cut will be made by bandsaw so both sides are cut identical - however a hacksaw blade or even a careful cut by Xacto will also reveal the finished side view of the hulls. Basically, the height of the bow will be maximum, but near the stern, the sides of the hulls may only be about 1-1/2 inches high.
Not visible in these photos is a 1/4 x 1/4 inch bow brace located approximately 15 inches back from the bow. This small brace is located where it provides a bit more shape and fullness to the bow at the point where the deck meets the slab sides. Once completed, the width of the hull at this point will be slightly wider than the waterline width which will provide a tiny bit of reserve buoyancy in case the bows submerge. Right now, I am hoping (?? - praying ??) the hulls will slice through waves with such a fine bow entry. Time will tell.
Next I will need to duplicate this step for the other hull (there are two ya know) and then I will be cutting and fitting the stern transoms for each hull. Following that, will be the layout of the side view profile and cut, then cut and shape the hull bottoms and decks. Insert hard points along hull for shrouds and cross beams, work out daggerboard trunks, rudder system and cross beam attachments.
While I hate/despise the look of radio gear above decks where the trampoline/crew should be - for this exercise, I am making an exception and radio gear will be waterproofed and mounted between the hulls. Right now I am thinking uni-rig (main only) but time will tell on that as I get closer. A jib can always be added to aid in tacking and downwind performance.
Dick,
Looking good! I’m looking forward to seeing future posts of the build, as I’m sure you’ll come up with a great result in the end.
The only thing I’m a bit confused about is the very narrow entry at the bow. Are you concerned about having sufficient buoyancy forward to avoid pitchpole potential? Or are you going for more of a “wave piercing” concept?
BTW, there must be a way to have the above deck control pod look not as bad as you state. After all, if form follows function, it can’t be all that BAD??
Bill
Hi Bill -
I guess I didn’t realize you had completed your trimaran ! Well done.
The shape of the “Econo-maran” hulls follows what I hope will resemble the NACRA Formula17 “real cat”. The hulls are very thin forward, but develop buoyancy rather quickly. I have taken the liberty to move the mast toward the rear a tiny bit more than the real boat and daggerboards will follow suit. A side view (below) is offered so you can see that the hull remains fairly flat, and then the rocker on the bottom of the hull kicks in (probably 2/3 toward rear). To visualize what I hope will be my result, I drew a straight line from bow to stern (YELLOW), anything above will be deck (foam) and anything below will be hull (foam) shaped to a semi-circular underwater shape that gets a bit flat toward the rear. This shaping will be done by eye, as NACRA was unwilling to share the design drawings. I do have the hi-res images of the boat so I can enlarge and scale from them if/where necessary. Between the yellow lines in third photo will be balsa sheet.
I am looking at going with a main only of moderate size - certainly not pushing the maximum sail area envelope. For a few fleeting moments, I toyed with the asy-spinnaker idea, but discarded for now due to engineering challenges. Besides, I’m trying to keep the design and build as economical and easy as possible so the excuse of not being able to build will be kept to minimums.
I certainly hope this will work out, and as for the “pod” - I have seen a few and the big drawback is battery holder and height of winch that must be taken into account. I think I will be using a HiTec 815 arm winch, since it has both speed and power. Remember, this will be 4 feet in length and just over 3 feet in width for the platform. Even being underpowered by only a main will still result in a fair bit of sail area sticking up into the wind.
Thanks, Dick. I had built that about 6-7 years ago (the photo has been on the old MultiOne website for some time). As you can see, the entry is also quite narrow, as it was a scaled down version of plans for a kayak based tri from Chesapeake Light Craft. Because of the “scaling effect” of volume decreasing exponentially to the 3rd power, it really never sailed very well. So it was a “lesson learned” & it now has been retired to display status in my living room.
That is why I commented on your hulls, but hopefully you won’t have a problem. Moving the rig aft as you suggest will certainly help.
Regards,
Bill
Completely irrelevant and a Long Wa-a-a-a-y Off Topic - here is a photo of the exterior of the stall just completed. Inside is done, but outside needs plywood on the side wall closest to camera on left. Hallway side is car-siding, and the insulation can be removed from behind the silver tube/bars which then becomes a window. Currently plywood covered and insulated waiting for baby to make it’s arrival.
Now - perhaps time to get back to the catamaran
Howzit Dick
My names Shaun i’m From South africa and 17 years old.
I race a Real cat called a Dart 18.
I’m interested in getting into RC sailing and i’d like to build my own cat, if possible could you send me some templates for the hulls?
What foam are you using for shaping the hulls?
Thnx Shaun RSA
Am a bit familiar with the Dart - but not a really popular boat up here in the US for some reason. Like the Stampede, it seems there are some around, but small pockets and mostly on the east and west coasts. The big brands are Hobie (of course) Nacra/Inter and Capricorn. Tornado is also a popular class but mainly because of ties with the Olympics.
We have three major multihull sizes that most (but not all) build to. 1 Meter, 1.2 Meter and 2 Meter. The 1.2 meter boats were the most popular, but it seems the 2 meter class is growing again in Europe. If you see class names “Mini40” or “F-48” they will be in the 1.2 meter range and are a pretty ambitious building effort. No production builders of any of the sizes that I know of. You can search the archives here and probably find links to two different 1.2 meter designs - the WATER RESIST from France and the GHOST TRAIN from the UK. For both, you will need to purchase some printer time at a local engineering printing shop, as a large format printer is needed for full size plans, cross hull templates, etc. These are big boats, and require a method to print CAD files in order to build. You can purchase plans from Traplett Publication in the UK by mail order, (probably around $13 in US funds) of the SNAPDRAGON which has been built many times and is a relatively easy-to-build design for a first boat. Finally, if you search other forums you may find free plans for home design boats. Most plans are line drawings of side, top and front views. Seldom will any kind of construction manual come with them - and trimarans are by far more popular than catamarans because you have a center hull in which to install radio gear, electronics and batteries. With a cat - you have to figure out how to split them into two hulls and balance the weights.
Also, if you search under the archives here, you should find a 3 page set of lines for a 1 Meter trimaran. Look for IMPULSE. The main hull is tall compared to most, but iit was designed to use as a single main hull of a trimaran, or make two and use as a catamaran configuration. Again, you will need to search for some of these. I do have printed plans for GHOST TRAIN, WATER RESIST, and even PULSE which was a late 1990’s UK Championship boat. I had them printed by a local Kinko’s but with their cost for three or four pages over 1.2 meters long, plus shipping, you are probably looking at close to $40 (US) just to get them to you. Better to download from the net and find a local printer - (perhaps school or local university will do them for you for cost of paper?) and put the money saved into the materials for the multihull. My 1 Meter design is just 3 letter size sheets in PDF format. It was designed to be constructed from foam and covered in glass.
I use home building insulation type foam. It is about 2 inches thick and comes in a large sheet about 1.2 meters in width and 2.4 meters in length. Up here, Dow Chemical makes a lot of it - but visit your local building center to see what they have. It has to be EXTRUDED type - not the white Expanded type. You can tell the difference in that the “wrong stuff” looks like little beads all pressed together. This will NOT sand or shape easily. The good stuff can be sanded, carved, etc. - Just don’t try to paint or use regular glues as they will “melt” the foam. Water based glues or epoxy will be fine. Polyester resin will turn your nice shaped hull into a piece for the junk bin.
If you can’t find any on-line links to the plans above, as a last resort try here - it isn’t a popular website but has some more building info as well as plan links. http://formula48.proboards13.com/
You can PM me for any questions - but I do ask you search archives since most (like these) have already been answered.
Good luck on the build.
Thnx Dick
Hobie’s are also popular here mainly the hobie 16 and the dart 18 are very popular, my dad used to race tornado’s hoping I can too but right now its a bit too much power!
I do have the plans for the Ghost Train, but I was thinking of maybe making a plug like you have in your econo-maran and from that get fiber glass hulls made from that.
As far as the radio gear goes i’m planning on putting it in the centre of the model.
Shaun
Dick ive been talking to a guy here in the uk and hes been experimenting with an old one metre hull and two floats to make a tri.he used pipe insulators for floats and flexi beams of 8 mm carbon he puts the floats forward of the main hull to counter pitch poling.hes sailed it in 35 mph winds with no pitching so it works.the beams are stiff enough to allow the boat to sail on one float but flexi enough to help when the water is very choppy.hers a pic of it
heres the pics of his boat,ive seen a video of it and it sails very well.