A guy here has already built a 12 inch tri,has only been sailed once and still needs a little sorting …but it looks promising.
Brett
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Brett’s comment got me to thinking, and as usual, the idea of something new is always exciting… so, how about a <font color=“blue”><u>“Tri-Footy”</u></font id=“blue”> ?
Was going through garage (quickly - it is -14F degrees today) and saw a couple of pieces of expanded foam. Paused long enough to grab and photograph. Is this a functional effort? Will it sail? Will it be able to be controlled? Will it be stable? How will it fair against a normal Footy - if there is such a thing?
Josh’s i[/i] effort with is 28 inch trimaran along with Brett’s comment made me think perhaps it needs to be investigated. Do I need to go paneled sails? Should I include a bow-sprit with shore rigged asy-spinnaker? What do I use for rudder and winch controls? How tall of a mast? What building materials? Do I need a weighted keel - or will it be just too darn light to even sail? Am I crazy?
Well - guess I will expend a few night’s effort to find out. So - here is “The Start”.
<center>Let’s see what happens. [:-banghead][8D]</center>
The visible yellow on the tape measure is final “Footy” size.
i like the idea dick
go and run with it. the biggest problem i have with the multi hulls are they are soo damm big. and for most of us. that is a problem. the IOM is the biggest we can handle. this footy tri . might be a good thing
cougar
long live the cup and cris dickson
hey dick go for it , what can you lose,at least you will have some fun with it. I think you could use a mast that is about 24 inchs tall as for the rest of the Q’s do what you have to do to make it work
May be a good winter excercise just to keep your hand in but i wouldn’t expect it to be all that successful sailing. However, it could be a good way to look at new idea’s.
Rig size will need to be down to around 16- 18" maximum otherwise it will just turtle. Some weight in a keel will help this but not to much. Servo control is going to be the biggest problem so maybe just go with a rudder servo and set the sails for reaching, at least then you can go sailing with not adding to much weight and small AA batteries(or equivalent) could be used.
Building for me has yet again been put on hold with a very painful infection swelling my foot to twice it’s size.
As for the boat so far. It is progressing well and the new owner is jumping out of his skin waiting for it. Expected date of arrival to him is March and hopefully he will be happy with what he get’s.
Peter -
sorry to hear abouth the foot. I well know how health problems can wreak havoc on the life and hobby interests. Get well.
Actually - I first thought that the infection came from too much swimming/wading after the multihull of yours! [:D] Hopefully all will be well shortly. Take care.
Some rough spec of the tri footy sailing over here…
beam is also 12inches.
main hull is 60mm wide…width determined by servo width not hull science.
floats or ama’s or whatever you guys call them are assymetrical and approx 25mm wide…they are also 12inches long…all connected together with light 4.5mm alloy tubes.
a standard sort of rudder on the main hull…no keel at all.
all up weight RTS is 150grams.
rig is 500mm high with high aspect square tipped sails…a bit of foam on the masthead does its job as well:)
first impressions are good speed but mast position wasn’t correct…so boat is back at the “yard” for modifications…no news on when its next outing will be.
I would be concerned (and think) that without a bit of weight creating displacment, and without a keel, there would be a tendency to be blown sideways when trying to sail to windward.
Thanks for the dimensional information. Looks close to my ideas, as I was going to go with a square platform - or perhaps one that might only be 10 inches wide. Are they using a winch - or do they have main “tied off” for close reaching and footing upwind - using radio only for steering?
well the idea was the floats being assy would help with pointing, like a hobie cat I guess. No problem to add a keel strut if needed.
What do you mean no weight…this thing weighs 150g…a bit heavy in my opinion.
It uses 2 micro servos for steering and sail control…3 AAA bats power it all up.
You will need sail control for sure,you won’t sail one of these little boats without all the control avalible!!! not for raw begineers.
What a great hobby… As you folks get proto-type boats built up I would appreciate seeing pictures, even if the boat is in dry-dock waiting refiting.
I’m curious about the use of EPS as the hull. Will you be covering the eps with a layer of fiberglass??? I have been playing with Depron foam and have been looking for a cheaper materail.
I have been playing more and more with my Footy’s. Now it looks like I need to build a tri-hull too…
Rick
Rick
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Fairwind Web site: http://Fairwind900.Home.Comcast.Net/
Preliminary tests indicate that I may have to scrap out the expanded foam in favor of the extruded type.
Expanded foam (little bubbles squashed together) just doesn’t like any kind of sanding/shaping. I can use a hot-wire to cut my sections, but trying to fair off a hull with coarse sandpaper just is a mess and the little bubbles want to rip out. Only benefit was the super light weight. Extruded foam (house insulation) is much easier to work, shape and sand smooth - at a heavier weight.
Been too blasted cold to visit garage and bandsaw - so if we get a warm-up (above 25 degrees (F) I will give the wite foam one more chance. If it doesn’t work - will advise when I drop back to the heavier weight stuff.
I love the idea of a tri footy and will be avidly watching for more information. I started to build larger Tri from plans suggested by Dick Lemke but that fell through for various reasons. If you get some plans that work fairly well I would appreciate them as my experience with multihulls is nil. Bill Young AMYA Open Class Secretary.
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