Wharram Tiki 26 on Orcas Island
The Wharram Tiki 26 is a true micro-multihull cruiser. It features the now classic Wharram attributes of plywood/epoxy construction, deep V hull, no keels or boards, lashed beams, open and high bridge deck, and the Wharram “wing sail” sloop rig. The design is probably the most popular of all Wharram’s boats, and several examples have crossed oceans in safety. Find this one here on Craigslist in Deer Harbor, WA, for $6000. If the boat…
1955 Time Machine - Woody Brown Catamaran
This is an interesting time capsule - a 1955 Manu Kai class 20’ catamaran, designed and built by the legendary Woody Brown. According to the seller, the original owner has passed away. He special ordered the boat direct from Honolulu and it was made specially for him. The catamaran has been stored inside and has not been used for years. From the included paperwork:
Manu Kai Catamarans are built to the highest construction standards by…
An original podcat
The 32’ Podcat was designed and built by D. Kirk Fuller in the late 1980’s. The iconoclast cat was featured in the March/April 1988 edition of Multihulls Magazine in a story written by Jim Brown. Apparently Jim and I were among the few who liked the design, because few, if any, were ever sold. Innovative in its day, the Podcat featured all composite construction with fiberglass truss beams and a carbon fiber free-standing mast. To…
Dock Ranger: David Barker Dream Cat
Whenever we drive by a marina, we almost always have to duck in and take a quick look, to see if there are interesting multis lurking about. It’s called walking the dock, and the online version is perusing Craigslist and brokerage ads. When we stumble upon something interesting, we’ll post it here as Dock Ranger.
Sundreamer is the iconic performance cruising cat designed by New Zealand artist David Barker, and built by he and Fiona…
Hydrofoil Cruiser
Paul Bieker has announced this interesting new design on the Biekerboats blog. The foils resemble what is quickly becoming the standard on high performance race boats such as the A-class. We don’t think the B53 is intended to completely fly both hulls with this set up - the foils reduce displacement and provide dynamic stability.
Introducing the B53 high-performance cruising cat, just beginning construction at Gold Coast Yachts in the…
Not Your AWB
Thomas Heatherwick explains a boat design commission to transport tourists and locals along the Loire river between Nantes and Saint-Nazaire.
Unlike a traditional two-hulled catamaran, the boat will have a single hull that folds back on itself and stretches over to form an infinite loop. This makes space for two diagonal viewing decks from which passengers can look out towards works of art along the river banks.
Thanks to Paul D. for…
Early Cat Racing in California
Before Steve and Linda Dashew became famous for their innovative blue water cruising yachts, both power and sail, they raced catamarans at the center of the growing multihull movement - Southern California in the early 60’s. Steve has put up a page at Set Sail with some great archival images of the catamaran racing scene back in the day. Rudy Choy, Warren Seaman, Bob Reese, Mickey Munoz, Phil Edwards, they knew and raced them all. Go…
The Life Pneumatic
I have a longstanding interest in pneumatic (pressurized) engineering structures. Blame it on Jacques Cousteau and his Zodiacs making a strong impression at an early age. For boats, inflatable hulls make all kinds of sense, being unusually light, strong, tough, and repairable. I even made a concept sketch of an inflatable hulled proa.
Here is Kurt Heiligenmann’s design for an inflatable beach cat - the Smartkat. Hate the name (I…
String Theory
Proving his iconoclast chops once again, Jan Gougeon launched his newest baby into the Saginaw River last summer - to cries of both shock and awe. I reported on the launch of Strings - or Project X - as she was formerly known, earlier, but we finally get a much better look at the fascinating vessel in the new Epoxyworks No. 33.
Strings is a 40’, folding, self-righting, water-ballasted, trailerable, sailing catamaran. She’s pod cat,…
James Wharram Designs Amatasi Launched
The team of James Wharram and Hanneke Boon launched their latest child, Amatasi, on Oct. 12, 2011. The award winning design, a 27’ double canoe is intended to be a practical and sustainable coastal fishing boat. As a proa designer, I certainly appreciate the elegance of the fine canoe sterns on this design, though I do find it somewhat ironic that it embraces the quarter rudder for steering, a design that harkens back to Viking long…
