trimaran build plans

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Intro Part 3—W17 Trimaran Build Manual & Plans

Here is the final Part 3 of intro articles on the new W17 Estuary Trimaran by naval architect Mike Waters. Designed to be home-built from plywood with epoxy/glass reinforcement, using a very simple 'ABC-System' that's detailed under Construction Methods.    Here is a rundown on what to expect from the plans.

First, here is a list of the 16-sheet package with their short title. Often, other parts are detailed on these sheets though not identified in the title given below. Dimensions are given principally in metric, though most scantlings (material sizes) are also given in imperial. Once you accept to adapt, you'll find metric is far easier to work with and 1 mm is a fine figure to measure to, being somewhat smaller than 1 ⁄ 16 ".

W17-01  Sail Plan - Cruise Rig

W17-01R Sail Plan - Race Rig W17-02  Main Hull W17-03  Main stempiece W17-04  Deck structures W17-05  Amas W17-06  Ama stempiece (full size) W17-07  Building Platform W17-08  Daggerboard Case W17-09  Deck Plan W17-10  Aft Beam (aka) W17-11  Forward Beam W17-12  Curved beam ends W17-13  Daggerboard, rudder etc. W17-14  Spade rudder (full size) W17-15  Fwd, beam fairing

Complete with the detailed BUILD MANUAL, they are now available on a data USB-Card as shown here.  Each card also holds a back-up copy of files.

Each sheet is 24" x 16" and all are elaborated by an extensively detailed Build Manual that not only explains how to prepare all the parts and best assemble them, but also gives tips and details on bonding and sheathing for best results and low weight.

The sample below is only a low definition image from one of the 16 sheets. The PDF images will be much better defined, of course.

The Build Manual takes the builder through each task, explaining the preferred order of work and adding helpful hints along the way. Scarfing, bonding and sheathing are all addressed and many sketches, such as the one shown here, added to illustrate the 117-page text of the updated and expanded v10. 2017 Edition of the manual, which now includes approx. 170 sketches and photos.

Overall, we think this makes a most attractive package as far as today's plans are concerned.

There are not many new designs out there that use light and readily available plywood yet succeed to combine it in a manner that still creates an attractive looking boat that will perform remarkably well in all conditions, and not take an eternity (or new, specialized skills) to complete. Sheathing in epoxy and glass will give the boat a useful life span, especially with covered storage. Should registered owners (you're 'registered' as soon as you buy the plans) have any questions during the construction, they will typically be able to get these answered within 48 hours (generally less), through an email address to be provided at time of purchase.

The other point of interest to many is that the boat is designed to carry an interesting wing mast that can be built at home. Wing mast designs are not so easy to come by and often sell for more than the cost of this complete set of plans. Although this Cruising Rig mast design is available as a separate item later on, it's currently available at a discount for registered W17 builders IF they agree to share pictures of their own W17 while under construction and at least half finished.

The Race Rig is best matched up with an 8m Wing Mast of carbon fiber and a highly detailed manual for home building this uniquely constructed mast is also available.  See here for CF WingMast.

The boat is also versatile in what it can do and where it can sail. It has enough space for cruising with 2, sailing with 3 or 4 up and has enough ama buoyancy to even fly the main hull when sailed solo and more lightly loaded, if that's your thrill. So this is a boat that will be exciting to sail and own, and prove to be a constant conversation piece, especially with its curved akas and wing mast.  Examples of the boat have also been extensively camp-cruised .   You just have to get started if you want to soon be part of the action.

CLICK here to order plans

As the designer has no control over final material used, quality of construction or conditions of final use, all Plan Purchasers will be asked to acknowledge a standard waiver, accepting personal responsibility for their own work, acknowledging that they build and sail this small boat entirely at their own risk.

Let me know if you have any questions that need to be addressed now.

Enjoy !… and feel free to send in specific questions via my Questions Form , that I may select to answer through this webpage if considered of broad interest.

"See the Copyright Information & Legal Disclaimer page for copyright info and use of ANY part of this text or article"

About Dick Newick

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Dick Newick

"People sail for fun and no one has yet convinced me that it's more fun to go slow than it is to go fast."

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Moxie in the Azores

"For this, his third attempt at the OSTAR, Weld had Dick Newick design him the trimaran Moxie. In design, construction and in every piece of equipment Moxie was built to win. Phil Weld knew what it took to race across the Atlantic - the boat and the man were made for each other."

"By breaking the barriers of both performance and acceptance, Dick Newick can be called the Chuck Yeager of multihulls" -- Jim Brown, Wooden Boat magazine, May 2008

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Farrier F32A - looking for Plans

Discussion in ' Multihulls ' started by Michael78 , Apr 26, 2023 .

Michael78 New Member

Hello, I am looking for complete building Plans for a Farrier F32A. It must be the narrow A Version, not the larger X. Please send massage to: [email protected] Best regards Michael  

waterbear Senior Member

Just out of curiosity: of all multihulls, why choose the Farrier F32A?  

John Perry Senior Member

waterbear said: ↑ Just out of curiosity: of all multihulls, why choose the Farrier F32A? Click to expand...

guzzis3 Senior Member

The avalon 9 is trailable at 8' and can be built in foam or ply. Ray Kendrick's plans are excellent! Stretching it would be trivial.  

John Perry said: ↑ Easy question - if you would like to build yourself a folding trimaran of that size that is road trailable and you dont want to draw your own plans I dont think you have a choice. The nearest alternative might be the Scarab32, which seems to be a near copy of the F32 but is not road trailable without a wide load permit. Click to expand...

The scarab 32 is too wide to trailer in Queensland and I think much of Australia. Some claim you can get a wide load permit but I asked the authority here and was told straight up you can only pull a wide load with a heavy vehicle. Oversize in Qld is 2.9m. There is however 1 tremendous advantage to it's folding beams. It will fit a single berth in a marina. This isn't just a lot cheaper but you have a better chance of finding a spot when cruising. It also have a decent payload, a problem with a lot of tris. The Avalon 9 folds to 8' and you could stretch it to 9.9 if you really wanted to... Yep a lot of folding trimarans end up on hardstands but different people have different needs.  

powerabout Senior Member

Michael78 said: ↑ Hello, I am looking for complete building Plans for a Farrier F32A. It must be the narrow A Version, not the larger X. Please send massage to: [email protected] Best regards Michael Click to expand...

guzzis3 said: ↑ The scarab 32 is too wide to trailer in Queensland and I think much of Australia. Some claim you can get a wide load permit but I asked the authority here and was told straight up you can only pull a wide load with a heavy vehicle. Oversize in Qld is 2.9m. Click to expand...

powerabout said: ↑ The bonus was Farrier made the beams for you so I dont think there was ever any plans for them? The whole Farrier setup was for home build. Unfortunately he tried going into production of complete boats. Click to expand...

waterbear said: ↑ OP lives in italy No corsair/farrier owners here fold their amas in the marinas, they just pay extra for a wider berth. Why? I don't know. Click to expand...

Hello, I had two Farrier´s, an F22R with which I did some amazing trips, but it was too small for my wife and me (..no toilet..). After that I had an F32R, my absolute dream boat, it was incredible fast but unfortunately poorly built. Now I found a shipyard that would build me a F32A-R, so I'm looking for plans.. It is true that such a large boat cannot be trailered all the time. But it allows for a change of territory, winter storage in a dry marina, finding a place in a busy marina during vacations and ultimately the resale value is higher. When it comes to boats, there are three ideals of which you can have a maximum of two: speed, comfort and a low price - I think Ian Farrier has found a very good compromise there! So, I am still loking for Plans! Only the F32A (2,5mt wide)  

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guzzis3 said: ↑ If you bought the plans you had the option of building your own beams. Extra plan sheets available in request. The F22 was a viable business. He had people lined up to buy them. IF was involved in starting Corsair who still build boats. He had made a living designing and building his trimarans for decades and was second only to Wharram in terms of numbers sold. Click to expand...

Farrier TrailerTri 720 Centerboard lamination

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Ian farrier has passed on........

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Best Build Your Own Trailer Friendly Multihull? Now that Farrier is N/A

Farrier TT720 project for sale in SA

Cheap farrier tt680 in tasmania.

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Fram's Building and Sailing Pages

Introduction.

Hello and thank you for showing interest in the building story of Fram, my F-39 trimaran.

Using the “Next” button at the bottom of this page will guide you trough the whole construction process. But be warned, there is a lot of information and thousands of pictures, so it can take some time for the interested reader.

Initially, the choice for my new to build boat fell on the high-tech F-36 trimaran, a design by the famous New Zealander Ian Farrier ( † RIP Dec.8, 2017).

In those days the F-39 did not exist yet. Although the F-36 missed my preferred folding option, the design nevertheless meets most of my wishes. According to Farrier, there was simply not enough demand for a folding option for such a large trimaran. And is it not true that a boat is always a compromise ?

Actually, the determining factor to go on with this Farrier (F-boat) design was the superbly detailed building plans and the building method. The more I studied the plans, the more I realized that this boat is an engineering marvel and accompanied by an building method that I could manage. So all necessary attributes for an high quality yacht!

However, somewhere in my head I still felt the obligation to find out whether it was not better to outsource the construction to a suitable yard. Though, I had already realized that this would be far above my budget, which was indeed proven by offers from various yacht builders at home and abroad.

“The desire to build a boat ... begins as a little cloud on a serene horizon. It ends by covering the whole sky so that you can think of nothing else.“ quote Arthur Ransome

I can not deny that this state of mind led to the purchase of the building plans. A stack of paper from which a boat has to be built. This is the beginning of an almost incalculable adventure.

I bought the original F-36 plans in the spring of 2000 and planned the start of the construction process by the end of that year. But it worked out differently.

And I want some new furnishings too ................

And the kids want a bigger rabbit hutch..............

By finishing this and carry out your promises I will be ready for the project.

Of course she was right !

Update to the F-39

Autumn 2001 everything was done. In the meantime I have been searching for materials and suppliers, and have negotiated for prices and specifications. As still being a greenhorn in composites, I tried to get familiar with all these composite materials and worked on another F-36 (thanks Gary Mulder) to go through the laminating process of the main hull.

And just before I ordered the materials for the first float there was a very welcome note from Ian Farrier that he decided to upgrade the F-36 to an F-39. The new design is not only larger but also includes a number of improvements, the latest design insights, rotating mast and last but not least the folding option.

So this delay wasn't too bad at all and now I could update without any trouble and not having done the wrong things. Spring 2002 I ordered the updated plans. Not all drawings were ready yet but there was enough to make a start.

In the spring of 2003 the form frames for the first float are upright.

Vacuum Resin Infusion.

In the year 2000 when I started to study the possibilities for a DIY boat building project, I was a total composite greenhorn, but I already had learned that a vacuum treatment was desirable to get the lightweight multihull quality I was looking for. However, it was hard to find any information about how to get a vacuum densified laminate within my range of possibilities.

I learned to understand the vacuum bagging technique but the implementation looks to be very challenging. At least to me. The fact that this technique should start with old-fashioned hand lay-up and then to be completed within the time constraints of the resin clock currently looks very discouraging to me. And for laminating and subsequent vacuum bagging the hulls are many helpers needed for which I do not have enough space in my humble workshop.

An article in our local ″ Zeilen ″ magazine put me on the trail of the vacuum infusion technique. This has given me a whole new perspective on the matter. Although, there was almost no information available, except that it was some kind of black magic, operated behind closed doors by some very professional boat building plants.

A breakthrough was made possible through the purchase of knowledge at Polyworx in the person of Mr. Arjen Korevaar.

With almost no previous composite experience, I suddenly saw the possibilities to make my boat building project possible and still be assured of the best possible quality. After all, vacuum infusion is a defined process that not depends of my initially lack on knowledge and experience and skills for laminating big boat hulls. It gave a boost to the preparations.

Earlier in the eighties I have built an epoxy/wooden boat, somewhere in a remote barn. From that I learned that I will never build a boat again in a different location than at home.

In the past I did a rebuilding of the garage of our modest house with the intention to enlarge the living room with the aft part of the (former) garage. But I had also a hidden motive to built a new boat, so the actual joining with the living room had still to wait some time ....

Building at home is essential for me. Despite the small room for this project, it is much more efficient than a workshop somewhere else. It's save, I can leave the things behind me and every single moment of the day, or when I feel like to do something, the project is just a few steps away. But the most important advantage is the fact I can stay at home and near my family, a great benefit to family- and social live.

With extension the working area is about 13 x 3,7 m², but the height is not enough to join the two main hull halves together. So I have to do this somewhere else.

Since there is only just enough room for the main hull (or halves), I made an attic floor for workbench and vacuum table. In fact, the whole floor is a 3,5 x 3,7 m² bench and a standing room is 0,9m. lower in front of this (removable). With the main hull in place, I don't need this lower floor anymore as working at the bench is possible while standing on the F-39 cabin roof.

However, I still need to learn to have the discipline to be very organized and clear, to be able to manage this job in this limited space. Anyway, I don't have a choice. I would never attempt such a project in another location than at home.

As I am going to build with epoxy, there is no inconvenience with bad smell because epoxy is almost odorless. Which is not the case with the two part painting products. These have an awful smell and for this reason I installed a big ventilation unit capable to maintain a low pressure in the workshop. With this the painting fumes flow outside instead of causing troubles with the family.

Workshop extension

There was still one difficulty to overcome: the garage is 2m. too short so I had to enlarge the garage a bit. This turned out to be a big problem in our highly civilized and urbanized small country! July 2001 the plans for a temporary extension were sent to the officials of the my hometown.

By the end of August they decided to turn my request down...............

As I've said before, home building is essential. No permit is no project, but this is something the Jacks-in-office didn't want to know and certainly would never understand. (and here they are right, it's nuts probably ;-)

Wow, I never expected this. The extension is simply, small and temporal while I knew (almost) for sure the Dutch building laws must allow this! So next step was to raise an objection to this decision and for this we have a special committee of independent wise men. They decided that the refusal was taken on wrong arguments and advised the officials to think about other arguments for a refusal (no sailors neither)!

Now it became a bad joke. Better arguments were hard to find, but they found them, legal ones against a temporary extension, but, as I found out, nothing against a permanent extension...........

All parties were agreed that this enlargement is not an embellishment for the house, so the legal permanent option is the worst solution. This strange situation came to an climax by a special permission by the Lord Mayor himself, which allowed me to build the temporary (and inexpensive) option. I received this long awaited document in the summer of 2002.

After one year of struggle, the actual building of the workshop extension was finished in just 3 weekends. Even the neighbors like the result and are getting curious about my activities (which are quite abstract for non-yachties).

I started the building of the F-39 in the Spring of 2003 at home. By the end of 2009 I have build and finished both floats as well as the starboard half of the main hull together with some interior parts as settee and galley. Roughly a little less than half of the entire construction job, although it has taken much too long.

But then that once-in-a-lifetime opportunity came along ....

2010 Changes, another workshop

While sitting in the sunny garden in summer 2009 and looking at the successful work we did with once more an alteration of the house (expanding the attic into a fully-fledged living floor), we thought we had made a good descision to cross out the idea of once moving to our ″Dreamhouse″ and instead making our house more comfortable. That dream was living near the water with the boat along the garden jetty. This kind of villa's are always far above our budget.

However, it is a buyers market nowadays and while having peace with the decision to give up this apparently not realistic dream, a once in a lifetime opportunity came along. A radical turnover lead to buying a house with a private harbor on the South side of the IJsselmeer, without any bridges or locks to pass and with plenty of room (33'x40') for the unfolded F-39, very rare in our little country.

When I had known this just a few months earlier, we would not have start the extension of the roof. Now it is not finished yet and we are moving to another house. Challenging times so to speak !

So, the Fram project had to move to a new workshop, which I found quite nearby and not coincidentally being our company workshop.

Much more room, but also not at home, which was a major condition to undertake this huge building project. Much less privacy too. This of course is a temporal solution with the necessity of getting in a hurry. This means from now on I will focus on finishing the F-39 on the outside and get her in the water to tie her up along the jetty of our new home. Further work on interior, hardware and rigging will be delayed till she is at home again.

What is my schedule ? This seems to be the most important question, not anymore for me but apparently for others who have asked me that already 1000 times. My answer has always been simple, next year! And that is the most accurate answer I can give as that planning turns out to be correct every year.

It is a part-time project, besides a day-job that requires a lot of time and attention, and I work in spurts and bursts, not steadily. And always on my own without any outsourcing. One needs an optimistic mindset because everything takes three times longer than previously thought. I now know why many of these kinds of projects are stranded halfway.

I once met a German catamaran builder and asked him how many years it has taken him to finish his beautifull catamaran .... 14 Years ! was his answer. I complimented him with the great result and shake hands, meanwhile thinking ″that man must be bloody crazy, not my piece of cake ...″

There are only a few F-39's sailing in the world nowadays. Almost all have been built commercially. A sign on the wall? I know of some half build project, resting in parts in a remote barn somewhere, waiting for that enthusiastic builder who will take up the challenge again. But I also know of some almost completed projects that are not far from launching.

It's time for more F-39's in the water.

My schedule:

Please be warned! If anything on this web site appears to be a recommendation on how to build a boat it is an error of writing or editing. This site is my builder's documentation to chronicle the adventure I had in building Fram.

The Internet is such a lovely open source. Remember this when you see something in this website what you think is yours. If I didn’t ask you before then there was no copyright and I borrowed it. If you think I made a mistake in this, I will give it back to you. If you think I forgot to mention my sources, please let me know. However, everything on this site is mine and no part of this may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing by me. As you may have noticed, this site is a labor of love with lots of free information that has been assembled for your entertainment. Please respect the spirit of this site and don't engage in behavior that I consider hostile.  

All information is composed with care and consideration using my background and personal experiences. You may disagree with my opinions or, better, let them support you in your own dreams. You are free to do the same things or to use the procedures, practices or methods as described in this site, but you should always use your own common sense when applying this information to your personal projects and you do this on your own risk for which I am not responsible. I do not warrant or make any representations regarding the use or the results of the materials, practices or methods on this site or linked sites in terms of their correctness, accuracy, reliability, or otherwise. The only thing I can promise you is that I have or will have enough confidence in the info supplied that I already have or will use it in my own project.

While you and I might consider some of the images on this site quite pretty, please respect copyright and do not enhance your site by hotlinking to images on mine. Hotlinking does not only violate my copyright, it also makes me pay for the delivery.

If anything I do or say happens to offend you, that is unfortunate, you are free to go elsewhere.

I explicitly disclaim any responsibility for the accuracy, content, or availability of information found on this site and sites that link to or from this site or that this site or sites that link to or from this site are free of viruses or other harmful components. 

I am not affiliated with the manufacturers or resellers of products featured on this site in any other way than perhaps being a customer. Furthermore, since I'm not charging you anything for the use of this site, you're going to be the one assuming the risk of anything and everything you do as a result of reading content here.

Believe it or not, I do get a lot of mail. It may take a few days or longer to answer, as time allows. However, I do attempt to answer all e-mails.

TR36 FAST CRUISING TRIMARAN

The TR36 is available as plans or fully built ready to sail by Waarschip in the Netherlands. All other trimarans are treated as custom designs.

TR36 on this link

TR42 FAST CRUISING TRIMARAN

TR42 on this link

R42 HIGH PERFORMANCE TRIMARAN

R42 Trimaran on this link

TR50 CUSTOM CRUISING TRIMARAN

TR50 available custom built to order in Thailand

MAURITIUS 20 CUSTOM CRUISING TRIMARAN

Mauritius 20 on this link

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Strike 18 Boat Plans (STK18) – (Hull only)

• $ 155.00
• Strike 18 by Richard Woods - main hull plan only
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Strike 18 Boat Plans (STK18C)

• $ 230.00
• Strike 18 trimaran complete Boat Plans.

Zeta 14 Boat Plans (ZT14)

• $ 99.00

Privacy Overview

MIKE WALLER 

Yacht design.

WE SPECIALIZE IN BOAT PLANS FOR AMATEUR BUILDERS

We provide stock boat plans for both monohull and multihull sailing vessels, including sailing skiffs and sharpies. Our designs mainly feature timber construction, in plywood or cedar strip plank composite construction, using the W.E.S.T. system (wood epoxy saturation technique). Our designs are intended mainly as cruising boats, although several have done well in racing. All designs are suitable for amateur boat builders.

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 multihulls  , photos from our builders.

Photo galleries are provided on each design page where available

24 Foot Sailing Trimaran

Introduction: 24 Foot Sailing Trimaran

Indonesian style, built out of recycled stuff. Here we are busting out through the surf in 30mph winds at Stinson Beach California on the maiden voyage. The boat works great! There are no swimmers or surfers out because of the rough conditions. The kids are on the beach making forts out of their boogieboards instead of surfing. Specifications: Hull Length 24 ft at deck Hull 22" wide amidships at deck, 18" wide inside hull (there's a wide lip at deck) Hull 24" deep amidsnips. The hull round bottom is a semicircular arc of 8.25" radius. Hull rocker is about 4" measured from points 16' apart. Outrigger crossbeams are 14' 7" long 3.5"x2.5" fir beams tapering to 3x2.25" at ends The outrigger floats are 4.5" diameter, 19 feet long with foam plugs in ends. ~134lbs buoyant. The plugs in the front of the floats are shaped into a nose that protrudes 6.5" more. 1.5" diameter stainless steel tubing connects the crossbeams and floats. The Sail is an 8 sq. meter crabclaw / leg-o-mutton sail on 14ft. windsurfer masts. The mast is supported by three stainless steel cable stays. Total cost of materials was $200 or less. The outrigger floats are fiberglass chemical pipes full of empty plastic soda bottles. The main hull is made from a pair of old 16' catamaran hulls cutoff and glassed end-to-end. Junked catamaran hulls are easy to get. If you can't find a free hull, build a hull like the Kenya Canoe but bigger. Use scavenged plywood from crates if you want it free. The wood for the crossbeams came from a big pallet, with the nails and crossboards pulled off. Then I scarfed them together for extra length. The sail is blue tarp on windsurfer mast spars. Great action photos by kenny

Step 1: Beaching After the Maiden Voyage

Star , Damon and myself rode the boat in on the back of a big wave, just like the Malibu Outrigger manual recommends. Then we carry the boat up the beach. The sail helps us and we scamper up the beach and get clear of the break zone before the next wave hits. What a great boat. Unlike trials of previous boats in Mexico and Kenya which got badly damaged by surf landings, this boat is fine. It helps that there's a lot of wind and the boat is faster than the waves.

Step 2: Cartopping

Here it is on top of the ugly truckling. It assembles quickly without tools. The main hull is the heaviest part, about 90 lbs. It takes two people to lift it onto the roof rack because it's so big. The other parts are a lot lighter and one person can handle them. 4 or 5 people can ride in the cab of my truck. The boat could carry that many also, so it's a good match. We could only get three people to volunteer for the maiden voyage because the conditions were so rough, but there was room for more.

Step 3: Or on a Trailer

To launch it from a trailer, you drive to the boat ramp, assemble the boat while still on the trailer, then launch and land it in the usual way.

Step 4: Inspiration

I once tried to sail to Cuba in an outrigger canoe. There were some problems. When I was almost to Havana my rudder broke so I couldn't sail, the current carried me away, I was caught in a storm, etc. etc. I spent a lot of time trying to not to die and hallucinating from exhaustion. I also spent a lot of time thinking about the perfect hull shape for a sailing canoe. In the following year I traveled to Indonesia and Papua. I learned a lot by gaping at and measuring sailing canoes there. Here are some Makassarese (Sulawesi) canoes I saw in Jayapura Harbor, Papua. In severely technical terms, here's what I was looking for in a hull: 1) High prismatic coefficient (fat ends) 2) Round bottom 3) Straight sides in the middle 4) Just the right amount of rocker. Curved like a banana. 5) A beam to length ratio of around 12:1

Step 5: Cut and Paste Catamaran Hulls Together End-to-end

I found a pair of 16' catamaran hulls for sale on craigslist that were exactly what I was looking for. By no coincidence, they were designed and built by Karl Westbroek, an engineer from Malang, Java, Indonesia. They were a nice bright yellow that emphasized their banana-like shape. Hence Karl's original name for his catamaran, "Bananas". I wanted my hull to be pointy at both ends. These hulls had square transoms at the stern. So I had to cut off the sterns and butt up the pointy ends to make my hull. To figure out the right place to cut them I slid a piece of paper over the hulls to find a special transverse curve called the "Geodesic". That's the shortest path between two points on opposite sides of the hull. I cut the hulls, butted them up, and checked to make sure the keel and sides met at a reasonably fair curve.

Step 6: Thinning the Edge

Before we can start glassing, we need to grind down the existing fiberglass so it's a smooth transition. Michael Kearney helps me out by grinding the edge thin on the inside of the joint.

Step 7: Jigging It Up

Next we clamped and screwed a bunch of sticks to the outside of the hulls to hold them in alignment. Jrlee checks that the decks are parallel.

Step 8: Glassing

Jrlee mixes some epoxy. We cut and lay out strips of fiberglass cloth on a piece of plastic on the deck. We soak the cloth with epoxy. We layup the glass into the hull, squeegeeing and painting the epoxy so the cloth is fully saturated. The wider strips of cloth go over the narrow strips, so the rough edges of the cloth aren't exposed.

Step 9: Rough Fairing

I mix some glass microballoons with epoxy and slather that all over the outside of the hull. When it sets up I grind it flat with a sanding disk. While I'm doing that Danny comes and suggests a better way.

Step 10: Rapid Fairing

He's glued a board to a sanding pad and glued a full sheet of 80 grit sandpaper to that. He creates an artificial snowstorm while sanding the hull, and in a few seconds it's smooth and faired. Wow.

Step 11: Glazing and Finish Sanding

Next I squeegee some body putty over the nicks and imperfections. When that's dry I wet-sand it with a sanding block.

Step 12: High Build Sanding Primer

Next come a couple of coats of fast-dry high build sanding primer, then some wet-sanding with a sanding block, and finally a coat of yellow paint. The hull is all one hull now.

Step 13: Outrigger Floats

A friend gave me some fiberglass chemical pipes. They are 19 feet long and 4.5" in diameter. I would have been worried about the chemicals but the pipes were brand new. Actually they might be intended as covers for glass pipes. I tied strings to the necks of some 2 liter soda bottles and shoved them into the pipes. The string is to keep the bottles from floating away in case of a disaster. I carved some minicel closed cell foam to make plugs for the pipes. I shaped the front plugs into the noses seen here. The flat front feature is like the "manu" on the front of a Hawaiian canoe. As it plows into a wave, it sprays the water away forming a giant air bubble around the float. The bubble rises through the wave, pulling the float up with it. It works really well.

Step 14: Float Blocks

The outrigger floats are 4.5" diameter fiberglass chemical pipes. I made some wooden blocks to rest on them. They will be the "feet" of some short legs made of stainless steel tubing. Those in turn get connected to the crossbeams. Just like Ezekiel, the foot bone's connected to the leg bone, the leg bone's connected to the thigh bone. Here I am testing the first block I made to see if it fits the pipe right.

Step 15: Cutting Curved Grooves With a Tablesaw

I setup my ghetto tablesaw, which is a circlesaw screwed to a board. Yes, it's very dangerous. Don't do it. I set up the fence at an angle to the blade. I made a lot of cuts of increasing depth in a block of wood until I had a nice round trough cut in the bottom of the block.

Step 16: Wooden Shoes

Then I repeated the process on some narrower blocks, cut holes the right size all the way through with a hole saw.

Step 17: More Wooden Shoe Cobbling

I glued a wooden disk in the bottom of the hole so the tubing leg wouldn't touch the float directly. I heated up the block to cure the epoxy quicker. Don't breathe those buttery fumes! When the epoxy was set up I shaved the protruding plugs off with the tablesaw. I drilled some lashing holes in the sides of the blocks and cut the corners off the ends so they would enter the water better. Jumping ahead, let's go sailing and I'll show you how this stuff turned out.

Step 18: Hot Spring Break

Star organized a trip to a hotspring on the coast that's only exposed at the lowest tide of the month. We camped nearby on friday night, woke up at 5 am to hike down. It's pretty amazing. There's a main pool and also a cave full of hot water that goes back into the cliff face. We relaxed in the hot spring until the tide rose and waves of cold water started washing into the spring. Then we hiked back up to the truck and it was time to put the yellow canoe in the water. So we drove to Stinson Beach and parked as close to the beach as we could. We unloaded the canoe parts onto the grass in the park there.

Step 19: Lashing It All Together

We swarmed over the canoe, lashing all the arms and legs to it with bicycle innertubes. The front beam takes most of the load, so it has a double tube 'H' shaped stainless tubing leg that connects the beam to the float. The foot of the 'H' rests in sockets in a wooden block. The bottom of the wooden block is carved to fit the top of the float tube. The float is lashed to the block with spectra string and innertube. That part stays lashed permanently.

Step 20: Carry It to the Beach

We had plenty of help from relaxed sleep-deprived pals from the hotspring trip. When it was all tied together we picked it up and carried it to the water.

Step 21: Please Return!

In case something went wrong and we lost the paddles we wrote plaintive messages on them in hopes that someone would return them. These are instant paddles made in a few minutes from a hockeystick, a board and some string, but they're so nice it would be a shame to lose them.

Step 22: Farewell Hugs

The wind had increased to a gale. The sea was rough. Time for farewell hugs!

Step 23: Raising the Sail

We hoisted the sail and watched the waves. The surfers were all on shore so we couldn't use them to judge the size of the waves. But at least we didn't have to worry about hitting them.

Step 24: Launching!

Star , Damon, and I carried the boat to the water just as a big wave washed ashore. We jumped on, sheeted in the sail, and started paddling at the breakers.

Step 25: So Far So Good

The boat took off like a racehorse. It's easy to steer with a paddle. It goes to windward just fine. We sped toward the outer break. Wait a minute. That's a big wave coming!

Step 26: What's Going to Happen?

We hit the wave and there was whitewater everywhere. We kept going through it, and when we could see again we were still moving fast and there was hardly any water in the hull. The boat works in surf!

Step 27: Sailing and Landing

We sailed around until one of the lashing buttons broke, then decided to head back in. We surfed in on a wave, outran it, and executed a perfect landing on the back of a wave. Jubilation! The boat could have handled more passengers and rougher conditions.

Participated in the Earthjustice United States of Efficiency Contest

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