Non Bolger post (about scantlings)
Hi all. I've been looking at James Wharram's catamarans designs and
have been surprised by the lightness of the scantlings. Believe it or
not, both the Tiki 26 and 30 have 6 mm plywood hulls (covered with FG
outside). Don't you think this is really marginal? I mean, this is
the same plywood used to build Bobcat, or Gipsy, as opposed to 8-9
meters catamarans classified as "ocean cruisers", displacing
1500-2000 kg.
Stitch and glue? Well, the Chebacco is stitch and glue (or tack and
tape) too, but uses 12 mm plywood. Any thoughts on this? What about
puncture resistance? A hard grounding on rocks, with such a heavy
boat capable of doing 15 knots, would certainly mean a hole in the
hull (actually this is what happened to Bob Begg when he crossed the
Atlantic on the Tiki 26')...
Best, Pippo
have been surprised by the lightness of the scantlings. Believe it or
not, both the Tiki 26 and 30 have 6 mm plywood hulls (covered with FG
outside). Don't you think this is really marginal? I mean, this is
the same plywood used to build Bobcat, or Gipsy, as opposed to 8-9
meters catamarans classified as "ocean cruisers", displacing
1500-2000 kg.
Stitch and glue? Well, the Chebacco is stitch and glue (or tack and
tape) too, but uses 12 mm plywood. Any thoughts on this? What about
puncture resistance? A hard grounding on rocks, with such a heavy
boat capable of doing 15 knots, would certainly mean a hole in the
hull (actually this is what happened to Bob Begg when he crossed the
Atlantic on the Tiki 26')...
Best, Pippo