TR50 CUSTOM CRUISING TRIMARAN
CONCEPT
The concept evolved from a series of highly motivated discussions with a couple of veteran trimaran sailors who found themselves boatless and lusting after the next liveboard sailing adventure.
The sailors in question are Jason and Clo from Sailing Spirit and if you're not familiar with their work check out their YouTube channel on this link.
www.youtube.com/@SailingSpirits
Jason was eager to show he's not closed minded about the kind of boat he likes to sail and so we agreed to spend some time comparing the concept of a 50' cat to see how it would stack up in terms or accommodation, performance and style.
Yeah, well, we pretty much knew how that would go before we got too far into the project. In spite of having more cabins and about three times the interior floor space the cat soon took a back seat in the discussions. It was always going to be a trimaran.
We did come up with some pretty creative ideas for the cat and we'll present some of them in another article.
Jason and Clo spend a lot of time on the water. In spite of - (or maybe because of - their experience doing deliveries and working as professional crew, they have seriously minimal requirement in terms of creature comforts and gadgetry. Apart from their own boat they work as professional crew and do delivery work so they have a pretty good idea of what works for them on a cruising boat,
The emphasis for the design work was to be on the sailing qualities of the vessel and keeping things simple for minimum maintenance and affordable build cost. Two double cabins and a single bathroom was all they required but I added a second bathroom in the aft cabin as an optional feature for owners seeking more privacy for guests.
Spirit, the formula 40 trimaran that Jason and Clo lived aboard and sailed more than half way around the world. Spirit was the melting pot that brewed the ideas for a 50' live aboard cruising trimaran.
TR50 LAYOUT IMAGES
Cockpit and Saloon looking forward from the Helm Stations
Aft Cabin with the Back Door Open.
Looking forward into the Aft Cabin from the Boarding Deck
HULL FORMS
For a trimaran that will do a lot racing the emphasis is on high buoyancy floats with a lot of buoyancy low down to minimise heeling and get main hull to lift as early as possible.
For a cruising trimaran we still want to keep a lot of buoyancy in the floats but the emphasis is on a more V shaped section rather than U shaped for a gentler ride in more animated sea conditions.
We achieved the combination of the V shaped hull form with high buoyancy by increasing the float profile. This form will provide a softer motion upwind at the expense of slightly increased wind profile.
FIXED FINS FOR THE FLOATS
Fixed fins on the floats don't add much to the draft and provide good upwind performance without interfering with the interior layout.
Layout with large double berth and no bathroom in aft cabin
Two cabin layout with optional bathroom in aft cabin.
TENDER STOW
From my own experience as a trimaran owner I was adamant that the issues of boarding access from the transom deck and tender stowage needed to be addressed early in the concept stage and we spent quite some time tossing around ideas, mainly on the tender stow issue.
The transom deck and access to the cockpit was fairly easy to deal with as the hull form aft is broadly flared, allowing plenty of space for steps and a walkway each side of the aft cabin.
For the tender stow two possible solutions emerged. One with the tender centred on the boarding deck, the second with the tender on chocks to one side of the aft cabin.
The first solution makes it difficult to fit chocks under the tender without obstructing passage to the cockpit. The second solution allows for the chocks to remain permanently in place. In both cases the tender can be launched and retrieved using a tackle from the outboard boom end.
HELM STATION AND SAIL CONTROLS
Design of the helm station and access to the sail controls is at the heart of the efficient functioning of a sailing yacht. Twin helm stations aft in the cockpit with sail controls readily at hand keep the helm person in close proximity to rest of the crew and guests.
The helm has good visibility from the seated or standing helm position, and even better visibility over the cabin top by standing on the side deck.
In adverse conditions the helm person can also benefit from the protection of the roof that extends right to the forward end of the aft cabin.
An optional tiller steering arrangement allows for helming from the aft beam sitting or standing.
PRICE AND SPECIFICATION
Construction: PVC foam cores/epoxy infused with glass and carbon reinforcements engineered to ISO12215-17
Pricing starts from around USD1.25m sail away ex shipyard in Thailand. Limited build slots are available.
Contact us to draw up custom specification, confirm price and possible delivery date. graingerdesigns@gmail.com
