40 footer sailboat

Sail Boats 15' and up. Please include the boat type in your question.
irakli
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40 footer sailboat

Post by irakli »

Hi, can a 40 footer sailboat be constructed using stitch & glue method? Will it produce a structurally sound and strong enough hull for high pressures of a larger vessel?.. If yes, can you develop the custom plan for us with our specifications and how much would it cost? Thanks!

jacquesmm
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by jacquesmm »

A 40' boat would require hull panels 1" thick or more. We would get there with some cold molded layers over 3/8 plywood, not a true stitch and glue.
Cold molded would work but in that size there are better materials like foam sandwich.
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terrulian
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by terrulian »

Interesting. I have kind of wondered what the upper limit was. Thanks, Jacques.
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Jaysen
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by Jaysen »

JM, is the ply thickness limited by hull curvature? using foam core, would it still be stitch and glue or more molded?

Disclosure, I'm still madly interesting in a vg26, but I'm not sure it will be "big enough" for my ambitions of multi-year trips. At least not if I'm going to stay married :) While I plan to get my SB18 in there between Lil Bit and Whole Lotta I'd like to understand what I'm getting into for build process.
My already completed 'Lil Bit'. A Martens Goosen V12 set up to sail me to the fishing holes.
Currently working on making a Helms 24 our coastal cruiser.
“Mark Twain/Samuel Clemens” wrote:Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.
Jaysen wrote: Mon Apr 29, 2019 3:44 pm I tried to say something but God thought I was wrong and filled my mouth with saltwater. I kept my pie hole shut after that.

jacquesmm
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by jacquesmm »

The upper limit is the required panel thickness. Devlin goes around that by switching to cold molded laminations after the first layers. Labor intensive and not true stitch and glue.
My method is more of a composite and I can get the thickness from thick glass laminations but what a waste of good material.
I prefer to use a less expensive core like Divynicell.
I built my first foam sandwich boat that way around 1970, 1972, can't remember.

The VG26 is not designed for that type of program. She is a comfortable boat for her length but very wide. and has to be sailed accordingly.
Jacques Mertens - Designer
http://boatbuildercentral.com

terrulian
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by terrulian »

The record for a small boat circumnavigation is still held by Serge Testa on Acrohc Australis, a boat slightly under 12 feet. No wife was aboard. Both the boats used by the Pardeys on their circumnavigations were under 30 feet but they were heavy displacement. Although it's been done, I wouldn't want to cruise with two aboard in less than 30 feet, not just because of living space but also space for sails, spares, tools, and tanks. A small boat is OK for coastal trips, though. Jacques of course knows what his designs are best used for.
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jacquesmm
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by jacquesmm »

Correct, it's not because of the length that I made those comments.
For example, our VG23 is well suited to offshore sailing. I somewhere have pictures of one that went halfway around the world.
I don't say that the VG26 can not do it but the hull was designed for comfort and living space first.
The VG26 has to be sailed at small healing angles or she becomes tricky to handle. That requires more attention at the helm than a VG23 which has a near symmetrical curve of area and can be left to herself (or to a windvane) for long periods of time.
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Jaysen
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by Jaysen »

Ah! I see. I clearly need to get life back in track and start spending time learning exactly what I need to know for my big boat. If only I was independently wealthy...
My already completed 'Lil Bit'. A Martens Goosen V12 set up to sail me to the fishing holes.
Currently working on making a Helms 24 our coastal cruiser.
“Mark Twain/Samuel Clemens” wrote:Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.
Jaysen wrote: Mon Apr 29, 2019 3:44 pm I tried to say something but God thought I was wrong and filled my mouth with saltwater. I kept my pie hole shut after that.

terrulian
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by terrulian »

If only I was independently wealthy...
Yep, that's not a bad idea. I ran into a guy in a crew shirt in Tahiti at the mega-yacht berth and chatted with him about what he was up to. He was a steward aboard a 125-ft. brand new sailboat but had just been fired. What happened?

"Well, the owner had never sailed before but he thought a South Pacific cruise sounded romantic. He had this boat designed and built and delivered to Puerto Vallarta and met the crew there with his family. About a week or two out, he says he's not having a good time. Where can we park this boat and get off? Closest place reasonable place is Tahiti. We get here, he puts the boat up for sale, fires the crew, and flies home."

My thought was, I wouldn't mind being rich enough to spend $20 million just to try something out and see if I like it.
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Re: 40 footer sailboat

Post by jacquesmm »

Many years ago, I made a boat delivery from the Canary Islands to Belgium through the Azores: a longer distance than straight across the ocean. The owner of the boat was in the same situation than what you describe.
Without any sailing experience, he bought a 40+ foot Cheyo Lee ketch on the south coast of England. Hired a crew and sailed straight to the Canary Islands. Mostly downwind but he was seasick all the way. Tried to sell the boat in the Canaries but prices are very low there because other people give up at that point. We brought the boat back to Europe.
If you want a good but inexpensive offshore boat, look in that kind of place, where people are either disgusted or get cold feet: Canary Islands, all the Carribean and Tahiti.
Jacques Mertens - Designer
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