Choosing a 21' to 27' Wharram Catamaran Design
James Wharram Designs has been very productive since the first transAtlantic voyage by a Wharram double canoe in the 1950's. Unfortunately this has resulted in a glut of beautiful designs in the 21 to 27 feet range. These include: the Coastal Trekkers Tiki 21 and 26, the Classic Hinemoa and Take, in the Ethnic class the Tahiti, Mana and Amatasi and finally the Pahi 26.
Paraphrasing from JWDs Design Book:-
> The Tikis are a "modern design, lightweight, trailable and fast on the water". The award winning Tiki 21 is probably singularly responsible for breathing new life and financial success into the company.
> Pahi is a heavyweight, a real contender for singlehanded ocean sailing, she has beautiful upswept bows and sterns, she is also trailable.
> The Ethic class goes back to the origins of double canoe building with simple, dc friendly construction. The Tahiti Wayfarer 21' is by far the lightest of all and is designed as a utility craft. Her build time is quicker, her rig smaller, with limited accommodation. The Amatasi is slightly lounger at 27'7", also with limited below decks accommodations.
> In the Classic class there is the Hinemoa. This is the oldest of all the designs here and is sold as a "tough workboat" with tight accommodations and a conservative sailing rig. The Tane 27' was designed many years ago as a performance cruiser, fine and fast with a tall rig.
My personal favourite is the Hinemoa due to it's rakish bows, sturdy build and classic simplicity. James Wharram identifies the Hinemoa as the more robust and stable craft under heavy use.
But, I am an open book as far as design choice goes. So, to help clarify my thinking, I've done some seat of the pants comparisons using basic statistics on each design.
As a guide to each design's stability, I worked out a ratio between the weight of each craft (empty) and their standard sail areas, as follows in pounds per square foot of sail area:-
Tiki 21 = 3.8
Anastasia. = 4.1
Tiki 26. = 4.7
Pahi 26 = 5.2
Wayfarer = 5.8
Hinemoa = 6.7
A rough guide, no less, but it holds true as far as the Tiki designs and reports of speed under sail. Conversely, the Hinemoa will handle strong winds with limited risk of lifting a hull or capsize.
The Wharram literature reports two Tiki 21 while a Hinemoa has safety negotiated Hurricane force winds in the Atlantic Ocean.
As I intend to sail offshore and singlehanded and using a windvane when below, the design choice is simple. Yes, the faster Tiki 21 can more easily avoid heavy weather and easily broken down for towing. Besides I want to cruise peacefullywithout the need to clasp the mainsheet at all times.
Needing to pass time below during rough weather, the poor accommodations on Amatasi and Tahiti Wayfarer rule them out.
The Pahi design is possibly the most beautiful Wharram designs ... and Wharrams as the most beautiful sailboats :) But two things make me hesitant about Pahi as a design to build or buy. One is its size; it's spaciousness below decks and generous beam create weight and windage not conducive to singlehanded engineless shoal waters cruising. The other is the daggerboards: although I've never read anything adverse about them, the construction and maintenance of two "holes" up forward jar my sensibilities. My home port is literally an oyster farm!
Paraphrasing from JWDs Design Book:-
> The Tikis are a "modern design, lightweight, trailable and fast on the water". The award winning Tiki 21 is probably singularly responsible for breathing new life and financial success into the company.
> Pahi is a heavyweight, a real contender for singlehanded ocean sailing, she has beautiful upswept bows and sterns, she is also trailable.
> The Ethic class goes back to the origins of double canoe building with simple, dc friendly construction. The Tahiti Wayfarer 21' is by far the lightest of all and is designed as a utility craft. Her build time is quicker, her rig smaller, with limited accommodation. The Amatasi is slightly lounger at 27'7", also with limited below decks accommodations.
> In the Classic class there is the Hinemoa. This is the oldest of all the designs here and is sold as a "tough workboat" with tight accommodations and a conservative sailing rig. The Tane 27' was designed many years ago as a performance cruiser, fine and fast with a tall rig.
My personal favourite is the Hinemoa due to it's rakish bows, sturdy build and classic simplicity. James Wharram identifies the Hinemoa as the more robust and stable craft under heavy use.
But, I am an open book as far as design choice goes. So, to help clarify my thinking, I've done some seat of the pants comparisons using basic statistics on each design.
As a guide to each design's stability, I worked out a ratio between the weight of each craft (empty) and their standard sail areas, as follows in pounds per square foot of sail area:-
Tiki 21 = 3.8
Anastasia. = 4.1
Tiki 26. = 4.7
Pahi 26 = 5.2
Wayfarer = 5.8
Hinemoa = 6.7
A rough guide, no less, but it holds true as far as the Tiki designs and reports of speed under sail. Conversely, the Hinemoa will handle strong winds with limited risk of lifting a hull or capsize.
The Wharram literature reports two Tiki 21 while a Hinemoa has safety negotiated Hurricane force winds in the Atlantic Ocean.
As I intend to sail offshore and singlehanded and using a windvane when below, the design choice is simple. Yes, the faster Tiki 21 can more easily avoid heavy weather and easily broken down for towing. Besides I want to cruise peacefullywithout the need to clasp the mainsheet at all times.
Needing to pass time below during rough weather, the poor accommodations on Amatasi and Tahiti Wayfarer rule them out.
The Pahi design is possibly the most beautiful Wharram designs ... and Wharrams as the most beautiful sailboats :) But two things make me hesitant about Pahi as a design to build or buy. One is its size; it's spaciousness below decks and generous beam create weight and windage not conducive to singlehanded engineless shoal waters cruising. The other is the daggerboards: although I've never read anything adverse about them, the construction and maintenance of two "holes" up forward jar my sensibilities. My home port is literally an oyster farm!
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