Multi-hull musing

Been having such fun with the Farr 6000, I almost forgot to turn off my alerts on Trademe.  Luckily, I didn't, and my growing desire for speed like I used to get from kitesurfing is still there. My original plan was to buy a Farr 5000, which I could fit in my carport at home in winter, and not have a big thirsty car to tow it.  The Farr 6000 definately doesn't match up that well, but makes a great waterborn caravan.

"As for room inside theres the age old adage of you can have 2 

of three things grace, pace or space"

Following on front that quote.. here's a fine looking boat, a Farrier TT18, the original trimaran that started the revolution!
These are so rare, that there are no photos apart from Mr Farriers original picture anywhere on the internet. Also rare is having any sort of cabin on a tri of this size, the only one I know of is another homebuilt but more modern design, a Scarab 18. This Farrier TT18 is kind of a pocket cruiser, ideal for two in the cockpit, and one friend lazing on the tramp..!

The previous owner Graham Wheeler who is a big Trimaran fan has posted about some of his other toys here. 'Tranquilo' is sparsely equipped at the moment.

Graham spent countless hours of his time restoring Tranquilo to its current state:
- Removing rot around the anchor locker
- Re glassing the tops of the amas and beams
- Epoxy sealing the bilge area
- Replacing bolts and redoing bolt holes with epoxy fillets
- Repainting the hulls and interior from yellow to white.
- He installed a couple of winches, and new jammers.
- Ventilation ports installed on front deck and under seats to stop damp and moisture 
- Centreboard mechanism revised so it works better and easier to use with perspex window 
- Galv Trailer(2003) customized to suit and support the amas when folded, new winch
- LED nav lights
- New halyards
- started working on a spinnaker prod, for attachment of gennaker / spinnaker

It has a good selection of sails, including fully battened main.  All weighing in at under 700kg with the trailer. It sleeps two in its current configuration, and its a tight squeeze, but nevertheless it has 2 bunks long enough for me to lie down.  The previous owner in Hamilton modified the stern area, cutting away the large box section, making getting to the outboard and climbing on board easier.
It has what seems an appropriate amount of sail area for the gulf, not a racing size sail area.
I guess this means it won't be really fast, but should be a lot quicker than the equivalent length mono hull. Another good thing is having a traveler right at the back of the boat means the mainsheet is clear of the cockpit, so a bimini could be fitted and used while sailing for protection in our NZ summer.

Sailing it 
Well I only sailed it a few times, and I am not familar with masthead rigs, but its light on the tiller, sails itself, and it cuts through the water beautifully. Once up planing, the ride smooths out great.  Easy to launch, doesn't need much water, light to handle. Minus points; the cockpit is woefully small and this type of boat suits a fractional setup not a masthead. Needs all 3 head sails during an average summer day, as the wind increases. It definately has a hump to get over to transition to planing speed, because the main hull is a displacement shape.   In light wind, it drifts along great on the lightest of breezes.

Items for attention

- Backstay tensioner arrangement needs revising.
- Rudder/centreboard needs repainting
- Boat is currently anti-fouled, but in future might be good to take back, and primer, and top coat, depending on if it is moored on the water, or stored in the trailer park.
- No topping lift currently.. grrr..
- Needs a VHF radio..
- check for leaks around pivot bolts.

Mmm..beamy  !

Some muppet parked a boat next to my carport !

*Update *  - As I now have two boats, one had to go.. unfortunately the tri isn't as practical proposition as the Farr 6000, as it is really only good for two, and is not practical at the ramp @ half moon bay. I also don't really like the masthead rig with winches on a boat this small, and its not big enough for cruising with two. So the Farrier tri is going, after only a few sails out in the gulf.  Sold to a gentleman down in Christchurch.

The only other known Farrier TT18 was in Whakatane, but was recently sold on trademe for 5K to a buyer in Christchurch.. photos here.. Had some rot, and no outboard..also a masthead rig. Looked like it had been antifouled and stayed on the water a lot too.

Not in as good condition as my one, which had throughly been epoxy sealed, was dry (despite being stored on the water) and largely finished but needed new sails and a bottom job to really extract some performance. More pictures here.