The F12 Multihull Trainer

The class was established in late 2007 as a direct result of the Tornado being dropped from the Olympics. Catamaran sailors as a group came to recognize that for our type of sailing to prosper we would need to take matters into our own hands. This would mean fostering our own youth and providing a viable multihull alternative to the ever popular Opti.
 


The goal of the class is to provide boats that fit the following description:

1. Cost effective and easy to build at home, ideally as a parent / child project so the child has ownership of the boat from the get go.
2. Simple to use / rig / transport
3. Safe (all boats have 100% floation)

Safety was considered vital. For example there was an active discussion on whether to use Hobie style floats on the mast tip. However, this was decided against as it was felt by many of the people involved that the danger of a capsized boat at 90 degrees blowing away from the sailor was a far bigger problem than the boat turning upside down.

Neither myself or Richard Roake are charging for the plans for our designs as we hope to encourage as many people as possible to get into this class. There will eventually be a $50 fee to be paid to the association when it exists.



The rule is a simple box rule:

Length :3.8m
Beam: 2m
Mast: 6m
Sail area: 7 sq.m
Weight : 60kg (this is only penciled in subject to seeing what weight the first few boats come out at)
Each hull to carry 30 litres of foam for reserve floatation.

The target audience is the Opti crowd so approx 12 years old and up to about 55-60 kg.

Being new there are currently not many F12s around (in fact only one has been launched to date). There are currently 8 more in construction world wide (including 4 Vudo 3.8s in New Zealand) and DS12 plans have been sent as far abroad as Finland, USA, France, Paraguay and Australia. The boat pictured is in Finland. Many of the people with plans have admitted to me that they were waiting for the first one to be launched before starting and I expect another 8-10 to start construction in the next month or so.



Comparing this boat to a PT is like comparing a PT to an A. It’s a step down in size and performance. It will however outperform any non-spinnaker dinghy on the market. The idea is not to compete with boats like the PT but to complement them. Kids can start in an F12 and when they grow out of it move into a PT and then eventually an A or F18.

The DS 12 is currently detailed to be built out of ply and glass. The boat is built from the inside out using the substructure as the building jig so there is very little set up time.



The boat could be cheaper / easier / or lighter but obviously not all three.

Cheaper. The cheapest way to build this boat is straight off the plans which include details ranging from cutting out the skins through to building the optional Carbon Fiber mast (Ironically the carbon mast is the cheap option on this boat). The first boat was built this way and took 150 hours and approx NZ$2300 including sails and tramp.

Easier. In Australia I have made the boat available as a kitset. Options include. Pre-cut, drilled anodized beams (with dolphin striker and strap fitted on fore beam), Pre-made Rudder stocks, Pre scarfed and cut plywood flat pack. If you used all the kitset options and bought an off the shelf mast extrusion you’d be looking at about NZ$3000.

Lighter. The obvious choice to save weight is to ditch the ply and go composite. This is possible using the existing plans however the boat comes in under class weight in timber so is probably not worth the effort or expense at this stage.


It should take 75-200 hours to build depending on use of kitset components and the skill or the person doing the job.


No special skills are required, It’s all very easy basic woodwork. If you don’t have a welder you could get all the welding done for approximately the cost of a case of beer.



Some people have looked at it as a commercial venture building out of composite or roto-moulding, however, we are waiting to see where the class goes before investing in tooling. The build of the boat is very suitable for a school project; however, most students are 16-18 before they get to do a project like this at school and would therefore be too old/big for the boat. A paper Tiger would be a better option.



Chris is in Aus but having worked/lived in Auckland for 6 years he’s very conscious of the cat scene there (he was the guy behind F18s coming to NZ). He expects most Kiwis to go with the Vudo because its already on the ground but if people are looking for a cheaper/simpler build he’s always happy to send over drawings.