A quick update of the work this week of April 16-20. Most of the time has been spent sorting and cleaning up all the parts from the small first shipment we received which are made from 8mm AL plate while we await the arrival of all the the majority of the parts of various thicknesses.
As will become my practice I think, there is a video summary of the week at the end of this post as well.
Most of the 8mm parts are for the skeletal framework which you can see quite clearly in this quick rendering we’ve shown you in previous posts.
In this phantom or X-ray view you can see how the shape and size of the frames changes very rapidly up in the bow area as it widens from a point with zero width at the stem bar plate which is the very front edge slicing through waves and water and then widens out which each successive frame as you move aft.
It is a useful reference that each frame is spaced one meter apart so you can use this to get a sense of scale. The frames are also numbered from bow to stern so that first one you see here furthest to the right of the illustration is about 1m back from the stem bar edge and each successive frame is 1m aft of that. I will be referring to frames by their # so you will know were that is located in the boat.
This made it a relatively fast process to sort though them all and stack them in groups.
On the right here is a pile of the rectangular tank access cover plates. For both safety and capacity almost all the volume inside the hull below the waterline is tankage. Approximately 14,000 liters or 3700 US gallons of fuel and about 5300 L / 1400 USG of water.
Extending out from this large center line slot you can see the smaller slots where the stringers will interlock in place with their corresponding slots.
This shot also shows quite clearly how the shape of the bottom of the hull varies along the boat’s length. The foremost frame in this picture is frame #3 which stands in stark contrast to Frame #12 closest to the wall.
Keep in mind that the parts in the picture above are just the bottom side of the frame and they will soon have their side and top parts welded in place to become a true frame.
Frame #2 pictures here is narrow enough that it can be cut whole within the width of the AL plates so it will serve as a good example of the basic form of completed frame.
As promised here is a video compilation I have quickly put together of 3 videos I took during this past week. The audio is a bit rough in the middle as there was a lot of grinding going on but I hope this will give you a better feel for the work that has been happening this week.
This is a long weekend here for National Sovereignty and Children’s Day here in Turkey so we have a shortened work week this coming week. However we also expect the big batch of almost all the rest of the aluminium parts to arrive by truck from Istanbul which will make for another exciting week.
Hope these posts are helpful and PLEASE let us know with your comments what about these posts and videos works well for you and what does not. And add any suggestions on how the blog could be improved to be of more value and enjoyment.
Hi Wayne,
Thank you for showing the build in such detail as well as posting about the road that led you two to embark on this. At the risk of spoiling the ending :), could you post about the intended end result in terms of specs and design?
Hi Carl, great to know that you are enjoying our early efforts to chronicle this grand adventure. No worry about spoiling anything as I’ve not been building up to any grand reveal ending just trying to work in both chronological directions; back to cover how this adventure began 3 years ago and the design process we have been working through ever since and with our great designer Dennis Harjamaa of Artnautica Yachts, and then forward trying to capture the day to day progress of the build that has now started and into the future with decisions we are making for fitting out the boat, systems, interiors, etc.
I’m currently working on a post about the overarching “mission” we set for ourselves and the related sets of goals, priorities and objectives which we used to keep us on target during the design process. This post will include more details on the overall specs and design you ask for but I’m happy to provide the short list for you now.
•LOA: 23.8m / 78.2’
•LWL 23.8 / 78.2’
•Max BEAM 5.13m / 16.8’
•DRAFT 1.3m / 4.2’
•DISPLACEMENT w/ half tanks 41,000 kg / 90,000 lbs
•CRUISING SPEED 10.5 kts
•MAX. SPEED 12 kts
•RANGE @10kts 7000+ nm
•FUEL CAPACITY 14,400 L / 3800 USG
•WATER CAPACITY 5300 L / 1400 USG
Some of these are of course theoretical estimates such as cruising speed, range, etc. and we won’t know the real numbers until we launch and have real data from initial sea trials and then ongoing use of the boat, but with the amount of detail we have in the 3D models and the amazing power of the algorithms that can be run on this model, these numbers should be quite close.
Efficiency is one of our very top guiding principles and priorities so externally, we wanted maximum length for hull speed and efficiency which meant going long but internally we wanted minimum length for just the right amount of living space for maximum comfort and cost efficiency. Some might see these as conflicting goals, trying to go long and go short, but for us these are good examples of why we called this Project Goldilocks as we strive to find that “just right, just for us” fit in all aspects of this boat.
As a result, another interesting spec is that of the 24m LOA only 13 of it is living space. The interior has 3 areas; our Master Cabin, Christine’s Office which converts into a very comfy Guest Cabin and an open plan “SuperSalon” with the Galley, dining area, lounge and main helm. Each cabin has a separate head and shower stall. Floor area is a more useful metric for internal spaces and the two cabins end up with about the same 11 m2 (120 sq ft) each including the heads/showers and the SuperSalon is double that at 22 m2 (477 sq ft) We have tried to maximise and optimise this boat to be very much a “couple’s boat” as we are the only 2 onboard 99% of the time. Not counted within this living space is our “SkyBridge” atop the roof of the SuperSalon as this will have just a simple tube framed bimini style roof with fold up acrylic windows and 8 solar panels on top.
I will be posting more renderings of the finished boat in future posts and will get into this in much more detail and I’m always happy to answer any other questions you or others have as best I can.
Wayne