Proasis will be part of the Ocean day of the city of Kiel! We are looking forward to show you our yellow proa and maybe take you for a short ride!
Proa building blog
Proasis will be part of the Ocean day of the city of Kiel! We are looking forward to show you our yellow proa and maybe take you for a short ride!
Hi guys, thanks for the website, I came via your YouTube channel. A while ago you posted a video of the wharram wingsail. I have built a 40ft catamaran and had intended to put a bi rig on it and still like the idea. But would love to try that concept with soft wing sails. Do you know where I might be able to buy drawings of that sail set up? I haven’t built the rig yet either. I was thinking round cedar strip core glassed in halves inside and out then glass the 2 halves together then glass slight larger tubes into the boat and drop the masts into the tubes. Initially I would have the masts rotate but with that sod wing sock I don’t need the masts rotation.
Anyway any help pointing me in the right direction would be gratefully appreciated.
Cheers Paul
http://www.yikes.com.au
Hi Paul, this particular design was mainly developed and promoted by Wharram. Unfortunately his plans dont include instructions of how to make the sail. They literally say “buy at Jeckells”. Despite that it’s no rocket science. They are very similar to common gaff sails as used by thousands of traditional dutch yachts. Every sailmaker should be able to make you one.
Regarding the masts Wharram builds them from hollow wood, birds mouth. For a bi-sail setup (one mast on each hull?) you might need to redesign them since the outside stays will run in a less favorable angle. Or you go for a free standing rig without stays as we planned it for proasis initially. The masts need to be very strong in that case.
Nice. But did you consider going in little bit different direction? I heave a idea for some time now. But alone I don’t think it’s possible. With you why not.
My plan wood be to build proas from old wind turbine blades. Organize place to make them, get access to blades. Cut them, bend them, build proas. Not only for marshille islands but also Panama (my location).
Did I spark a interest in you? Let me know.
Hi, sounds interesting! I guess the devil is in the detail (as always). The wind turbine blades I know (have briefly been involved in manufacturing) are all built very solid, laminate thickness easy exceeds 20-30 mm. That’s very heavy and difficult to bend. Not even talking about the internal stringers yet. Unless they come somehow already in the shape of the hull I doubt it’s saving any time/money and resources. On top, we have none over here in the marshalls so shipping cost for these massive things would add on top. Please proof my pessimism wrong, would be wonderful to recycle them this way!
Another problem is the proa design itself. Unless you have a sailing tradition deeply rooted in the culture and everybody knows how it works a proa is way to complicated. Thats why we have designed a catamaran. Even here in the Marshall Islands, the birthplace of the outrigger canoe where ppl still use them every day our cat design is more successful then the proa.