Interesting new cruiser

R

Robert H. Wilkinson

New member
I have always admired the Mainship and was aboard one years ago on Lake Ontario. In receivership, the company was bought in 2012 by David Marlow. An experienced boatbuilder, he redesigned the former 31' - now new for 2014 check out the 32' Marlow Mainship.

It has a very unique drive arrangement. Twin foil shaped keels followed by saildrive pods. Each pod is driven by a 75hp Yanmar. Because the Yanmar drives through a marine transmission(in hull) - it allows for a very slim profile saildrive to be used - reducing underwater drag.

The twin keels give it stability and reduce roll, as well as reducing drag in chop - allowing it greater speed with less hp.

CE Offshore Ocean Rating - Class "A"

Draft 2' 5"

Top speed 17 knots

Range 1100 miles on 200 gal. with 10% reserve @ 1800rpm @ 8knots - that's 6 (six) MPG!!! 8)

This boat is being built in Florida, but like the luxury yachts he builds in China - the new owner has added lots of teak to the interior while keeping the price comparable to the old 31 Mainship. ($240,000.)

Bigger than most Bratts would be looking for, but a very unique, refreshing new design and probably the most fuel efficient 32 footer on the market.

Regards, Rob
 
NORO LIM":2303hfpa said:
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I've been following another new 33-footer, the Midwest Eco-Trawler, as well. (Someone pointed this one out a while ago, I think when just a prototype was done. They seem to be in production now.)

http://www.trawlersmidwest.com/eco_trawler.htm
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Bill-

That 33 ft. Midwest Eco-Trawler looks like a lot of sailboats I've seen over the years, but with the mast and keel removed, and the window height increased a bit.

Someone handy with boat work could convert an older used sailboat into a similar vessel for a small fraction of the cost of a new boat!

The prices of some older classic used sailboats make the proposition especially attractive!

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
It may be sacrilege to a sailor, but I've wondered for years why folks don't take a used sailboat hull, remove the standing rigging, and convert it to a long distance cruising vessel.

Sailboats, by their very nature, have a LOT of precise engineering put into their hull design. Sailboat hulls are made to slide through the water with a minimum of friction, and reach hull speed with minimum power. ...and they are extremely seaworthy.

It just seems natural to me someone would find a comfortable used sailboat and reconfigure it to power. Add fuel tankage ... and have a simpler, hybrid vessel that could easily have 1000+ mile range.

Best,
Casey&Mary
 
You're right Casey. I see so few sailboats sailing, this appears to be what many do, they just haven't pulled the rig off. I mean motoring downwind in 20 knots? Oh my! On our Arctic trip in a 27 ft motor sailor we had 100 gallons of diesel giving 1000 mile range. Power was a 23 hp Izuzu speed limited to 5 1/2 -6 knots. We figured 1/2 gallon per hour on this little gem. If one wanted a long range hybrid trawler, (ie : pilot house sailboat) plenty used around. One of the nicest locally is a Fraser 41 pilot house a friend owns who is a whale research guy. my first live aboard as a young married guy was a locally built North Sea 34 sloop with pilot house and 3 cylinder Volvo diesel. Downside is non trailer able and can't go faster if/when you want. It was comfy however with the wood stove going down below. A guy needs probably 6-8 boats around for different missions! :smiled
George
 
Interesting idea - modifying a sailboat hull. I don't know much about them but first impression is that it might be prone to rolling without a keel. I wonder if that would really be a problem or not.
 
Interesting designs with the two trawlers mentioned early in this thread. I always liked the Mainship 34 design, this 32 looks a little tight in the cockpit. I am not a fan of what I see on that Eco-Trawler: is there no other seating in the cabin besides the pilot and co-pilot seats? I didn't see a dinette in the images (no floorplan layout).

It is tough to "get it all" and still keep the boat compact. Sure makes our C-Dorys look like a great solution.

Most sailboat hulls are not designed for speeds above hull speed. There have been a few motor-sailors that have caught my eye over the years. Casey's "hybrid" comment makes one consider the efficiency of sail and engine power.

The MacGregor 26 (X and M models) have been popular; a dealer friend of ours told us that a good percentage of those boat owners leave the mast off and use the boat as an "inexpensive cabin cruiser" (his words). Like most sailboats, though, that leaves you out in the elements when driving the boat.

Many keel boat designs need that keel for stability, not just for balancing the standing rigging. Change one element of the design, and it affects other aspects. For me, one of the attributes of the C-Dory vs most sailboat designs is that open feeling cabin vs "the cave" feeling of many sailboat cabins.

Options.

Best wishes,
Jim
 
Take a look at the video of the Eco Trawler running at different speeds (youtube.com/watch?v=l4DeQlqrx3Y) and you'll see that a very modest head sea will bury the bow. Also, watch as it heels over as it makes a slow turn. Not sure this hull form works very well.
 
I find each of these boats intriguing. I can't say I'm in love with the look of either one. I doubt that I would buy either one, even if I could afford it, but I'd love to sea trial each of them.

The Mainship has a pedigree and appears to be the more polished production, and definitely the more sophisticated design. It's wider (2 feet more beam), but its 6'3" headroom seems a little cramped. (I'm 6'3".) The Eco Trawler is very narrow, but gains space by using an outboard on a bracket. And then there's fiberglass vs aluminum.

They both claim impressive speed and mileage numbers. I'd be really curious to compare sea keeping (especially in beam or following seas) and close quarters maneuverability. I agree with Sasscom on the clips of the Eco Trawler.
 
Many keel boat designs need that keel for stability, not just for balancing the standing rigging. Change one element of the design, and it affects other aspects.
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Kinda what I thought.
 
tomherrick":1te9vjqc said:
Many keel boat designs need that keel for stability, not just for balancing the standing rigging. Change one element of the design, and it affects other aspects.
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Kinda what I thought.
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Certainly true, but I'd bet a good amount of the keel could be removed in terms of total weight and or shortened in length once the huge lever arm of the rig and sail pressure is eliminated.

However, it would also certainly be possible to keep some of the rig and some shortened sails for easy and economical cruising. Why not have the best of both worlds?

Also, I see he keel as an added stability benefit and something to be kept with the limits of needing to shorten the boat's draft and lighten the overall displacement, depending on the intended uses.

Once underway, the extra weight and drag of at least some of the keel wouldn't cut down the fuel mileage that much. The hull design would be a displacement type anyway, so no one's going to water ski behind this custom conversion!

This would indeed be a fun project for the right person!

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
However, it would also certainly be possible to keep some of the rig and some shortened sails for easy and economical cruising. Why not have the best of both worlds?
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Pretty much what the wife said. Outnumbered and outranked... :wink:
 
Lots of intersting stuff. If you want to see the guru of switch from sail to steam check out Steve Dashew's work on his FPH series. Couldn't get a link to go but fun stuff for those of us with big boat dreams. Go for it Sam! No price anywhere but Dashew knows speed.and efficiency. :teeth George
 
For me, one of the attributes of the C-Dory vs most sailboat designs is that open feeling cabin vs "the cave" feeling of many sailboat cabins.
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Friends of my brother's, former sailboat owners & now trawler owners, call it "gophering". The wife said "all I did was come up the stairs, stick my head out of the hole and look around...like a gopher. :lol: :lol: 8)
 
Here are the other numbers of the main ship:


1800 RPM 9.0 mph/ 7.82 kts 1.5 gph 6.0 mpg 1,080 statute mile range*

2200 RPM 11.5 mph/ 9.99 kts 2.3 gph 5.0 mpg 899 statute mile range*

2600 RPM 13.6 mph/11.80 kts 4.4 gph 3.0 mpg 556 statute mile range*

These apparently were a "light boat"--the 17 knot figure was light boat--and the designer says that 16 is more a realistic value with "normal cruising" configuration...I suspect that is a weekend type. Equipted to do AK, I suspect the Top Speed--with is WOT would be much less.

If they were to drop the speed down to 6 knots, they would do much better and probably get about 1500 plus miles. I have some reservation about the sail drive. I have friends who have had problems with electrolysis with these in salt water.


As for sailboats--converted to trawlers--there are some boats which were used either way--such as the Skookum 53 I have seen them as pure sail--and about 80 hp diesel, as a fishing boat, with sail rig (that one sailed to Japan and back one summer) and as a pure motor vessel--again been aboard several of these. The pure motor version had less keel, and less ballast. Also Gulfstar made several boats which were either a trawler or sailboat on the same hull.

If you just have a sail boat with no mast and full keel--it is a miserable very snappy ride. (We took the 38' we were building to Catalina once without its rig--never again).

I have ridden on several Moran sailboats, which were already shoal draft, and by removing some of the ballast, and building a deck house over the cockpit they made very nice trawlers. One of my friends did the loop, backward, (up the TenTom) with a Morgan 40).
 
NORO LIM":7cgx3ry9 said:
I find each of these boats intriguing. I can't say I'm in love with the look of either one. I doubt that I would buy either one, even if I could afford it, but I'd love to sea trial each of them.

The Mainship has a pedigree and appears to be the more polished production, and definitely the more sophisticated design. It's wider (2 feet more beam), but its 6'3" headroom seems a little cramped. (I'm 6'3".) The Eco Trawler is very narrow, but gains space by using an outboard on a bracket. And then there's fiberglass vs aluminum.

They both claim impressive speed and mileage numbers. I'd be really curious to compare sea keeping (especially in beam or following seas) and close quarters maneuverability. I agree with Sasscom on the clips of the Eco Trawler.
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Bill, its refreshing to see new "outside the box" designs come along - especially in propulsion. I'd love to sea trial this Mainship as well just to see how it performs. Dave Marlow certainly comes with a wealth of experience behind him. As for maneuvering - IT HAS TWINS!!! - seriously though, I think the pods are almost 4' apart - so they should offer good response around the docks. Also pods are normally placed closer to a boats axis point than a straight drive, stern drive, etc. Although these pods do not swivel and still require a rudder - they should perform well. They do offer a bow thruster but in tests they said it is not really necessary with this configuration. I forgot to mention that the review of this boat can be viewed on Boat Test.com. It is free to subscribe to. As for sea keeping in a beam sea - the twin keels should minimize roll. Also its "class A" ocean status would lend confidence to its captain. Boat test.com believed it to be the only 32' on the market with that status. MJM yachts have this status , but they may not specifically have a 32' in production.

Bob, the drive used is the Yanmar SD60. Reviews claim it is a very robust build. An improved design to the SD50. Salt water is hard on a sail drive - always in the water and out of sight(out of mind). Can't be tipped up like an outboard. Some sailers have a penchant for bronze propellers - these can cause problems on this drive - each dissimilar metal needs its own specific anode. Yanmar also warns that drive protection must be addressed anytime changes are made to the boats electrical system. If you see one of these at any of the Florida shows Bob, repost and let us know what you think of it.

Thanks for all replies
Regards, Rob
 
starcrafttom":tngnxbuh said:
I found this and thought it interesting.

http://skagit.craigslist.org/bod/4119768098.html
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00t0t_ld23azZoSOA_600x450.jpg


Forgive me for being a party-pooper, but I see some irony in spending $197,000+ to get a more fuel efficient hull. :lol:

With all the first class boats available now, the ~$100,000 difference could buy quite a bit of diesel fuel at $5/gal. ( 20,000 gal.)

What's the mileage differential, and how long or at what distance traveled would it take you to recoup the difference?

I know it's not just that simple with a new and a used boat and resale values involved, etc., but none-the less…………..…??? :roll:

Hey, Tom: How about stretching your CD-26 to 35 feet and converting it to a diesel inboard? :idea

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
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