Thanks Bertrand...
How are your unstayed masts doing, in regards to water leakage and such?
We are so far at an impass of which way we should go. Biplane junk unstayed like yours or
The Crab Claw rig like Beat's "Aluna" has... I Even wondered about a Biplane Crab Claw
and if the wind over the bows would effectually help the vortex lift as it does over the bows on Proas...
All.we know is a well made rig which is simple.can and will save build costs as well as maintenance and replacement costs in the future.
Well thanks again and hope to hear from you again soon.

Hi  Tom, The t38 is suits the desires of 99.9% or more of the cruising public better that a Tama Moana so I'm sure you choose well. I'm in regular contact with Beat and as far as he's said he's happy with the rig. If money matters at all to you cc is dramatically cheaper than others. the most important drawback to the average cruiser is it looks wrong to everyone to have such short masts. People constantly ridicule. Functionally short mast are better of course but yachting is virtually all posing, so this should be an important issue to almost  everyone.

I'm not in on this theory of air off proa bows interacting with sails, but from what you said I don't buy it. Number one crab claw sails do not generate "vortex lift" which requires vortexes generated along the leading edge then sweeping along the leeward face of the sail. for this to happen foils have to be swept back, in the  direction of the wind, by at least 45 degrees and this is not the case by far for crab claw sails.  Second for the bow to provide a kind of end plate of any significance the sail would have to be sealed right to it. A couple inches gap wipes it out. In fact one reason the crab claw is efficient is that it approximates elliptical shape better than others - not semi-elliptical.

Well, Thanks for your input Glen.
The idea of air over the bows is something I have regularly read on Proa forums in regards to Marchaj's vortex lift conclusions in his studies, but I do not really know :) Hence my reason to ask those who have used this rig for quite some time. BTW... I can not seem to find any information regarding the intricacies of building and/using this rig. I know many Yachtees seem to frown upon it because of it's clearly NON-Western look and approach , but for me that is just another attraction.and something must be said about a rig that has been around 1000 years or more.
Glen as always it is.a.pleasure and I hope all is well in your world. Hope to hear from you soon and God Bless.