Building a tiki 30

[Olmo Hake]

Hi everyone, I am off for up to 10 month and contemplating building a tiki 30. I have already started to scout building sites and have found some promising and not to expensive storage/garage spaces near me. Nonetheless I am still not 100% convinced if I should go ahead as I am not completely sure what I am getting myself into.

A major concern are the building time estimations. How realistic are they? Did you manage to build your boat/s within the estimated hours or is there an average amount you would recommend to add. I would be totally fine to put in more hours, but would love to get a better idea of what to expect before setting up a workshop.

I would also be interested in your general experience. What are things to keep in mind and mistakes to avoid?

[Robert]

Hi Olmo,

the Wharram time estimates are generally for a fairly roughly finished boat.  This is a fine way to do it, but most of us make the mistake of overthinking and over building the boats, which leads to large increases in the time needed to build the boat. 

Even thinking about a change to the plans takes a lot of time and energy - so, if you follow the plan to the letter, maybe the estimates mean something.

Robert

[Andy Nemier]

Hi Olmo,

Sorry I do not have any information or value to add to your post, but I too am considering a build of a Tike 26 or Tiki 30, and thought your post to be a great place to ask some questions of my own.

The one single thing holding me back in the build is the extreme weather capability of these bound-together vessels?  I have around 37,000 sea miles under the keel, and have been in some very disturbing weather situations.  On many occasions broadside waves were hitting the vessel so hard it felt like a Volkswagon smashing against the side of the boat.  It was that loud and that violent.  I thought at the time, "how would a Tiki, which is lashed together, handle this weather?"  That question still stands.  

Can the people who have built their own Tiki's, and who have many sea miles under their keels - please reply and let me know how your Tiki handled such weather conditions - lets say consistent 30 knots & 3m seas.  I really look forward to hearing how the lashings coped with say, 48-72 hours of repeated weather stress.  (and thank you to the site builder/moderator for this site, it is truly a great resource).

[Ricardo Aráoz]

Absolutely agree.

Just get the plans, make the boat as good as you can but add absolutely no extras, no reinforcement, nothing. Build the simplest boat you can. If things get rough you don't even need a mast. Once you've got it in the water, THEN you start thinking about what to modify and what to add.

Robert said:

Hi Olmo,

the Wharram time estimates are generally for a fairly roughly finished boat.  This is a fine way to do it, but most of us make the mistake of overthinking and over building the boats, which leads to large increases in the time needed to build the boat. 

Even thinking about a change to the plans takes a lot of time and energy - so, if you follow the plan to the letter, maybe the estimates mean something.

Robert

[Brad Ingram]

If you want to geek out on daily reports of going against the Gulf Stream on a Tiki 21 for 30+ days, then give this a go. My own 21 has felt safer than even the Sabre 426 that we cruise offshore on in the conditions you mentioned. If you drop all sail, then you lie like a cork and just bob around. I did switch to dyneema inner lashings to get (especially the inner rears) zero squeaks and good boat/rig tension. The standard traveler can act as a bow-string if you are powering the boat up in bigger breeze. Ironically, when I have the Nacra rotating rig on and connected to the traveler atop the rear beam, the lashings seem to have minimal stress whatsoever by comparison to the wing. http://roryandcookie.blogspot.com

Andy Nemier said:

Hi Olmo,

Sorry I do not have any information or value to add to your post, but I too am considering a build of a Tike 26 or Tiki 30, and thought your post to be a great place to ask some questions of my own.

The one single thing holding me back in the build is the extreme weather capability of these bound-together vessels?  I have around 37,000 sea miles under the keel, and have been in some very disturbing weather situations.  On many occasions broadside waves were hitting the vessel so hard it felt like a Volkswagon smashing against the side of the boat.  It was that loud and that violent.  I thought at the time, "how would a Tiki, which is lashed together, handle this weather?"  That question still stands.  

Can the people who have built their own Tiki's, and who have many sea miles under their keels - please reply and let me know how your Tiki handled such weather conditions - lets say consistent 30 knots & 3m seas.  I really look forward to hearing how the lashings coped with say, 48-72 hours of repeated weather stress.  (and thank you to the site builder/moderator for this site, it is truly a great resource).

[Stewart Patton]

Hey Olmo, here's a suggestion: build something smaller first.

I built an Angus Expedition Rowboat and learned an absolute ton about materials, tools, working with epoxy, and myself as well I guess.

Now I feel like I'm ready to build a Tiki 30 and I have a better idea what I'm signing up for.