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 Corsica 15 R

By Chris Ostlind - Salt Lake City, Utah – USA
https://www.lunadadesign.com/

Here's a new boat I just developed for fast solo sailing. The Corsica 15 R is a light, demountable design for performance day sailing that has been created for homebuilders.

Here are the specs for the boat.

Corsica 15 RR Specifcations

LOA 14’ 11” (4.54 m)
BOA 13’ (3.96 m)
Displacement 650 lbs. (294.8 kg.)
Sail Area (upwind) 174 sq. ft. (16.17 sq. m)
Main 132 sq. ft. 
Jib 42 sq. ft.
Spin 142 sq. ft. (13.19 sq. m)
Mast Length 25’ (7.62 m)
Draft (board up) 1’ (.3 m)
Draft (board down) 42” (1.07 m)

This boat is designed for a stitch and glue build in marine plywood with epoxy/glass skins. The Corsica 15 R is a demountable design with aka beams hard fastened to the amas. The inboard ends of the akas are four-sided conical shapes that allow quick setup with no binding issues. The akas are pinned in place and the tramps remain mounted to the ama/aka assembly.

This boat is not equipped with any sort of trick lifting foil arrangement in order to keep costs, weight and build simplicity near the top of the design criteria. There is a simple, diagonal daggerboard which slides through a trunk in front of the mast step. The rudder head can be a unit from just about any beach cat that has a flip-up feature, or the builder can go with a more deluxe setup from Dotan. A longer rudder blade is suggested for control throughout the sailing range.

The sealed mast is a cut down stick from a Hobie 16 that includes the addition of a spreader system from a Hobie 18. The mast can be raised in the traditional beach cat style, manual lift method. OR, the skipper can also rig a set of sheaves on the top of the raised dagger board so that it can be used in a gin pole effect in combination with a simple hand winch on the trailer.

The skipper sits in the main hull in a semi-reclined position, much like the driver of a Formula 1 car. The main deck of the cockpit is slanted aft for self-draining through the open transom. All controls are led to the cockpit and the rudder is controlled with foot pedals. For those who wish to put the hammer down, the skipper can exit the cockpit and sail the Corsica from the tramps with a tiller extension and an easy re-routing of the sheets.

The jib and spinny are furler launched. The jib is of the self-tacking variety and the spin is flown from a removable prodder that originates as a carbon windsurf mast. First preference for the main would be a fresh, fully battened, square top sail, but a recut main from an H16 in great shape will also work. It is suggested that the recut, or new sail also include reefing points for sail area control while on the water.

The Corsica 15 R is a straight-forward, solo beach trimaran with efficiently shaped hulls and a distinct performance identity in a quickly assembled package at the launch ramp. It is easily buildable in a home garage from well-known materials and has provisions for the use of used kit in good shape to keep costs under control. The boat will be simple to maintain to maximize available hours on the water and it can be towed by a compact car on any used beach cat trailer with minor modifications. The trailered width of the demounted package is road legal in any country on the planet.

Questions/Comments, I'll be happy to respond.

Chris O
https://www.lunadadesign.com/

*****

 

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