Hydrofoils for Mobos?

Fitzroy said:
I nearly bought one when they were newly decommissioned, to use as a cruising live aboard.

I didn't, and I regret this to this day...
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Dug out some pictures taken when viewing in Cowes (2001 IRRC)...

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WOWWWWW Fitzzy !!!!!!!!....... I can see why they had hydrofoils, to lift all those rivets out the water !!!!! the drag they must of added !!!!!!!!...IMHO.......I assume the angle of the front blade could be adjusted underway, but the stern looks fixed....
 
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STEVEDUNSTABLE said:
WOWWWWW Fitzzy !!!!!!!!....... I can see why they had hydrofoils, to lift all those rivets out the water !!!!! the drag they must of added !!!!!!!!...IMHO.......I assume the angle of the front blade could be adjusted underway, but the stern looks fixed....
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I thought the rivets made her look quite aeronautical (and so even cooler!). Just the name is like something out of Thunderbirds....

And check out that steering wheel - only the Italians!!

I think the front foil was firmly fixed in one position.
 
Wow, I had forgotton how cool they were, and built by NavalTechnica - that yard has some serious pedigree.

Can you remember the asking price at the time?

I expect the current skippers may find manoevering a litte easier with twin waterjets miles apart rather than that big single screw!
 
Some great pictures of the Shearwater, just so jfm doesnt feel too old, I am certain that I can recall pictures of some American runabouts 15ft -18ft long being fitted with Hydrofoils in late 50's early 60's. Not very pretty and seriously vulnerable as has been stated, but definitely reduced the wetted area. Anybody, (even older) recall such devices?
 
Scarron said:
Wow, I had forgotton how cool they were, and built by NavalTechnica - that yard has some serious pedigree.

Can you remember the asking price at the time?

I expect the current skippers may find manoevering a litte easier with twin waterjets miles apart rather than that big single screw!
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I think they wanted about GBP 25k as-is-where-is.

I remember they used to use a long piece of rope to swing them around each end, which would wear out in a few weeks.

One captain always use to crack the gag that we'd be paying twice this much for a similar ride at Alton Towers - just as the boat crashed off the crest of a huge wave in front of the Squadron. It was a white-knuckle ride in winter!!
 
I was involved in operating the foils in the Channel Islands and CI to Weymouth .

136, 180 and 200 passenger boats. 36 knots service speed, not to be sniffed at. They were built by Navaltecnica Rodriguez in Messina in Sicily , as we're the red funnel foils which were much smaller.

Ver efficient on fuel and very good sea keeping for their size, but expensive to buy and very expensive to operate.

They were Superseded by the catamarans which were cheaper to buy and operate.

Apart from high initial cost, masses of maintenance problems and a very deep draft, they should make ideal private boats (not).
 
Bandit said:
I was involved in operating the foils in the Channel Islands and CI to Weymouth .

136, 180 and 200 passenger boats. 36 knots service speed, not to be sniffed at. They were built by Navaltecnica Rodriguez in Messina in Sicily , as we're the red funnel foils which were much smaller.

Ver efficient on fuel and very good sea keeping for their size, but expensive to buy and very expensive to operate.

They were Superseded by the catamarans which were cheaper to buy and operate.

Apart from high initial cost, masses of maintenance problems and a very deep draft, they should make ideal private boats (not).
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What sort of big maintenance issues did you have with them?? I always thought the foils looked as though they could get easily damaged, not so much from debris but from distortion is big sea etc....
 
Bandit said:
I was involved in operating the foils in the Channel Islands and CI to Weymouth .

136, 180 and 200 passenger boats. 36 knots service speed, not to be sniffed at. They were built by Navaltecnica Rodriguez in Messina in Sicily , as we're the red funnel foils which were much smaller.

Ver efficient on fuel and very good sea keeping for their size, but expensive to buy and very expensive to operate.

They were Superseded by the catamarans which were cheaper to buy and operate.

Apart from high initial cost, masses of maintenance problems and a very deep draft, they should make ideal private boats (not).
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I'm surprised the old Red Funnel boats haven't been updated and relaunched as pocket superyachts, with hydraulically-operated foils. I suppose the hotel equipment would make them a tad heavy...
 
Paultallet

Props lasted 450 running hrs 1/3 of a season.

Fouling was a problem from mid reason onward

Engine , hull, foils, corrosion, etc very high maintenance.
 
The Builder's plate mentions Cantiere Navaltecnica in Messina - would they be part of the same company that built the lovely Levi designs A'Speranziella and Settimo Velo in Anzio?
http://www.classicoffshore.co.uk/forsale.php

I travelled on the Shearwaters a few times in the 80's when living in Southampton - amazing machines.
I hope that they were not scrapped - it would be nice to hear some stories re what they are up to now.
But I can see why they were traded in for the FBM Marine cats - I think that two large Red Jet cats effectively replaced the whole fleet (8 of them?) of Shearwaters.
 
Great posts! With speed plus fuel economy the big wins, seems to me it's now time to address "failure" points by pressing modern materials and controls technology into the mix. Software controlled moving planing surfaces should be straightforward, for example, but I assume those with modelling tools have found that big and non- complex cats are still the overall "right" answer?
 
Just a thought, might horizontal "fins," as shown on the aft of Shearwater, fitted close to the hull, fore & aft, generate some lift on a displacement/semi-d craft? The thinking [don't laugh] being that the hull would be raised slightly thereby decreasing wetted area & enabling more efficient use of power?

John G
 
Jegs said:
Just a thought, might horizontal "fins," as shown on the aft of Shearwater, fitted close to the hull, fore & aft, generate some lift on a displacement/semi-d craft? The thinking [don't laugh] being that the hull would be raised slightly thereby decreasing wetted area & enabling more efficient use of power?

John G
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Hard to reach lifting (rotate?) speed, unless semi-displacement?
 
Bandit said:
Paultallet

Props lasted 450 running hrs 1/3 of a season.

Fouling was a problem from mid reason onward

Engine , hull, foils, corrosion, etc very high maintenance.
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Wow, only 450 hours for props, is that because of damage through debris? Maybe these days the fouling could have been reduced by lifting the craft clear of the water on airbags overnight. I rode on them a few times and thought it was pretty exciting at the time, as I think most people did.
 
The build company was Cantiera Navale Rodriguez in the shearwater build plate photo you see the "R" in the logo.

They also owned Baglieto but I believe not the Rodriguez motor yacht builder.

Props did get damaged with flotsam strikes but mainly through cavitation as they were operating in disturbed water behind two foils, with no hull in the water above them in rough weather and less than a metre below the surface.
 
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