paper tiger catamaran weight

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• Sailboat Guide

Paper Tiger

Paper Tiger is a 13 ′ 11 ″ / 4.3 m catamaran sailboat designed by Ron Given and built by Formula Sailcraft starting in 1967.

Rig and Sails

Auxilary power, accomodations, calculations.

The theoretical maximum speed that a displacement hull can move efficiently through the water is determined by it's waterline length and displacement. It may be unable to reach this speed if the boat is underpowered or heavily loaded, though it may exceed this speed given enough power. Read more.

Classic hull speed formula:

Hull Speed = 1.34 x √LWL

Max Speed/Length ratio = 8.26 ÷ Displacement/Length ratio .311 Hull Speed = Max Speed/Length ratio x √LWL

Sail Area / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the power of the sails relative to the weight of the boat. The higher the number, the higher the performance, but the harder the boat will be to handle. This ratio is a "non-dimensional" value that facilitates comparisons between boats of different types and sizes. Read more.

SA/D = SA ÷ (D ÷ 64) 2/3

• SA : Sail area in square feet, derived by adding the mainsail area to 100% of the foretriangle area (the lateral area above the deck between the mast and the forestay).
• D : Displacement in pounds.

Ballast / Displacement Ratio

A measure of the stability of a boat's hull that suggests how well a monohull will stand up to its sails. The ballast displacement ratio indicates how much of the weight of a boat is placed for maximum stability against capsizing and is an indicator of stiffness and resistance to capsize.

Ballast / Displacement * 100

Displacement / Length Ratio

A measure of the weight of the boat relative to it's length at the waterline. The higher a boat’s D/L ratio, the more easily it will carry a load and the more comfortable its motion will be. The lower a boat's ratio is, the less power it takes to drive the boat to its nominal hull speed or beyond. Read more.

D/L = (D ÷ 2240) ÷ (0.01 x LWL)³

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds.
• LWL: Waterline length in feet

Comfort Ratio

This ratio assess how quickly and abruptly a boat’s hull reacts to waves in a significant seaway, these being the elements of a boat’s motion most likely to cause seasickness. Read more.

Comfort ratio = D ÷ (.65 x (.7 LWL + .3 LOA) x Beam 1.33 )

• D: Displacement of the boat in pounds
• LOA: Length overall in feet
• Beam: Width of boat at the widest point in feet

Capsize Screening Formula

This formula attempts to indicate whether a given boat might be too wide and light to readily right itself after being overturned in extreme conditions. Read more.

CSV = Beam ÷ ³√(D / 64)

Originated in New Zealand and soon spread to Australia. Designed for the for the amateur builder using plywood. A fiberglass version was introduced in the mid 1970’s. Class is still active (2010). Plans and completed boats are still available.

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ABOUT PAPER TIGERS

The Paper Tiger is a catamaran designed by Ron Given of New Zealand in 1968. It is widely sailed in New Zealand and Australia.

Class rules allow hull construction from plywood, kelvar, fibreglass or carbon fibre. The boat is suitable for home built construction.

The rig features an aluminium mast with  a fully battened sail.  Class rules allow adjustable downhaul, outhaul, kicker and lower forestays. This provides a wide sailing envelope over a range of wind and sea conditions. Optimium sailing conditions are 5-25 knots.

Centreboards and rudders can be retractable.

Overall Dimensions

Length: 14 ft (4.3m)

Width: 7ft (2.2m)

Minimum Weight: 110 lbs (50kg)

Sail Area: 100 sq ft (9.2 m 2 )

Paper Tiger Register 

Plans for over 3200 Paper Tigers have been sold, and its estimated that over 3000 Paper Tigers have been built. The NZPTOA maintains a register of Paper Tigers boats.

If you own, or have owned a Paper Tiger, you can check out some of it's history in the register. We endeavour to keep this register as current as possible, but this needs all PT owners to help. If you have information to update this register please contact us or click update button below. 

An Early Auckland Boat

This picture of #17 “Bobcat” was taken around 1968 in the Tamaki estuary with Bob Morse at the helm.

Don Blow built the hulls for this early Paper Tiger.

Note that trapeze equipment is no longer allowed under modern class rules.

New  Zealand  Paper  Tiger  Owners  Association

​​​​​​​ Email : [email protected]  

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• Paper Tiger Forum

Paper Tiger Building plans???

By Guest Old Mate, April 10, 2005 in Paper Tiger Forum

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Guest old mate.

I was wondering where I could obtain some paper tiger plans, geometric tolerances, material rules and etc... all the construction regulations. Also how much am I looking at for a mast section etc... Also how much would a brand new foam sandwich paper tiger with a trailer and sailbox sell for? also where are the Nationals this year and what dates?

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I don't have the address details for purchasing plans on me at the moment. I will post them tomorrow.

Blank mast sections are priced at around $300.

A guy was selling a PT that was only few months old in Victoria recently for $14,000. I don't know if he got it. I don't think it included a trailer.

People rarely buy a fully assembled boat brand new. They normally purchase the hulls and foils from the builder, then purchase all other gear separately, assembling it themselves or paying someone else to do it. They usually do this to ensure that it is set up the way they want it. While the PT is really a one-design class, there are a lot of freedoms around layout and fittings. For this reason, it generally pays to purchase a second-hand boat first, then sail it for a season or so before considering a brand new boat. You will learn a lot about the class, both how to sail it and also the way you would like it fitted out.

The next Nationals will be held in Hobart, Tasmania. The dates are 3rd - 10th January 2006. You can check out the event web site at http://ausnats2006.papertigercatamaran.org

The following Nationals will be held in NSW.

Please let me know if you need any further information.

Dave Stumbles

Publicity Officer

Australian Paper Tiger Catamaran Assoc.

(dave at papertigercatamaran.org)

the tasmanian pt association is in the process of building a website, not 100% sure what is going to be on it, but with all the input its going to recieve it should be a ripper.

www.tptca.catsailor.org

Cheers mate. Yeah just put up a link or whatever to the PT Plans... Iam just looking at the costs involved in building one from scratch in the back yard. Also what is the PT minimum weight? I need all rules and regulations... also can anyone here obtain Arrow and Arafura Cadet plans as well? Iam looking at all these *home build* style classes to price out how much it will cost to build them and sell them, to new sailors, seasoned sailors or sailors looking for something new to sail.

Also looking at a PT, to sail at nats 2006, is anyone here going? also will there be a container going over at the same time? will there most likely be New Boat Buyers? is there usually new boat buyers at the titles?

Thanks all this help is greatly appreciated!

G'day again,

Sorry, I didn't get the details of the guy who sells the plans. I will get them tonight.

I can't post a link to the plans. They are not freely available. A set of plans costs around $80.

The PT class rules can be accessed on the New Zealand PT site at www.papertiger.org.nz and look under "Specifications".

Paper Tigers are weighed unrigged (ie. just the platform) and the minimum weight is 50kg. All up weight would be 70 - 75kg.

I don't know if there would be people interested in buying new ply boats, as we haven't had a professional builder of ply hulls for a long time. Our current builders all do foam sandwich.

Don't know of any containers going across at the moment. Most will stack boats on roof tops or multiple boats on one trailer. However, the Victorian Assoc may be interested in some arrangement, as there will be quite a few of them going.

Darryl J Barrett

Some one in Victoria had a second hand PT for sale for $14,000??????

I will sell you a brand new ALL carbon fibre Alpha Omega F14 that outperforms all of the 16' cats, (across the line) with the exception of the Taipan 4.9 sloop, which at present, it sails pretty much on a par with, (but the Alpha is getting faster with every race), for $14,000!!

No offence darryl but atleast you get to sail against other Pt's that is established across Australia for 14k... as your line of production of a f14 hasn't really got alot of competition (not to say it wont in the future).

pt's have been trading hands here in Tassie in the expectations of the nationals being held here, people who have never sailed a pt before buying one just for the experiance of being in such an established class.

I would certainly spend more money on a boat if i knew i would get to sail agaisnt 40 - 50 boats @ a nationals rather than sailing against a yardstick.

[This message has been edited by cj (edited 12 April 2005).]

It will be a fibreglass boat... As far as I can see in the rules I can build it out of whatever I want. Also is there set beams to use? or is it possible to use different beams. The one thing I couldnt find was on Beams. If you could get the contact details for this guy with the plans for the PT's that would be great, also do you have any idea as to what this guys plans include? do they include plans for everything you need to build a Paper Tiger?

Once again my apologies - work and other commitments have prevented me getting on my computer at home.

You will find Section 3 of the rules is called "Beams and Trampoline", which includes all the details you need about beams. They are tightly controlled. Some associations keep beams in stock (Vic, NSW, SA the most likely to have them). Otherwise, they can be purchased elsewhere.

The plans do include everything you need to know about building a PT. There are six plan sheets that cover all required to build one. The main problem is they haven't been updated to show the latest gear in use. It is planned to update them. However, if people have access to existing fleets, they can see the gear used on the latest boats. Otherwise we can send them pictures or they can check web sites etc.

When you say "fibreglass", do you mean foam-sandwich? Previous attempts at building straight fibreglass hulls resulted in boats that were either too heavy or not stiff enough. One of the challenges of building a PT is getting it to minimum weight and also achieving a suitable stiffness. The foam-sandwich boats achieve this. People who do their research and take care while building can also achieve this when building in plywood.

Darryl, I encourage you in your project. However, CJ has raised the obvious point. People need to decide whether they want speed or competitive racing. It may be a long wait to see a "fleet" of AO14s. If that's what people want, that's fine. But if they want large States, Nationals and Internationals fleets, then the PT is definitely worth considering.

Having large fleets in both Australia and New Zealand, and having them get together regularly, is a great attraction of the class. Besides that, they are an absolute pleasure to sail.

People have built ply PTs for a LOT less than this and can buy competitive second hand boats for much less again. So the price is not as frightening as it may appear.

Paper Tiger plans can be purchased from Gary Spiller in South Australia. He can be contacted on:

(08) 8347 1511 (bh)

(08) 8265 7718 (ah)

Please let me know if you need further information.

How are you mate. cheers for that Info, before I give this guy a call I was also going to ask, would these plans be suitable to build a jig off of? I am looking at building both Plywood and Fibreglass boats(Carbon, foam sandwich)

The intention is to build some PT's as platforms only, including foils and beams.

Yes, the plans include the directions for building a jig. Plywood PT's require a jig to build the hulls from, but those people near PT fleets can always borrow one from someone.

Let me know if you need further info.

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