48' containers!  Brilliant.

  I drew up plans for a house two years ago built from 48' containers, which are a bit more expensive than the 40' containers, but allowed for internal stairs.  For some reason, though, my brain completely turned off when Gardner was talking about a container-able proa, and I didn't remember the larger sizes.

  48' and 53' containers are both legal on U.S. roads, and are easily loaded onto ships.  However, not all ships and ports are equipped to deal with them.  I'd see the larger container as something to be used for passages between major ports, or for use in the U.S. for transport and/or secure winter storage. 

  The larger containers are much less common than 40'-ers, and a bit more expensive, but definitely worth it if they fit in with the ports and roads you want to use.

  That extra 8' to 13' opens up a new realm of what can be done overseas and then shipped here without the need for a passage that's costly in terms of either time or money.

  BTW, I don't know if we discussed hicube containers or not.  Inside dimensions are 7'8" wide, as with normal containers, but 8'10" high, a foot higher than the 7'-10" of a standard container.  If you're willing/able to tilt the boat on its side, that extra foot opens up some additional room in the windward hull.

        - Mike

mjchimel wrote:

 

The rain is a bit off the topic of this thread, but I hope you are doing alright!

Back on thread...Count me in as another Marylander interested in your projects. Maybe we need to enlighten some boatbuilder over here about the virtues of your designs and the flatpanel/infusion build methods. Or we need to learn more about container shipping.

I'd love to hear more about the cruising design planned next.

On containers, here in the US we see 48 foot containers on the road and the rails. I've read of 53 footers but haven't really seen any. Are there any in Australia? Or is it strictly 20s and 40s? I wonder if the ports are set up for them, or if there is a huge premium in cost.
My design brief for the boat would include:
single hand boat with live-aboard accomodation for two with occasional guests.
I like the idea of no thru hulls, motors that are out of the water for sailing, rudders/boards that lay OUT of the water when not used...
Not critical, but nice to have for the short term is 53 foot bridge clearance. It would be nice to moor in my neighborhood, but it is only a mile in a dinghy to get below that bridge! That said, I like the concept of the Aerorig; lighter sheet loads etc. I know this is somewhat between the Visionarry and the Harry designs, hence the curiosity about the new project for cruisers.

Fair Winds
Mark Chimel
Riva Maryland