Wharram Tiki 38 'pod'

Side View

Photo 1: The columns are formed from one and a quarter by 2 inch ash sandwiched between the inner and outer sides. The ash piece forming the front column aft side in and the two pieces forming the aft column can be seen below the outer side, which extends down only as far as the side decks between the cockpit and the hulls. (The front ash piece sits on the beam and doesn’t show here.)
The inner and outer sides are joined by ash pieces at the stern (The little stub sticking down is for mounting the side deck at the rear.), and the top of the rear deck/seat extends out over both sides to tie the whole thing together at the stern. The top of the sides are joined by a solid piece behind the aft column. A slot was left for a window in the area between the columns.
Picture 2: At some cost to the appearance of the whole thing, I made the facing edges of the two columns parallel to allow a window to slide up and down. This shows the slot formed for the window along the inner side, with a stiffener attached to the outer side leaving a gap of 3/8 inch. The window will slide in ¼ inch metal track attached to the column sides. A similar gap must also be left between the inner side and the side decks to allow the window to slide all the way down. (I built this arrangement, but in all honestly, simply having roll down plastic side windows may be a better option. They could snap to the sides and you could save considerable time in building with almost the same result. There’s also something to be said from the safety standpoint for an arrangement like plastic curtains that will give up easily if hit by solid water rather than something that will carry the stress to the entire cockpit..).

Picture 3: The sides of the basic box were extended outward at the plan angle in order to allow people to sit comfortably facing into the cockpit. The rear deck is supported by three bulkheads distributed evenly across the back. The four holes are for access (There’s almost no usable volume under the seat), and will be closed by screw-in deck rings. The top was doubled from the outside to the first bulkhead on each side to provide for mounting winches, cleats, etc. on the seat/deck so that everything can be lead to the helm station.
The coachroof was built the same as the decks, with 5/8 inch balsa core sandwiched between 4 mm plywood top and bottom, with hardwood pieces along the edges and around the mast casing. I also put hardwood pieces in the middle to support an eventual windshield, which resulted in a slight dishing of the top in the middle because they were stiffer than planned. Doesn’t really show, but something to consider for next time. Scott has already posted some shots of building the coachroof. Again, if I were doing this over, I would use foam rather than balsa (much lighter), and not plan on walking on the coachroof top.

Picture 4: The seats are twenty inches wide (per plan) and fourteen inches off the sole, angling down one inch from front to back. They are attached to the side by a cleat underneath, and to the front by an oak stiffener running underneath the seat and along the front of the upright supporting the seat. The upright has three access holes; the first two are open, while the aft one is set up for a locking door. There is an interior bulkhead between the aft and middle access holes that runs along the top of the sole doubler. The forward compartment and the sole itself will have drains in the corners. Seat drains will be drilled out at the forward and aft corners through the sides.

Picture 5: A small seat with the top also angled down connects the two side seats aft, with a drain cutout at the top of the connection. The back seat has two access holes, with a drain hole in the front. The seat is small to allow the helm to stand in front of the wheel. To sit, a fold out extension is flipped down (this isn’t mounted yet) to provide a standard sized seat. The top rear vertical section sits on the beam junction (per plan) but is angled back at the same angle as the sides in order to allow people to sit naturally. The rear deck seat will eventually have a two slat back (also angled) attached to the rear cockpit face) to allow people to be comfortable on the seat. Being up in the back allows you to see over the cockpit and be in the breeze when it’s hot.

Picture 6: The mast casing is per plan, but was extended up to meet the ceiling, which is 56 inches off the sole at the midpoint. (The rear deck seat, roof, and forward window cambers are the same as the beam camber through the middle, so the sides are an inch or two lower.) I am 6 feet plus tall, and have about 5 inches of clearance sitting; so you could lower the profile by six inches or more if you were shorter or didn’t want that much clearance. As it is, the coachroof is a foot or so higher than the per plan cockpit, so it’s not that much higher. It is, however, much wider at that height, and may very well make the boat look top heavy, but I wanted the comfort and was willing to give up appearance and windage for it. I also lengthened the aft mast one foot to allow for the extra height.
The front outer side (per plan) was extended up to meet the roof, with a large cutout for a window. (I wanted the air and the light, and I recognize that this window is vulnerable as a result.) An inner side was built below the window with two access holes (there’s not much storage room in them but I didn’t want a closed space). The lower part of the inner side sits on the basic box per plan; the upper side has a one or so inch stiffener sandwiched between the inner and outer sides. The structure forms a beam to support the mast casing. The inner side is angled the same as the side decks to allow people to lean back and sit facing aft on the seat comfortably.

The compass and other instruments will be mounted to the mast casing, with extensions aft holding the mounts and forming a box to hold the wires, etc. A shallow box will also be extended aft on the ceiling to hold a small LED light array and to stiffen the top. Vertical supports (1 ½ inch square ash) coming from the sole will attach to the sides of this box at the aft end of the coachroof to support the aft middle section of theroof. The steering and engine controls will be contained in a small console mounted with the posts. A similar shallow box will extend back from the front to the console to carry the engine wires and cables, radio feeds, and electrical wires. Stiffeners running the length of the cockpit beneath the sole will bolt into the sides of this box to stiffen the sole through the middle.

Picture 7: The outside front face is doubled starting about a foot from the bottom to strengthen the area around the window. The doubler is cut away one inch around the window cutout to retain the window in place. Again, either plastic roll down curtains or a solid ¼ or 3/8 window can be used. The solid window would be retained by clips along the top and bottom, and would probably have to be made in two overlapping pieces to be easily stored when not in use. The front pieces were screwed into the side columns and mast casing, and rounded over and glassed into the roof, side columns, mast casing, and the beam shelf.