came accross these newly designed ....
 

interesting design...Regals

23' Regal...wonder if Searay . bayliner etc will go with steps too..seems like there are no boundries for stepped boats....I wonder if it's less expensive to make a stepped hull because the back has less mass??

Re: came accross these newly designed ....
 

That's not a step...it's a canyon. :D :eek:

....this boat was a bit too heavilly stepped for it's size

Re: Re: came accross these newly designed ....
 

no chit......:fish:

...this is a 1910 "Unlimited" with a step in the bottom

here's the "step" to the boat above...

I am researching stepped hulls..here is a GREAT article...any comments?

In Step with Hull Design
by Bill Butler

It seems that over the past several years there has been a rise in the number of stepped-hulled performance boats that have spun out or rolled, regardless of water conditions; resulting in injuries, and in some cases, fatalities. What is causing these accidents? Operator inexperience? Speed? Faulty design? All of the above?

This hull design is not new. In fact, it would seem the original idea was formulated by Rev. C.M. Ramus of Sussex, England in 1872. He reported to the Commission of the Admiralty that he discovered a way to make the speed of ships double, and published “Improved section drawing of a Stepped Hull” later that same year. And the records also indicate that the first patent was awarded to a 20’, 7-step boat named “PIONEER”, designed and built by William Henry Fauber in 1908. Several race boats used the stepped design in the early 1900’s. Military seaplanes also incorporated this design in the 1930’s and 1940’s.

The concept of the stepped hull is to produce an air cushion between the hull and water, thereby reducing friction, and increasing speed. However, as a result of this reduction in contact, spinouts and rollovers seem to happen in far greater numbers than non-stepped hulls.

Which brings us back to the question, Why? Is it the design itself, or the way the boats are operated that causes these accidents? After following this topic for the past few years, it seems there are several things that are mentioned most often. They are (not in any specific order):

Don’t let off on the throttle in a turn or,

Feather the throttle in a turn

Don’t “trim in” during turns.

Keep the drives in the water

Have your props spin “out” instead of “in”

Two other very important things also come up. One is education, education, education! Either have the builder/dealer or an experienced stepped-hull boater work with you until you re comfortable with your knowledge. Second is seat time. Don’t just hop into your new boat and try to break all the speed records. Work with the boat, feel it out, recognize its likes and dislikes. Only with time will you REALLY know the proper operation.

The number of manufacturer’s building stepped-hulled boats will only increase with the public’s growing interest. That’s why it is most important that potential owners of these boats are fully versed in proper operation. This, I believe, is the single most important thing that can be done to reduce accidents, and as a result, keep your insurance costs in check.

A stepped hull can sometimes be a little squirrely in the turns. They are made to go fast and accelerate quickly but the aeration that makes them quick also steals a little from stability in turns. They are safe, if you take that into consideration. Many boaters fail to factor that into their day. A vee hull/mono hull has the most predictable, stable and friendly characteristics, if you don't need the speed.

There are ongoing pros and cons regarding this hull design. Therefore, the debate will continue: Are stepped hulls inherently more dangerous than non-stepped hulls?

NORMALLY DO PROPS "SPIN IN " OR "SPIN OUT" ?
I think most come from the facotry spinning in...??


This new personal watercraft is stepped too..

Couple years ago, guy with 42' Fountain was turning hard and fast, all 4 occupants were thrown overboard in the water as the boat drove itself round and round and round and round...( get it? ) till it smashed up on some guys dock on Lake Winnebago, WI. All 4 were picked up safe. He faulted the design and went out, bought a new 47' with triples.....:fish:

Sorry to tell you that hull has been made for 10 years now.

Rag's

cool!

I hear these are good boats...quality is up there with the likes of Formula as seen in magazine tests...anyone have one? Comments? (Powerquest) Holland ,MI

some older stepped boat designs...fyi

Stepped Hulls

The concept was originally proposed by Rev. Ramus of Sussex England in 1872. He proposed both a single stop with tandem planing surfaces, and a combination of three pontoons with one forward and two aft. Indications are that these shapes were derived from model tests. Unfortunately, the heavy steam power plants of that day could not push a hull fast enough to plane, and take advantage of the new concept.

As early as 1906 there were published drawings for small stepped hulls with hard chines. William Henry Fauber [8] obtained a U.S. patent for hulls with multiple steps in 1908, but could find few people in the U.S.A. interested, so he moved to Europe.

Two small boats Solair (12') and Flapper (15') demonstrated the potential of stepped hulls as did the Harmsworth challenger Pioneer (5 steps) in 1910. (See Data Chart, Figure 12.)

The stepped hull began practical development about at the same time as the hard chined planing hull. A step in the bottom of a hull, raises part of the bottom surface so that it is no longer touching the water. Less wetted area. At the same time, the planing surfaces meet the water at a near optimum angle of attack over a wide range of speeds. The stepped hull is very efficient hydrodynamically.


Figure 9. Planing Hulls - Hard Chine
Refer to Figure 9 : Sketch of Hard Chined Planing Hulls

In the early days of stepped hulls, it was not certain just how many steps should be incorporated. Pioneer had 5 steps in 1910. Maple Leaf IV had 5 steps.

Maple Leaf IV: Length 39'-11' x Beam 8' . Two V-8 engines 350 Hp. each.

In 1912, Maple Leaf IV came over, from England, won the Harmsworth Trophy, and took it home. She had no less than five steps, and the driver sat on a pedestal high above the transom in order to see over the bow.

Some hulls had so many steps that they were called "shingled'. Rainbow IV (12 steps);

Eventually, model tests showed that a single step would be most efficient if you could locate it in the right position and give.it the proper depth.

http://www.aeromarineresearch.com/tbdp6.html


.if you are designing a boat or want to do more with designs in theory or practice this site offers software to get you going ...really neat software!

....hope this is interesting ...sorry for all the posts..but figured if anyone was interested they might like to review this...I talked to a manufacturer's rep. who agreed with "Downtown42's" friend's assessment..that triple engines are harder to spin out vs. twins in a relatively longer stepped boat....so a 47' stepped with triples is harder to spin than twins..this guy agreed...triple offer more prop bite....so a heavilly cupped prop deep enough in the water helps...x-dimension is really really important....I guess surface props and steps at high speeds may be a handful?

....so if speed is not a factor than a heavier non-stepped hull is for you...like an older Apache, Cig, Scarab,Formula..and of course some of the current non-stepped Pantera's...

..any opinions if one company has "safer step designs" than others?