A Sailboat to Go

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April 2014
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FC-16 folding sailboat. Image: Regattable.com


In New York City to visit a young woman he had recently met, Anthony DiMare
wondered what he should take her to do. Sailing seemed great until he looked at
the rental rates. I dont know many people who could have afforded it, he says. I
thought to myself, If only I could just bring a sailboat with me
And that led to working on the FC-16, a boat being designed to fit in two suitcases,
hoping to make a person of limited means an unlimited sailor.
There are inflatables but they dont offer the performance aspect, says the
Syracuse mechanical engineering major. I decided to make it with the concept of
kayaks with rigid holes and carbon fiber beamsmake it a sailboat you could
afford, fold up and take anywhere.
Durable and Lighter
The goal, he says, is to keep the cost between $3,000-$6,000 and even be able to
store it under a bed when not traveling with it. According to DiMare, it was modeled
after a Hobie 16its 16 feet long, a beam with a width of 8 feet, a mast height of
22 feet and 115 square feet of sailing105 for the main sail and a jib sail of 10
square feet. The hulls right now are made of Tegris by Milliken, which he
describes as a type of plastic composite. Hes also envisioning a second model at
around $20,000 that can carry more people.

The entire sailboat fits into two large suitcases. Image: Regattable.com
The rigging is also different. The current way most boats deal with rigging is
through stainless steel cables which can bend, he says. Theyre heavy and
generally a pain. We went with Dyneema. Its a polymer with extremely low stretch.
It mimics stainless steel and is able to last longer and be more durable. The only
downside is that its plastic rope so its easier to cut.
Mass Manufacturing
The alpha prototype is heavier than he wants at 225 pounds but he is shooting for
150 for mass manufacturing. When building the prototype, the biggest barrier other
than the price might have been finding the time. I did a lot of thedesign work at
my off campus house in Syracuse, he says. I went to 3M to find adhesives to test
materials together, looked at the molds, its fun but challenging, especially when
you have a course load to keep up with."
Having learned to sail at Boy Scout camp and making extra money during high
school at the local boat house, DiMare relishes the chance to use what he learned
from his maintenance work on a fleet of 14 sailboats and 150 kayaks. In addition,
his product development internship at Allen Medical Systems, which had him
working on patient positioning systems for surgical beds, also helped build his skill
set for this undertaking. It was terrific to find a way to stay involved with boats, he
says. And at least I could work on my project and, when I was done, just store it in
my room. How many boat designers can say that?
Eric Butterman is an independent writer.

The entire sailboat fits into two large suitcases. Image: Regattable.com