Flying Tiger 10 M Explained

Flying Tiger 10 M
Insignia:File:FlyingTiger10 sailemblem.svg
Location:China
Year:2005
No Built:110
Builder:Hansheng Yachtbuilding
Role:Racer
Draft:7.62feet with keel down
Displacement:43740NaN0
Hull Type:monohull
Construction:fiberglass
Loa:32.66feet
Lwl:30.31feet
Beam:9.15feet
Engine:outboard motor
Keel Type:lifting keel with weighted bulb
Ballast:19180NaN0
Rudder Type:transom-mounted rudder
Rig Type:Bermuda rig
I:39.25feet
J:12.12feet
P:40.16feet
E:14.89feet
Sailplan:fractional rigged sloop
Sailarea Main:298.99square feet
Sailarea Headsail:237.86square feet
Sailarea Total:536.85square feet
Phrf:42-57
Successor:Flying Tiger 7.5

The Flying Tiger 10 M is a Chinese trailerable sailboat that was designed by American Robert Perry as a one design racer and first built in 2005.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]

A smaller and lighter derivative is the Perry-designed Flying Tiger 7.5.[7] [8]

Production

The design was built by Hansheng Yachtbuilding in Xiamen, China, starting in 2005, with 110 boats completed, but it is now out of production.[1] [2] [9] [10]

Early production was marred by quality control issues, but these were later resolved with modifications and production line updates.[5] [6]

Design

The boat's concept was created by Bill Steven, an American racing sailor and boatbuilder from the west coast, who had boats built in China in the past. He commissioned Perry to do a preliminary design for a simple and inexpensive sportboat that would fit in a 40feet shipping container. Perry's design was then circulated though sailing internet forums for feedback and then orders. The concept was well received and Steven was able to collect 50 US$1000 deposits and that enabled production to begin in China.[5] [6]

It was specifically designed to be ground transported on a boat trailer and therefore uses a lifting keel, an easily removable rudder and carbon fiber spars for lightness.[5] [6]

The Flying Tiger 10 M is a racing keelboat, built predominantly of vinylester resin fiberglass over a foam core. It has a fractional sloop rig, with a deck-stepped mast, two sets of swept spreaders and carbon fiber spars. The hull has a plumb stem with a retractable bowsprit, a slightly reverse transom, a removable transom-hung rudder controlled by a tiller and a lifting keel with bulb weight. It displaces 43740NaN0 and carries 19180NaN0 of ballast.[1] [2] [5] [6]

The boat has a draft of 7.62feet with the keel extended and 3.28feet with it retracted, allowing operation in shallow water or ground transportation on a trailer.[1] [2]

The boat is normally fitted with a small outboard motor for docking and maneuvering, mounted in a cockpit well just aft of the bridgedeck and enclosed by doors.[1] [2] [5] [6]

The design has an unfinished interior, but does have sleeping accommodation under the cockpit and two straight settees in the main cabin.[5] [6]

For sailing downwind the design may be equipped with an asymmetrical spinnaker flown from the bowsprit. Class rules specify a maximum crew weight of 10500NaN0.[1] [2] [5]

The design is capable of planing and one reviewer noted it achieving 16kn. It has a displacement hull speed of 7.38kn and a PHRF handicap of 42 to 57.[2] [5] [6] [11]

Operational history

The first boat imported into the US was shown at the US Sailboat Show in Annapolis, Maryland in 2007. The first competition was the Sperry Top-Sider NOOD in San Diego in March 2007, with Scot Tempesta winning.[5]

The boat is supported by an active class club that organizes racing events, the Flying Tiger 10M International Class Association.[12] [13]

In a 2007 review for Sailing World, Tom Bessinger wrote, "building boats at a factory halfway around the world with unskilled (at least initially) labor can be difficult, and there are usually a few missteps. The Flying Tiger 10-Meter is no exception. The first few boats came with under-specced tillers, transoms that were underbuilt, and rudder hardware that wasn’t up to the task of handling the loads of the boat's outboard-hung rudder. Poorly designed and built class sails didn't help its debut either. But-and this is important-we saw enough good things to figure out that Steven, Perry, and the denizens of sailinganarchy.com, have delivered exactly what was ordered-an inexpensive sportboat with good performance characteristics."[5]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Flying Tiger 10 M sailboat . 6 January 2023. McArthur. Bruce. sailboatdata.com. 2022. https://archive.today/20230106193409/https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/flying-tiger-10m. 6 January 2023. live.
  2. Web site: Flying Tiger 10 M. 6 January 2023. Sea Time Tech, LLC. sailboat.guide. 2022. https://archive.today/20230106193442/https://sailboat.guide/xiamen-hansheng/flying-tiger-10m. 6 January 2023. live.
  3. Web site: Robert Perry. 6 January 2023. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2022. https://archive.today/20210226131251/https://sailboatdata.com/designer/perry-robert. 26 February 2021. live.
  4. Web site: Robert Perry. 6 January 2023. Sea Time Tech, LLC. sailboat.guide. 2022. https://archive.today/20230106193440/https://sailboat.guide/robert-perry. 6 January 2023. live.
  5. Web site: Flying Tiger 10-Meter: Rough on the Edges, Smooth on the Water. 6 January 2023. Bessinger. Tony. Sailing World. 18 July 2007. https://archive.today/20230106193540/https://www.sailingworld.com/sailboats/flying-tiger-10-meter-rough-edges-smooth-water/. 6 January 2023. live.
  6. Web site: Flying Tiger 10 M. 6 January 2023. Springer. Bill. Sail Magazine. 4 November 2005. https://archive.today/20230106193546/https://www.sailmagazine.com/boats/flying-tiger-10-m. 6 January 2023. live.
  7. Web site: Flying Tiger 7.5 sailboat . 7 January 2023. McArthur. Bruce. sailboatdata.com. 2023. https://archive.today/20230107225046/https://sailboatdata.com/sailboat/flying-tiger-75. 7 January 2023. live.
  8. Web site: Flying Tiger 7.5M. 7 January 2023. Perry. Robert H. Robert Perry (yacht designer). Sailing Magazine. 9 May 2009. https://archive.today/20230107225304/https://sailingmagazine.net/article-708-flying-tiger-7.5m.html. 7 January 2023. live.
  9. Web site: Xiamen Hansheng Yacht Building Co. Ltd.. 6 January 2023. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2022. https://archive.today/20230106193418/https://sailboatdata.com/builder/xiamen-hansheng-yacht-building-co-ltd. 6 January 2023. live.
  10. Web site: Xiamen Hansheng Yacht Building Co. Ltd.. 6 January 2023. Sea Time Tech, LLC. sailboat.guide. 2022. https://archive.today/20230106193552/https://sailboat.guide/xiamen-hansheng. 6 January 2023. live.
  11. Web site: PHRF Handicaps. 6 January 2023. US Sailing. US Sailing. ussailing.org. 2022.
  12. Web site: Flying Tiger 10M class. 6 January 2023. McArthur. Bruce . sailboatdata.com. 2022. https://archive.today/20230107214333/https://sailboatdata.com/association/flying-tiger-10m-class-web-site. 7 January 2023. live.
  13. Web site: Flying Tiger 10M class web site. 6 January 2023. Sea Time Tech, LLC. sailboat.guide. 2022. https://archive.today/20230106193548/https://sailboat.guide/flying-tiger-10m-class-web-site-class-association. 6 January 2023. live.