Evaluation of the Flattop Boat 



Description and Assembly 



The FTB used in this evaluation was purchased from Slickbar, Inc., 

 P.O. Box 139, Southport, Connecticut 06490. The FTB is a tri-hulled 

 vessel of 14.7-ft beam and 27.5-ft overall length. The boat is foldable, 

 and a trailer, for ease in transportation, may be ordered as an extra. 

 Construction drawings giving dimensions and material of construction 

 are not included in this report because Slickbar refused to supply them 

 to CEL for proprietary reasons. However, the following information was 

 available from Slickbar: 



. length - 27.5 ft 

 . beam - 14.7 ft 



height of outer rails - 3.5 ft 



height of inner rails - 2.5 ft 



Detailed instructions with photographs showing the procedures for 

 folding the FTB prior to deployment were supplied by the manufacturer, 

 and they are included in Appendix C. Appendix C also includes deployment 

 and retrieval procedures, folding procedures, and maintenance 

 requirements. Various precautions that must be observed during folding, 

 unfolding, deployment, and retrieval are also included in Appendix C. 

 These precautions were observed during the execution of this test 

 program. 



The outboard engines selected to power the FTB were two, 75 hp, 

 Johnson high performance engines with 13 1/4-inch diameter, 17-inch pitch 

 propellers. 



Deployment of the Flattop Boat 



The manufacturer of the FTB recommends that the boat be deployed 

 over a ramp. Attempts were made to design a lifting sling which could 

 be used to deploy the FTB using a crane. Based upon the weight of the 

 FTB (5240 + 20 lbs) and the unavailability of safe locations on the FTB 

 to secure lifting lines or to place lifting bars, the designers felt 

 that the folding FTB should not be lifted with a crane. To ensure that 

 we did not damage the boat, no attempt was made to rig up "something" 

 just to see if the cleats, railings, etc., could be used to lift the 

 FTB for deployment. 



If a Navy base does not have a suitable ramp, or if the ramp may 

 not be available for the FTB deployment and retrieval, then it is 

 recommended that the rigid FTB be purchased instead of the folding FTB 

 for the intended use. 



The deployment of the FTB was, therefore, carried out over a ramp 

 which could be raised or lowered. To accomplish this, the bow of the 



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