Wharram 35 Tangaroa

Description

The Wharram 35 Tangaroa (most commonly the Tangaroa Mk IV) is a classic British plywood/epoxy self-build cruising catamaran designed by James Wharram (with significant input from Hanneke Boon) as an evolution of his pioneering Polynesian-inspired double-canoe designs. It was never built by a commercial factory but offered exclusively as detailed plans for amateur and professional home builders since the mid-1960s (Mk I introduced around 1965; Mk IV refined later with graceful hull lines, wider hull beam, more freeboard, longer cabin with standing headroom, and improved Tiki-style I-section crossbeams). Construction uses marine plywood over a backbone and bulkhead frame, with epoxy/glass sheathing for durability—emphasizing simplicity, low cost, and ease of building (estimated ~1,800 hours). Thousands of Wharram designs have been built worldwide (over 10,000 plan sets sold across the range), with the Tangaroa 35 seeing a respectable but undocumented number of completions (many still sailing decades later). Key features include a stable, beamy platform with shallow draft for beaching/gunkholing, open-bridge-deck layout, basic but functional accommodations (sleeping for 4–6 with bunks and sitting/standing headroom in the cabin),