Weston Farmers Tahitiana Cutter
Description
The Tahitiana Cutter is a rugged, heavy-displacement steel-hulled cruising sailboat designed by American naval architect Weston Martyr Farmer (1921–2006) in the 1970s, as an adaptation of John G. Hanna's iconic 1920s Tahiti Ketch—a legendary double-ender inspired by Colin Archer's unsinkable Norwegian lifeboats. Farmer's version emphasizes enhanced sail-carrying ability and simplified construction for amateur steel welders, resulting in a seaworthy "go-anywhere" micro-cruiser capable of ocean passages, circumnavigations, and heavy-weather survival. Typically around 30-32 feet, the cutter-rigged variant (a sloop-like evolution from the original ketch) offers versatile sail plans with staysail for balance, making it ideal for shorthanded couples seeking a characterful, low-cost bluewater boat. Built primarily as one-offs or small runs by home builders or yards like Botter Boatworks, McCandless Marine, and David Lund, approximately 50-100 examples exist worldwide, many in steel for durability (though wood or fiberglass adaptations occur).
The standard boat dimensions
| i | - |
|---|---|
| j | - |
| p | 35.50 ft |
| e | 14 ft |
| p2 | - |
| e2 | - |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| - | - | 35.50 ft | 14 ft | - | - | - | - |
Blueprints
Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.