rm yachts reviews

Yachting World

• Digital Edition

First look: RM 1380 – largest new yacht from the French marque

• Toby Hodges
• December 28, 2022

The RM 1380 is set to be the biggest boat this popular French brand has produced and could well suit bluewater cruisers

Product Overview

I like RM 1380 and I’m clearly not alone in appreciating these (typically) brightly coloured plywood epoxy fast cruisers – with over 500 hulls launched during the La Rochelle yard’s 30 or more years in production. It describes this latest (now its largest) 45-footer as ‘the perfect balance of style, velocity and bluewater cruising.’

The RM 1380 includes many of the features that have made the RM name what it is, including the combination of plywood hulls and foam sandwich glassfibre decks, deep cockpit coamings and inboard winches sited forward in the protection of the coachroof. Then there are the light, open interiors, and the versatile draught options for lift or twin keels. The latter are bolted to a galvanised steel structure.

The Marc Lombard hull shape features his characteristic reverse sheerline, together with a sizable coachroof that blends well with these lines. The powerful shape, which is angular and chined to suit its plywood construction, creates a stiff result on the water. A light displacement of under 10 tonnes for this model, combined with beamy aft sections and twin rudder control, should prove fun off the breeze.

RM 1380 will feature a bright interior with plenty of natural light

Piaton Design has styled the bright interior, which looks like it has bountiful natural light. It is offered as a three cabin version with forward master, or alternatively this can be split in half to create a fourth cabin.

The 1380 is billed as a bluewater cruiser , but for those considering long voyages, the tankage may be a limiting factor at just 150lt for fuel and 270lt for water. However, there are options to upgrade these to 300lt and 400lt respectively – a watermaker will top the ‘to add’ list for many.

Each RM looks unique because each comes with the owner’s choice of paint finish. This new flagship model is due to make its debut at the Paris and Düsseldorf boat shows in December and January.

RM 1380 specifications

LOA: 14.40m 47ft 3in Hull length: 13.30m 43ft 8in Beam: 4.50m 14ft 9in Twin keel draught: 1.95m 6ft 5in Lift keel draught: 1.45m-3.35m 4ft 9in-11ft 0in Price: €393,600 ex VAT Builder: rm-yachts.com

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Practical Boat Owner

• Digital edition

RM890: ‘Fast, fun and functional’

• David Harding
• October 11, 2023

If you want an easy-to-handle performance cruiser that stands out from the crowd, have a look at the RM890, suggests David Harding

The RM890 was designed by the late Marc Lombard. Credit: David Harding Credit: David Harding

Product Overview

Price as reviewed:.

Let’s draw up a checklist of features you might want in your next boat.

It’s going to be around 9m (30ft) long – the boat, that is, not the list.

How about starting with good performance? That’s important to many people, because you can go further and have more fun on the way.

But you don’t want a racing yacht. Whatever you buy should be stiff, well-mannered, comfortable and easy to manage short-handed .

You also want it to be tough: fearing for your life or feeling compelled to check the bilges every time you nudge the bottom is not good for the nerves.

The tiller steering and cockpit layout mean that the RM890 lends herself to short-handed sailing. Credit: David Harding

You want an interior that’s bright and airy and that lets you see the outside world, yet which isn’t too modern or trendy.

You would like a hull with a high strength-to- weight ratio but without the cost, complexity and potential drawbacks inherent in cored laminates.

If the builder were to offer a choice of fin or twin keels , even better.

Above all, you want your new boat to be practical – and if that means departing from convention in some respects, so be it.

Oh, and you don’t have a limitless budget.

All good so far? Well, whether you’re looking for such a boat or are just curious to know whether there is one, read on: it’s time to meet the RM890.

RN890: Sensible solutions

I went to France and visited the yard. Seeing the boats under construction was particularly interesting, because RMs are built in plywood.

Or, more precisely, the hulls are plywood: decks and superstructures are GRP.

That explains the chines in the hull – though chines are now de rigueur anyway – and why the superstructures feature the sort of smooth curves that would be impossible in plywood.

Another reason for moulding the top half is that decks, cockpits and coachroofs tend to have a lot of corners where water can pool.

It’s all eminently logical.

As we know, plywood is an excellent material for boatbuilding: it’s tough, light and easy to repair, as well as providing good thermal and acoustic insulation.

Helming comfort and cockpit practicality set the RM890 apart from most cruising yachts. Credit: David Harding

As a bonus, it’s fashionably green. The sort of top-grade marine ply used by RM should last for decades even without further treatment.

By the time it’s coated in epoxy and then painted with a two-pack polyurethane, chances are it’s going to outlive a run-of-the-mill GRP equivalent.

At this stage it’s worth mentioning the designer: the late Marc Lombard, who needs no introduction.

Combine a design office of this repute with a well-established yard and one of the best boatbuilding materials on the planet and, whether or not they appeal to you, RMs have to be taken seriously.

While production has increased recently, each hull takes about three weeks. This is no mass- market boat: RM are aiming for those who appreciate the functionality and practicality of the designs, which are not exactly mainstream and won’t be to everyone’s taste.

Stand up to navigate: the nav table on the RM890 is small but fully functional. Credit: David Harding

It’s no surprise that owners are often hugely experienced sailors who have owned several (in some cases many) boats before buying an RM.

Every model in the range comes with a choice of T-bulb fin keel and twin rudders or twin keels and a single rudder .

Lombard made the twin keels deeper and of higher aspect ratio than is traditional with twins.

They’re bulbed, too, and my previous tests have shown that they certainly work. The keels are bolted to the hull through a steel frame that spreads the load both laterally and fore-and-aft.

Tiller steering is another departure from modern cruising- yacht convention, though twin wheels are now offered on the larger models.

Tillers are so rarely found on anything over 30ft these days that this is a notable feature in itself.

Architectural precision

One British owner who homed in on the RM890 is Dave King.

While there’s no such thing as a typical RM owner, he exemplifies the sort of approach, attitude and experience that will be found in many others.

For a start, he has always owned boats. He started with a GP14 as a student, then moved into Merlin Rockets and through a series of small cruisers before buying a UFO 34 with his wife, Sue.

After 12 years the UFO gave way to more modern designs: a Dehler 34 was followed by a number of Beneteau Firsts and a Dehler 36, the Dehler also providing accommodation during the working week for a couple of years.

Having spent his working life as an architect, Dave has an eye for detail and structure and he likes the approach of the RMs.

He first came across them while cruising in France.

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In fact, he looked at the earlier 880 before buying a First 31.7.

A couple of years later he saw the RM890 and chartered one – a twin-keeler, as most are – in France for a week.

That confirmed it was the right boat, if with one keel too many, and the experience made him aware of a few things he wanted changing when he placed his order.

There’s no doubt that the RM’s twin keels are highly efficient.

Nonetheless if, like Dave, you don’t need the shallower draught or the ability to dry out, why not have a fin?

That way, you benefit from the extra grip of the twin rudders – a significant factor with such a broad stern – and greater stiffness and righting moment from a centre of gravity that’s a whopping 1ft 4in (400mm) lower.

From a performance perspective, as usual when there’s a choice, a fin is the way to go.

Should you want a twin-keeler, however, you’re still likely to leave a good many larger fin-keelers in your wake.

Compared with the 880, her replacement is only a tad longer overall but significantly longer on the waterline thanks to a hint of the reverse rake in the stem now commonly seen on multihulls.

She’s a little beamier, the greater beam aft being balanced by what appear to be slightly fuller bow sections, yet with a narrow static waterline.

Draught is deeper, sail area greater and displacement almost the same.

Light, bright, open and airy below decks. Note the hull ports, ample handholds and open fiddled stowage outboard. Credit: David Harding

It would be surprising if the RM890 isn’t appreciably faster than her older sibling.

There are plenty of differences on deck and down below, too.

In short, she appears to be pretty well everything an upgrade should be.

And while a good deal of development goes into any model that’s totally new, RM don’t have to factor in the time and costs of building a plug and mould for the hull.

If the shape needs tweaking along the way, it can be tweaked.

To see how the new boat shaped up, I went for a sail with Dave. The day we chose started abysmally, as had been promised.

It seemed crazy to be driving to a boat test through torrential rain with the windscreen wipers working at the double.

Our theory was that the front would have passed through by early afternoon.

Sure enough, by the time we started sailing the rain had stopped and patches of blue sky were appearing from the west.

We wanted to be out immediately post-front to catch not only the sun but also the best of the breeze.

Our plans included trying the staysail, set free-flying on a 2:1 halyard at the upper spreaders (countered by runners) that’s a standard option on the RMs.

The tack is taken to a strong point on the anchor-well bulkhead.

Rigged and ready

Apart from the provision for a staysail, there’s nothing particularly unusual about the RM’s rig .

It’s of high-fractional configuration with long, well-swept spreaders and the caps taken to outboard chainplates.

The mast is an aluminium section by Z Spars (carbon as an option) and set further aft than on many fractionally-rigged boats , the sail area being divided evenly between the mainsail and the headsail.

A short bowsprit incorporates stowage for the anchor and helps project an asymmetric spinnaker .

Most notable about the deck layout is how it lends itself to efficient short-handed sailing.

Provision for a staysail is an option. All the sails on the test RM890 are by Kemp. Credit: David Harding

For example, the mainsheet runs from the end of the boom to a full-width traveller just forward of the transom.

Among the benefits are that it places the helm forward of the mainsheet and conveniently close to the primary winches, which are mounted well inboard.

When tacking on your own you can steer with one hand and sheet the headsail home with the other.

This mainsheet-aft arrangement works well when you have a dedicated mainsheet trimmer, too: he/she sits abaft the helmsman, well away from flying elbows and able to read the boat’s balance from the angle of the tiller .

You would have to be seriously wedded to wheel steering not to agree that a tiller really does work best on a boat like this.

Sail plan on the RM890

You can click the Wichard tiller extension in or out to your preferred length and sit comfortably on the wide, nicely- angled coaming, leaning back against the guardwires with an excellent view forward.

Although you’re almost at the point of maximum beam out here, on a beamy boat with a cockpit that’s not particularly deep, you feel reasonably secure.

On some boats with broad sterns you’re acutely aware that it’s a long way down to the leeward side when you start heeling, often because there’s little more than a dance floor between the gunwales.

The RM890 takes a far more practical approach.

Inboard of the coamings are wide seats either side of a cockpit sole of a width that would allow most people to sit on one seat and brace their legs on the one opposite.

It’s comfortable and it works – unless your reason for owning a boat is to accommodate a dozen people around a cockpit table.

Returning to the practicalities afloat, if you want to sit inboard and further forward in heavy weather, for shelter and to minimise the extent to which you’re thrown around, you can: the tiller and the layout give you the option.

On a bright sparkly day in the Solent , with an agreeable 14-17 knots of wind, you want to sit out and enjoy the sail.

First, however, we wanted to see how the staysail worked, so we set it with the genoa rolled away and tucked a reef in the main as well.

Despite being underpowered we maintained around 5 knots on the wind.

The relatively flat water at this stage helped our speed, but the exercise showed both that the staysail worked well and that the boat is very easily driven – as she should be with a displacement/ length ratio of just 111.

Naturally Dave opted for a folding prop ; anything else would be sacrilege on a boat like this.

Powering up the RM890

Having seen what the rather-too- benign conditions permitted us to see with the staysail, we rolled it away, unfurled the full headsail and shook out the reef.

Tacking the genoa around the rolled staysail takes a little longer but is no major problem, and leaving the staysail hoisted means you can switch headsails in seconds.

The staysail will give you an appreciably better sail shape than a reefed genoa , especially as the tracks are on the short side and wouldn’t allow you to move the cars far enough forward once you’ve taken more than a couple of rolls around the headfoil.

Having set all plain canvas, we didn’t think about shortening sail again.

A simple but workable galley by the companionway. The chainplate on the partial bulkhead is for the lower shrouds. Credit: David Harding

As well as being easily driven, the RM890 proved remarkably stiff, never feeling over-pressed and rarely heeling more than 15° even in the stronger gusts.

The centre of buoyancy moves well to leeward when she’s sailing on her chine and this form stability, combined with the low-down ballast, keeps her on a comfortably even keel.

Our speeds weren’t far off those indicated by the polars. The log was reading differently on port and starboard tacks, averaging 6 knots in the slight chop.

The polars for the fin-keeler indicate 6.3 knots at 35° to the apparent wind in flat water and 15 knots of breeze.

Balance is pretty good. The helm remained light most of the time, only developing a modest tug as we reached back up the channel at around 8 knots.

It would have been fun to fly a kite and see whether the 11+ knots indicated by the polars was achievable, though we’d have needed both a kite (yet to be added) and a fair bit more wind for that.

Upwind the helm could be left alone for lengthy periods if the mainsail was trimmed with the leech slightly open.

Good balance is largely responsible for this, the other factor being the friction that’s almost inevitable with twin rudders and the associated linkage: they never give you quite the same lightness and responsiveness as a single blade.

A single keel, of course, offers the benefits we discussed earlier.

This one is of high aspect ratio and needs a minimum water-flow over it in order to work: it will inevitably stall if you lose too much speed.

Nonetheless the boat would maintain steerage way when pinched mercilessly, only going into stall mode when brought practically to a standstill.

With the bow down once again the RM890 would need a moment or two for laminar flow to be re-established, but for a boat with this much performance potential she’s very tolerant indeed.

She would heave to happily, crabbing gently and not hesitating when asked to gybe round with the sheets pinned in.

The rudders kept working well at low speeds. They also have stops about 45°.

As I found when manoeuvring under power, this is all the angle you need: the boat will spin incredibly tightly and those stops are reassuring when you’re going astern.

Volvo’s D1 13 is the standard engine ; the D1 20 is a popular upgrade.

If I have a criticism of her handling in open water, it’s that the hull will occasionally thump if you fall off a wave and land upright in a trough.

To be fair, although the layout of the plywood panels does result in relatively flat forward sections, many moulded hulls are not dissimilar in shape; they just don’t have the chines.

Like most modern hulls, this one presents more of a V once heeled.

On the whole, the RM890 was very comfortable in the Solent popple.

One would imagine that there must be hydrodynamic compromises inherent in building a boat with a material that can only be bent into a very gentle curve, but if there are any they’re hard to detect.

Aesthetically you end up with topsides that look a little slabby from certain angles; that’s about all.

On deck and down below on the RM890

There’s so much to note on the RM890 that we will have to skim over some aspects.

A large locker in the bow will swallow fenders that won’t fit into the locker right aft beneath the cockpit sole, next to the liferaft stowage.

And that big forward-facing window? Let’s say it’s just as well that the boat is designed for asymmetric spinnakers: I wouldn’t want to be the one gybing the pole.

Diving below decks – well, you will either love it or hate it.

It’s all open-plan and white-painted ply.

A feature of the RMs is the ‘utility cabin’, providing dry stowage, workshop space and easy access to the systems. Credit: David Harding

Neither the V-berth in the bow nor the double aft to port are in what you could call a cabin: you just climb in and pull a curtain across if you want to.

It’s privacy Gallic-style.

Instead you have the famous RM ‘utility room’ abaft the heads to starboard, giving easy access to the vital systems as well as stowage (not accessible from on deck) for things like an inflatable.

Headroom is modest – barely 6ft (1.83m) under the hatch and less further forward.

As with much else about this boat, that’s the way it is: take it or leave it.

When you’re down here, it’s lovely being able to see forward through that big window ahead of the mast.

Covering it with non-slip patches wouldn’t do much for the view.

Noteworthy features include the vented under-bunk stowage and an abundance of well-placed handholds.

PBO Verdict on the RM890

The RM890 is a Marmite boat for sure.

Forget convention, opulence and privacy: this is not a choice for mum, dad and two teenage kids all new to boating.

For seasoned sailors who like tough, functional boats that perform efficiently and are fun to sail, the RM might well find her way on to a very short list

Tough, functional boat that performs efficiently; fun to sail

RM Yachts are “composite”, as much as the best materials are carefully selected for each part of the boat.

Price not available

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At RM Yachts of La Rochelle

• April 16th, 2017
• On Location

It has been the naval architect Marc Lombard himself who awoke my interest in RM Yachts: When I got the chance to meet him during the Boot boatshow in Dusseldorf this year to talk about the very process of designing a sailing yacht and his personal approach (read the article here ). He directed me to the stand of Fora Marine – RM Yachts where we sat down to discuss the topic. It was here when I first heard about the fact that a yacht builder is making big and yet fast sailing cruisers from plywood.

Last week I happened to be in La Rochelle at the Atlantic Ocean Coast and it suddenly struck me as I was driving through a large commercial area when I saw the big RM-Yachts logo and I suddenly remembered. I took the chance and called the company and I was very excited to have Justine at the other end of the line – the very lady who was so kind to arrange the meeting with Marc during the boatshow in the first place: “Sure, of course you can come and have a visit at our yard. We would be delighted!”, she said and offered me her company to show me around. That was my lucky day.

Plywood as an ideal material for building boats

Why is it such a news that there is a company making sailing yachts from plywood? Boats and ships have been made from timber for many hundred years before: Mankind´s first boats have been hollow dug out canoes, Egyptians have set out on the Mediterranean in rafts made of reed, Polynesians have conquered much of the Pacific Ocean in cleverly rigged, very fast tiny outrigger boats and finally had the Europeans roamed the Oceans in huge sturdy yet fast and reliable timber made sailing vessels. But I admit: In a world made of plastic it sounds a bit awkward to have a yacht made from plywood considered to be “modern” or state-of-the-art.

When we entered the large production facility, not after the owner of the company greeted me and was wishing me a nice stay, I was surprised to hear from Justine than RM Yachts is selling some 40 units annually. That is much, much more than very renown Scandinavian boat yards such as admired Luffe for example. “We want to make some 48 boats this year”, she says, “The maximum limit for these facilities as you may see would be some 80 boats anually.” You know what struck me most as I stand in the hall? The smell. No biting GRP polystyrene-odors but the fine smell of wood. Very nice.

“This is how it all starts”, she says pointing to a storing area: Large piles of plywood of all sizes and thicknesses are stored here, some piles made of pre-cut parts for the boats. “The parts are laser cut”, Justine explains. I can see what will be future portholes, stringers, parts which will form a bulkhead of a yacht. Where do these raw plywood sheets come from? “They are made especially for us nearby. Also the laser cutting service is performed by a local company in the area around us. We try to have most of the boat done by ourselves of course. If this can´t be done, we are always seeking the help of local companies first.”, Justine explains.

Making a plywood sailing yacht is – not unlike the building of a GRP boat – a lot of hand labor. When I was visiting the yard it was bristling with people. What I liked a lot was the fact that I equally saw young people working here as well as elder craftsmen which is a sign of a good healthy workforce and the ensuring of knowledge transition between the generations. There appeared to be no pressure here – people did their work thoroughly, I often saw them putting away the tools to intensively check on the outcome. All of the male workers of course found their time to greet Justine with French bisous as well.

Making the structural skeleton of the sailing yacht

“We have no molds to make a yacht´s hull”, Justine explains as we stand in front of a huge construction made of thick plywood: “That´s the negative model of the hull and the equivalent to the GRP-mold if you want. The craftsmen will put the pre-cut parts in a certain manner to a certain place and thus form the skeleton of the hull.” I get closer to watch: First they will put in the bulkheads. Then stringers and ribs will be complemented. The longitudinal parts such as stringers will be put in place as well. “It´s a giant puzzle!”, I said and she nods, smiling.

The parts are then glued together by means of Epoxy. “We are using a lot of Epoxy in our yachts of course.”, Justine says pointing to the thick joints of the plywood plates: “Epoxy is the best glue in this matter as it will be virtually sucked into the plywood material. It will form a very, very strong bond with the wooden parts no other glue will achieve.” They use different forms of Epoxy here, I will learn later. Looking at the joints I notice the sheer thickness of them: Not as thick a thumb, but as thick as two thumbs!

It´s funny to see that there are no nails, no screws no bolts and nuts whatsoever needed to form the structural skeleton of this yacht. Looking at the huge strains which will go into a yacht´s hull when sailing, when the shrouds are under immense loads, when waves pound the hull, it´s just amazing to see that there is not a single bolt needed to support the wooden mainframe of an RM Yacht.

I crawl deeper into the huge 3D-puzzle to look thoroughly. All joints are glued from either sides to the adjoining parts, the quality of the joints is as high as expected – no seams visible. Even the Epoxy glued areas – though made by hand – seem to have been done by a robot as perfect and even as they appear. Thanks to a precise laser-cutting technology this boat will be as symmetrically perfect as one could think of.

I wonder how long it would take to fabricate a plywood yacht hull. Justine is asking a worker how looks at the construction and estimates: The large boats, 10 to 12 meters, will take a good week to be made, the smaller, 8 to 9 meter yachts are faster: “The hull of an RM 890 will take three to four days in this production step.”, Justine translates. Wow, that´s fast for sure, faster than molding (and drying) a GRP-hull.

Achieving structural strength of a plywood yacht hull

Plywood – this word may for some people sound odd in connection with making a proper oceangoing yacht. You could use plywood for furniture or panels, but could you use it to make a ship that is sailing on the Oceans and withstand the sheer forces of nature? These boats all have Cat A CE-rating and are thus made for sailing in all conditions in all areas of our planet. The boats needs to be strong. How do they achieve it?

Before I enter the large workshop-hall I take a look at a steel frame unit ready for assembly outside. That´s a thick piece of stainless steel, not dissimilar to those massive main frames for example X-Yachts is utilizing in their respective yachts. “This cage is also done by a partner company in this area.”, Justine explains: “Every RM yacht has one of these built in.” The steel has a thickness of some 10 millimeters.

The frame will be partially jacket with plywood which is glued to the steel and be put into the caliber right from the beginning. This it will be obstructed into the hull to form solid bonds. “The steel main frame serves many purposes”, Justine tells me: “It will first of all take on the keel. We offer three kinds of keels with our yachts: The solid T-keel, a twin-keel with which the yacht can fall dry and the lifting keel. Especially for the very long lifting keels you need to have a very strong frame to take on the loads.”

I take a look under one of the hulls and can clearly see how the steel cage is built in. Most of the steel-parts have been covered with plywood, others had been bolted to thick plywood stringers of the hull. The cage is securely attached to the wooden structure: “The second purpose of the steel cage is to take on the loads from the shrouds which will be diverted directly to the steel.”, Justine tells me.

All in all the hull makes a deep impression on me. On the one hand I am fascinated by the plywood construction, the thick joints and the perfect seamless assembly, the effort that goes into each and every part of the structure. When I touch the structure or knock on it, it feels solid and the “Clang” of my knocking reassures me of the solidity of the hull. On the other hand … it´s still plywood, isn´t it?

What about collision damage on a plywood yacht?

As we roam the workshop, I do ask Justine some further questions on stability of the boat. What about collisions? Hitting floating object is a nightmare for every skipper and whilst the sea gets more and more polluted, yards need to find answers. Of course, she says, that´s a problem for every yacht maker and RM Yachts has an answer to this one too.

“Look at the bow section here”, she shows me a half-ready hull. The very bow has been laminated with multiple layers of glass reinforced fibre-matts and Epoxy. “This is just the outside. From the inside you will notice that in the collision compartment of the yacht we have built in no less than 4 layers of thick plywood – each one glued to the hull, laminated to the hull and soaked with Epoxy. This is really a very, very strong construction and makes a firm bond in case some collision takes place.”

I go down to my knees and look right into the collision compartment (which will house the anchor-chain and gas-bootle) later. There I can see what she meant. I can further see some solgitudinal stringers which will add further strength in this area. Seems appropriate and to be honest, it looks a lot more assuring that some GRP-made hulls I had to inspect where there isn´t any of these elements but just 0.8 centimetres of GRP.

“There is an option we offer,” Justine tells me as we stand next to a half-ready hull: “See this yellow layer? This is Kevlar.” I touch the garment which feels like any other laminated denim: Solid. “The whole hull is covered with one layer of Kevlar and some spots of the boat, especially the bow section, with two layers. That´s an option we offer for clients who want to be 110 per cent safe against collisions.” They don´t like this option at RM Yachts, Justine tells me, just because it´s not necessary as they judge: The boat is safe and strong even without Kevlar. It will only add weight to the hull. “But many clients want this reassurance so we do it.”

Epoxy resin & plywood: An ideal team

Marc Lombard told me during our interview that plywood is the ideal material to make a ship because of a certain feature of it: It is soaking itself automatically with Epoxy if done right. Justine gets me deeper into this: “When the hull is completed on the stand, it will be completely painted with Epoxy resin. As plywood is naturally made of a more softer timber, the material will literally soak itself full of resin instantly. When drying out, the once soft plywood will then be a rock solid new material. And this is what we want to achieve.” Again under one new hull I watch a worker doing exactly this job. Very tedious, on your knees for hours and re-doing the joints, painting the inner hull with Epoxy. The nice smell of wooden material in this area of the workshop is of course instantly replaced by the familiar odour of resin and chemical agents helping to stick to the material and dry fast.

Of course, plywood-made hulls cannot bear round shapes like it is achieved with a GRP mold. RM Yachts are therefore hard chined hulls. Naval architect Marc Lombard sees no problems in that especially in view to most of the contemporary GRP-hull concepts which themselves feature more or less extreme developed chines to gain more volume. For performance-oriented hull designs like this of a Pogo for example a chine will add sufficiently to the stability of the yacht when sailing heeled.

When the inside of the hull is completely painted with Epoxy, all adjoining areas of all bulkheads, stringers and other parts will be laminated at least twice. In the end, no wooden surface of the original plywood hull will be touchable anymore: An owner will have the impression of being on an ordinary GRP-made boat. From the outside, the same treatment is applied: The plywood is soaked with Epoxy, then the adjoining seams will be laminated twice. As I stand there to admire a raw 890 hull, they are pulling a white painted hull out of another workshop: “That´s the latest of our boats, the 1370.”, Justine explains: “Please don´t take pictures: She is brand new …”

Filling and smoothing the yacht´s hull

We enter another section of the complex. Huge fans are constantly taking out and filtering the air from dust particles. Air condition keeps the hall inside a certain small range of temperatures so that an optimum surrounding for the very working steps is created which are performed here.

“When the raw hull is dried thoroughly”, Justine explains, “it will be brought here. One layer of Epoxy is brought to the outside of the hull as you may see at this boat. This layer is for example white.” It will then sanded down to create a smooth surface. “After the first there comes a second layer with the same, more thicker Epoxy, and this will have a different color just to check. This will also be sanded down. After these steps the hull has perfect shape without any scratched. No seam will be visible anymore.”

Looking at the hull very closely, I notice the thickness of the Epoxy layers which is in some areas well more than 3 millimetres. The sanding process – which is a very, very nasty work, hazardous for the workers (that’s why they have to wear dust masks and the air is immediately filtered through the large machines, a loud work and a nasty work as I know from my own experiences with sanding GRP surfaces on my own yacht (read it here ).

Looking at the stern of this hull I notice the different strengths of the thickness of the plywood sheets forming the hull itself: The bottom sheet clearly is thicker than 2 centimetres, going to the outside and up the hull to the ship´s sides the sheets get thinner, but no thinner than one centimetre. Sanding work has been done just fine on this hull: The once “hard” chines are now rounded to a nice and soft shape.

Here it is where I can finally take a look at the finished raw-inside of the hull with all of the plywood soaked with Epoxy, the adjoining areas laminated twice for additional strength and everything covered with another single layer of GRP-garment. Looks rock-solid and walking on the hull is no problem: No squeeking nor any other sound coming from the surface when walking on it.

It doesn´t work completely without GRP

Of course, RM Yachts are no complete plywood boat. This is what I understand now. The basic material may be plywood, but the construction bears nevertheless a significant portion of modern-day materials just like Epoxy resin and different types of GRP-garments. As Marc Lombard told me during Boot boatshow Dusseldorf, the one and only part of the boat that is made the “traditional-modern” way in a mold is the deck.

“You cannot achieve nice round surfaces and forms with plywood”, he said: “We just want to offer not solely a fast sailing hull but also sailing pleasure which derives from a large portion of the comfort a cabin offers.” Marc explained that the deck will be done traditionally by hand-laminating a GRP mold. And this is what I see at the next station. “These decks are done at a nearby shop by another local partner”, Justine tells me as we walk by.

“Salut!”, we greet loud and clear as we enter another part of the hall, the joiner´s workshop. Now that´s the smell I love indeed! Wooden parts are sawn, sanded and worked with so that it scents like being in a forest here. “Now the GRP molded deck will be outfitted with wooden parts as you may see here.” This could be interesting, I am thinking for myself, since I am right now working on my own yacht on the roofing .

Just as I did it on my own King´s Cruiser 33, the workers are glueing wooden parts to the ceiling which will later be the substruction to take on the roofing panels. Wiring for lighting and other electric installations are already attached to the roof. And there it is: My inspiration! Velcro-tape is used to hold the roofing panels, at least as a secondary joining point. I am taking this idea for my own project since my roofing panels are somewhat heavy and very long – utilizing Velcro will make working with it a lot more easier.

At the same time, the hull – readily painted in the inside – is brought to the assembly line. “Now you can see we have painted the internal hull completely white.”, Justine shows me a 970-hull. “It´s no different in her appearance from a GRP-molded hull anymore and you won´t see any plywood.” Which is perfectly true. The white paint has been applied flawlessly and workers are busy installing machinery, wires and tubes.

“Finally, after the marriage – when the deck joins the hull – the yachts will be brought here and all connecting areas between hull and deck will be closed with multiple layers of this thick Epoxy.” The deck will be attached in two ways at the same time: The deck will be glued with Epoxy to the hull. That’s why they had built a wide strip at the edge of the ship´s side so that a large area is formed to glue the deck onto. Second, thick nuts and bolts will be drilled through deck and hull every 20 centimetres to form a solid mechanical bond.

Interior design and final fitting of the yacht

With this step the boat has been finished to a raw state. All major pats like engine, additional machinery, all electric wires and parts had been already installed. Most of the joinery is of course assembled and put into the boat before the marriage of hull and deck – just as it is the case with all yachts. “Now the boats will be brought into our paint shop”, Justine adds, pointing to a now empty area at the end of the workshop. Where the secret RM 1370 just left.

We leave the large workshop. Two RM Yachts are on the outside to be fitted and rigged. An RM 1270 is the first we inspect. “All colours from the RAL-palette are possible”, Justine says: “We can even create tones if a client won´t find his favourite colour among the thousands of variants.” She smiles. “There´s always the one favourite colour not supplied by RAL, I can assure you …” We enter the 1270 and go down the entryway.

“With every RM Yacht you will only have to make three steps to enter the saloon”, Justine insists. What impressed me (again) was the sheer light suffused saloon. Wow, that´s almost as spacious as on a deck saloon yacht, I tell her. She agrees: “Yet it isn´t a DS. We achieved to offer almost a 360 degree view of the surrounding which is fantastic when sailing.” I can only imagine.

Partially this fantastic situation is due to the huge skylights in the fore part of the saloon: These large windows allow huge amounts of light entering the saloon for sure. “It´s wonderful to see the sails in full bloom. Even when sailing with autohelm, you´ll have a perfect view to what´s happening around and in front of you from down below here”, Justine adds.

Just like windshields of modern sportive cars the RM Yachts bear this feature: As I stand outside on the fore deck of the 1270 I can compare this 34 feet boat to the nearby RM 890, the smallest in the RM range, that also have these large skylights. Light is even more important the smaller a yacht will be, so that is well done, Marc!

But what I loved most about the RM: The navigation station. “We take pride in the fact that every RM Yacht features a proper chart table”, Justine tells me. I dislike current trends in “modern” cruisers to further miniaturizing the chat table, to make it disposable of because most sailors don´t do proper chart work but rely solely on their chart plotters. The RM1270 has a huge nav station – compared with her boat´s size – which I so much adore. (Read about the chart table of my own yacht here )

The price of an RM Yacht

I conclude the tour oft he RM Yachts facilities with a chat about the efforts which go into these boats. RM Yachts is making around 40 yachts per year, which is more than I thought. “We like to produce more and this year there will be a slight increase in the amount of units sold, but growth is not our primary goal”, Justine assures me. “We want to keep our high standards of quality both in the building of the boats as well as in their sailing abilities.” She is proud to tell me that when they´ve tested the RM 890 against the all new Pogo 36 (read it here ), at this very day, the RM was faster.

All this comes with a price tag of course. Making a yacht is always almost solely paying for handmade craftmanship. That´s no different between a GRP-made boat to these plywood yachts. Nevertheless, as Marc Lombard told me, the price for a plywood-epoxy-hull is around 20 per cent higher than compared with a similar hull made of GRP alone. RM Yachts is definitely an exclusive brand and therefore these boats do cost. In sheer numbers: One meter of the RM 970 does come in at some 14.900 Euros. A Pogo 36 will be slightly cheaper, 14.700 Euros. The Dehler 34 will come in at 12.000 Euros per meter, the Oceanis 35.1 at 10.800 Euros. So there´s the difference, some 25 to 30 per cent to the production boats.

In the end I did have some very, very interesting two hours at RM Yachts workshop in La Rochelle with my wonderful host Justine who allowed me to take a free look at everything that was of interest. I was offered to look behind every corner, to turn things upside down (but to avid making pictures of the brand new RM 1370 – which I however did and will publish another article on this yacht when RM has officially launched the boat in the coming weeks. Thank you so much, Justine, thanks RM for having me as your guest. All that remains is the longing for an … at least small … RM Yacht (I´d take the green one) and maybe I will get the chance to sail one of these at the German RM-dealer not far from where I live.

More information on RM Yachts on their website

Other interesting articles on that topic:

Talking RM Yachts and plywood boats with Marc Lombard

Alex on his plywood-build: A Mini 650

Roofing panels made from plywood

THE FUTURE IN ACTION

A fantastic blue-water cruiser.

With the RM1080, we’ve designed a 36-foot sailboat to satisfy every sailing desire. Short and long voyages, coastal cruising or day sailing. True to RM’s commitment, the new RM 1080 is a direct evolution of ocean racing, making it easy to handle and offering high average speeds for an extended cruising range. Featuring oversized deck fittings, a powerful Lombard hull and high-performance rigging, she is available as a twin-keel or single-keel yacht.

A bright marine interior

As soon as you step inside the RM 1080, you’ll be surprised by the space: a wide companionway with only three steps, omnipresent light and 180° all-round visibility. The soft, dry, condensation-free atmosphere of the RM and its massive use of wood create a unique feeling of well-being. A true ocean cruiser, this RM 1080 features a real chart table, a draining foul weather gear locker, a U-shaped galley and a vast, luminous saloon. The usual technical room will also facilitate maintenance and access to systems. The spacious cabins also benefit from the full beam of this powerful hull.

Technical specifications

A true successor to the modern ocean-racing yachts, this new RM 1080 is an exceptional boat, elegant and sleek, ideal for an Atlantic crossing or a summer cruise

Marc Lombard Design Group

PROJECT OWNER

Edouard Delamare Deboutteville

SINGLE KEEL DRAFT

Twin keels draft, light displacement, engine in board, oil tank capacity, water capacity, holding tank capacity, furling genoa.

33M㎡

ASSYMETRIC SPINNAKER

An innovative cockpit to suit all your needs.

RM 1080 features a cockpit that can be transformed into a sun deck, helm and manoeuvring station, all under the protection of a large sprayhood and secure cockpit sides. Going fast, far and dry has never been easier. The ergonomics of the helm stations are not to be outdone, with two eccentric steering wheels and perfectly integrated seats.

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION

Keep in touch' restons en contact.

We will send you RM Yachts News (Only) to make sure you are up to date. Recevez (seulement) nos infos, pour être sûrs de ne rien rater !

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Interesting Sailboats

Wednesday, march 4, 2020, rm yachts, bankruptcy and a shameful recovery.

9 comments:

They are here " https://www.bateaux.com/article/33179/reprise-de-fora-marine-la-difficile-question-des-acomptes-sur-les-voiliers-en-commande " commenting the case. And they say the customers they first talked to were offered to recover only 22% of the amount first delivered for commissioning the boat whilst Stéphan Constance, a Grand Large representative, stated afterwards that 50% of the deposit could be recovered. To get back the 22% or 50% (whatever the % would finally be) of the money they had already paid they are due to purchase "again" the boat to a much more expensive price so they would be paying at the end 1.5 times the original price of the boat. In case they don´t reorder the boat they won´t get any money back.

This story will have repercussions well above RM (and Bente too that is going through similar ordeal). I have to admit I myself got scared and may reconsider buying a new boat especially from smaller shipyards the likes of Pog, JPK and insteadd have an harder look at the used market. Apparently having a huge wait list is not guarantee of financial soundness. For most of us a boat is the ultimate expense and we attach to it a lot of our future be it retirement or a new family life and having this on the line and at risk for many months or years while we wait on the list and during the construction it is may be not the safer financial move. Buying a new boat is notoriously "unwise" financially speaking as opposed to buying used which is also bad per se (did I mention money pit?). However we all choose not to look and succumb to emotions as a boat is the ultimate emotional purchase (hey we got one life let's live it at the fullest!). Years ago I was invited by my bank to discuss my retirement investments and they were very surprised I had a robust and safe plan but then I ended the meeting with "having said all of that I just made the worst retirement financial move I could do, i.e. I got a boat !" we all grinned...hahaha

Yes, buying a boat is a tricky business but if you have read my review about the RM 11.80 you could understand that I was not enthusiastic at all with that crazy idea to have half the hull in fiberglass and half in plywood and personally I would never buy such a boat but if I anticipated some future problems regarding that I would never thought the company would become bankrupt so quickly due to that particular feature. Regarding risks I would say that an understanding of the shipyard situation is paramount and the case of a small shipyard that is growing too fast having problems or one that proposes boats to a very low price for the quality, are not unheard and those shipyards should be looked with some care. But there are other small shipyards that have been making boats for many years, always with a comfortable number of orders and a stable situation were I think the risks are very small. Anyway the contract should be made in a way that the payments correspond to what is actually made on the boat (if possible a bit less) and if possible having a safeguard that will make the boat property of the client if the shipyard goes bankrupt.

i agree that it didnt make sense with composite sides. What puzzles me, that the company didnt revert back to original design 100% plywood. I dont think the customers would mind the change. How embarassing it is .

What puzzle me is people ordering rather pricey objects from very small companies (less than 40 people) without checking the financial side. It seems that 2017 legal accounts were not published on legal time. Which should ring a serious bell. And when they were later published, they showed huge negative equity.

Paulo, thank you very much for sharing this important piece of information. Needless to say that the attitude of Grand Large is unacceptable. am sure they will pay a price for this in the future due to destroyed customer confidence. Interestingly the slogan that RM chose to promote the 1180 is 'Né pour séduire...' (born to seduce). It seems to me that there is a deeper and certainly unindented truth to this statement. With its sleek lines and tasteful interior the 1180 indeed is a seductive boat. However, as it turns out, it a deceiving kind of beauty. At least for those customers who did a downpayment in good faith and now see RM walk away form their contract. I sincerely hope they will get an acceptable deal and don't have to go through litigation to protect their interests. Greetings from São Paulo ...

Just to let you know that this post was edited to provide more information or a more correct one.

I run a rather successful software company and my goal is to live on and run the business from a performance catamaran in a few years. My shortlist is Outremer 55 or Balance 526. If I go smaller, then the Outremer 45 (hopefully updated soon) or Balance 442. Currently am still in London working hard so was looking at buying a monohull for in between now and the ultimate dream. JPK 38FC and RM 1180 being the shortlist here. This RM take-over story shocks me. It is not how I do business and I don't condone it in people I do business with. It is crazy to me that customer deposits are considered "capital" of the same lien as real corporate debt, the holders of which have a reasonable expectation of financial ruin in bad scenarios. In fact, while the French law aims to "protect" workers, it is actually giving away profitable assets from one group of capitalists to another. It's a very weird dynamic that is being created here. This story breaks the spell Outremer / Grand Large Yachting had on me, with all their fancy marketing sponsoring La Vagabonde and the Youtube channels detailing their Outremer purchases like Outremer 51 Archer and the Dutch couple buying Outremer 55 hull 4. Maybe dealing with a USA culture company like Balance will be better. They may be more open to legally sound contracts with escrow and legal protections. It's not a fun idea to think that when I am finally ready to buy a 1-2 million EUR dream yacht, I need to worry about basic consumer protections not being in place.

You cannot go wrong with the new JPK39C...except in what regards the waiting list, that I bet already exists. Boat building as a business is a very risky one with small margins and if something goes wrong things like this can happen. The only sure way is to have a local bank covering the deal. That's the only way you will receive your money back if there is a problem and also a good way for you to know how risky it is the deal: if there is little risk they will charge you 3 to 4%, if it is risky or they will not cover it or they will ask you a lot more.

Tiki Taxie and Cruises

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718 Loma Dr

Boynton Beach, FL 33426

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This was a great idea. I was here with friends and we liked the experience. This is a one-hour cruise that takes you through the intercostal for $10. You get to watch a nice view. On one side you have beautiful mansions and on the other side a park, I think. The trip was nice and worth the price. The boat has a bar inside. The trip has a one-drink minimal rule. They play happy, lively music throughout the entire trip. I thought it was fun. There were not enough seating spaces for everyone. A group of people gathered standing by the front. You get the best view there. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. The staff was very friendly and helpful they helped us in and out of the boat. The service was good. This was a well-organized tour and I liked it.

The cruise was amazing. I was bummed we couldn't bring outside drinks on but the drinks they made were bad. It was 10.95 for a rum punch. The atmosphere was relaxing and the weather was gorgeous. They go on the hour every hour it's $10 and you can ride however long you want. Make sure to get there early to get a spot. I highly recommend it!

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Always a great time! $10 to get on the water for sights sounds and cold beverages. Capt Dave is so awesome . Great for locals and tourists family friendly. If you're thinking about going, just go.

What an amazing time we had on the tiki taxi cruise. It leaves every hour on the hour Thursday through Sunday and for $10 a person you board the boat, sit down on a comfy cushiony bench. The boat leaves from the marina by two George's in Boynton Beach. The boat is so comfortable and all open so you get a great breeze. It leaves the dock turns north on the intercoastal and goes for a half an hour, then turns around and comes back for a one hour ride. there's music playing you can get a drink at the bar that is a semi circle with stools all around. The seating is around the perimeter of the boat so there's plenty of room to walk around or dance if you want. We went with our community and we had a blast! We will be doing it again. Best $10 we've ever spent!

See all photos from Laura K. for Tiki Taxie and Cruises

Great value...fun on the water, great activity for an hour or 2 on a hot day. Bring your friends or guests from up north.

See all photos from Nicholas N. for Tiki Taxie and Cruises

Love that on Thursday it's ladies night .Its a one hour ride on this boat serving drinks and music to dance to and you can stay as long as you like.Of course we came early at 5 pm but the line was so long we could not get on board without waiting a long time till 9 pm . Luckily for us we were able to go to 2 George's and get some drinks to pass the time . Eventually we took that relaxing ride and saw some beautiful homes along the way.

It was fun and the price is right. The drinks were good and we went on Thursday so the women were free

Excellent service. Amazing views. It's worth it. I will go again. Drinks are great. 10/10

Inter-coastal

Great experience and fun time I made some new friends and enjoyed the scenery. Drinks were excellent. I will do this again!

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See the RM1050, the French go-anywhere cruiser, under sail

The August issue of YM features the RM1050. Read the review of this French, go-anywhere plywood cruiser then click on the image below to see her under sail as well as extra images of her interior.

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Man busted for cutting down cedar trees near boat launch to make sauna

• Updated: May. 15, 2024, 1:02 p.m. |
• Published: May. 15, 2024, 12:43 p.m.
• Justine Lofton | [email protected]

MACKINAC COUNTY, MI – A man could face charges for illegally cutting down cedar trees to build a sauna, officials said.

During March, a conservation officer with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources was called to a boat launch in Mackinac County for a complaint of several cedar trees being cut down, according to a DNR enforcement report.

Officer Jason Ruth responded to the scene and found several cedar logs cut into lengths for making lumber. Not long after, an individual pulled into the launch and confessed to Ruth than he was the one who had cut down the trees.

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Orcas again sink yacht near Strait of Gibraltar as high-risk season looms

The boat-sinking orcas are back.

Around 9 a.m. Sunday near the Strait of Gibraltar, two people on board the roughly 50-foot Alboran Cognac reported blows to the vessel’s hull and saw damage to the rudder as water flowed into the ship, Spain’s maritime rescue agency said.

An unknown number of killer whales had struck again, after hundreds of such encounters in recent years.

Over the radio, responders told the two individuals to put on their life jackets, make sure their GPS locaters were turned on and prepare for emergency evacuation. In the meantime, Spanish and Moroccan rescue agencies began urgently working to save them, locating a nearby oil tanker and electing not to dispatch a helicopter.

After about an hour, that tanker rescued the pair 14 miles off Cape Spartel in northern Morocco, the Spanish Maritime Safety and Rescue Agency (SASEMAR) said in a news release. The boat was left adrift and soon sank.

Spain-based Alboran Charter confirmed its ownership of the sunken vessel and said the individuals were customers. The company declined to say more about what happened or who the clients were.

Iberian orcas sinking a ship is not new. Over the past four years, at least 15 orcas have interacted with hundreds of boats sailing in the waters off Portugal, Spain and Morocco, sinking a handful of vessels in seemingly coordinated ambushes. Some ships have been found with teeth marks; others appear to have been rammed by an orca’s head or body.

On average, there have been 168 interactions each year since 2020, according to Grupo de Trabajo Orca Atlántica, or GTOA, a research group studying the region’s killer whales. GTOA has tracked 26 interactions so far this year, down from 61 through a similar time frame in 2023.

It’s not clear why the orcas have recently bumped, bitten and sunk vessels. Some scientists say they are simply being playful, or maybe are curious, or perhaps are coming after boats because of a loss of prey. A handful say the actions could actually be gratifying to the whales.

A leading theory, though, is one of vengeance.

This idea, advanced by a scientist who has studied the encounters, posits that a female orca suffered a traumatic run-in with a boat that led her to start attacking the vessels. And because orcas are intelligent marine mammals that learn behaviors like hunting together, others followed.

But there is disagreement over this theory.

Some scientists argue that the incidents shouldn’t be called “attacks” without knowing the whales’ motives. They fear that label could prompt retaliation by boaters, calling it potentially “harmful” to the critically endangered species with just a few dozen members.

“Science cannot yet explain why the Iberian orcas are doing this, although we repeat that it is more likely related to play/socialising than aggression,” a group of more than 30 scientists wrote in an open letter last summer. ” … When we are at sea, we are in the realm of marine life. We should not punish wildlife for being wild.”

The letter explained that orcas have been observed developing “cultural ‘fads,’ ” including carrying dead fish on their heads, and the incidents with the boats may be nothing more than a “fashion trend.”

SASEMAR warned that the risk of the encounters is highest between May and August, recommending that boats avoid the area between the Strait of Gibraltar to the Gulf of Cádiz to its west. It added that if a boat comes across orcas, it should not stop moving, and instead should head toward the coast and shallower waters. People should not approach the side of the boat and are barred from using measures that could injure or kill the whales.

“It is possible the behaviour, as previous fads have,” the scientists wrote, “will disappear as suddenly as it appeared.”

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RFK Jr. says he had parasitic brain worm and undisclosed memory loss

Kennedy’s campaign spokeswoman said he contracted a parasite years ago while traveling “extensively in Africa, South America and Asia in his work as an environmental advocate.”

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. , the independent presidential candidate who has marketed himself to voters as a younger, healthier alternative to the two major contenders, contracted a parasitic worm that got into his brain years ago and ate a portion of it before dying, his campaign said Wednesday.

The 70-year-old scion of the powerful political family revealed in a 2012 deposition during divorce proceedings from his second wife, which the New York Times obtained and first reported Wednesday, that he had short- and long-term memory loss and described himself as having “cognitive problems, clearly.” Around the time of the discovery of the parasite, Kennedy was also diagnosed with mercury poisoning that he attributed to his diet, he said in the deposition, a condition that can also cause memory loss. Kennedy told the Times that he has since recovered from his fogginess.

When asked about the incident, Kennedy campaign spokeswoman Stefanie Spear told The Washington Post that Kennedy contracted a parasite while traveling “extensively in Africa, South America and Asia in his work as an environmental advocate.”

“The issue was resolved more than 10 years ago, and he is in robust physical and mental health,” she said in a written statement. “Questioning Mr. Kennedy’s health is a hilarious suggestion, given his competition.”

Kennedy disclosed in the deposition that he consulted with neurologists in 2010 when a friend voiced concerns about his memory loss, according to the Times. He said he was told that a dark spot discovered in his brain scans could be a tumor, a year after his uncle, longtime Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), died of brain cancer. The Post has not independently reviewed the deposition.

But a doctor at New York-Presbyterian Hospital told him the spot could be caused by “a worm that got into my brain and ate a portion of it and then died,” he said in the deposition, according to the Times.

Around the same time, doctors also diagnosed Kennedy with mercury poisoning, which he said was caused by eating a large amount of fish that contained the dangerous heavy metal. Kennedy, an environmental lawyer who has spoken out against mercury and other toxins contaminating food, told the Times that he was eating a diet heavy in tuna and perch at the time.

He told the Times he has since reduced his fish intake and underwent chelation therapy, a treatment to expel metals from the body. He said the parasite in his brain required no treatment.

Medical experts told The Post that descriptions of the parasite appear consistent with Taenia solium, a pork tapeworm, which can cause neurologic symptoms including headaches, convulsions, epileptic seizures and even death when the worm larvae get into the brain. Methylmercury, the organic form of mercury found in fish, can cause speech and hearing impairment, muscle weakness, lack of coordination, and other symptoms when people are exposed to high levels.

Kennedy has focused much of his campaign on advocating for regulations on major industries that he says have contributed to the country’s worsening health problems. He also has spread misinformation about vaccines and argued against public health measures enacted during the coronavirus pandemic .

Since he announced he would run for president in April last year, Kennedy has not disclosed his medical records.

Former president Donald Trump and President Biden , who have attempted to quell voters’ concerns about their advanced ages , have released limited health summaries. Biden’s doctor released a six-page summary of medical tests in February , declaring him “fit for duty,” while Trump shared a one-page letter in November from a doctor who belongs to his golf club and said he was in “excellent health.” But the disclosures break from a tradition of presidential candidates previously releasing more complete reports on their health .

Kennedy has previously disclosed other health issues. He has said his strained, sometimes hoarse voice is caused by spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological disorder that causes involuntary spasms in the muscles of the voice box. He also has told others he became infected with hepatitis C , which was treated, from intravenous drug use in his youth.

In 2001, Kennedy was hospitalized for an irregular heartbeat caused by a common heart abnormality that can cause strokes, according to news reports at the time. Kennedy said in the 2012 deposition he was hospitalized three other times for that condition, which he told the Times has not caused any other incidents in a decade.

Fenit Nirappil contributed to this report.