The dominant source of timber sizings or scantlings for traditionally built workboats in Australia is the USL Code. It would probably be OK for traditionally built workboats in other parts of the world. It has information for both traditionally planked or semi traditional plywood boats of larger sizes
pointless, timewasting activities in boat repair and maintenance
OK … I decided to keep the old racing dinghy and fix it up. How do I put my effort in the right places to get the maximum results? A grab bag of methods for joining plywood, working out sizes, making centreboards and rudders and more.
When is it worth fixing an old racing dinghy and when is it best to ditch it?
All the best material on boat repairs. From restoring old sailing dinghies for racing, fixing holes in canoe, replacing whole hull panels or the neatest and easiest way of doing a really nice texture of nonskid using sugar. And the non skid can be done in paint or varnish
Most epoxy mixes are 2 to one resin and hardener. Or 4 or 5 or 6 to 1. Some companies offer 1:1 and push ease of mixing. But are they a good choice?
I’ve been in and around wooden race and recreational boats for a few decades now. As a designer who sells plans I can really only direct people towards the most tried and true methods that work just about anywhere. This article explains a large part of experience that leads to my approach.
A boat for an electric trolling motor will go very fast with 2hp. I suggest that smaller power might be good for a cargo canoe, motor canoe. Not to mention the gas saved!
A new lightweight 12ft plywood dinghy under development. This prototype by Canadian Rick Landreville. It won’t have a cloud of sail area,but will be light enough low drag enough to hit consistently high speeds relative to other boats of this length.
Slightly arrogant I!
I visit the Philippines then Malaysia and also find a large community of Filipino boat builders there. I find they know much more than me about boat design and varieties. Stunning mix of different boats from curvaceous to plywood and boxy.
But Gosh … the shapes they come up with!
Fyne Boat Kits has an excellent reputation for customer service and quality.
I am happy to announce that they will be gradually phased in as the UK Agents for storerboats kits, plans and materials.
A correction to the OzRacer RV plans.
There was a small discrepancy in the corners of the boat which can be filled. Or if the panels are not cut yet they can be corrected so no filling is required. Apologies to all affected – I do my best but sometimes something sneaks through. Thanks Ryan for the building feedback.
I am in the Philippines at the moment.
I took five days out to go to the area where one of my Australian Filipino friends has her hometown. The general area is Laguna, I was staying at Lumban and nearby was a canoe trip to Pagsanjan falls.
I was really interested to see the local boats and to see how they might relate to the timber boats that existed previously. The boats are elegant and very well suited to their environment. Paddling and motor canoes are used on a daily basis.
List of Kit suppliers for Storer Boat Plans. UK and Europe, USA, Australia, South Africa. Kits make building a Storer Boat even easier.
In the late 70s as a sailing teenager I drew boats on every available paper surface.
A new book “a lighter ton” describes the exciting development of racing yachts to create newer, lighter, faster and cheaper and FUNNER boats.
Many of the developments were from New Zealand designers such as Bruce Farr, Paul Whiting and Laurie Davidson. A new book by Richard Blakey covers this exciting experimental period in yacht design
The above photo was taken on the third day of our Canoeing trip on the Loire River in France. The two black canoes didn’t even exist a week ago.
When I wrote the original article on Disposable Canoeing I had no idea at all what it would lead to me and a bunch of adventurers, wine and cheese connoisseurs. Most of us didn’t even know each other! The picture above is the result of this adventurism, but what happened to make it happen?
What technology was involved to make the boats faster to build than most stitch and glue boats and what weather conditions did we have to overcome to make it all happen.
How much fibreglass is really necessary to prevent damage to a plywood boat for most users?
For a long time I’ve been suspicious that both designers and builders are in a never ending spiral of more and more heavier fibreglass.
I argue, with data from the Turner designed Jarcat, that the weights of glass are clearly excessive for most uses and users of small boats.
Jack is rather happy with his newly launched Eureka Canoe.
He has built it as a woodworking project over the last couple of years as time became available from his busy architectural practice.
Anyway … a bunch of nice photos and some of Jack’s writing.
One of the most important things as a designer or sailor is to keep an open mind, but also to be able to analyze things in light of real experience and prior knowledge. These are online and paper resources that force thinking in different ways.
This article, after a bit of a spiel, goes on to give some great resources that “opened my eyes” at different times in my life.
They focus on areas of structural design, sailing, sail aerodynamics and touch on a bit more.
There are lots of tips for building and designing boats on the net.
“Rules of thumb” are often quoted to help with the calculation of how much sail or how much keel or centreboard area or how big a mast is allowed to be and many other areas. Can a boat be stretched or shrunk or lengthened?
But how correct are they? Are they the best guide?