New designs are lame

[juiceclark]

There is a definate lack of courage in boat design today...especially small runabouts. Look at the past:

I own the one on page 13. Want the one on page 24!:
http://www.fiberglassics.com/galleries/bitb/default.htm

now this is a boat:
http://www.fiberglassics.com/galleries/lights/001.jpg

Cat runabout:
http://www.fiberglassics.com/galleri...antaRayCat.jpg

Does funky not sell anymore? Is it all about price and shiney gelcoat? I know it's difficult with an infinite pack of rabid lawyers waiting for someone to bump their head on the corner of a nice design...it that the problem?

Tony in Sw FL

[netjaws]

And on the commercial side of the house, at least, I observed that the european designs are far more interesting and aesthetically pleasing than what you see coming out of the states. These photos are from a recent trip to sweden-

[kach22i]

Almost all of the design arts have suffered similar fates do to conservatism in society. We used to look ahead with hope and faith in technology, now we look back in despair and have faith no more. We fear the future so we revert to the past like children to their mothers.

The cool architecture of the modern movement is just too modern today, cars are bland or retro at best.

I'll take the one on page 23.

[marshmat]

Design and styling trends in production boats, the smaller ones at least, seem to follow the trends seen in cars (with a few years' lag).
Witness the Cadillacs of the '50s, with their giant tail fins- runabouts followed with similar fins and wraparound windscreens.
Through the '70s we see mainstream cars taking on a somewhat more conservative, albeit often still swoopy and rounded, look- what do runabouts of that era look like?
In the '80s, cars went all boxy and square-cornered, with sharp creases and flat panes of glass- the same trend swept the boatyards.
In the '90s, many cars went for the "jelly bean" look, with no corners whatsoever and radius curves on everything- the boat industry came up with bubbly deck shapes, rounded windscreens, etc.
Today, cars are taking on a more creased, taut look- so are most small boats (the rest are following the wide, blocky look pioneered by the SUV).

When you have to mass-market a product on a short timeline, the tendency is to make it look like something that is already doing well. Everyone's buying the '98 Taurus? Let's give the '99 Glastron lineup some Taurus-like styling. Lo and behold, they sell like hotcakes. What? That's last year's look now? OK, we'll have to re-style to reflect the latest trends.....

Some builders and designers are more or less immune from this. These seem to be the builders and designers who have been around for a while, are happy with their relatively small but loyal customer base, and don't feel the need to churn out chopper-gun hulls by the thousands.

I don't much like funky- those '50s runabouts don't cut it for me. Give me the timeless, classic look of a '20s Chris-Craft, or the rugged go-anywhere seaworthiness of a Dashew Sundeer, or the practical beauty of a Nova Scotia lobster boat.....

[water addict]

Good grief.
I gotta say the boats in that first link you got there look pretty retarded to me. Damn good reasons you don't see new boats like that! They are hideous!

But to each his own, have at it by all means if you like 'em. At least they get you on the water.

[eponodyne]

Part of the problem is that everybody's building in composites, and the fastest cheapest way to do that is inside a female mold. It's hard to do even minor variations on a theme that way, much less radical restylings without paying for a new male plug to be used for a female mold (also to be paid for) and then you have to market the aitch ee double hockey sticks out of it to just to break even.

But yeah, up to a few years ago, you could look at the boats on evening promenade and pick out a Larson from a Bayliner from a Reinell from a Glastron. Now they all look the same.

Make mine wood.

[rwatson]

Yes Water Addict - JuiceClark has no taste

What a bunch of useless, badly performing group of designs.

Still - it was great for a laugh!

[tinhorn]

must - find - a - wizard - wasp

[Landlubber]

emmm, boatdesign to me has followed the demands of unseamanlike salespeople who demand more room, more refrigeration, bigger engines, more electronics wider berths, granite heads and galleys etc etc.

The designers have accomodated their desires ((it is commercial don't forget), and the nett result is ugly, wide mouthed frogs.

The beautiful designs of old were reflections of the designers minds, with seamanlike qualities as being par for the course. The rich and famous then had them commissioned the designer and had them produced by qualifed (either by institution or experience) tradesmen in yards that had passionate tradespeople.

Back to my medication........

[tinhorn]

Good Lord, there's one on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Class...em110219872712

Not a Wasp, though.

[Pericles]

What about a couple of fins on these? NNNNNOOOOO!!!!

http://www.strand-craft.com/

Pericles

[Richard Atkin]

What a boat looks and feels like, once you have stepped onboard, is more important than what the design looks like from a distance. With that being said, I don't think it is ever necessary to design a cruising boat to be butt ugly from a distance.
Some architects are now designing houses that look like grey Russian storage sheds, and on the inside they look and feel like airport terminals. The proud new house owner believes he is at the pinacle of modern archtiecture, and will be envied and admired by his friends. I guess the same thing happens in the boating industry.
Beauty is in the eye of the ego?

[Guillermo]

Originally Posted by Richard Atkin

Beauty is in the eye of the ego?

Beauty is in the peace of mind.

Cheers.

[eponodyne]

Herreshoff never designed an ugly boat; and I believe that his designs have stood the test of time. Ditto for Fife and Ben Seaborn and William Hand (I wish I could say the same for Bill Atkin, but some of what he drew... my good Lord.).

In contrast, who can tell me the name of the designer of the latest Larson 18' bowrider? And will people be building replicas of it a hundred years from now? I think not.

[Fanie]

I ESPECIALLY liked the Pink Batsmobile. So Batman and Robin went scew in the end after all... I knew they wasn't going to cope with the pressure. Hope they live happily ever after