Sink or Swim its that time......

Hello people I am about to design, build and play with my first boat.
I have never owned a boat and have no practical concept of what works and what doesn’t but hey with bags of the world famous bull dog spirit and an extra stiff upper lip, how difficult can it be. Scott of the antartic never let lack of knowledge stop him. Ok he came second. Yes and he died but what a way to go and he got to try donkey stakes........any wqay I digress....
I live in the North West of Great Britain not far from an area called the Lake District. I have visited the ‘Lakes’ for many years and it’s about time I ticked off another one of my things to do before I die and build myself a boat.
I love the Italian lines of gentlemen’s launches but also admire the simplicity of the humble canoe. I dislike short stubby ‘pram’ style boats and dinghies do little for me so it seems I need either an ultra lightweight launch with open interior or a motor driven canoe. Oh did I mention I want power? Inboard power! Yes I also dislike outboard motors. Surely it’s a bit like buying a car and then buying a motorcycle to push it around? And yes Ill stop calling you Shirley. It will also be travelling on the roof of my car.
The speed limit on our picturesque, quaint little waters is just a few miles an hour so I won’t be needing a six pot block and blower just yet and have my eye on a 4 cycle (stroke) Honda motor that should get things moving. The last thing I must take into consideration is the fact I am tighter than a Scott with haemorrhoids. That is the little money I have stays in my pocket and I find alternatives to spending. For instance about twenty years ago I built an identical conservatory to a friends on the rear of my house for £500. My friends cost £10,000 and twenty years later it still looks dammed good.

So that’s it………rather than begin a first post with photos of my first ‘kit’ build I thought Id let you in at the beginning and give you some entertainment as I blunder through months of begging borrowing and junk yard trawling before the day I sink without trace. I already have a free supply of ply wood but it only comes in 1 foot by 8 feet sheets so the ‘chines’ (see learning already) will have to be thin and straight but I am sure I can come up with a design. Now then wares mi pencil.

Iain

 

LOL nice first post.

I would highly, highly recommend looking at getting some of the free/low cost boat designs that are all over the web. You are much more likely to find something that will fit what you want, and will work, than to have sucess the first time out.

That being said, keep us updated, and wear a life jacket.

 

Thank you but no kits for me. I want the full experience from start to finish.
By the way my first voyage will probably on Lake Coniston. You know the one Donnald Campbell died on trying to extend his speed record on.............
Not sounding too good is it.......

Hang on I'll scan my first sketch and post it up. It looks like a slipper so already got a name..........

The Coniston Slipper

Witha name like thay its got to float.........

 

The full experience is a long apprentiship and years of hard work and study. What you want is a shortcut.

 

Yes thanks for your support.

Being in the construction industry with a simmilar background I see your point but if an acquaintance wanted to have a go at building a garden shed I wouldn’t greet him with a similar response as I would see he wasn’t going to try a cathedral.

 

Any way back to the adventure......

I’m sorry I haven’t taken a degree course in draughtsmanship or a B.A. in fine art but time was a little tight since my last post.

Off the top of my head wadaya think…………..

Slipper she said (after the famouse song)

 

There are many designs that are easier than an italian gentleman's launch. That is at the top of the boatbuilding skills. Lapstrake is not the easiest, but would work with narrow material as you have.

 

To be fair, I think most of us could manage a garden shed, and a lot of NAs on this forum would only be stuck with the foundations for the cathedral!

Anyway, a few bits of advice:

Start simple & keep it simple. Moving on water at 5 kts is not difficult in itself, but it can be made remarkably difficult.

Saving money can cost you money. Weird one this... There are places to save money, and places where spending more is beneficial. Unfortunately these areas often aren't obvious.

Test ideas at small scale with a model carved from foam. These hulls will be pence a time and quick to build. You'll get a good idea of what works and what doesn't.

See if you can find a donor boat for larger scale testing, and note the hull-shape of that and other boats, and see how the performance varies. Use free plans on the web to see what other people have done. There's no point in making their mistakes!

Buy yourself some good books on boat design. Money spent here will reap massive rewards later on. There are plenty of titles advocated on this forum, but as a minimum I would suggest "Principles of Yacht Design", "Ship hydrostatics and stability" and "The Boat Data Book".

When you get to the build stage, take it slow and careful. Small variations in hull shape from the design are not usually a problem as long as the hull remains symmetrical. Obviously, the better the hull is, then the better the boat will perform.

Most importantly, get out on the water whenever you can. Best of luck,

Tim B.

 

he only said get some plans, take some good advice when its offered you goose.

 

Cheers Tim

A fine welcome and thank you. Construction won’t be a problem with 35 years as a carpenter/joiner/cabinet maker/bench hand joiner/furniture maker I can let’s say knock a nail in.
If I had the room, time and money then a mahogany launch would be the ultimate but as stated my self imposed design brief will be adhered to by the letter and it will be a case of trial and error (on paper) that hopefully my craft will design itself.
I am sure I will learn the rules as the boat evolves and I hope the journey I have just begun will be as exiting as I hope.

At the moment looks will be everything. The lines will be as beautiful as I can make them. This of course will change as restrictions become apparent. I will probably begin construction in the autumn so this gives me lots of time to read and sketch. Thank you for the recommendations.

Iain

 

Not quite sure what’s going on hear but I hope Stumble didn’t think I was being flippant or dismissive of his advice.

He did say get some plans and try to select a design from them. I merely declined that rout and would rather try and create something that will fill my own personal and individual needs.

I am not familiar with antipodean slang so I can’t comment on being a goose but hey...........

Good on yer seagull.........

 

Welcome to the forum, A.H.

I like your introductory post, we need more things like that one here. You have a good sense of humor and that's always a good characteristics when you're about to venture into a task with such an uncertain outcome, like this one is.

I see you that like Chris Craft and Riva-like boats. We have the same aesthetic preferences then. I find them gorgeous too, and one not-so-near day intend to build one for myself... I'm slowly (when work and life demands permit me to) carrying out a project of my own little wooden beast, though it will be pushed by an outboard - which you dislike so much. Once it's over, a cash-collecting phase will start. And it will be a much longer phase, since I'm somewhat picky about details, colors and materials.

If I may give you an advice, don't dismiss Gonzo's short comments too easily. He's a guy who tends to use few words, but usually hits the point. Like he did this time. He has told you several true things:
- it will take a long time to understand the principles of boat design, and some particularities of boat building (like corrosion-protection, powering, electric systems, hydraulics etc. - if you intend to use the latter stuff).
- it will not be a cheap project, if you want it to be an inboard-powered Riva-like gentleman's runabout.
- it will not be an easy boat to construct. You'll best understand this when time for tiny details and finishings arrive.

As about this:

I believe that is a wrong approach, which could cost you a lots in terms of both time and money (and perhaps lost sleep, too). It is far better to learn the rules before the boat starts evolving, in order to avoid having to undo things too many times, or when it's too late.

For the rest, nobody can take away our daydreams, so good luck with your project.

Cheers!

 

Thank you daiquiri.
I won’t dismiss any advice that is offered and hope to find out all I can. I was just the same with trainees and the like, always thinking they would never manage the simplest of tasks and I was far superior to anyone else in my field but with age you become wise as well as cleaver and realise that there are no substitutes for patience and manners.
Forgive me when I say as the boat evolves but this is 'as it evolves on paper' and I will not begin construction until all aspects are satisfied.

Its an old trait in tradesmen/craftsmen but we are very methodical when it comes to making things and once my final plans have been drawn up and I am certain I am happy with all the choises and compromises, those plans will be stuck to until the boat is finished.

Not until then will it sink............

 

Well Acid house, I have to agree with Daiquiri and Gonzo.

What you want to accomplish is very good, and your enthusiasm is commendable. But, having some experience in the construction biz myself, I would ask;

would you begin designing a foundation for a house with a full basement without learning some of the basics first, such as footings, how to incorporate rebar in concrete, proper wall thicknesses, and so on?
Would you start wiring up the house without first learning about AC electricity and electrical codes?

There are some basic things to learn about designing boats, especially different types of boats that you need to learn before you spend a lot of time doing trial and error. Because trial and error will take you months if not years, while a visit to your local library, or an on-line one, will save you lots of time.

And all of us in the boat biz have learned a lot about boats just by looking at plans that others have already designed. This gives one ideas and inspirations, just like looking at buildings gives architects and builders new ideas.

So spend some time studying before you put pencil to paper (or mouse to software) and in the long run it will save you lots of times and buckets of money (which you seem to have an interest in)

 

Go For It

You've got free ply, an engine time, go for it. Who knows you may come up with a radical design that works well and will be a standard for future designs.

Sometimes learning what has already been done limits your imagination.

Go for it!