SOF Row Sail Motor Micro Cruiser???

Is such a design possible with SOF?

I’m dreaming likely but such a boat would allow me to purse several of my keenest interests upon retirement in two years.
SOF boat would be designed to make these interests more enjoyable: fishing, snorkeling, foraging/gathering wild foods from the sea and cooking my fresh catches.

Needs to be light and strong for coastal waters and getting up onto my small truck roof rack. With transom for a 30 lb 2.5 outboard.

Would have comfortable sleeping cabin for one with storage.

In my dream world it would also be sailable from inside out of nasty weather and allow we to live aboard and on beaches.

It would have deck that makes getting in and out of the water easy.

It’s a lot to ask from one boat , comprise will likely be required.

Please fire away with pro’s and con’s.
Please guide me to designs if you know of any.
Cheers
Steve
Ste Anne Manitoba Canada

 

I'm guessing you will be familiar with Angus Rowboats sailing rowcruiser. If not, definitely worth a look. Not skin on frame, but a lot of experience and expertise gone into the design:

Sailing RowCruiser https://angusrowboats.com/pages/sailing-rowcruiser

 

Yes, that is a great design and would meet most if not all my needs. Colin says a small motor as back up power would be good idea for my purposes and a transom is doable but it would be a $2000+ build and a long build time. I can't afford to build it. I've built a several low cost SOF boats, now I am out to see if anyone has done something like that in SOF. My goal is too spend a summer each on both of Canada's coasts. So I'll need to transport my boat/shelter atop my Mazda truck. If the works then I'll head further south along both coasts, exploring and foraging, eating well. I'm not in it for sailing or rowing adrenaline, my goal is practical, safe water transportation, fishing, snorkeling, digging clams, catching crabs etc and elimination tent sleeping.

 

Ooooh, what a fascinating thread! I have also been wondering recently if this might be possible. Some of the more voluminous traditional kayaks such as the Nunivak/King Island/Hooper Bay types have space to lie down inside, as do some of the larger baidarkas (such as the three hatch ones) which might provide some inspiration.



I applaud your asking this question in the face of conventional wisdom which doesn't expect much from car-top boats.

 

Clarkey, thanks, I had some encouragement from another member and thought what the heck, I've got round shoulders like a duck, water rolls of I can take the ribbing to come. Or nay sayers will just ignore the post. If you come up with other design ideas please share them. I'll look into these bigger kayaks too. Another possible approach would be sailing canoes designs with an outrigger: something deep and long enough to have a cabin of sort up front. I'd likely pull it up on shore for sleep and cooking most of the time.

 

Lite XP : rowing, sailing and camping ...
HOME http://rowandsail.liteboat.fr/

 

I think an outrigger would be a good idea to investigate - it could certainly make entry into the boat from the water much easier.

In my opinion you are on the right lines with SOF, it is one of the few construction methods which could enclose enough volume for a small cabin without an unacceptable weight penalty. It could also result in a well lit, beautiful space which might even be pleasant to be in rather than a dark coffin. The example below is a bit bigger than you are planning but shows what might be possible....

 

Thank you,
I'd be afraid to ask the price of those. The Angus Row Sail Cruiser build is around $4500 completed.
I'm hoping some SOF builders have built something or are designing one in SOF.

 

That is indeed nice inside, put in a couple of clear hatch covers and it would make for a very pleasant sleeping compartment. I like how the floor boards extent up the sides a bit too. Sleeping well is important if one is to enjoy such adventures. The outriggers would add another level of security that I would welcome when in unfamiliar waters, plus it would make getting into and out of the water much easier when snorkeling. Ideally the design would have a flat deck area with lower sides: imagine a kayak shaped aft and forward covered compartments with a flat lower sided deck area in the middle for paddling, rowing, sitting and snorkeling. If 16' long, a 4' rear covered storage compartment, then 4' of open flat low sided deck area and an 8' sleeping and storage compartment up front.

 

Have you used a SOF of any kind?
I was horrified to tie a SOF double kayak on top of my car.
The bulkheads did not line up exactly with my roof racks.
The stringers were bent severely due to the cradles and a very minimal pressure on the straps holding it on.
I really didn't see the problem until I got to the purchaser's house - then I was concerned that the stringer were already cracked.
I got lucky, but it took some time for the wrinkles in the skin to relax.

Not really great when delivering a $1200 kayak (built for barely over cost).

Oh, and if you go SOF, don't ever use typical boat paint to seal the skin. Too rigid - it cracked all over the place, before it went in the water (another boat). I had to re-skin it.

 

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Yes, I've roof racked a SOF kayak a few times, initially had the same kind of experience. Made two cradles and put the kayak green side up in the front and rear cradles above the truck top, that worked better. I have a hitch extension on my small truck, post with a cradle up as high as I need, another post and cradle welded to front bumper (both are height adjustable). I lift the stern into back cradle then lift and walk bow around to the front cradle. Half the front cradle opens. This makes it easier for one person to manage getting her up and down.

I'm considering two options with my Dream Boat. A design as outlined in this thread and possibly another type of boat to fit inside the truck box but then I'm limited to 12' even with hitch extension.

 

this may offer some inspiration, with possibly a bow tent on the platform, easy to row-sail quite well i believe.
stable, easy maintenance, cheap to build.
and they can be made to take apart easily for transportation.
i geuss if you really wanted to use some SOF you could build your "house" with SOF- then it would really be very waterproof and comfortable.

besides these craft not being conventional, and i am sure many sailing purists will scoff at their design.
but for a very affordable, easy to build, low cost and really tough- wont be piercing those hulls on a beach with sharp barnacles and muscle shells.
RebelCat - Home http://rebelcat.com/

i live on Haida Gwaii, be sure to make contact with me when you are in the area- its a sea foragers paradise up here.

send me a message if you want and i can send you all my contact info!

 

heres another option
Faltbootbasteln: Faltkatamaran - Scalare http://www.faltbootbasteln.de/fbb-faltkatamaran-scalare.html
these are prettier boats- and will take more construction time- and wont be as tough or as cheap as those rebel cats.
the issue with putting motors on SOF is the torque the motor thrust will impart on the transom and the stringers- and they take quite a lot of beefing up to accommodate that.
the rebel cat will handle a motor on the frame very easily.

 

Thats a really well thought out design. It would make for some exciting camping.

The whole concept of a lightweight, sleepable, multi powered watercraft seems really appealing to me.

I must admit, I would be inclined to line the sleeping accomodation with 3 inches of foam for cold weather survivability, and a lock on the cabin so you could leave it on the beach while you did some hiking.

That ballistic Nylon skin is so tough that sharp rocks are not too fearsome, but even so, I might be tempted to either ply or glass up to the waterline.

Some lightweight mesh trampolines on the amas would make lolling about in the sunshine a bit easier as well.

 

Sorry but how do I send you a message directly PM ?