Need a design for teaching daughters sailing

[Scott Z]

Help! I am looking for a sail/row design that is Stitch and Glue construction, 13' to 15' LOA with a Vee bottom and bow. The closest I have seen so far is the Sharpie 14' at Bateau.com, but I don't like the flat bottom. I think the lines of the R13 at Bateau.com are absolutly beatuiful, but it is not setup for sailing and I don't think I am good enough to add a sail plan. If the Sharpie 14 had a vee bottom with low deadrise, it would be perfect. Or if the R13 had a sail, I would be in business. So far I have looked at Databoat.com, Ken Swan, Ken Hankinson, Glen-L and Instant boat.com. Maybe I should try the old fashion search method - the library!

This will be my second boat building project. The first was a strip plank bahama dingy used a baby cradle. She has out grown that one and is now asking for the real thing! I think the stitch and glue will be the right construction method considering my skills and her attention span. I have been reading the posts below.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Scott

[Jack C]

Also look at Jim Michalak's website; he's got many designs that fit in your criteria. His website is http://homepages.apci.net/~michalak/

Look at the Way Back Issue Archive near the bottom of the page to get a comprehensive listing of his designs.

My next project will be his Mixer.

Jack

[norske]

just keep her out of canoes---we had yet another drowning locally--two people---I AM VERY ANTI-CANOE---the dam things have drowned probably more people than any other pleasure craft

[BradW]

Tom Lathrop put me onto B & B Design's 15' Bay River Skiff. A very attractive boat in my eyes. Haven't started cutting wood yet, but it looks good. Coming from an aerospace background, I'm used to more detailed plans, but theirs are sufficient w/ a little study and are probably standard for the boat biz. Tom would be the expert, though.
http://www.bandbyachtdesigns.com/schoon6.jpg

http://www.bandbyachtdesigns.com/brs.htm

Except that it is flatbottomed, Chesapeake Light Craft's Jimmy Skiff was also a top choice for me. I was real tempted by the kit, as a first boat:

http://www.clcboats.com/images/jimmy-2.jpg

[Tom Dugan]

OK. I'll go first.

Norske,

It may actually be true that more people have died in canoe accidents than any other boat. I don't know. But to lay the blame on the type of boat is wrong. Of all the canoe fatalities I know of (many!), they all - ALL - could have been prevented if the victims had followed a few fundamental common sense rules. Wear a PFD. Know the water you're canoeing in. Don't go alone. Know how to handle a canoe, including how to rescue yourself. Know your limits. No alcohol (you wouldn't believe... OK, maybe you would).

Most of those rules apply to any boat.

Canoes are great little boats for many applications, but it's no secret that they are not a forgiving craft. Anyone using one - or any boat - should understand what it can and cannot do.

'nuf said. Sorry to hijack your thread, Scott. Sailing a canoe is a whole other topic, but it's not (IMO) a boat to learn the basics of sailing. BTW, if a sharpie had a vee bottom, I don't think it'd be a sharpie! I also can think of lots better rowers than a sharpie. Check out the Jimmy Skiff at http://www.clcboats.com : 13'2" LOA, 4'2" beam, 96 pounds, leg o'mutton sail.

G'luck!

-T

[paladin]

Karl Stambough, Windward Designs, 1-800-376-3152, advertises in WB, has a nice little boat, Windward 15.....Shell Boats, advertised WB, Makes a 12 foot kit, Swifty 12, 1-802-524-9645.........and then there's the Joel White designs sold as plans or kits by WB.

[Mike in SC]

Sorry Scott- Norske & Tom get my first comments. I've fished out of a 17.5' Old Town glass canoe for the last 25 years from Maine to my current local on the SC coast. Caught cod off Kittery Pt. and salmon back in the woods. Packed out deer from remote areas of West Virginia and chummed up bluefish outta her off the Jersey Shore. Helluva boat in all kinds of weather as she floats like a cork over the very nastiest of seas. I agree with everything Tom said with one exception- tis better to have one person at a time in 'em if the weather's gone sour. An' no, they ain't fer nimrods. But in the right hands they are a joy to experience.
Now, Scott- as everyone here has heard me say over and over- check out "The Weekend Skiff" in the WB bookstore. True, she's got a flat bottom, but with a lot of rocker which gives her very nice lines (one of the best handling sailboats I ever raced was Peter Norlin's "Scampi" and I've been a believer in hard chines ever since! {okay that's a stretch}). Anyway, the W.E. Skiff is very simple to build, has nice lines and should cost no more than about $500.00, finished. Not bad for 15'er. I would caution though- she looks to be a b*tch to right if capsized. If you can get away without building, I'd suggest finding a local sailing club that has a youth sailing/raceing program. Or, find a Marshal Sandpiper or similar that'll go like H*LL but still be stable. I dunno 'bout you, but I'd rather be sailing than dealing with the annual wooden boat maintenance. Plastic does have it's place in the world!

[Tom Dugan]

Thanks Mike. I should have been clearer. Have more than one boat, is what I meant. I'm almost always soloing mine, except when SWMBO's with me. Besides companionship, another canoe provides a margin of safety.

Now Scott, since so many of our suggestions are for flat bottomed boats, and since you yourself expressed an interest in sharpies, maybe you should tell us why flat bottoms are out. Esthetic? Handling? Inquiring minds wanna know. http://media5.hypernet.com/~dick/ubb/smile.gif

-T

[Lima Bean]

You may want to try surfin' around the site listed below. I have found some wonderful designs here and long to have a go at the Cobles they have listed, 10' and 12'6". They talk about eventually having a 15' and 18' design available. They can be built with a form or in the expedient stitch and glue method. I did the fisher swampscott which has the flat bottom to a degree, but the nice rolling belly from the bottom chine on up. Good luck.


http://www.selway-fisher.com/

[Beowolf]

Hey...

Karl Stambaugh has some designs in that range. Namely the Windward 15 and now the Catbird 16. (If only I'd seen that one before, I'd probably be working on that instead!)

Also check out Sam Devlin's Stich and Glue stuff. I think there's one or two you might like.

Take Care.

Jeff.

[Mike in SC]

Yo Tom! A kindred spirit no doubt. I picked up a beautiful birdseye maple 6' paddle from Shaw and Teeny which allows me to stand and paddle which is a plus with a tail wind or to just change positions on long pulls. If you havn't tried it, I recommend it!

[Scott Z]

Tom asked "why a Vee bottom". Here's my answer - "it's pretty". Well, there is more to it than that. The Whitehall caught my eye as a pretty shape, don't know why, I just like it. That is the Artist in me. Now the engineer in me says that round things move better through fluids than flat things. The wineglass transom of the Whitehall gives the boat a roundness on both ends at the waterline. Beauty and efficiency, a good combination. Since this is my first big boat project I want to keep in simple, a lapstrake Whitehall would be too much. So I figure stitch and glue to save time and a Vee bottom to get away from the "flat" look. Maybe if I can turn a whitehall into a three plank plywood hull?!?

I have been checking out the recommendations as fast as I can. The response from everyone has been fanstastic! Keep them coming.

Thanks again
Scott

[Keith Wilson]

OK, FWIW check out these two designs by Phil Bolger: Gypsy at http://www.instantboats.com/gypsy.htm
and Cartopper at http://www.instantboats.com/cartopper.htm
(The pictures of Cartopper aren't very good, she's actually much better-looking than that.)

Many (by no means all) of Mr. Bolger's designs are boxy and crude-looking, although they almost always sail well. These two are exceptions; Gypsy, in particular, is quite a striking boat on the water. They are five-panel plywood boats, descended from dory skiffs and adapted for taped-seam construction. Either would be excellent for learning to sail in, possibly with some additional floatation. The simple rig with a sprit boom is easy to manage and very forgiving of beginners' mistakes. Dynamite Payson is a great guy, also.

[Greg H]

While your at it, check out some of Ian Oughtreds designs. They are glued lapstrake which may be a bit more complicated than stitch and glue, but you get to work with more wood and less fbglass and epoxy.
http://www.duckflat-woodenboats.com.au/boat%20pics/oughtred/oughtred%20index