Firefly 18 rowing boat

[wscherf]

Anybody out there have any experience with this critter. I have a set of plans that I bought years ago, and am thinking about finally building it.

The plans call out 6mm ply. How about using, say, 4mm ply and stiffinging the structure with a light deck forward? Also, does anybody know anything about drop-in sliding outrigger rowers (as opposed to sliding seat)?

[JimConlin]

Doug Culhane built one and reported here a year or two ago. Called it 'Strider'. He used a Piantedosi drop-in rig. Try the search thingy.

I've been thinking that i'd build one someday, but stretch it to maybe 21-22'. This would make it a faster single and enable rowing double or with a passenger.
For construction, I'd been thinking that 4mm ply for sides and deck and a stern tank and 6mm for the bottom might be OK. Composite chines (fillets and glass tape) might regain the extra weight of the added length and the deck.

You've bumped Firefly up a couple of notches on my next-boat list.

[Gary Piantedosi]

Walt - I just completed a photo shoot of my sliding rigger system this past weekend. Look for the info on my site (rowingrigs.com) sometime this weekend.

[garland reese]

Gary's rigger is the best available, as far as drop-ins go......

[Jon Etheredge]

Anybody out there have any experience with this critter.
I built one last year.

Here are a few threads with photos of the boat that I built:

Planking completed and finishing in progress (http://www.woodenboat-ubb.com/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=009891)

Completed boat (http://www.woodenboat-ubb.com/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=010182)

Details about my modifications to the original design (http://www.woodenboat-ubb.com/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=010294)


The plans call out 6mm ply. How about using, say, 4mm ply and stiffinging the structure with a light deck forward? Also, does anybody know anything about drop-in sliding outrigger rowers (as opposed to sliding seat)?In my opinion, 4mm ply will not be stiff enough in the bottom of the boat. The panels are unsupported and relatively wide in the center of the boat and they will simply flex too much. You might get by with 4mm for the topside panels but I feel it will be marginal.

A deck forward is not a bad idea for stiffening the boat. But then you are adding weight that you were trying to remove when you went to 4mm ply. My boat was built of 1/4" Fir marine ply and the boat is pretty flexible. As designed, it is stiff enough but I don't think I'd want to loose any stiffness. I'd stick with the 6mm planking.

If you want a significantly lighter boat, maybe you should consider a different design. The Kingfisher by Graeme King was designed as a lighter boat from the outset. It weighs in at around 40 lbs. WoodenBoat sells plans for this boat. I have built and rowed a Kingfisher as well as the Firefly. The Kingfisher is a very stable boat and rows well. The difficulty with the Kingfisher is that you need space to store a 23' long boat. Unlike the Firefly, the Kingfisher is light enough to cartop though.

[ 05-04-2005, 11:02 AM: Message edited by: Jon Etheredge ]

[JimConlin]

That's great news, Gary. One of my reasons for wanting to make Firefly longer is that, particularly if the boat is built light, the movement of the rower's weight really buggers the boat's trim. A well executed sliding-rigger rig changes the whole game.

Jim

[ 05-04-2005, 11:44 AM: Message edited by: JimConlin ]

[garland reese]

John, I'd like to know more about your experiences with the Kingfisher. Could you email me?