Plans- do they include construction information?

[imported_Daniel]

Hello all, I am thinking of building the design Little Moby over the winter, providing I can clean the shop out enough to squeeze it in. In general, do plans include good detail on constuction methods? I know on previous projects ( a 17' European canoe, a covered canoe, canvas on cedar frame) we had to fill in some gaps with our own ideas. Mind you the book we got the plans from was about 90 years old and from the library, I cant even remember what it was called. I would like to start on something simple and small as I have been out of the furniture/cabinetmaking business for quite a few years now, and hope that my long term memory is better than my short.... umm where was I? http://media5.hypernet.com/~dick/ubb/smile.gif

[ken mcclure]

Some do and some don't. Ask whoever you're getting the plans from to tell you exactly what's supplied.

You may consider plans that also have a "building" book that go with them. Look through the plans and books available from WB for instance.

Almost anything you build will have some detail that is not specifically covered by either the plans or a book. You can use your experience or imagination, or come here to the Forum to post questions. This is one of the most valuable things about this place!

[NormMessinger]

I bought several sets of plans before I decided on the one I would build. All of them, except the one I choose to build, had sufficient detail to build but were scant on rigging detail. But what KM said....

--Norm

[DougWilde]

I've been surprised by what is, or is not, discussed or illustrated in plans I bought. Definitely need supplemental material, such as Boatbuilding by Chappelle or John Leather's books.

And visiting other examples. For instance I have been building, forever, a Windward 15, loosely based on crabbing skiffs. Then this fall I visited the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum and ran through a couple rolls of film, capturing all the different ways they treated side seats, centerboard case trunks, coamings, and mastpatners. What I had built wasn't "wrong", maybe not as in keeping with tradition as one expects.

And I think it was on this forum that someone once asked if anyone had ever built a boat EXACTLY as drawn in the plans. NO ONE raised a hand.

To paraphrase:

Plans?! We don't need not stinking PLANS!

Doug Wilde

Look at the books.

[Alan Peck]

I am currently building "Little Moby" The plans are very complete. There are no full size patterns or anything like that, but all the construction information is there.

If you have never built a sawn frame, plywood boat, I highly recommend Glen L Witts, "Boatbuilding with Plywood"

If you have any specific questions, feel free to e-mail me.

Alan

[Bruce Hooke]

In general I think you will find that newer plans, and especially plans designed for amateur builders, will have more detail than older plans and plans mostly aimed at professionals. One interesting perspective on this from something I read about Albert Strange's designs. If I remember correctly he often didn't include much in the way of construction details quite possibly because at the time almost all boats where built by professional boatbuilders who, in those less 'engineered' days, would already have know most of the necessary construction information...

Since adding all those construction details takes a lot of time you should expect to pay a bit more for highly detailed plans...