lbrewer

Jake, its a N7 Nutshell Dinghy, one of Jaques Mertens from bateau.com. I had built one earlier that I donated to a charity auction and really liked it. Never got to use it so I thought I might build another. I emailed Jaques and told him I wanted to build another and I would be willing to buy another set of plans or pay somehow for the second build, but he let me off the hook. In fact he sent me another set of plans. To be only 7'9" LOA...it rows better than I thought it would. Its pretty stable too....I don't think I'd want to walk the gunwhales or anything...lol but it handled the boat wakes pretty well. This weekend was the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo, so there was powerboat traffic everywhere. Nice, simple, functional design and a quick build (if you don't get tied up making a living and remodeling your house). The kids have come up with a tentative name: The "Roll Tide Bama Boat Crimson Canoe". I don't think I can fit all that on the stern. They probably came up with that because my wife is an Auburn fan.

It might have been the dog having the most fun. She started swimming after me when I dropped the kids off and I had to turn around to get her.

Oops....I don't know how I posted double pictures.

Launched on Saturday. This one has been on the back burner for a while.

Greg, its looking really good so far. I love to see boats go 3D. I don't think the novelty will ever wear off. I saw Steve Day's spindrift at the Pirates Cove wooden boat festival a couple of years ago and fell in love with it. Its certainly worthy project. I'm looking forward to following your progress.

Maybe silica?

Cypress and juniper seem to have been the woods of choice around here for the many wooden fishing boats built here over the years. As anywhere, there are not as many being built in wood at all compared to years past. Those species still seem to be the wood of choice at the boatyards that are still around. In any case, finding a decent board today is a challenge. I went through six pine 2 x4's the other day trying to find a piece 28 inches long without a knot. My house is over 75 years old. It is built of almost totally clear SYP with a grain count we can only dream about finding today.....hmmm....I wonder if......Naah, better not go there.

That's a very good point Oyster. As usual your advice is right on the mark. The city marina where it is located now was very happy to see me rescue the boat but the previous owner wants to keep the slip it was moored in for something else. Also that section of the Marina (the section with attractive prices) is reserved for commercial fishing vessels. What I have in mind to do with the boat wouldn't fall into that category so it would probably become an issue. If we find out that the project is feasible, I really need to move the boat over to my side of Mobile Bay anyway for convenience. I live on the western side and the boat is over on the eastern shore (near Steve Day's area). I am gambling a little bit right now in hope that the old girl is saveable within my means. I've already spent a good bit hauling her out, caulking, and making some repairs. I am optimistic about finding her a place to call home at this point. We have a lot of old wooden boats that live around here.

That's why I am having him look at it Frank. I don't trust my lack of experience here. I have found and fixed a couple of places but I'll feel better having a professional opinion before I get too far into it. The guy has a boatyard in Coden, AL and is well known locally for building and repair of these types of vessels.

I hope you're right capt jake. I keep telling myself "its just one piece of wood fastened to another just like the other boats you've built". These pieces of wood are a lot bigger though!

I hope i didn't bite off more than i can chew. My latest potential project is a 46 ft custom built shrimp trawler that i would like to convert for fishing/pleasure. If I jump in with both feet it will be my first experience restoring a carvel planked hull. That fact and just the size is kind of intimidating, so I've asked a local builder of these type hulls to help me evaluate her condition to see if its feasible. To my as yet untrained eye she seems pretty solid for the most part. She took a bit of a beating during Katrina on the transom and rubrails, but I'm told the 50 foot yacht that was slamming against her sank as a result.

Thanks for sharing Ken. Sites like yours help everyone get over the jitters about starting a project and help immensely during the building process. The narrative is informative and the pictures illustrate the narrative very well. I can hardly wait to see the finished product. I know its going to be a great looking boat. Larry

My Norton didn't say anything about it. Looking good Ken

That is really, I mean really, cool. I am still trying to figure out the rigging though. Does the fighting platform telescope up the bottom portion of the mast? What an idea! I wish I'd have thought of that

Like many folks I had been drawn to his articles and learned a lot from his unique presentation of ideas. My codolences to the family. The news brought this to mind: Sunset and evening star, And one clear call for me! And may there be no moaning of the bar, When I put out to sea, But such a tide as moving seems asleep, Too full for sound and foam, When that which drew from out the boundless deep Turns again home. Twilight and evening bell, And after that the dark! And may there be no sadness of farewell, When I embark; For tho

The inlay is really a nice touch. The whole thing looks great, you'll have braggin' rights!

Come to think of it....I never met a shop teacher with all ten digits :?

= "And they're both for sale"

It was a great show with lots of boats and lots of great folks. The celebration continues today. Steve it was really good to meet you. I'm glad one of us remembered a camera :oops: . (BTW the first name is Larry) If you can believe it, Steve's Spindrift is even more impressive in person than in the pictures. The cradle is also a treat. Small boats on display included a couple of Sea Pearls, a similar hull of Chapelle design, a Herreshoffe Haven, a bateau.com GV11, a Simmons sea skiff and a Bolger skiff I had never seen before. There were numerous sailing dinghies, canoes and kayaks as well as a couple of mini-tugs that earmed their keep towing some of the daysailers upwind out of the inlet. There were also plenty of larger vessels, both power and sail, on display and moored off the beach. I missed the Joshua not being there this time, a 72 ft. shoal draft schooner built by Gene Zirlott. I used to have a 65 full keeled sloop built by Gene's father Nathaniel. There is a festival atmosphere with music and food/beverages, a nice beach with kids playing with dogs. All in all its a nice annual event and worth the trip for anyone interested this sort of thing. Larry

I'll be looking forward to meeting you Steve. I'm also looking forward to seeing the spindrift in person. I suppose the cradle-boat is still occupied. I would have like to have seen that as well. I need to start work on one for a friend and I'm still undecided about which plan. I haven't seen a picture of one as nice as yours yet.

I have two on the the benches but nothing completed. My intention was to finish another nutshell dinghy for the event, but other work got in the way.

Yes Oyster, I am going to try to make it there.

I'm interested in building something similar as well. I haven't found the plans for anything "just right" yet though. It looks like it would be a good match for Chesapeake Light Craft's Lapstitch building method. They make the Caribiana's in Orange Beach right around the corner from me. They look good in person too.

Ok.....here's the lowdown on the auction. The dinghy went for $700 ....but the guy who bought it told me he was prepared to pay more for it. Anyway, it still brought more than any other item on auction, and my own 3rd grader (bottom right in picture) thanked me for making her "famous" . The cheap canoe that I donated brought a winning bid of $400. The principal told me the other night they didn't have the final numbers but the auction probably netted the school about $24k. Here's what its all about:

Frank, I hope you don't feel obliged to change anything. That was an easily made offhand remark and I don't think your visitors necessarily agree with it. I haven't found any portion of the site that I felt was to revenue oriented. In fact, it is one of the few places that I can feel comfortable surfing around not being blasted with "in your face" ads that may or may not even relate to the content of the site.