Rdubs

That’s a great video and very helpful. Thanks Steve. Right now my dink doesn’t have a sailing rig, row / motor only, but watching how it does under sail on your video has me yearning now a bit. It’s just expensive to piecemeal the parts, even used on Craigslist. Great job job docking it under sail btw.

Didn't know that thanks Chick. Do you think a 4HP would move it along at a pretty respectable speed? Even though the boat doesn't truly plane, I'm sure there is some threshold where above it the boat skims more than slogs. Thanks Rich

Hi everyone Did a search and found a post from 2014 where they were discussing what outboard they were using on their Spindrift. I’d reply there but a lot of people don’t like resurrecting threads from the dead so posting new. Most seemed to be using a motor in the 2-4 hp range. But I couldn’t tell if that was sufficient to get the boat up on a plane. I built a 10N, using regular 1/4” marine plywood (so a bit heavier than the nice stuff) and then reinforced the hull with glass and epoxy on the outside and epoxy on the inside. So it’s a bit heavier than some have built. I’m wondering if I might need a 5hp to get it up on plane, assuming it was carrying 200 pounds of passengers. Saw a YouTube video of a kiddo using an 8hp on a Spindrift, needless to say it was on a plane but it looked like the stern was really weighed down. Thanks for any thoughts ’dubs

Hi everyone Been a while but thought I would report back, and had a question. Regarding stopping leaks out of the nesting bulkhead bolt holes when the boat is in the water, I did a version of PAR's idea and I ended up coating the back of the bolt hole washers with 3M 4200 and then adhering them in place to the bulkheads. With just light finger pressure, there was a meaningful thickness to the adhesive layer, and so when the bolt and wingnut are installed and under tension it, just like PAR said, created a very tight seal around the bolt shaft. After one day of testing, not a drop of water has shown up in the bottom of the boat, it is bone dry. It's also really nice having the washers permanently installed. Now for the question: I want to leave my main boat's slip at the marina, but I'll normally go (especially in the winter) a couple of weeks between checking on it. Has anyone created a cover for their dinghy and been pleased with it? Did you use a pole in the center to "tent" the water off to the sides? How did you fasten the cover down to secure against the wind? I wouldn't mind making my own just for the fun and customization. Amazon has one for sale for $60 ("Komo Covers Inflatable Boat/Tender/Dinghy Cover") but the reviews say the elastic is flimsy and would need another method to keep the cover from flying off. I don't care about looks, I'm fine with a tarp, just not sure how to set it up. Any ideas appreciated. Best 'Dubs EDIT: I looking into creating a little self-contained battery-powered solar-maintained bilge pump kit, it would be fun to put it together and would let you tie up the dinghy and be off instead of having to install the cover, but then I realized with the nesting dinghy you'd have to have two separate pumps, one for the bow section and one for the stern. Might work nicely with the non-nesting version though.

Hey all, thought would provide an update. Unfortunately, I didn't see Graham's response until after I had already installed the bow eye. When I didn't get a response I figured all the pictures of dinghys with bow eyes was giving me a clue. Too late now, but I read a few stories of a dinghy being towed coming up on the mothership from a wave so Graham's method of avoiding a bow eye is pretty smart. I had previously mentioned a concern about water leaking in through the holes for the mating bulkhead bolts. PAR have a great idea to create a gasket donut on the washers. I modified that a little and just used 3M 4200 to glue the washers right on top of their holes, using a thick bead. That wat the washers are always mounted and I only need to collect bolts and nuts when disassemble, but also the 4200 should stay a little flexible and when the bolts are tightened down, the compression of the gasket will seal off the shaft. Will get the boat in the water and test it out but for right now, thanks PAR for that great idea. I ended ded up using that polyeurethane-fortified paint from Lowes for like $25/gallon. Used about 2/3 of it to put two coats on. I didn't use a primer just to see if I would need one, I just scuffed up the epoxy surface coating. The paint definitely stuck to the epoxy, but it comes off pretty easy. If I move or scrap something up against the hull, the white paint will come right off. So there's a data point for anyone considering skipping the primer. Looks great as long as nothing scrapes up against the boat, then you'll be doing touch-up. 'Dubs

Gents - quick question. What's the best practice regarding making the dinghy able to be towed? The plans looks like you just drill a hole right above the front seat deck and run the toe line through that. Other pictures I have seen have used a full metal tow eye, mounted further down (about halfway down the length of the bow). I will probably use the dink towed behind the mothership carrying one or two kids for fun. Thanks, 'Dubs Edit: also, what effect does height placement of the tow eye have? It would seem that placing the eye lower would raise the angle at which he boat is towed, but too much angle would bury the stern in the water and probably cause a lot of drag.

Very helpful thanks PAR. Other closeout item: What is a good placement for cleats, and the size of cleats? 6" cleats look like they would work for holding dock lines without being too tiny. I imagine good places would be at the aft end on either side, but should you try to bolt them into the gunwale or the quarter piece at the back corner? For the bow, is it better to have just one on the centerline (I guess bolted into the breast piece), or one on either side of the bow, or none at all since the eye towing U-bolt could be used to take the place of the bow cleats?

Thanks for the input everyone. I think I wasn't clear...where I'm having trouble is that centerline 1/4" hole which holds the two halves together. I think there is a small amount of water seeping through that bolt hole. Tested the dink in my pool and over the course of hours some water would materialize in the rear aft section. I think part of it may be my washer isn't fully seating due to the fiberglass seams I put in, so I can sand those down more level. But is there a best practice on how to increase the watertight-ness of the bulkhead mating bolt holes? I'm thinking just put some caulk in the hole and around the bolt before tightening down, then tighten, let it sit/dry, then when I remove the bolt the clearance around the bolt shaft will be a lot tighter.

Thanks for the thoughts PAR, good things to think about. I'm fortunate that there isn't anyone else in my slip, so it would just be the mothership and the dink. I'm thinking about building a floating platform / barge to store the dink on when not in use, but haven't figure out a concept I like yet. The spectrum ranges from (at the easy end) just pulling the dink up onto a piece of floating rigid insulation foam and that's that, to just strapping some plastic barrels together with a cradle on top, to a full-blown legitimate mini-dock/barge. But back to the dink itself for a second, anyone have any best practices for reducing leakage around that bottom center bolt hole set? Should I just try to use some caulk around the area before assembling the parts (similar to RTV), and then once dry even if I back out the bolt the water-tightness of it would have been improved?

I glassed my Spindrift 10N. Partly because I didn't use Okoume, rather I just used generic marine plywood ($50/sheet vs. ~$200/sheet), and I wanted it to be on the tougher side. Well, the thing is tough as nails, but is a fairly heavy beast. Haven't weighed it yet but don't think it would be possible to lug it around in the assembled configuration by myself. The individual halves are carry-able, but not easily due to the bulky size and extra pounds. I built mine mostly for my kids to play in, so I wanted something a little more sturdy. I also like the extra protection the glass offers in keeping water out - maybe not as big a deal for Okoume but didn't want to have much water in contact with the budget marine plywood I used. Edit: Just as a data point, my glassed 10N, when in the water but without any people or cargo in it, still sits sufficiently high that neither of the side bottom corners contact the water. I'm pretty pleased with it, it's already planing and it's not even moving!

Hi everyone Put the boat in the water for the first time today. Well, my backyard pool, but still its first float test. Was neat to see it all finally come together. Two quick questions: 1) I may just keep the dinghy tied up, afloat, in the corner of my slip next to my main boat (a 47' Jeanneau Sun Odyssey). Since the Spindrift is the nesting version, that lower centerline through-hole (where you run the bolt to marry up the two halves) is under water. As a result, even though that 1/4" bolt is a very tight fit, I think water is very slowly (over hours) seeping around and into the aft section of the boat. Is there a way to use some caulk or something to create a better seal at least for this lowest centerline bolt hole? 2) If I did end up just keeping the dinghy tied up in the slip (as opposed to storing it on a mini-barge), any best practices to keep rain out of it? Obviously one can put a tarp over it, but not sure if that buys you much without some kind of center support or way of making the center higher than the sides, otherwise rain will just pool in the tarp. Thanks, 'Dubs

Hi everyone Nearing completion of my Spindrift 10N. The slip where I keep my boat does not have a "build-out" where I can store the boat, and I don't want to store it on the boat's deck. So the best solution seems to be obtaining or building a floating dock / storage barge which I could keep the dinghy on. The plan would be to tow the dinghy behind the boat (I am on a lake). It would be neat to have a dock that would make it easy to get the boat into and out of the water, so was thinking about maybe putting some carpet on it and maybe a fender at the front which would roll, but those are refinements. I did some research and doesn't look too hard to build a basic one, but thought would reach out here to see if there are any ideas forum members have seen to improve upon a basic design. I looked into buying one but any decent-sized one available seemed to be a few to several hundred dollars. There is a fellow near me who is selling 19"x12"x12" styrofoam blocks for $1 each, I'd need about 20 to do a 4'x8' surface, so when you add in the ability to customize the design for neat ideas it may be worth it to try and build one. Thanks, 'Dubs PS I know I have a nesting dinghy which would open the door to just storing it nested and needing half the storage float size, but to be faster getting in and going out I may just want to leave the dinghy in the assembled state.

Thanks everyone again for the help. Holes are cut and looks like a good tight fit. For the first cut I used the removable access plate to draw the circle then measured an additional 3/16" onto it (the width of the lip), it took a while to file down to size but got there. Second hole I was smarter, I flipped the removable plate over and the lip on the top was the same width as the extra width on the fixed part, so drew that circle and cut that. Fit first time. One tip I read on a different thread - before you cement the fixed ring pieces into place, do it with the removable piece inserted to force the ring into a perfect circle shape. Someone I read installed the ring part and without knowing it, the ring part was pushed in slightly on one side which prevented the removable plate from threading in. So they had to rip out the ring part and re-seat it after removing the material causing the off-center shape. Just passing that along. Say, what do you guys recommend for some type of sealant for the ring piece? Should I try to find some RTV like from an auto store, or just regular caulk from Home Depot? Thanks again. She's almost done. Will post some pics when she's together.

Hi everyone, quick question. I ordered a couple screw-type deck plates so I can get to the bottom bolts needed to mate the two nesting halves together. I totally forgot when I made those side seats for the bow section that I'd be covering up the bolt through-holes. But what's the best way (or a good way) to make the required cutout where the deck plate seats into? The most basic approach would seem to be trace out a circle, drill a few starting holes then run a jigsaw through to make the cut, but not going to be pretty since jigsaws work better in straight lines. It's not really worth buying a 6.5" hole saw attachment even if I could find one. Any tips from those who have done this? Thanks all, 'Dubs

Meester - many thanks for the tip on that thread. I read it and it looked like there was a paint which would fit what I'm looking for: these "Polyurethane fortified" porch / patio paints. I swung by Lowe's and picked some up. First coat is on, looks like going to need a second coat to get it thick enough to make it bright white, but so far so good. I also did a little research to see which version would be better, the satin or gloss...the idea of gloss sounds better, but the consensus was that it's a bear to maintain and the gloss only comes out after lots of coating and sanding, so if you want something relatively low-effort to put on and low-effort to maintain, go for the satin. A gallon of this was only like $27. Edit: Odd, the Lowes website only shows this as coming in Gloss, but the store had Satin as well. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Valspar-Base-2-Tintable-Gloss-Interior-Exterior-Porch-and-Floor-Paint-Actual-Net-Contents-124-fl-oz/3343622 Will let you know how it turns out, and over time, holds up. Question for you all, I managed to get some old fire hose which the plans recommend using the inner liner of as a fender around the outside of the gunwales. When folks use a fender like this, how do you address the area where the oarlocks go? The obvious answer is make a cutout for them, but I imagine you don't want water getting in under the fender which would happen if you made just a cutout, so it would need to have some kind of seal to it. Thanks again 'Dubs

Hi all, Wondering what your thoughts are on a good, basic, budget paint. I don't see this boat getting a lot of use, so I don't need something expensive that can withstand harsh saltwater elements as if I was using it as a tender to a cruise in the Caribbean. Rather, this one is likely to be used a couple times a month on a fresh-water lake. I did some research about what good paints are for dinghys and a lot of folks ended up just using porch / patio paint and they were happy with it. I found some that looks decent at Home Depot: But, it says you're supposed to use a primer with it. That seems like overkill for what I need and the use it would see, is a primer really necessary? Any other good economical alternatives that don't need a primer? Thanks.

Hi all Progress has been slow for a while but finally nearing the end. Thought I would post a helpful tip I came up with, at least helpful to me, in case it helps others. I had been trying to figure out for a while what the best way to do the fillets on all the joints was, since even with thickener in the epoxy it still sags and runs over the time it takes to dry. I tried to use packaging tape to force the resin into position, but that got real messy and it would always leak. Then I figured it out: Beach the hulls at an angle, and use gravity to form the fillet angles and fill in any crevices. The hulls look like they are shipwrecked but in reality just forming some really nice joints: Then when dry I will flip it and do the other side. The fillets don't have that really nice arc/curved look, but I was concerned more with structural strength and this method makes it so much easier to deal with. I ended up not using any thickener on most of the seams, the only place I really had to use thickener was at the bow seat because it was far from a horizontal angle needed to make the gravity method work. Unfortunately from this angle you can't really see what joints I was trying to fillet, most are the ones covered by the hull. Oh one thing also in case it may help any newcomers here, when you go to buy thickener for your resin, be sure to understand that there is a difference between silica and microspheres. The containers look almost identical: https://smile.amazon.com/System-Three-3105S16-Silica-Thickener/dp/B013K2WU9S https://smile.amazon.com/System-Three-3145S16-White-Microspheres/dp/B00W90R2CS But serve much different purposes. The Silica thickener is really the one you want for structural uses - it maintains the strength of the epoxy better. The Microspheres are more designed for smoothing and cosmetics, kind of like Bondo for car repairs. The Microspheres make it very easy to sand the resin and fair it, whereas the Silica dries pretty tough. The white lines you see on my boat is from when (a few months ago) I accidentally ordered the Microspheres, didn't catch the difference, used it anyway, and now I'm hoping that there's enough strength to provide the strength needed to keep the seats secure. So stay away from Microspheres, at least for any structural needs. 'Dubs

Hi everyone, I am finally entering the home stretch on my Spindrift 10N. I was trying to figure out what I needed to buy for a basic set of oars, oarlocks, sockets and maybe collars or horns but looking at amazon.com (where I usually buy stuff) there gobs of choices and I have no idea what pieces work with what other pieces. I'm mostly building the boat as a project and to "mess about" in as opposed to something I will be using daily as a tender for an extended Caribbean cruise so I don't need anything fancy. But if anyone has the part numbers for a combination of rowing parts they used on their Spindrift that they were happy with, please feel free to share the parts list! I know this sounds basic but a lot of things show up when you type in "oarlocks" like bushings, socket inserts, etc. and hard to tell what goes well with what. The oars need to be compatible with the oarlocks which need to be compatible with the sockets and the oars need to be compatible with the collars but not all oars need collars...sorry for being dull here. Many thanks, 'Dubs

Thank you for the replies everyone! For some reason I just received word that some were posted. Chuck, PAR - the reason I went with the inexpensive marine plywood was twofold: 1) the cheapest price I could get on BS1088 was about $150/panel (plus an extra hundred or so in shipping), and I tried quotes for Meranti too but it was only a little lower and I'd get beat to death on shipping. A lumber provider near me could get the regular marine plywood for $50/sheet, almost free delivery, so there was a huge price delta. Since this was my first build, I didn't want to be too afraid of making an expensive mistake so the cheaper plywood helped me be less concerned about getting it wrong. Plus, I am partly building the boat for my six year old daughter and if she gave it the thumbs-down I'd be happier knowing there was less investment in it. 2) As part of trying to get my little girl excited in it I told her she can paint the boat whatever color she wants when it's done. So wasn't too concerned about having that great finished look you get from the more quality woods. Starboard, have a question for you (really the question applies to anyone who assembled a non-nesting Spindrift). The stringer for the forward seat compartments which goes outboard and is glued to the interior surface of the side hull, how does one keep it pressed up against the side of the hull for the epoxy to dry? My clamps, which are pretty big, only go down a few inches; the stringers for the forward add-in seats (really flotation chambers) would sit much lower. You can see on a regular Spindrift the outboard stringer at the top left of this picture, somehow they must have kept it pressed up against the side to take hold. https://get.google.com/albumarchive/109621697666101332150/album/AF1QipNvq839usxvezgSsBnKa8SqcOb2-hzMgKTIG9mC/AF1QipPBkkRj3s9p6WMYM-J4YbwpFbOqEY4WxCzKNCdH?authKey=CJXw19iGpLa55wE Again many thanks.

Many thanks Hirilonde. On the centerboard trunk, I think technically the boat has a daggerboard so it would be a daggerboard trunk. But for some reason the plans in more place than one call it a centerboard so I figured best to stay consistent with the terminology as Graham knows a little more than me about boat design. But still would like to know what the best approach to installing it is - the plans seem to call for to build the trunk first then mount the whole assembly in, but there are pictures in the construction gallery showing a build where half the trunk is installed and mounted in before the other side is put on. So I am trying to follow the directions, but the directions seem to be conflicting with the construction gallery on the B&B site and not sure which approach is better.

Apologies for doing this but...bump. After a good run of progress I am stuck a bit trying to figure out the questions above. Summary version: 1) When is the best time to cut the boat in half? I need to glass the whole hull exterior, is it better to make the cut prior to glassing the hull or afterwards? 2) Is it best to use the aft seat dimensions in the plans, or wait until you make the cut to make sure the aft seat dimensions will clear the bow section when nested? 3) What's the best way to tackle the centerboard trunk? Build the trunk assembly fully then mount it in the boat, or build half of it installed like shown in the B&B website pictures? 4) I think I figured this one out. 5) Looks like stringers only are used at the top of the aft seat frames. Is regular 1/4" plywood the best to use for the aft seat surfaces (the permanent corner seats), or should you use hard wood like the center seat? Here is pic of current status. Thank you all for helping me get this far. It's not perfect, especially at the forward bulkhead, but it looks like a boat.

Also everyone progress on the boat is coming along well. A few general question: 1) I am just using relatively inexpensive marine-grade plywood (fir I think), so between that and being conservative I want to glass the entire exterior. Is it best to glass the outside hull before or after cutting the boat in half? 2) In general, when is the best time to cut the boat in half? Right now I have the mast collar installed, front bulkhead installed, but no aft seats nor daggerboard trunk. Can I install the aft seats just using the measurements from the plans, or is it better to wait until making the big cut so you can customize the aft seat dimensions based on the true lines of the bow section? 3) Need some help figuring out the approach to the centerboard trunk. It sounds like the plans might want you to assemble the trunk pieces first, then install in the boat. However, on the B&B website construction gallery, it looks like they installed one side of the trunk, probably cut out the hole in the bottom, then installed the other. (Sorry, can't seem to get the IMG insert thing to work with these pictures below) https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ziI9Y8b4HMF0yXFmpic7P9DaFQyCjFK4vpxZOhzOCV7pq_vh2Bvoi5OoZDTiFUjVQSfzdYE7tjs36xA-4WqhSqW-lPveG5m_lJXIzg=w293-h220-rw https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/I4hPisje77N2v0GVbFTYPVLvK74CfhVjiNb2BDJ5ciUpULSYgUvzGz1Vq39ggDoVtnsYpi9jtqsUZhyxSaq6ifX0EvYdeBDDl3WKrg=w1920-h1080-rw-no 4) In the B&B photo gallery, I just saw a nesting Spindrift where it looks like the builder installed permanent side seats like Starboard described. What is the best way to build some strength in so the seats can support a little weight? I imagine you will want to install stringers along the top interior like the aft seats, but do you also need to do stringers along the bottom where the plywood meets the hull? https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/ZLz-6jiA4PLCl7dkoAzkm2h6DiY3sr-nKKTQnxx2A8MZJcbK-f9H3MY5fmV2tZ9OLJsMbaJOHa0xoDku0KvZIjnrDbJfzg-i_gSwUA=w314-h220-rw 5) On the aft seats, I see there are stringers running along the top of the vertical plywood pieces. But are there also similar stringers installed at the bottom, at the corner of where the vertical plywood meets the hull? https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/HoOE-zNdpHJK8biGyVt4gYHeItviskKMtGN-Fh7-sdHamjdOFcML5jUhSGM60YcpmntMOU-KwZ28KVfLqDeCqUuW4dsMJp_9rJq2Ww=w329-h220-rw Many thanks.

Starboard thank you very much! You have quite a nice boat. Question about using the Laser rig - I looked at that but was worried it was way overpowered. I think the Laser is a 14' boat and built for racing - the mast height looked huge and the boom itself is as long as the Spindrift 10 is by itself. I saw the mast comes in two sections so maybe there is a way to use just the lower one, but you still have the super long boom. But it sounds like you got yours to work well with the 10N?

Hi Starboard, Wow, that is a great setup you engineered! Part of building my dinghy is to try and get my young daughter interested, or at least acclimatized, to sailing. Being a little girl she is easy to scare and if the boat capsized and took on a lot of water, it would really scare her if she saw the boat swamp and look like it was sinking. So I really should do your front section watertight seat compartment modification as that would help the boat stay more afloat. I imagine that idea works on the front but would not work on the rear since the rear interior needs to be free for the front half to nest in. Just a few questions to help me shamelessly try to copy your setup: 1) Do you happen to have any pictures of what the interior looks like with the side seats removed? Do you just have small seat support blocks installed similar to the center seat ones in the stock plans? 2) In the bow section, how did you know the right height to put the front support blocks/stubs? I am thinking that to get it level, you'd need to put the boat in the water and then use a level in order to make sure the side seats are level. Did you just measure it out somehow with the boat in your workshop? 3) You have a rather large deck plate on top of the front seat. Most people put a smaller one on the forward bulkhead (vertical), yours is the first I have seen horizontal (and it is big). How do you like it? It looks like the deck plate sits right on top of where the mast collar runs forward to the bow, does that cause any problems? 4) What kind of mast and boom are you using? Did you use a mast and boom from some other small dinghy, or did you build your setup from scratch? I think the plans calls for an aluminum mast but a fir/wood boom, but your boom looks metal. I'd like to just appropriate a mast and boom from a small dinghy instead of having to craft one. 5) In the rowing configuration, how do you find the placement of the center seat? Do you ever wish you could sit more forward or aft when rowing? Many thanks.

Thanks everyone for the great information. Build progress continues. Inside and outside seams now fully taped and the mast collar is installed. Next big thing are the seats. Would appreciate any thoughts here: 1) Any best practices when sizing/cutting the nesting bulkhead removable seat? Those little seat supports look tricky to get installed right. Also, right now the boat is still all one piece, have not made the cut yet. Should I make the cut and tighten up the bolts to eliminate that small gap currently in between the nesting bulkheads, or can I size/install the removable seat prior to making the cut? 2) Is it better to make the cut and then nest the front section into the stern section before installing the rear seat pieces, or would I be okay to just use the dimensions on the plan and it "should" fit? Not sure how far off my actual lines are from the plan with regards to shape of the bow. Part of the reason I am asking 3) Odds are I will do a lot of rowing in this boat. Are there any modifications to the stock plans one can do to make it more rower-friendly? I read someone installed more of a longitudinal seat (fore/aft) since the stock nesting bulkhead seat doesn't give any flexibility for your seating position when rowing. I can't find the post where the guy described it though. 4) Any other tips for doing the interior seat work / framing? Thanks, 'Dubs