Guest Tom lathrop Posted October 26, 2002 Report Share Posted October 26, 2002 Hi, Just returned from a short vacation and Graham told me about this new forum about his boats. I have built five of his boats, Spindrift 10, 15ft Bay River Skiff, two 13ft Birder kayaks and a Catspaw 8ft dinghy and have worked with others in building many others from rowing sculls to sharpies to an oriental junk. Graham knows small boats and gives attention to the plan buyer in getting past any probems. Someone asked about the Birder kayak. They are very nice little boats that were derived from the Mocassin undecked double-paddle canoe or kayak, depending on who is defining the term. My boats both weigh 34 1/2 lbs which is less than a good friend's high tech Kevlar kayak, to his dismay. They are moderately stable to allow a beginner to take it easy and watch wildlife with binoculars without angst. The cockpit is large enough to allow us older types to rearrange our limbs from time to time to delay the onset of rigor mortis. They do not have spray skirts as a result of the large cockpit and there is a longer 15 ft model for two crew. Very nice little kayaks for those who need a bit more room or stability than that found in his Diva design. The Bay River Skiff that I built is featured in the October 1 issue of Messing About in Boats. The Spindrift 10 was raced and daysailed for several years until some bought it. Smallest boat for an adult that is a real sailboat. To my knowlege, our better sailors have never been beaten in a race by another 10 ft dinghy. Graham won first over all in the Woodenboat regatta over 60 other boats. There were actually about 100 boats registered but the high winds kept the rest ashore. I have not completed the sailing rig for the Spindrift but it tows well at over 12kts behind our power cruiser "Liz". harbinger@cconnect.net Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Frank Hagan, Weekender, O Posted October 26, 2002 Report Share Posted October 26, 2002 Hi Tom, I just received my Spindrift 10 plans, and I'm looking forward to building it. I want it to quickly drive to the harbor, splash it, and sail in "stolen moments". While I can rig my Weekender for launch in about 12 minutes after arriving at the ramp, it is considerably more trouble to get the boat to the ramp than one I can load in the back of my truck. Hook up the trailer, check the lights, close the gate, and then wait at the ramp for a clear spot to launch. Smaller boats are allowed to launch from "Hobie Beach", a sandy spot along the harbor that allows small boat launching. Hobie Cats and kayaks are the most common launched craft, but I'm thinking a Spindrift would be easier to launch than some of the Hobies I see there. And its free. fshagan@ev1.net Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Greg Luckett Posted October 26, 2002 Report Share Posted October 26, 2002 Frank, Interesting point you just made. Perhaps I will build one of Graham's smaller designs first. I can always use and/or sell a nice dinghy. Thanks, Greg. luckettg@qtm.net Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Frank Hagan, Weekender, O Posted October 26, 2002 Report Share Posted October 26, 2002 A man can't have too many boats. Well, my wife disagrees, but certainly a man can have one boat of each type! I have plans for Tom's Bluejacket 24, which I review at http://www.messing-about.com/smallboats. A nice power cruiser with a nod toward traditional styling that I hope to build some day. And I'll probably build a larger sailboat one day too, so I can venture farther off-shore (the Princess 22 is my favorite in that category so far, but building it is probably far in the future). fshagan@ev1.net Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Michael Posted October 28, 2002 Report Share Posted October 28, 2002 Off on a Monday! What a feeling :-)!! Anyway to quote from Jim Michalak "Build the Boat YOU WANT". If building a tiny one sheet dink gives you experence to build a useful sized boat GO FOR IT. That said I've been Impressed by the care and detail of the Spindrift series. Esp the "Nesting Versions". Has anybody built the Nesting Spindrifts? Looks like a nice way to have a decent sized Dink and carry it in the back of my pickup truck. Sail ON! Michael HandyM2@aol.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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