Why a Core Sound?

[cosgrove]

I'm itching to build a boat (first time) in the not too distant future and the Core Sound 17 and 20 appear to be beautiful, practical, and fun boats. For all you CS builders out there, I'd be very interested to hear why you chose to build a CS17/20 instead of an alternative design, say something like a John Welsford Navigator or an Iain Oughtred Caledonia Yawl or something else of similar size. Is the CS17 easier to builld? A better fit for you needs? I appreciate your thoughts and comments as I struggle through the consideration myself.

--Jim

[Scott Dufour]

The stitch and glue of the CS seems many levels easier than the Navigator to build. It goes together simply, looks great, has this great forum to answer your questions, sails fast and has low draft. The cat ketch rig is simpler sailing, too.

[Aaron_G]

For me it was the perfect design. I wanted a boat I could go camping in, but was also fun to sail. A boat that could handle rougher conditions. I was also really intrigued by the cat ketch sail plan. In fact, I looked at a lot of designs, but the Core Sounds were the only ones that really jumped out at me for no other reason than I just liked the look.

I choose the 17 because I am building in a confined area. I would have preferred the 20. Still, the 17 seems big enough for camping gear, dog, girlfriend and a cooler full of beer.

Also, the design is very straightforward and doable for an amateur like me. So far the build has been very straight forward.

Finally, the forum is really great. My build has gone very smoothly because of it.

(I also recommend ordering the optional CD-ROM with the plans...good pics there).

[Ken_Potts]

I Originally wanted to build a boat to live on but as I looked around and made realistic observations about my lifestyle I decide a trailer sailer would be a better bet for me. I liked the Princess 22 but it is still a bit big for my current needs. Eventually I decided on an open boat that I could camp out on occasionally, day sail, or go fishing in. By then I was familiar with this forum and with Graham and Carla (I did buy plans for the Princess 22 and I may build it one day) so my first look at an open camper type boat was at the CS boats (I looked at a bunch of others too, though).

The plans are some of the best I have seen (I am a drafter/designer by trade). They are thorough but don't include unnecessary detail. It's often more difficult deciding what to leave out of a drawing than what to put in it.

Mostly I picked the CS17 because of the combination of resources (the forum and the designer) and the beauty/practicality of the (well-tested) design.

There are plenty of well developed designs out there so keep looking until you are tired of looking and you'll find that there's one design that you keep returning to. That's the one you should build.

When you pick one let us know what/why...

[mustangermatt]

I chose the coresound 17 because of its speed and simplicity of build. I need a pretty fast boat to keep the time between campsites to a minimum for the kids :-) I also needed something that could safely make 25 - 30 mile passages (like across the Strait of Juan de Fuca or Straight of Georgia) on occasion. I actually like the looks of some of the other boats I was considering better, but the functionality and performance of the coresound are hard to beat.

As for the simplicity of build, I really don't think there is a huge amount of difference between the coresound and say welsfords designs. For the coresound you need to pick up some epoxy/fiberglass skills, and I hear the glued lap boats are heavier on wood skills.

I was expecting to finish my 17 in 4-5 months, it has been 10 and I am just finishing the deck frames. To build any boat right is going to take time and effort, so I won't use building ease as the primary criteria for the next one. None of the boats worth building are "easy", but I find that as mine nears completion I am going to miss the build time. Maybe I will need a second boat...

Also, don't let the guys on this forum bully you into the CS 20 over the 17. Topic for a different thread but it all has to do with Frued and his theories on the male fixation with size :-) Now I'm in trouble :wink:

It sounds like you are looking at some of the best designers so you really can't go wrong whatever you choose.

[JeffM]

In my teenage days wandering around Narragansett Bay, RI, I decided that for me sailing is about relaxation and the occasional adventure. I want a shoal draft keel to go anywhere and beach easily to land and picnic, explore, or camp. A cabin is simply in the way 95% of the time, so an open boat that can be rigged with a tent, and has room for a family of 5 to daysail, and for me and my three young sons to sleep (hence the 20 footer). I need to be able to trailer behind our minivan. And -- perhaps most importantly -- the unstayed masts mean it won't be a chore to get in the water, so we'll sail more often. I've never sailed a cat-ketch, but it sounds like a neat rig. Of the two similar boats I came down to (the other was boatplans-online.com's ck17), the Core Sound had a higher-quality, more sea-worthy feel, some history, Graham's help, and this excellent community.

[cosgrove]

In my teenage days wandering around Narragansett Bay' date=' RI, I decided that for me sailing is about relaxation and the occasional adventure. [/quote']

It's a small world Jeff! Where in RI were you? I grew up in Kingston and sailed a Beetlecat out of Saunderstown when I was young. Later spent much time on the water and camping on Dutch Island. Even when I was in grad school in Boston, my wife and I kept a small Sailstar Explorer moored off West Ferry in Jamestown and would sail on weekends.

Now I'm WAY too far from water to be happy!

We return to RI to vacation in the summers. If (when) I build my boat I'd take it along to sail on the 'bay. It's a beautiful spot.

--Jim

[Joe Nelson CS#35]

Both your other choices are plywood lapstrake (clinker) construction. Not that much more difficult but they are more difficult. I have heard of first time builders giving up on such projects.

One reason to build a Core Sound boat is the support you will get from the designer. I cant say anything but good things about John Welsford. I too had a couple of his boats on my list of possible projects. I am impressed enough with Graham's support that I am going to build a Princess 26. I have plan set #6.

Joe

[JeffM]

Jim,

I grew up on Warwick Neck, where my parents still live. As a young teenager, I'd put the family Sunfish into the water at Dorr's Marina (now defunct) at the mouth of Old Warwick Cove. I'd wander around Greenwich Bay or go out off Warwick Neck light if I only had a few hours, but I loved to start early and go farther, perhaps circumnavigating Prudence I. or visiting Hog I. if there was enough wind. (I got caught out more than once after dark without so much as a flashlight.) I camped a number of times also on Prudence.

Kingston, hmm? A beautiful area. I did my Bachelors at URI and loved it. Even though I'm nearer Fall River now, I'd still like to sail in my old stomping grounds. MAYBE next summer... [if you're out there, what boat should I look for?]