Requesting info on Bolger Black Skimmer

[brian watkins]

I just met an elderly man in my town who has been building a Black Skimmer (this is what happens when you obsessively doodle boat pictures in Starbucks: other sufferers are drawn like moths to the flame).

According to his wife he's been building it for 20 years (but she smiled when she said it). Anyway, I looked it up on the internet and found that it's a very nice looking boat (in a Bolger sort of way). Has anyone here seen or know anything about these? I had a 15-foot Bolger sharpie eons ago and it performed nicely.

Thanks in advance!

[Bill Paxton]

Check out Harold Payson's website. He sells plans for Black Skimmer.

http://www.instantboats.com/bskim.html

[Frank Hagan]

I like some of Bolger's boats ... and this is one of the ones I think is a pretty good design. He's never afraid to borrow good ideas that have fallen out of favor, and there's a lot to be said for the leeboards (the Dutch ... no slouches when it comes to boat building ... have been using them for hundreds of years).

Looks like the Black Skimmer is about 25' ... good size boat. If this links through, here are the "study plans" page showing the lines:

[PAR]

The Black Skimmer is no slouch either. It's a small 25' and flies when the sheets are eased. Lee boards have a lot going for them, though they take getting use to. L. Francis Herreshoff's designs, in the last part of his career, featured them promentintly.