Boat Plans for Beginners

The question that must be answered for any one building a first boat is what boat to build. We can all agree that bigger is not always better for a first run. It's better to get your feat wet with a smaller boat at least to find out if you enjoy the craft before you are stuck with a large boat half finished. If one enjoys building their first boat, they are more likely to build a second one. Also, it has been said; "the larger a boat is, the less it will be used".

The design; row, paddle, sail, or power? Hmmm... This depends upon personal interest of course but also, the intended use. Are you planning to take the family out for a voyage and picnic? Performance sail or power sometimes comes with a loss of stability. Will you have children on board? Will children be out in it alone? Are you prepared to turn turtle in a small performance sailing craft under a wind gust or when you hand over the tiller to a youngster for the first time? Perhaps something more stable will be the ticket. What about your trusty labrador retriever with the asphalt sharp nails and paws. You wouldn't want to build something so fancy to deny Spot the pleasure of your company. I would also suggest you start with a good well thought out set of plans then to design your own on your first attempt. You could find a plan similar to that image in your head while considering improvements in construction and design of your next one while out on sea trails in the first.

The Construction; Do you plan to build this boat in the basement? Are you thinking of a way to get it out? Will it fit in your garage, on the patio, or the side yard of your sunny garden home? There is usually plenty of room to build in the back yard or under a tree, however, the rainy, snowy, or blustery cold windy weather has spoiled many a good intention. Do you have a warm brightly lit place you can build? Is the spouse willing to part with parking in the garage for the duration? You just might have to clear the snow and ice from both cars from now on.

Ahh, the type of construction; the traditional methods may be what you desire, but perhaps a good plywood dory or skiff will get you on the water quicker and sharpen your skills. It is indeed nice to take a break and row out or perhaps go fish for the afternoon once you've had enough of wood shavings or need time to let the epoxy cure on that cold molded sloop. There are many good stable designs made of plywood that will give you the success of completion in short order while providing some needed recreation. Building a boat is not necessarily as much fun as boating; it's simply a means to that end.

Lofting: It is difficult to explain the processes of lofting to someone that's never built a boat. One can easily find a plan with full size patterns or dimensional call-outs for plywood panels. Don't worry to much about this; lofting is not as hard as everybody makes it out to be. Of course there are whole books written about the subject. It is again better to get your feet wet building a plan that does not require it. Lofting will come to you in due time. Like a light bulb, oh I get it now, that's it... Once you understand lofting, you can open your mind to almost any type or style of boat. Laying down the lines from a table of offsets, working with the half breadths and diagonals, and finding the apex and bearding lines for the angled rabbit cuts of your stem will come easier after you've built a couple of simpler boats and are knee down in wood shavings.

There are many boat plans available to the first time boat builder. A little searching on-line and perusing about this site will net you more options then you care to decide upon.

Remember the quote from 'The Wind and the Willows': "There is nothing, absolutely nothing, half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats".


Now get out there and build your boat!!!

The following is a list of boats, plans, books, and suggestions that the members of Wooden Boat Builder have built as a first boat and or suggested as good for a first time builder.

"I always encourage folks to try a simple pirogue. They are easy to build, cheap to build, but give enough of a feel to take on a more complex project. What's most important is to do a simple in the same method of a complex project you want to build. In other words if you want to build a stitch-and-glue sailboat, build something small in stitch-and-glue. If you want to build something large in wood strip, build a small wood strip canoe first. G0tta get your feet wet first." Matt of JEM Watercraft

Many times it's . . . "The voyage rather then the destination" {anybody watch 'NICS' ?}. In that vein, Preparation is 90 percent of the job - as it is in any good job.

1} Get a basic book on boatbuilding, and study it well. {Your LIBRARY CARD is your BEST tool !!} This will give the beginner some understanding of what the written 'instructions' mean. Plus help to visualize the 'plan' into a 3-dimentional structure.

2} Get some simple plans {Stevenson Projects are a good source - so is Bolger}. Go to a local 'Kinkos' {or other copy service} and make at least 1 FULL SIZE copy. {I NEVER take originals into the shop !!}. Roughly cut out the parts, glue them to some 1/8in hardboard {give it a coat of sealer first}, then cut the parts to size.

3} NOW build the boat -per the instructions-in miniature- to scale.

I actually build these 'miniatures' for every new design contemplated. This gives me the chance to find errors, or places to change the assembly sequence, or even if the design is as 'shapely' as I thought. And, YES . . I have collected an extensive library . . . many of the books from mentions on such forums at this one!!

Which reminds me . . . a VERY GOOD BOOK is the Dover reprint of a 1934 book - 'How to Build Wooden Boats - with 16 designs' by Edwin Monk. Couple this with Payson's 'Build the New Instant Boats' {for the basics of 'Stitch-n-Glue'} and you've got a damn good beginning Boatbuilding Course !!

Regards & Thanks,
Ron Magen - Backyard Boatshop

Hi sawdust makers,

I went to a boat show and in between the many fibreglass boats saw two wooden boats ,1 from a builder kit seller and 1 from a college, I asked lots of questions and try-ed to go on a course work but finances said NO ,Went home and started on the web and buying lots of books to get as much info as possible, This site got me started on the road /saw-bench/waves:

http://home.clara.net/gmatkin/design.htm#new

From that site I found this great/mad guys site:

http://koti.kapsi.fi/hvartial/oss3/oss3.htm

I am still buying lots of books looking at to many web sites
So many boats to built so little time, More power to your elbows, - Bogdolics.

This is what worked for me:

Bought a book on boat building, Paysons to be exact.
Found out what type of boat I would like to have, a sailing/rowing skiff for fishing. I knew this but it was easier to narrow down the plans once I had an idea of the build process.

Found plans for a small skiff (One sheet skiff) to build as a practice boat.
Built practice boat, and then practice boat two, currently on a 12' foot practice boat. The first two do double duty as book cases and fishing boats. Building something small first gave me the confidence to tackle something larger and has allowed me to build up a clamp collection and some tools over time instead of just letting the whole project sit for month because of money. The gratification from having your own boat in a few weekends helped me start a more ambitious project. - JD (plytard)

"Insert additional comments from the members here"

I need some help and suggestions here from everyone who cares.

It means more coming from all of you then from little old me (well maybe I'm not so little).

But seriously, you remember what it was like looking for and deciding upon that first boat. What say yous?