I’m really enjoying this site, and I thought you all might like to see something a little different and what it takes to build a small yacht tender.
Boat building is totally different from cabinetmaking, as nothing is square, everything is on different plane, and it takes some practise to learn to make compound curves that are pleasing to the eye. We call it a ” fair” curve.
This is a 10 ft yacht tender that I built for a friends sailboat. I also made them a ships wheel and some otjher goodies.
The plans are from around 1932. I found them in an old book. First you “loft” the lines. That means to take the designers plans, and draw them full size so that you can make patterns and then molds, from which the hull is built .
Basically it’s like the old connect the dots drawing that kids do. You take a piece of plywwod and draw a grid. The ” offsets” are the designers points expressed in ft/ inches/ and eights. So a notation from the table would say 8-10-3, which means 8 ft, 10inches and 3/8”. You put a point on the grid and drive an icepick in it. Then you bend a batten around it and draw a line. They call it “lofting” because in the old days the only flat wooden floor in a boat shed to draw on was in the loft. From there you pick up patterns.
Here is what it looks like:
The plans.
A thin piece of plywood is slipped under the pointers and drawn on the pattern.
You now have half of the mold and you make a full size mold like this:
The full set of templates are pattern routed onto plywood for the full size mold.
I built a level strong back to build the hull on and set up the molds. The hull is built upside down.My workbench is perfectly flat, and ensures a level strongback.
The completed mold .
Strip planking started.
The hull is made of Honduras Mahogany and Alaskan Yellow Cedar. It is covered with 6 oz cloth and epoxy
follwed by ten coats of UV varnish. I hope you enjoyed something a little different
The completed yacht tender.
Hull #2
13 comments so far
Thos. Angle
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4015 posts in 841 days
posted 366 days ago
WOW!! that’s some pretty work.
-- Thos. Angle
DaveR
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1481 posts in 599 days
posted 366 days ago
Finastkind. Very lovely little boat. Do you know who drew the lines?
I’ve been trying to decide on the next boat. I think the list is getting longer; not shorter.
-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.
BigBob
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59 posts in 368 days
posted 366 days ago
The lines are in John Gardners book BUILDING SMALL CRAFT. It is the Lawley Tender.
DaveR
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1481 posts in 599 days
posted 366 days ago
Ah, yes. I thought it looked familiar. Thank you.
Dave
-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.
thetimberkid
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1944 posts in 582 days
posted 366 days ago
Wow, great job!
Thanks for the post
Callum
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Bob42
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285 posts in 669 days
posted 366 days ago
Beautiful!!
Great job.
-- Bob K. East Northport, NY
woodworm
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7845 posts in 469 days
posted 366 days ago
Very interesting blog post.
Agreed with you that boat building is different from cabinet/furniture making. It has different level of painstaking. You have to have higher conciousness that you have greater liability & responsibility to fullfilling your customer’s satisfaction, cos you are dealing with his safey as well.
Great job and good luck!
-- masrol, kuala lumpur, MY.
sis
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7 posts in 355 days
posted 354 days ago
Bob, I’d like to build the 9’ Lawley Tender. Could you possibly send me a readable copy of the plans or tell be where I can buy them(besides in the gardner book?
thanks, Sis
Blake
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2715 posts in 753 days
posted 353 days ago
Wow, gorgeous. I love the progress photos of the lofting process.
-- Check out my new website! http://www.blakeweberwoodworking.com
SCOTSMAN
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2229 posts in 464 days
posted 353 days ago
absolutely beautiful workmanship.To my poor eyes it looks longer than ten feet. I would have thought twelve to fourteen ,well done again .Now can you make an old Sctotsman one around one hundred and forty feet with cabins a funnel and acanon a jolly rodger flag and an all female beardless crew LOLAlistair
-- excuse my typing as I have a form of parkinsons disease
sis
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7 posts in 355 days
posted 352 days ago
Bob I got the book—It only had the 12’Lawley tender or the Lawton 10’.. So I’m going with the Herreshoff 10’ Pram. Wish me luckI I’m going to set it up as a sailor with a centerboard, so the bottom will be altered.
Sis
PetVet
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232 posts in 366 days
posted 352 days ago
As a sailor, I really appreciate you sharing this with us. There is something so intrinsically beautiful about wooden boats.
-- Rich in Richmond
sis
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7 posts in 355 days
posted 350 days ago
Bob, I tried sending an email tothe person you recommended and it wouldnt go through (for you to send the photo copies of the Lawley 10’ tender) I got the book, but the lawley seems to be 12’. any suggestions?
thanks, Sis