Our first half-million hits

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Thames Barges

Thames barges on the Blackwater – one of the first photos
to appear at intheboatshed.net

It feels a little funny when I think of it, but some time in the next two or three days in the boatshed.net will rack up its first half million hits.

Those with long memories will recall that this weblog began in a very small way at the end of 2006, and benefited early on from the support of various weblogs and online magazines, most notably Chuck Leinweber’s Duckworks Magazine and Tim Shaw’s Chineblog.

Ben Crawshaw’s wonderful The Invisible Workshop followed as did Chris Partridge’s Rowing for Pleasure, and so did a host more I won’t mention just now because if I do this post will become too huge for words.

We’re now all part of a community of interconnecting weblogs and online magazines, and I’m grateful to all of them both for their assistance in helping readers find their way here, and for the entertainment and interest they have given us in our household. If you come to this site and happen to land on this post, therefore, I’d like to suggest you take a little time to explore the sites and weblogs, as well as the rest of the intheboatshed.net blogroll.

But I have another request: please send me pictures and stories that you’d like to share! We’re particularly interested in old boats, traditionally built boats whether old or new, in boats that bear the influences of the past, in the history and culture of boating, in influential individuals and in alternative ways of enjoying boating rooted in the past. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a proud owner or not, or a boat builder or other boat related craftsman, or even if you simply have something interesting to sell. And the occasional story about a boat-related shed doesn’t go amiss either!

Finally, I’d like to pay tribute to my family and wife Julie, who has shown immense understanding and enthusiasm over a long period. I know that I’ve been very lucky to have their support and I hope they feel the result justifies the effort and time that goes into the inthboatshed.net project.

Reach me either at gmatkin@gmail.com or by using the intheboatshed.net contact page, which you can get to using the page tab above the title line.

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Paul Connor builds a model of the double-ended skiff from Practical Boatbuilding

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Paul Connor’s model of the double-ender from
Practical Boatbuilding for Amateurs

Intheboatshed.net reader Paul Connor is building a model of the attractive double-ended 10ft skiff from Practical Boatbuilding for Amateurs, which we posted some time ago.

The original post is here and a follow-up photograph of a similar boat built in the traditional way and seen at the Beale Park Boat Show is here.

At the time I described the plans as presenting a challenge, and said I was tempted to create a computer model in order to work up plans for building in ply epoxy. I’ve never got around to it, but Paul has taken up the gauntlet and is forging ahead with a sophisticated computer model from which he’s building the scale model (see above) and plans to go on to build the real thing.

Software-wise, he used Catia v5 for his initial modeling and a trial version of Rhino to develop the plank surfaces, and intends to make plans available for others wishing to make the model.

I think this is an interesting project and I will be very interested to see how it goes. In the meantime, Paul is posting his progress at the Wooden Boat Forum.

A challenge for boatbuilders: a sweet 10ft clinker-built double-ended skiff

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Ella builds a model Ella skiff

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Ella’s model of the Ella skiff

My daughter Ella has made her own model Ella skiff and told me that she’d like to build the real thing some day. That sounds like a really nice project, even if we already own too many small boats and she lives hundreds of miles away…

For more photos of models of the easy to build 12ft Ella skiff click here. If you make one, please send photos for my collection to gmatkin@gmail.com!

For plans drawings for use in making models of the Ella skiff, click here and for more on my Ella skiff design project click here. However, if you’re looking for something longer and with a bit more performance, try this.

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