skiff – Page 6 – intheboatshed.net

The St Ayles skiff hits the water

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The St Ayles skiff meets the water for the first time – as usual click on the images for larger shots

The Scottish Coastal Rowing Project’s first St Ayles skiff hit the water for the first time on Sunday, and had her first try-out with a set of borrowed oars.

Builder and key powerhouse behind the project Alec Jordan reports that the Iain Oughtred-designed boat is a joy to row, as she’s stable and fast at the same time. The photos above are courtest of Alec, who must be very proud.

The boat is to be officially launched at the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Anstruther on Saturday 31 October at 11am. Once the formalities are over there will be a chance to row the boat – if you’d like a go, please contact Alec by email at kits@scottishcoastalrowing.org.

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New low-power skiff sketches and model drawings

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Low-power skiff, at 24 Oct 2009

Working on the low-power skiff I’m drawing for my friend (who wisely chooses to be anonymous) today: 15ft 4in by 4ft 8in, intended for 4-5hp.

Please let me know if your interested using the comment link below, or even if you can see some fatal flaw before it’s too late!!! Be aware that this isn’t meant to be a planing hull – at this power (specified by my ‘customer’) a semi-planing hull form seems a more sensible option. It was his low-power specification that has made the project interesting, and worth the several days I’ve spent on it – I think we need more designs to be created specifically to meet the needs of the expensive oil era.

It would be great if a few builders were to make use of the plans once they are complete. For now however, we have the wherewithal to make a model – which will hopefully keep some of you interested.

The drawings to make a model of this little skiff are in the pdf files below:

Model parts skiff part 1 200910

Model parts skiff part 2 200910

The main frames – frames nos 1,2 and 3 align with the lines marked on the chines. The positions of all other framing, seating and decking components are defined by cut-outs on the main frames, fore and aft lengths of thwartsm decking and chine line.

Full-size plans are to follow. I’m thinking about a small cuddy or shelter, btw.

See the latest posts on this project.

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Traditional steel Dutch dinghy and Forest & Stream skiff compared

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Dutch dinghy and steel-built Forest & Stream skiff

Over in Holland, Hans-Christian Rieck has taken these photos of a traditional steel-built Dutch dinghy of a type often used as tenders to steel-built barges and other craft. They’re strikingly curvaceous little boats, given that they’re made from plates of sheet steel, particularly when compared with the steel-built Forest & Stream skiff seen in the background.

The F&S skiff is being smoothed with filler prior to being painted and having its woodwork fitted. I will be fascinated to hear how this boat works – and I trust it does work well in steel, as it will presumably have a theoretical life time of 80 years or more. I’m pretty sure it will be fine, by the way – it’s clearly greatly scaled up from the 12ft ply dink I drew some ten years ago no, and that will no doubt compensate for the extra weight of the hull. I’d like to take a trip to see it once she’s in the water if that’s ok please Hans-Christian!

Hans-Christian’s workshop trains youngsters in the metalworking skills, and the steel dinghy belongs to the Graf Ship Association – it is destined to be cleaned and refinished.

Here are some earlier images of the F&S skiff, and of a ship, the Jantje ready to be transported to Nordhorn after being sandblasted and sprayed.

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