Launchings

Wally Raithel built this 6′ lapstrake cradle dinghy for his twin grandchildren. The non-identical twins, William and Sophia, take turns skippering and keeping watch below.

Today I launched my winter 2013 project, a hybrid 17′ Chesapeake kayak by CLC boats. Learned so much building her and she paddles like a dream. The hull is made from mahogany plywood, while the deck is bead & cove cedar strip.

NIMBUS is one of three Mighty Mac’s built by Ned McIntosh, younger brother of Bud McIntosh in 1961. Ned is well known for the dozens if not hundreds of Merry Macs he built in the 1950’s and 1960’s. Like the Merry Mac the Mighty Mac is a hard chine, plywood built boat, but more substantial.

1971, 60′ Pacemaker. I completed a rebuild to her bottom over the last 2 summers including the aft 30′ of inboard engine stringers, the aft 28 ribs from the keel through the turn of the bilge, the aft 12′ of the keel, aft 10′ of the keelson, and new stem, apron and knee and 73 planks.

Last year, the physics class at the International Academy in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, built cardboard boats as a class project. Each group of four students had to design a boat that could be built from 4′ x 8′ sheets of eighth-inch-thick corrugated cardboard.

Walter Hansen completed this glued lapstrake tender in April 2011, just in time for the Keels and Wheels Concours d’Elegance in Seabrook, Texas, at which he received a Corinthian Award.

Andrew Green recently launched his Wee Lassie canoe. This is the second Wee Lassie he has built. This one is 10′6″ long version weighing 31 lbs using the blue print plans created by Mac McCarthy and using instructions from his Featherweight Boatbuilding book.

Carmel Dodds built this 14' Jimmy Skiff, from Chesapeake Light Craft, with her husband Peter so she could take her dog, Skeetwing, swimming at Crab Bank in Charleston, South Carolina. This stitch-and-glue kit boat was launched in October of 2001 on Horse Creek in Mt. Pleasant, SC.

This 12 foot Wood Duck from Chesapeake Light Craft is a stich and glue design Kayak made from Okoume and Sapele marine plywood. My wife and I started in January 2014 and finished in July 2014.

Chris Bell lives on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia, where he enjoys sailing in MINNIE THE MOOCHER, a 14′11″ canoe yawl. MINNIE is a Lillie design by Paul Fisher that is similar to his Ethel canoe yawl design and to boats that Lord Robert Baden-Powell built for the Boy Scouts.