what construction method for a boat that is dry stored?

[rich morpurgo]

I am considering building a small daysailor/weekender. I would like a traditionally designed boat and a boat that could be dry stored without alot of hassle.

I was thinking strip planked construction, as ply/glass is awfully unromantic. I would start this after we are done cruising on our westsail 32 in the caribbean and bahamas in a few years. We live on a lake and love to sail on it in the summer now (with an o'day 22).

We have a dock where the boat could stay in all season, but envision a move eventually and that may not allow us to keep it wet all season.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Rich Morpurgo
SV Jasmine
laying exuma islands.

[BrianY]

How about glued lapstrake ply? See Ian Oughtred's or John Welsford's designs.

[Bruce Hooke]

Various methods work well for dry-sailed boats:

- Cold-moulding in it's various forms, including veneer over a strip-planked base

- Glued lapstrake

- Plywood or plywood coated in epoxy

- Strip planking alone

- Even traditional lapstrake seems to work pretty well when dry sailed but may not be as happy with getting hauled down a highway at 60 mph...

Since more small boats are probably dry-sailed than not there are lots of designs to choose from so to some degree you may want to look for the right design and then build it using the method recommended by the designer.

The one method that has a reputation for NOT working well when dry sailed is traditional caulked seam planking.

[john anson]

Hi Rich, if your going to the Bahamas check out their Dinghys especially in Hopetown were where Winer Malone still builds a 12' also on Man-o-War Key. I fell for them big time and am just putting the finishing touches to my 14' and will spash it as soon as the water is not so hard here in Upstate NY.

[rich morpurgo]

I met a few weeks ago a guy who built a S&S designed 42 footer from strip planking. His boat got knocked off the stands in hurricane Frances. Cracked alot of the thing, but he had it back together and back in the water quickly.

Might be the way to go, don't know.

Thanks for the advice.

Rich