John Welsford's Pathfinder / Navigator

[Honda_Shadow]

Hey everyone, I've just stumbled upon John Welsford's Pathfinder and Navigator. They are gorgeous boats, but are built in a manner I'm not used to, John suggests building it rightside up rather than upside down. He also says that many builders of these boats are first time builders. Is this boat really that simple to build? Has anyone built either of these boats? I'd be anxious to hear how complicated the build was and how long it took, and how much space is required, I've got a 20' x 20' 2-car garage that I build in, and I didn't know if it would actually fit. Any help would be appreciated.

The picture is from John Welsford's website, and is the Pathfinder.

http://www.jwboatdesigns.co.nz/projects/pathfinders/P-Pf-20.jpg

[Thorne]

Go to the JW Builders yahoo group -- many builders and John will answer your questions directly. "Easy to build" has many interpretations, but I certainly wouldn't say that about a boat this complex for an actual first-time builder.

Subscribe: jwbuilders-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

And I'll guess that your garage will only allow you to build and store the Navigator -- Pathfinder would be too big.

[Bill7254]

I second Thorne's suggestion about the jwbuilders site. John Welsford is very responsive and the other builders are quite helpful. There are several builders' websites listed in the links section that show various Welsford boats under construction. For the Navigaor check out Barrett's image station album. It is very detailed. I am a first time builder and I am building a Welsford Houdini. At 4meters (13 feet +) a Houdini can easily be built in a two car garage. I think the Houdini is easier to build the the Navigator and Pathfinder. I have made some mistakes and faced some challenges, but so far so good.