The boat design found within these pages was designed to be a small 1-2 person boat, capable of being used in 3-4 inches of water using a pole, paddle or oars and also be able to use a small outboard of 2-3 hp or electric trolling motor. The unique part of this design is that the owner of this boat starts by getting it out of the CLOSET in his/her apartment and throwing it IN the hatchback of his/her GEO Metro or similar small vehicle. The boat is of nesting design, resulting in a 42” X 54” X 14 ½ “ package. This boat is primarily designed to be motorized and is not the best candidate for a sail. This being said and bearing in mind that I don’t know diddly about sails and sailing….  If one were to put a sail on it, I think that if the mast went through the front seat/hull clamp and maybe a Balanced Lug sail were used, it just may be able to move out of its own way in a stiff breeze. No provision for a sail is incorporated in the design papers, because I don’t know how to select or design the rigging properly.  Just suggesting it may be possible, of course you could probably rig a 55-gallon drum and get it to sail too.

Bio

My name is Steven Lewis, I live in a box, the box is round, I sleep in a corner..... No.. that isn't Right??? I live in Sioux City, IA. I like to build boats!!! I'd like to sell boats..., but that's another story. I've come up with a couple of twists that I think make my entry somewhat unique. A boat that could be built in an appt. kitchen, stored in an appt. closet and stuffed into the back of a Geo Metro(hatchback)! A nesting Johnboat for 1-2 people, to be used where storage space is limited. For pole, paddle, oar or motor (I left sail and sail design to the sailors(eventually!)).

Assembly Narrative

            The boat is assembled using standard Tack and Tape, Glue and Screw, Stitch and Glue, Hope and Pray methods.

Cutting the parts:

The front transom:  The front transom is cut from one of the 1 X 10” boards. The board is cut to the dimensions of 31 ½” X 6 ½”. This will be beveled to match the angle of the bottom curve of the sides.

The rear transom: Made from 2 pieces of 1” X 10”.  Join 2 ripped boards to an overall dimension of 13¾” X 44”(unequal widths are ok, so as to leave as little unusable scrap as possible). Clamp and mark the shear length at 43½” and the chine length at 37½”, centered.  Mark diagonals and check angles with a protractor to ensure that everything is equal. Make the cuts.  Join another 2 boards the same way but ensuring that the joint line does not align with the other part of the transom. The dimensions of this board will be 44”at shear and 38” at chine leaving a ¼” overlap on the bottom and sides. Laminate the 2 boards together with thickened epoxy or glue and clamp.

The sides:  Measure 13 ¾” in from each of the factory edges along the length of one of the pieces of ply and rip. Set aside the extra plywood. Clamp the resulting planks, best side in, with the factory edges aligned. Measure 5 ¾” down from the factory edge on one end of the planks. Measure in from that end 36” and mark on the ripped edges. Using a batten, mark the curve of the bow. Clamp the batten at the 5 ¾” mark and at the 36” mark and bend it down to get a nice curve. Aim for a 3-4” deflection at the center of the batten length. Using a circular saw or jigsaw cut the curve. Cut outside the line and then fair to the line by planning or sanding with a block. While the planks are still clamped together drill 1/16” hole space about 12” apart and in from the edge 1/8” to 3/16”.

The bottom: Using the second piece of Plywood, mark and cut to 38” wide. Save the remaining strip. Mark centers and measure out 32” centered, on one end, for the bow.  Mark diagonals and check with protractor. Once satisfied, cut away the extra. Take the sidepieces and align bow to stern. Transfer hole locations up to the start of the curve on the sidepieces, and drill holes.

Assembly:

            Assembly starts by gluing and screwing the sidepieces to the transoms. Starting with the rear transom, dry fit, ensuring to align the top of the sides with the top of the transom, drill and countersink 3 holes one each side for the screws. Put a good bead of glue in the ¼”overlap area of the rear transom and screw the sides to the transom. On to the front transom:  Align the top of the transom with the top of the sides, drill and counter sink and then glue and screw. CAREFULLY turn over the hull and bevel the front transom to match the angle of the side planks.  Once this is done, measure diagonally, from front to rear and square up the boat. Lay the bottom onto the boat, align the holes and stitch the bottom up to the curve. Bend bottom sheet to match sides, drill wire holes and stitch up to the bow, leaving enough room to smear some glue on the bottom of the transom and then drill, countersink and screw the bottom to the transom. Lift the edge of the bottom at the rear transom and get some glue into the overlap corner. Replace the bottom and drill, countersink and screw. The basic hull form is complete. Houston: we have…. a box.

The interior:

            The interior consists of the bulkheads, the front seat/clamp and rear and front flotation tanks. First the bulkheads.

            The bulkheads were not used as a frame because the shape of the final hull will define the shape of the bulkheads. Measuring from the outside of the rear transom to a point 4’6”’or 54”, mark both side panels. At this point, measure the width of the bottom inside and record. Then take the sides at the top and spread them just a little, maybe ½” to 1”.  Find a shape that looks good to you, keeping in mind that the wider you spread the sides the more the bow raises and induces rocker into the bottom. We’re looking for a smooth, gentle curve to the sidepieces. Once you’ve selected the shape, measure the inside of the beam at 9¼” above the bottom and record. Mark a 90° line on each sidepiece and drill a couple of 1/16” holes along the line (these will be used later to guide the saw cut. Join the sidepiece lines with a line across the bottom and drill some additional holes along the line. Using the center section of ply remaining from cutting the side planks, mark and cut 2 pieces to the dimensions recorded. Create the final form of the bulkheads by marking the curves and dimension in drawing Aa and cutting out. The bulkheads are installed with approximately 1/16”-3/32” separating the bulkheads (use something to keep them separated).  Ensure that there is an even gap between bulkheads. Bulkheads are attached using fillets of thickened epoxy and embedded fiberglass tape. (Cleats could be used, but the boat would have to be cut in two before the bulkheads could be installed). Rub rails of 1” X ¾” stock, and skids 1” X 1 ½” ripped from the remaining 1” X 10” and the 2” X 4” if need be. Attach the rails and skids before or after cutting the boat. If installing before cutting the boat, connect the holes drilled earlier with a line before attaching the strips. This will allow you to cut a straight line later. Use glue or epoxy and screws or clamps for the rails and epoxy and screws for the skids.

            The floatation tanks:  Start by measuring 9½” up from the floor at a point 9¾” from the inside edge of the transom. Measure the width between the sidewalls. Measure the width at the chine. Using the resulting measurements, mark and cut the front wall and top of the tank. The top should be 10” front to back and match the taper of the sides (if any). Away from the boat, put the two pieces together at 90° using a square cleat or supporting and filleting the joint. The top piece should overlap the front. Using the same method, measure, cut and join the pieces for the front tank. Install the tanks with fillets of epoxy or cleats with glue and screws. If flotation is to be installed (i.e. Styrofoam, or empty milk jugs) add before installing tanks. If using Buoyancy (two part) foam, install tanks and bore filling holes, to be closed later.  Or epoxy the front wall to the sides, fill with the foam and then attach the top.

            Seat/clamp: The seat/clamp is made of a 1” X 10” X 36” piece of board and left over pieces of plywood. The plywood should be 9¼” X 4” and are either rectangular or triangular. Cleats, epoxy putty, and screws are used to attach the clamps to the seat (see drawing Ab).  The seat/clamp can be made after cutting the boat, so that the clamps can be custom fitted to hold the bulkheads together. There are also 2 small bolts with wing nuts that go through the bulkheads to align and eliminate movement (see drawing details).

            Finale: Making the cut.  Here’s where you take a saw and cut what you’ve just spent so much time sweating on, swearing at and sitting in the moaning chair over.  If you didn’t attach the rails and skids earlier, locate the holes that you drilled and draw lines connecting them together. Take the saw and cut along the line. A handsaw would work well as the blade is thin and flexible, to stay between the bulkheads. A jigsaw would be next in preference, then a Sawsall and very, very last would be a circular saw. After cutting the boat in two, you will need to fiberglass all the joints and seal the wood.  Putting a layer of cloth on the bottom is optional and not really necessary unless you plan on ramming onto rocks (Glass after cutting and before putting on skids). Salt and pepper (FINISH) to taste and enjoy with a good glass of wine and a fillet of Salmon (caught from your boat of course).

Notes: All cleats are made from extra 1 X leftovers.

            Pre-drill all holes before installing screws.

            Countersink all screw heads and fill if desired.

            Sealing wood can be done with Epoxy and/or multiple coats of paint or varnish.

            BOM:

            The amount of glue and/or epoxy will vary in direct proportion to the slob-ness (MS Word said that that was an OK word) of the builder, but here are some round figures:

            ½ - 1 1/2 gallons of epoxy (for fillets, taping, sealing and, if desired,

glassing the entire boat).

2-3 tubes of waterproof construction glue (PL, Gorilla, etc) If not using epoxy and

 filler for glue.

15 ft wire for sewing

            30 1¼” stainless screws (screwing ply to transoms and seat to cleats)

            100 ¾” stainless screws (for all other ply to wood connections)

            Enough foam or flotation to fill approximately 4 cu. ft. of airspace.

            Paint or varnish to finish.

Illustrations:

click to enlarge

bow & stern	details
profile	top view