| Sat Jun 2 07:53:49 EDT 2007
It might be as long as a year from now before the Boattail gets added to the online blueprint collection. But it's in the works. This is just a quick preview of what I'm working on now. This is my best attempt at the ideal, all-around Montana Boat. Every boat is a compromise. In Montana fishing, camping, deer hunting and overall stability are more important than white water adrenaline. If you want a white water boat, build the Honky Dory. If you want a small, lightweight, easy to build boat, choose the Buffalo Boat or the Beavertail. If you want the ideal all-around Montana boat, this is supposed to be it. The plans should be online on or before the spring of 200X. 
The rower's seat now is just a quick hack. I want to zero on on the
right height before I try to build anything fancy. There is
(almost) 8 feet between the oarlock pins, and I'm not sure how that will
effect seat height. I'll just have to try it and make adjustments
on the fly.
The gunwale is 4 laminated strips clamped and glued to the dop outside of the side panels, angled on top, so the top gunwale surface is flat and parallel to the water. On top of that I put a 3" wide horizontal plywood arch that makes an over-hanging ledge on the inside--where I can hang rods without worrying about getting them stepped on. The boat is 57" wide across the widest part of the Plascore bottom, but it holds a lot of width all the way out to tail. The transom is widest I've seen yet on a driftboat. The side panels have a curved chine edge, in order to reduce rocker by almost 4" 
There is (should be) enough rocker left, however, to keep the transom
up and out the current at all times. The bouyancy of the wide tail
will help with that too.
The space between the pointed end and the front standing yoke will be an extra-deep stripping basket for loose fly line (or for life jackets, if you're not a fly fisherman), extending down to just a few inches over the front fisherman's toes. The front end knee-knobs will have an angled support extending way down too, in order to keep fly line loops from catching underneath the knee knobs. I also plan to put some lightweight, thin-diameter Port Orford cedar duck boards in it, so fishing bags and fold up chairs can be flopped onto the bottom of the boat--anywhere--without getting wet. I'm looking forward to rowing it soon. Aug, 2007 update: I still haven't finished this boat. I've been diverted by building a new boat shop. But i have rowed this boat, and it is amazing. This boat is so easy to slow down and hold steady it's hard to put into words. It doesn't turn as quickly as the Honky Dory, but it isn't in any way slow. This may well be the best boat I've made. |
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