My favorite was Pocketship III. Too bad the votes aren't displayed; it would be interesting to see what the vote percentages are.
I was right!! That is a wood stove!!! OK John as soon as I win the lottery I will be calling about the Snowy Egret.
I really like Joy Spring, Fifie, and the 16 ft Weekender, but I have neither the time nor the money (my wife would kill me) to build the two larger boats. Ah, but the Weekender ...
Autumn Leaves is my current CLC project in planning. I would be very interested in a kit for her.
Cheers,
Dick
I agree with Mikeflys, I too would like to see a big brother version of Pocket ship or something in that 18-21' range. I have been coming through the internet looking at different sailing vessels to build but haven't found my Goldilocks. The just right ship.
Looks are important, and to say otherwise I would be lying to myself. Space for two consenting adults as was written is preferred. The Pocketship is an attractive boat and I would be interested in a larger version.
My 2 cents
Although not specifically discussed here, I think the Autumn Leaves has that indefinable "something", but is hampered by the suggestion that she may not be able to day sail two people in the cockpit area. If there was a way to remedy this simply (20 litre water containers under the bed perhaps, or a companionway seat?) then I think the boat would have more appeal. I also see questions on some forums about the sailing ability of the "square" boats, particularly to windward, so an essay re this and/or a demonstration of their sailing abilities in boisterous conditions would be good.
I suppose what I'm saying is it might be good to iron out some of the concerns re the existing design, before going to the (considerable) time and effort to design another boat.
Cheers,
Adrian
While I don't want to throw a monkey wrench into the works, why wasn't the 21'4" version of autumn leaves included:
- http://yachtee.blogspot.com/2016/09/canoe-yawl-autumn-leaves-update.html.
I think this excercise was pretty compelling. It would be interesting to see how it would fare in the beauty contest.
Why can't two people day sail in Autumn Leaves? There is plenty of room. If I remember correctly, John points out that this is a one person boat for overnight cruises, but I can imagine two very cozy people spooning in the cabin, or two casual friends with one in the cabin and the other in a tarp tent astern. . . . Still it is a lovely boat for long solitary cruising.
Now the 21-foot version . . . That can compete with Pocketship.
John mused that two people in the cockpit might upset the trim of the boat, ie it might squat. Seems to me it could possibly be fixed with a bit of moveable ballast in the storage area under the bed and/or some sort of companionway seat (John?)
It's a special boat, it just needs to be able to day sail two.........
Cheers,
Adrian
I see. But if you're day-sailing sailing with a friend, wouldn't the big cooler of beer in the shade on the berth take care of that?
Spoken like a true Aussie, except we call it an esky here. Two slabs of beer for ballast, brilliant 😄
Jokes aside, I would love to hear John's thoughts re this.
Cheers,
Adrian
So nice boats... Difficult to make a choice...
But please, John, please... would you be so kind to make a CATBOAT ? I am sure you would come up with a wonderful boat...
I think we all have the bug that we want something bigger, but how many of us have the facilities, time and money to actually build one? I am building a PocketShip now and are coming up on 1 year building time so far. I work full time, so I have limited time.
As far as the building space, the 15' existing PocketShip is about all I can fit in my garage with room to build and room to walk around. Anything larger, I would need some type of large shed. It would be nice!!! :)
For the money part, the build is not going to be cheap. I am fortunate to have a good day job that I can do activities like this, but I would estimate once I get a trailer, motor and all the other assorted safety requirements, I am going to be pushing well over 12K. To me well worth the activity.
I will say I am having a GREAT! time building PocketShip and can't wait to get her on the water and I will have to admit, I am already looking at larger possible next builds, but I will have to convince the admiral and would definitely need a larger space. I will never say never though! It is nice to dream.
For the new designs, I liked the following in no particular order.
PocketShip III, CLC Sharpie, Snowy Egret
The build space can be a real problem. I have a 2-car garage that was built back in the pre-SUV days, so there is only 6'4" clearance through the door. That killed any chance of ever building or storing a Pocketship at home for me. A larger model is not even on my radar, as beautiful as some of John's candidates are.
My Faering Cruiser is 3 1/2' longer than the distance from my back wall to the garage door. In spite of Susanne Altenberger telling me that building a temporary facade is trivial, the realities of living in a neighborhood with a HOA make that impossible. So I can't store that boat at home either, indoors or out. Nor can I do any maintenance on it that requires protection from the elements or controlled conditions, at least not until I can find a space I can rent or borrow for a couple of days.
Don't get me wrong, I love my FC, but once you get beyond garage-sized there's a whole new world of challenges to face. Pocketship's length is pretty much right in the sweet spot.
As for the original poster, don't you realize that the more consenting a pair of adults are the smaller the boat can be? You only need a larger boat when the people aren't friendly enough.
Laszlo
As usual, Lazlo, you cut right to the heart of the matter.
Lazlo your point is a good one. But the unfortunate truth for those of us who have rounded the corner on 50. After all the consenting is done you need a little room to stretch out, we ant teenagers anymore!