Sail Into Spring with New Boat Designs

Ahoy there, fellow DIY boat builders! With spring on the horizon, it's the perfect time to set sail on a new project and explore the open waters. If you're a free-spirited adventurer looking to dive into the world of boat building, you're in for a treat. We've got some unique new boat designs and goodies for you to discover and add to your "to build" project list.

From simple canoes to sturdy ocean-capable sailboats, there's a vessel waiting for your craftsmanship to bring it to life. Whether you're a seasoned builder or just dipping your toes into the world of boat construction, these new arrivals cater to a wide range of skill levels. 

Great for Beginners: Hiwassee Wanderer Canoe

The Hiwassee Wanderer is a simple, easy-to-build canoe that is designed for the amateur boatbuilder to construct at home. It is made from 3 sheets of plywood and a minimal amount of lumber, using the simple “Stitch and Glue” method. It is a solo canoe, meaning that it is designed for one person. Overall length of the finished boat is 12’6″, making it easy to transport in the back of a pickup truck.

"Thank you for the very thorough design, plans, and instructions. I was able to complete my wanderer by myself in roughly three weeks (1 week of intensive work, 2 additional weeks of working nights and weekends). . .I feel like as a first time boat builder I was able to produce something solid that I will enjoy for years."

Hiwassee Wanderer is designed by Michael Maddox, his first boat plan contributed to Duckworks. Give it a whirl and leave a review to let others know what you think!

A Unique "Wingmaran" by Mark Palmquist

Mark Palmquist (known for Shuttle Punt) loves to take an imaginative approach to boat design, just to see what's possible. The Wingmaran is a very fast sailboat for it's length, using a unique hydroplaning wing design. If you've been following his updates in the Duckworks Facebook group, you've seen the evolution of this thought experiment into an actual buildable design.

"A hydroplaning wing is similar to an underwater hydrofoil, except with 1 wetted surface instead of 4 (2 on the wing horizontal wing and 2 on the vertical mast). So, the wing has less drag than a hydrofoil at both low and high speeds. Just like with a hydrofoil boat, the wing lift shifts the pivot point of the boat to leeward which allows much of the hull to rise out of the water reducing its drag, allowing the boat to accelerate and push beyond its length waterline speed limit."

Mark recommends that you have experience building a sailboat first before you tackle this one, but the design itself is not difficult to build if you've already got that foundational experience. 

Nomad 16 by Tad Roberts

Tad Roberts is renowned for his cruising designs, and we're excited to bring this trio of great designs to Duckworks to help flesh out our options for the cruisers out there. While  Berry Point 26 and Wedge Point 31 are larger boats and accordingly best suited to the experienced and serious builder, the Nomad 16 is an approachable and practical design for fishing and day trips. 

Divinité by Eric Henseval

Divinité 4 3/4 is a pocket-coastal-ocean-capable scow, strongly built in plywood. Though only 15.5 feet long, there is a large volume inside with forward wide double berth+ 2 bunks and a kitchen. Like Eric's other designs Aviateur and Souriceau, she is beachable with a vertical sliding keel in a low keel case. She offers stability, ease of sailing, and seaworthiness -- in fact, the first boat is being prepared to sail across the Atlantic ocean by Abraham Poincheval.

Length 4,75m, beam 2.20m, Weight 570kg, Sail area 18,5m2

Other Goodies:

Full Size Templates for SHERPA by John Welsford

Sherpa is a 9' rowing tender that's great for getting a couple of people from ship to shore. Joel Bergen did us all the favor of creating full-size templates of Welsford's designs, and Sherpa is the newest addition to the catalog. Note, you'll need the  Sherpa plans to go along with the templates so you know what you're doing! ;)

Mini Outriggers from Michael Storer

Here's a cool solution for stabilizing narrow canoes or tender dinghies... DIY mini outriggers that you can retrofit onto an existing vessel. They are removable when not needed, and small enough to stow easily. Per the designer:

"The Mini Outriggers are to add stability to a sailing canoe and help reduce the risk of capsize on other relatively slender boats. They are set above the water to allow a sailing canoe or narrow dinghy to be sailed normally and are intended only to touch down when heel exceeds a certain amount."

Coming Soon... 

We're excited to have a pair of "Big Sister" ships making their way to Duckworks this spring-into-summer!

SCOUT 14 (aka "Super Scout") CNC Kit 

A lot of folks have been admiring our 10' Scout kit, but want something a little bigger so they can accommodate more passengers and a pooch. Brandon built the prototype last summer, and it was met with broad enthusiasm when we displayed it at the Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend in September.

We're thrilled to announce that the Scout 14 Founders Build at the Northwest Maritime Center is already full, so we're scheduling a second! Contact Us if you're interested in being among the first builders to get your hands on this new design.

SCALLYWAG (aka "Scamp's Big Sister") by John Welsford

If you're a reader of Small Craft Advisor, you likely saw the preview of Scallywag when it came out last fall:

"Meet SCALLYWAG, John Welsford’s big sister to SCAMP, a 15’ 4” x 7’ 3” wonder with a “real” cabin, tabernacle mast, mizzen sail, powerful main, water-ballast tanks, sitting headroom down below…and like SCAMP, faster than many onlookers might expect."

We're waiting on pins and needles to offer the plans! John has been working hard on polishing up the final details on the plans in preparation for the first Scallywag camp this summer. We'll let you all know as soon as we have them up for sale!

Gear Up and Get Ready!

Summer is going to be here before you know it, so grab your tools, roll up your sleeves, and get ready to make a splash this spring. With our new boats and goodies, the only limit is your imagination. As we like to say around here, "If you can dream it, you can build it!"