Some Designs In The Offing

Descriptions and Links To Design Blogs

(someday this will be a website)

     The purpose of this blog has from the start been an effort to advocate for the elegant pastime of a life in sensible boats. This thought has from the perspective of these writings been built around a simple, central theme: that a good boat is one that gets used often.As a philosophy of design this is all encompassing, as boats are designed for many purposes and circumstances, but only the good ones get used often. This applies equally to the simple skiff and the most extravagant yacht, with neither having the slightest claim to any value at all if they never leave the dock; or, either may have value beyond common measure if used often and successfully on the voyages of escape and renewal that compelled their creation from the outset.

     This blog has evolved into a philosophy of boat design narration, which is well and good and arguably necessary for the greater world of pleasure boating. Future postings will continue to expound on this theme, in the interest of presenting general ideas about types of boats that will best serve defined purposes and so be used often. From these discussions, specific designs will emerge.

     More to the point, specific blogs will also begin to emerge that will describe and display the details of specific designs as they emerge. These will be divided between the four categories, Masters, Journeyman, Apprentice, and Working. Links to these blogs will appear (as they become active) at the top of each of my boating-related blogs. Whether individual designs will ultimately have their own blog will be decided in time. One final note before briefly discussing upcoming designs:

     some day this will be a website

     Details, drawings, and photographs for the following designs and design concepts will appear and be expanded on at: www.designsforthemaster.blogspot.com

I) 42 foot Motor Cruiser: Hull design by Seth Persson

       In 1974, the 42 foot party fishing boat Capt. Bob II was launched, and went on to serve for more than thirty years in that capacity. The hull design by Seth Persson features a round hull at the bow, developing into a chined cross section from midships to the stern. The resulting vessel has the seagoing capability and smooth ride of a round hulled vessel and the efficiencies of a chine hulled motorboat. With 14 feet of beam, this design affords the potential for a spacious, comfortable, long distance motor cruiser. 

     Over the coming months, work will commence to produce the designwork needed to construct a well appointed, capable cruising motor vessel. This will include modifications to the construction plans aimed at utilizing modern materials and methods to improve the quality and longevity of the finished boat.

II) 28 foot Down East motor launch. 

     Also incorporating the round hull forward to hard chine aft hull style, this design by Jon Persson has the narrow beam (8 ft. 6 inches), classic sheer, and tumblehome aft which mark the Down East-style lobster boat. Intended for a variety of engine and power systems, this launch will be configured as either an open launch or cuddy-cabin weekend cruiser. The hull design will afford an efficient, comfortable ride with a good turn of speed.

III) 18 foot Connecticut River Pulling Boat

     Designed on 1982 by Jon Persson, the Connecticut River Pulling Boat is a recreational sliding seat rowing boat capable of being used on moderately open waters. Stable and roomy, this design combines practicality and elegance for the enjoyment of light exercise and serene settings.

     Originally built as a lapstrake plywood boat with steam bent oak frames, this design is  to be modified to allow the option of cedar strip planking. And, while custom built rowing gear has been the choice in existing boats, provisions will be made to accept manufactured rowing gear and rigs.

IV) Mink. This was the working name for a 32 foot sloop developed by Seth Persson as a boat for himself and his family. With this design, Seth combined the best features of a Nat Herreshoff design with a 1930's boat named Driad and the highly successful Finisterre. While Mink was lost in the fire of 1964, her lines survive and her design will be completed for construction as a modern 
cold-moulded  boat.

V) YOT's. This is a long-held notion to develop a set of designs for classic and quite able sail and power boats in a size range that makes them easy and simple to use with crews of all ages. The premise is to work in the 16 to perhaps 25 foot range (large enough to be genuinely useful), while maintaining the look of much larger yachts. The list of designs being considered include a 21 to 22.5 foot classic sloop, a 21 foot version of  Down East launch, a schooner in the 25 foot range; a square rigged yacht, a commuter boat, a sailing machine with ballasted keel. The intent is to produce designs fun to own and use, which will as always get used often.

VI) Valhalla. This is an idea for a 47 foot ocean cruising ketch that has been under consideration for some time. A balance between comfort and ableness is sought, with a good turn of speed coming from a well-proportioned, full keel, full displacement hull design. A practical interior is planned, working around the real needs of long distance sailing on the open ocean. Construction will again incorporate the best of modern materials and structural design, with wood/epoxy being the probable choice. A second choice of plank on frame construction may be designed as well, if just for sentimental reasons.

     Further information on these concepts will appear and grow with time at www.designsforthemaster.blogspot.com. To discuss these ideas as they develop, I may be reached at jonpersson7@gmail.com.

Technology, Tooling, Materials, and Craftsmanship

   Work Of The Masters In The Modern Era

     Technology, Tooling, Materials, and Craftsmanship represent multiple levels of advancement in human knowledge and skill. Fire and stone axes were the advanced technologies of early boatbuilders, who learned to choose the best trees from which to carve a canoe, the most highly developed design of the age. Over time, each field of knowledge grew, typically as an overlapping of the fields; better materials and techniques in the hands of skilled craftsmen resulted in better tools, which allowed for the better use of better materials to build better boats. And so on. Tools tend to develop from work, as does tooling, as does technology; the practice of craft presents challenges best met by new designs of tools and techniques. Knowledge only grows, efficiencies and qualities increase, and through it all the craftsman's work is the critical interface between technology, tooling, and materials.

     At the time of Easterly's building, wood was still the most commonly used material for boats of her size; the oak, cedar, mahogany, teak, and spruce were the best woods available, bronze and monel the best metals. This brings us to a pertinent question: Easterly represents a high point in the skill and craftsmanship levels needed to build a fine small yacht, but would we build a boat the same way today? The answer is, if one seeks a challenge and a showpiece, then yes; the skills needed to build such a boat are of the highest order, and the finished piece will provide several generations worth of pleasure and prestige. Otherwise, no: we need to acknowledge and understand a fundamental truth, that what we now call "classic" or "vintage" was in it's time, the state of the art. Everything about technology, tooling, and materials advanced at an accelerating rate throughout the 20th century, as did the role of craftsman in the process. The intent and purpose of a given vessel must be weighed in the decisions surrounding it's creation.

     In reality, the development of modern technology, tooling, and materials is an entirely logical continuation of a long historical progression. The imperative to find better ways to do things, always resisted by the status quo, has moved humanity steadily forward to the point we are now at, which is certain to change as time progresses.

     Boats are the beneficiary of much of this development; in the past watercraft often provided the impetus for technology, tooling. and materials advances, but today's advances are the result of large, multi-discipline, multi-source research and development. Designing sailboats would never have led to developing computers and software, nor to computer numerical control routers. But, the availability of such technology/tooling simply changes the nature of boat building.

     My father once, when he was nearing the end of his passage through this life, commented that a production boat should be of higher quality than a custom boat, since one may invest so much more into the templating and set up work. It is indeed a truism that the more sophisticated technology, tooling, and materials become, the less skill is required to produce a high quality, finished product. This of course is because the level of skill and knowledge that goes into the technology, tooling, and materials is at once so highly developed, and also utterly repeatable, that better results are achievable than with hand-crafted work with less skilled craftsmen and less time required. In Easterly's time, bronze screws were a prime example of this, a combination of sophisticated metallurgy and mass production machinery, producing fasteners easier and faster to acquire and drive home than the less secure, handmade trunnels and nails they replaced. Today, epoxies and other adhesives, correctly and strategically used, allow even higher quality and more durable connections to be made, with arguably less skill required than driving screws home.


     This too follows the the historical trendline: the skill and talent of individual boatbuilders, designers, loftsmen, toolmakers, sawyers, and sailmakers has always been reflected in the quality and performance of final products. Having all the skills, knowledge, innovation, and labors of chemists, engineers, programmers, manufacturers, and tool and die makers on the boat builder's palette provides the option to create especially good and fine boats with details of finish and function brought to a never before achievable level of structural integrity and longevity. Such boats may be entirely custom or built in volume (either and all benefit from the underlying, highly advanced technology, tooling, and materials); they may incorporate the finest or the most functional of joinery and finish. The skill of the sawyer to select the best tree has been supplemented by the ability of chemical and manufacturing industries to develop the best materials and technologies. It is in many ways the best of all times for boat designers and builders, and for the owners and users of boats. But, it is only worthwhile if the boats produced get used often.


     The next posting will, at last, be a set of short descriptive pieces on designs in various stages of completion or concept that I will categorize as Designs for the Master. This will include a Link to a separate blog for such designs, where I will be able to include some thoughts on the construction and the processes and approaches to be taken for each design. As this work progresses, drawings, photographs, and further detail will be added to each design.