What boats?

[Brian.Dixon]

CURIOUS ... It's expensive, but I'm thinking of renewing my subscription to the marine performance modeling software that I use and start designing some new boats.  In these days of economic pressure, building large and expensive boats sometimes has to be put on hold.  I'd like to flesh out a few more boat designs, more affordable, that people would like ... are there commercial boats that you have your eye on but would like to build your own?  Post here and help me choose the next direction that I take Glacier Boats of Alaska in ...

What boats?

thx, Brian

[cj8mule]

It might not be the direction you want to go and I'm not sure of the demand, but there is a hole when looking for a stitch & glue sit on top(SOT) kayaks.  I'm building one right now from the only plans I could find from Chesapeake Boats out of Annapolis MD.

You might be stepping on some Tolman toes, but a 22 to 24 foot center console with a 1' draft  would be popular in Florida

[Brian.Dixon]

It might not be the direction you want to go and I'm not sure of the demand, but there is a hole when looking for a stitch & glue sit on top(SOT) kayaks.  I'm building one right now from the only plans I could find from Chesapeake Boats out of Annapolis MD.

You might be stepping on some Tolman toes, but a 22 to 24 foot center console with a 1' draft  would be popular in Florida

Good ideas.  Renn and I had an agreement, and I stick to it even though he's gone, that I don't design boats that compete directly with his - Colin is still in business.  BUT, there are plenty of design ideas in the same size range as his that I can do ... flats boats, jon boats, jet or bass boats, for example.  And even if I design a skiff in the same size range, it would have a different intended purpose.  One thing that I can do that other boat designers cannot do is design for higher speeds - You need the marine performance modeling software for that, e.g. stability and 'bad habit' analysis over a broad range of speeds.  I also like having offerings that compete head to head with commercial boats but have advantages they don't have ... cost, mileage, speed etc.  The Great Alaskan was designed to compete with the likes of SeaSport or Orca or any of the many aluminum pilothouse boats that are out there... an example of what I mean.

[json]

If I build another powered boat it will likely be a jet boat for fishing and camping in rivers. I bought plans for Tracy O'Brien's Deadrise 19, and it looks like a pretty cool and versatile craft, but I certainly would be interested in something you designed along those lines. It will probably be a couple years from now before I get my wife to warm to the idea at all, but at some point I am definitely eying that for a project.

[Brian.Dixon]

If I build another powered boat it will likely be a jet boat for fishing and camping in rivers. I bought plans for Tracy O'Brien's Deadrise 19, and it looks like a pretty cool and versatile craft, but I certainly would be interested in something you designed along those lines. It will probably be a couple years from now before I get my wife to warm to the idea at all, but at some point I am definitely eying that for a project.

I have initial lines sketched up for a jet boat ... around here somewhere.  It would make a good flats or bass boat too ... I'll have to see if I can find my notes ...

[json]

On my run this morning I was also mulling over how cool an offshore catamaran would be as well. Something approximately the size as a GA, probably with more beam, but set up with a walk around house and cuddy would be killer. Even a smaller center console sized cat would be awesome too...

[tule peak timber]

Commercial boats, no.
 Customers with time on their hands , yes. Expendable income and time. Speed efficiency and use of modern materials in a smart engineered way will have a bigger audience in my opinion. Not necessarily bigger but more useful, cartop, collapsible,a toy boat so to speak. Just some broad strokes.

[Mills27]

Definitely would say a center console boat, they are very popular on the east coast here and most people I know say in an idea world they would have a center console as their run around boat. Something in the sub 30’ range probably has broad appeal, one of my buddies has a 30’ with twin 300’s and it’s great here in the dead sound for running shore to shore, although definitely overloaded in the rear.

[Brian.Dixon]

Definitely would say a center console boat, they are very popular on the east coast here and most people I know say in an idea world they would have a center console as their run around boat. Something in the sub 30’ range probably has broad appeal, one of my buddies has a 30’ with twin 300’s and it’s great here in the dead sound for running shore to shore, although definitely overloaded in the rear.

Yes, high on my list is a 22' (or so) jet sled type of boat that would make a great, stable, flats/shallows/bay/river boat ... and it'd be a center console for sure.

[gump]

Drift boat

[Brian.Dixon]

So far, in order, the most commonly requested boats are the sled or flats boat, and a drift boat.