Chine bLog

Tonight I ran across a small but active discussion forum about Iain Oughtred's Caledonia Yawl, his other designs, and a transoceanic voyage in a related Shetland boat: The Caledonia Yawl & Voyage of The Aegre. I've talked in the past about the Caledonia - its a great design. This forum seems to include some owners and builders and would be a good resource for those going that route.

The Voyage of The Aegre piece I need to look at more. It seems that this guy decked over a 21' Shetland-style boat not unlike the Caledonia and took it from Scotland to Tahiti. Brave soul. The account seems to include the obligatory gale + roll + dismasting which is still exciting to read. Anyway, this one's is good for some more exploration.

I bit ago I realized I was overdue doing a post about Iain Oughtred, a man whose drawing table has produced some gorgeous small craft. I first got introduced to him vis his book on glued lapstake building: Clinker Plywood Boatbuilding Manual. Yeah, he's a Brit, so he used "clinker," which, however laden with tradition, is a term I have never liked - but I digress.

Iain has a great gift for looking at the traditional, finding its merits, and bringing it forward to today. Adding in the glued 'strake construction, which allows for solid but lightweight craft with all the charm of their rivet-n'-rib bretheran, he hits my particular sweet spot - the modern traditional boat. Mark my words - I will build one of his boats when I can get to building again.