Designing Boats • Building Boats • Using Boats
Independent, international bi-monthly magazine
(4)
Subscribe to Water Craft magazine: www.watercraft-magazine.com/subscriptions/
Back issues posted anywhere in the world: www.watercraft-magazine.com/back-issues/
When it came to building his Welsford Whaler, Flemming Sørensen wanted to reuse materials wherever possible. Having successfully planked the hull in recycled beech plywood, he turned his attention to paints, sails, ropes and fittings.
Flemming explains how he sourced and saved materials for his home build in our September/October issue, out now.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Flemming Sørensen
Dipping, standing or balanced?
Moray MacPhail takes a closer look at luggers as he continues his series on refining traditional rigs in our September/October issue.
W167 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Kathy Mansfield
Traditional boats and traditional engines don’t always mix. Finding a transom-hung petrol outboard to be impractical and unsightly on his gaff-rigged dayboat, Rob Brown opted for an electric pod drive.
Read the full story in our September/October issue, out now.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Rob Brown
Colourful sails and clinker hulls, the Fowey River Class boats are a familiar sight in the Cornish harbour, racing regularly throughout the season.
With many older boats restored and more than 30 new boats built in the last two decades, this post-war dinghy design is a real wooden boat success story.
Nigel Sharp brought us the story of the renewal of the Fowey River Class in W120 (November/December 2016).
Back issues £7 or £8 per copy including postage to anywhere in the world: www.watercraft-magazine.com/back-issues/
Photograph: Nigel Sharp
Approaching a favourite designer to create a custom design to our own requirements is a dream for many of us but how does the process work?
Andrew Wolstenholme describes the evolution of his latest commission for a stylish electric launch, built traditionally in wood, in our September/October issue.
W167 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Drawing: Andrew Wolstenholme
Inspired by ‘Swallows and Amazons’, professional wheelwright Andy Ball chose Andrew Wolstenholme’s 12’ (3.7m) clinker ply Mallard dinghy for his first build – a design Arthur Ransome would surely approve of.
Read all about how Andy built PEMMICAN in our September/October issue, out now.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Andy Ball
Join us for our OPEN DAY THIS SATURDAY! ⛵️🎉
Are you curious about our courses? Or maybe you just want to explore what IBTC Lowestoft has to offer? Whatever your reason, we’d love to see you there!
Register now to secure your time slot... 👉 www.ibtc.co.uk/short-course/open-days/2024-08-24/
The ocean is calling!
When experienced amateur boatbuilder and designer Colin Cu***ng’s granddaughter Bethany asked for a boat like Moana’s, Colin repurposed his skerry-style skiff into an outrigger sailing canoe, just like the Polynesian Disney heroine’s.
Read the full story of HEI HEI’s design and build in our September/October issue, out now.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Colin Cu***ng
Back in June, the Cornish port of Looe celebrated its long history of boatbuilding with a regatta to gather locally-built boats back in their home harbour for a weekend of sailing, rowing, music and memories.
Cat Holman went along to the inaugural Made In Looe event for our September/October issue, out this week to subscribers and in stores from 22 August.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Cat Holman
“In the right setting – a downstream drift early in the year when all of nature has its foot on the gas – a canoe moving with the least disturbance can deliver experiences as memorable as any among our adventures afloat.”
Paul Gartside has a winter build for retired teenagers everywhere, as he brings us plans for a 13’6’’ (4.1m) Canadian canoe in our September/October issue.
W167 is out this week to subscribers and in stores from 22 August. For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Drawing: Paul Gartside
Starting as strangers, leaving as friends.
The ‘Scottish Raid’ has attracted sailors of small boats from around the UK and beyond for 20 years. Kathy Mansfield looks to the future of Sail Caledonia in our September/October issue, mailed to subscribers from 15 August and in stores from 22 August.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Kathy Mansfield
Some great photos of 1927 hydroplane MISS NORWICH at the Thames Traditional Boat Festival - Friday 19th to Sunday 21st July 2024, beautifully restored by wooden boatbuilder Abbey Molyneux.
MISS NORWICH was also at the Wooden Boat Gathering at Windermere Jetty Museum back earlier this summer, where Abbey Boat Builder was a guest speaker. Colin Henwood - Boatbuilder brings us all the news from the event in our September/October issue, mailed to subscribers from 15 August and in stores from 22 August.
www.watercraft-magazine.com
When autumn leaves you wanting more, find it in the September/October WaterCraft, mailed to subscribers from 15 August.
• SAIL CALEDONIA – Its locks and lochs have long tested sail-and-oar craft but what’s the future of the Scottish Raid, asks Kathy Mansfield.
• MADE IN LOOE – In June, a wide variety of boats came to celebrate the boatbuilding history of the Cornish port; Cat Holman was at the inaugural Made In Looe Regatta,.
• WOODEN BOATS ON WINDERMERE – Chairman Colin Henwood reflects on the Wooden Boatbuilders' Trade Association’s second gathering.
• BUILD YOUR OWN 13’6” (4.1m) CANOE – Simple boats are not always simple to build. Designer/builder Paul Gartside makes it easier.
• BUILDING ‘PEMMICAN’ – Wheelwright Andy Ball builds his first boat, Andrew Wolstenholme’s stylish Mallard sailing dinghy design.
• AS SILENT AS SAIL – And as satisfying in performance and appearance, Rob Brown chooses an electric pod drive for his Tela dayboat.
• THE SHOCK OF THE OLD – Moray MacPhail’s series on refining the old rigs for today’s leisure sailing compares and contrasts lug options.
• PLUS…
Amateur boatbuilder Flemming Sorensen recycles timber and boat paint • Colin Cu***ngs turns an old skiff into a sailing outrigger • Julian Wolfram has more guidelines for amateur dinghy designers • Ian Nicolson adds strength not weight to companion ladders • And in Grand Designs, Andrew Wolstenholme introduces his latest classically-styled electric launch.
Cover photograph by Kathy Mansfield: The delightfully yachty Tela, sadly no longer in build, sailed at a very rumbustious Sail Caledonia by Paul Nobbs and Belinda Rapley.
Back in 2012, Olek Hanusz and Filip Sulkowski and their crews sailed to the Arctic Circle in their two home-built open 15’2’’ (4.68m) dinghies; a month-long, 585NM epic voyage.
Read all about their intrepid travels through Norway from Hommelvik to Svolvaer in W99 (May/June 2013).
Follow their maiden voyage in 2011 from Poland to Sweden and hear all about the concept and kit-build of their Salmo-15 lug-rigged dinghies from designer Andrzej Ksiazyk in W92 (March/April 2012).
Back issues £7 or £8 per copy including postage to anywhere in the world from www.watercraft-magazine.com/back-issues/
Illustration: Filip Sulkowski
Great to see the latest boats built by students at Skol Ar Mor wooden boatbuilding school in France.
Our July/August issue features François Vivier’s design for a 16’5’’ (5m) lateen-rigged Mediterranean boat, an example of which was built in traditional carvel and launched at Skol ar Mor a couple of years back.
W166 is on sale now. For stockists and subscriptions worldwide: www.watercraft-magazine.com
The first Festival of the Lake is coming to Windermere Jetty Museum on 17 August. The festival will feature captivating talks, live music, stalls, lake-themed activities and an opportunity to explore Windermere on historic boats:
The first Festival of the Lake is coming to Windermere Jetty Museum on 17 August. Organised by Lakeland Arts, the festival will feature captivating talks,
Wineglass transoms! Designer Iain Oughtred deep in discussion here with boatbuilding teacher Bert van Baar, at the 2011 ‘Oughtraid’ gathering for Iain’s boats.
In our July/August issue, Peter H Spectre, who made his own significant contribution to the wooden boat revival, remembers Iain.
W166 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions worldwide: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Kathy Mansfield
Read all about Nick and his launches in W132 (November/December 2018) – available as a back issue from www.watercraft-magazine.com/back-issues/
This 20 foot clinker launch is for sale, Larch on oak.Copper fastened.Built by me in 2004. 19,500 GBP. Currently afloat in Salcombe South Devon. Nick Smith 07827644223. Includes road trailer, canvas cover and loose gear.
Before the rain makes another appearance in Cornwall this summer, we’re escaping to the Mediterranean with our July/August issue.
Gabian, designer François Vivier’s 16’5’’ (5m) lateener, is the subject of this issue’s Grand Designs. With examples built in both modern CNC plywood planking and traditional carvel, this seaworthy little boat has a choice of traditional Mediterranean rigs.
W166 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions wherever you are in the world: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Drawing: François Vivier
What a festival! Les Fêtes maritimes de Douarnenez will be back in 2026, marking 40 years since the first of these iconic gatherings back in 1986.
With the boat’s backbone completed, amateur boatbuilder Peter Robinson continues his build of a 12’ (3.7m) Paul Gartside dinghy in our July/August issue, as he tackles traditional clinker planking for the first time.
Follow Peter’s progress in W166, out now in stores and to subscribers across the world.
For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Peter Robinson
A man from Norfolk is embarking on a three-day sailing challenge along the River Thames to raise funds for the international disaster relief charity, ShelterBox.
Paul Weatherill, 69, will be launching his homemade dinghy, ‘ShelterBoat’, at the Thames Traditional Boat Festival before setting off on his sponsored sail:
A man from Norfolk is embarking on a three-day sailing challenge along the River Thames to raise funds for the international disaster relief charity,
Another beautiful restoration from Dennett Boat Builders heads to Henley for this weekend’s Thames Traditional Boat Festival - Friday 19th to Sunday 21st July 2024.
More about the festival in our July/August issue, out now, from Colin Henwood - Boatbuilder, with photographs from Kathy Mansfield.
www.watercraft-magazine.com
What is a dinghy cruise really like?
Jo Macgregor-Griffith remembers her fellow sailors and their boats on a relaxed Dinghy Cruising Association rally last spring in beautiful Poole Harbour on the UK’s coast – out now in our July/August issue.
For stockists and subscriptions, wherever you are in the world: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Steve Bradwell
Motivated by reducing cost to both the environment and his finances, engineer Flemming Sørensen set out to build a 20’ (6m) John Welsford Whaler using recycled materials wherever possible.
In our July/August issue, he shares the secrets of selecting sound, used ply for the hull, in the first of a new series.
W166 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Flemming Sørensen
Don’t miss the chance to see this unique film about engineless sailing, screening now until 10 August free of charge at CAST, just down the road from us in Helston, Cornwall: https://castcornwall.art/entry/wind-tide-oar/
More about Wind, Tide & Oar here: www.watercraft-magazine.com/wind-tide-oar-film-premiere
SCREENING NOW: WIND TIDE & OAR
We're delighted to welcome Huw Wahl back to CAST for the Cornish premiere of Wind, Tide & Oar.
Shot on a 1960s wind-up camera, the film offers a poetic perspective that uncovers the unique rhythms and motivations of sailing without an engine and invites deep reflection on our relationship with the natural world.
Huw was introduced to sailing by his sister Rose Ravetz, on her Falmouth quay punt Defiance. This experience produced the first shoots of the project, which developed into a three-year undertaking. Rose will join her brother for a special evening screening and talk on 11 July. Find out more- https://castcornwall.art/entry/huw-wahl-and-rose-ravetz/
Film duration 1 hr 23 mins
Screenings begin at 10am, 11.30am, 1pm and 2.30pm Tuesday to Saturday
Additional screenings at 4pm and 6pm on Tuesdays
Film still: Wind, Tide & Oar (2024), © Huw Wahl.
“I wanted a difficult project which would dominate my retirement.”
Despite having no previous boatbuilding experience, sailor Mark Walker took on the most ambitious of projects to ensure the longevity of his boating; building a solar-powered liveaboard to cruise the canals of mainland Europe.
In our July/August issue, Mark brings us the story of how he built his electric launch GREEN WOODPECKER to a design from Selway Fisher Design.
W166 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Photograph: Chris Tuckett
“I find myself thinking a lot about the way we go boating these days and in particular the damage we have done to our precious wetlands and intertidal zones in the few short decades I’ve been paying attention. A capable coastal cruiser that is not dependent on dredged moorage feels appropriate.”
In our July/August issue, Paul Gartside refreshes a favourite shoal-draft 22’ (6.9m) pocket cruiser designed to share space with intertidal wildlife, not compete with it.
W166 is out now. For stockists and subscriptions: www.watercraft-magazine.com
Drawing: Paul Gartside
The Southampton Boat Show has announced the return of Women in Marine Day, to be held on Thursday, 19 September 2024:
www.watercraft-magazine.com/celebrating-women-in-marine-at-the-2024-southampton-international-boat-show
The Southampton International Boat Show (13-22 September 2024) has announced the return of Women in Marine Day, sponsored by DF Capital, to be held on
Bridge Shop
Helston
TR126UD
| Monday | 9am - 4pm |
| Tuesday | 9am - 4pm |
| Wednesday | 9am - 4pm |
| Thursday | 9am - 4pm |
| Friday | 9am - 4pm |
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when WaterCraft posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Send a message to WaterCraft:
Fantastic to be down in Newlyn yesterday watching 143-year old dipping lugger BARNABAS setting sail for Scotland, crewed by members of The Cornish Maritime Trust. She’s on her way to Ullapool for new masts from Johnson and Loftus Boatbuilders, ready to join celebrations at Lugger Fest 24. More in our September/October issue, as we follow the story of BARNABAS’S new spars from tree to sea.
How to launch a boat, Scottish Highlands style! Traditional boatbuilders Johnson and Loftus showed us how it’s done earlier this month, when they launched the newly restored ST VINCENT, a 50’ (15.2m) Zulu which boatbuilders Tim Loftus and Dan Johnson have been rebuilding for the last two years: www.watercraft-magazine.com/johnson-loftus-launch-st-vincent/ 🎥 Johnson and Loftus
