Msc nav. arch. goes back to school

 Msc nav. arch. goes back to school

after working in shipbiulding, inland navigation, and maritime simulation for 35 years it was time to handbuild with traditional methods and materials.

During a 9 day boatbuilding course at the "Bootbouwschool" 7 guys built this 14ft pulling boat in the  Whitehall tradition. Bert van Baar owner of the school was our tutor. 

Day one started with setting up of the build stations and day 9 ended just after lunch with us proudly admiring our work in the sunshine.

The design is based on the book "Building Catherine" by Rich Kolin

 

What have I learned that I could not have learned from books or internet.:

• The joy of working with natural unprocessed wood, the feel, the smell, its inconsistencies.
• Building is teamwork, with all its joys and irritations, stories and collective energy.
• Lapstrake pronounces the lines, the shape of the hull.
• Clinking the hull requires expertise and secure planning to pull it off.
• A workshop with woodworking powertools, machines and ample space is essential.
• The quality of the wood is paramount.
• Boat building is not for everyone some level of skill is required, even for a tutored course.
• Experience and hands-on working has its clever tricks and hunches to solve problems and work efficiently.
• Building a wooden boat is very physical, muscles will hurt and blood will be shed.

I personally should have built a traditional wooden boat much earlier, it might have changed my professional career.

 Some pictures of the course.