-A reasonable hull form...

An unsuccessful Dolphin deterrent, a needful read, and in the "Hateful rhetoric" department..

Some bargy goodness.

Listening to Layla Musselwhite

So it goes... 

a boat that clicks...

Unacceptable growth in a finite system, why I still use a mask when needful, and in the "Pretty much says it all" department...

Every once in a while I find myself clicking with a design that I never quite grokked in the past. For instance, Bolger's  Birdwatcher never quite made sense to me. While lots of folks really love the whole walk-through deck arrangement the only thing that I saw was one huge leak just waiting to happen. 

Plus, building a Birdwatcher was, for me at least, a lot of extra labor and expense for a glorified day-sailor. That said, I still think the Birdwatcher is a very cool boat but just not for me.

I saw a bigger version, a Whalewatcher for sale, and it sorta/kinda clicked. The huge slot in the deck is still problematic for me but the boat at twenty-nine feet now makes sense and would make a great small cruiser.

Certainly a boat worth checking out.

Listening to a Captain Beefheart cover

So it goes...

A Bolger boat worth taking a look at...

Some excellent solar thinking, regarding a specious argument of note, and in the "Seemed like just yesterday" department...

I just saw that Tomboy the Bolger Jessie Cooper that Chuck Merrell built is currently up for sale in the PNW. I expect it's well worth a look.

Back when I was building our Jessie Cooper (Loose Moose) at the old Charles de Gaulle airport just outside of Paris Chuck was building his in Seattle and we kept in touch as we did our respective builds. Sadly, Chuck is no longer with us and he is still missed.

Over the years I've written quite a bit about my love for the Jessie Cooper and still think it is one of Phil's best designs.

Yeah, well worth checking out.

Listening to an album's worth of covers

So it goes...

a perfect example of how less is more...

A rare quality, interstellar swimming robots, and an anniversary of note...

It's funny how a design can grow on you over the years.

The Shearwater from Edey & Duff, a Bolger design that I never quite liked way back when is now a boat that I find to be one of Phil's best designs.

Back in the day I considered it to be an overgrown day sailor with an over large cuddy that was neither a day sailor or a cruising boat. That said, I did really like the rowing ports.

Now, when looking at the design, I see it as near perfect example of a boat that is as simple as possible and able to do just about anything you'd care to do.

It would be my first choice to do the R2AK.

If I were contemplating a single handed circumnavigation it would be in my top three choices.

If I wanted a bug out boat to get away from whatever apocalypse (zombie or otherwise) I doubt there be a better boat anywhere.

It's not the sort of boat that the boating industry or consumerish cruisers understand or grok but, for those with an unhampered mind, it just might be the boat that makes the right kind of sense.

Listening to G Love

So it goes...

Some slab sided hipness...

Sense being made, when their lips move, and in the "Why of it" department...

Back when we were cruising on Loose Moose and Loose Moose 2 we got no small amount of flack concerning their vertical sides scandalizing anchorages on both sides of the Atlantic.

Apparently, we were somewhat ahead of our time. 

Obviously, the Vincent Lebailly design is a very costly boat with no expense spared but, when boiled down to basics, it shares a lot with some of Phil Bolger's "box" boat designs. Too bad Phil's no longer around to come up with an everyman's version.

Listening to a pretty awesome playlist

So it goes...

a boat for sale you might want to check out...

Some seriously scary shit, a selection of seaborne fantasy reading, and in the "How world domination and genocide is a cure for homelessness" department...

I heard that there was a Bolger AS29 for sale up in Canada and if you're someone who does the facebook thing there's information on the Bolger page.

Smaller than our Loose Moose 2 and bigger than our Loose Moose (a Bolger Jessie Cooper) it's fairly close to what I'd consider a perfect DIY VolksCruiser for a couple.

As the AS29 is really just a stretched Jessie Cooper, I've long considered building either an AS29 or a stretched JC but I''d stretch the JC out to about 32 feet allowing for a bit more load carrying, additional stowage solutions and be a bit faster.

I'm pretty sure I'd keep the lug rig and off-center mainmast over the AS29's gaff and give some serious thought to going with a junk rig for the mainsail. I'd also retain the single off-center dagger board as it worked just fine and why would I want to spend the extra cost and labor of having two off-center boards.

Still, a well built AS29 at the right price would be no bad investment...

Listening to Fairport Convention

So it goes...

I just had an idea...

A little good news, some needful reading, and a wingnut translation of note...

Over the last couple of months I've been wrestling with various plans, workarounds, and related mayhem to improve a dinghy design of Phil Bolger's.

Which, I'll be the first to admit, is tantamount to insanity. 

That being the case, dare I say that I might just have a cunning plan?

Now, if you'll forgive me, I have to take some measurements.

Insanity waits for no man!

Listening to Arthur Watership

So it goes...

the downside of being ahead of your time...

Some needful reading for folks interested in celestial navigation, a challenge to get the new year off to a good start, and about that doomsday glacier...

A bit of history I just came across.

 

Obviously, back in 1995 the editor of Latitude 38 did not quite grok the sharpie/scow fusion that was Loose Moose 2. 

I'll admit that being twenty something years ahead of things is both somewhat problematic and a royal pain in the ass.

Listening to three discs worth of downloaded music

So it goes...

Big shoes to fill...

Someone I'm rooting for, a very good point, and a different way of telling time...

It’s been twelve years since Phil Bolger died. His passing left a gaping hole in the realm of sailboat design; a vacuum that has yet to be filled. I mention this because people like Bolger have a much greater influence than you might think and set an example that is both pervasive and important. I still miss Phil and the world of sailboat design really needs someone to replace him.

James Wharram died this week, leaving another void in the world of boat design. As far as I can see, no one is standing in the wings to take his place.

Not that there is a shortage of talented designers floating about. There are many, but few with the sort of grounded common sense and vision that made Wharram and Bolger stand out.

Too many designers are, to steal from a song, dedicated followers of fashion. They apply their considerable talents to whatever is currently in vogue. If condomarans or cattlemarans are in style, that’s what they’ll design. Now, I’m sure they’re designing great condo/cattlemarans but what about the folks who want or need something different?

How many designers actually listen to the people they are designing for?

A long time ago, I commissioned a cruising design and having the boat designed turned into something of a nightmare. The fundamental problem was that the designer never quite listened to what I said I wanted. In hindsight, he had a picture of what he thought I wanted mixed in with what he thought others would want. The ultimate design became something I hated and, I suspect, he did as well.

Not too long ago, I was reading a description of a design for an “affordable” cruising boat that included a plethora of systems* that made the boat fairly expensive; just the opposite of the affordable design brief. Or maybe the designer's definition of inexpensive is just a whole lot different than mine.

Bolger and Wharram both were often targets of derision by many. It takes a special fortitude to weather that sort of criticism and continue along one’s chosen path. Most designers I follow these days take the path of least resistance. Seriously, when did you last see a designer publishing a new design that shocked or outraged anyone?

Maybe it’s more than time for a bit of scandalization, shock, and (dare I say it?) awe.

Which is why I still miss Phil and losing James Wharram has left me gutted as they were both voices in the wilderness that were and are very much needed. The important question is who is going to take their place?

James Wharram in 1953

Listening to Sara Watkins

So it goes... 

*If anyone out there knows of a source for affordable carbon spars and lithium batteries please let me know.

Regarding the boat designer builder interface...

Some well earned karma, EBM on that Texass thing, and in the "Just so wrong" department...

The other day I had an email from a guy who, apparently, needed to tell me that he would never build a Bolger design because his boats were ugly and. since Phil was no longer living he would not be able to answer questions that arise in the building process. 

Now, for starters, I personally feel that Bolger's designs are anything but ugly and some of his designs are actually beautiful. That said, I'm aware that some folks take issue with some of his designs like our Loose Moose and Loose Moose 2 but, as far as I'm concerned, I'll just point out that when form and function come together in a positive manner the design will reflect that.

On the subject of not choosing a design because the designer is not around to answer your questions, I'll just point out that the designers job pretty much ends when the drawings are done as any good design will have all the information you'll need to build the boat.

Then again, if you don't have the needful skill set to build a given design it's really time to either acquire the skills or choose a design that better reflects your abilities. The bottom line is that it's not the designers job to hold your hand and spoon-feed you what you should already know...

Listening to a Captain Beefheart cover

So it goes...

a flash from the past...

Something to remember, a very good point, and in the "Yeah, they're pretty horrific all right" department...

A Phil Bolger design from the early sixties in Popular Mechanics..

Listening to the Iron Leg Radio Show

So it goes...

An AS-29 for sale...

Something regarding water, an excellent educational post, and in the "Five Possible Reasons We Haven’t Been Visited By Aliens" department...

Speaking of boats for sale a reader dropped me a line with a link to an, shall we say, interesting, Bolger AS29 for sale.(the As-29 being the little sister to Loose Moose 2).

Those portlights certainly caught my attention. That said, there's nothing that a sheet of plywood, some fiberglass, and and a half-gallon of epoxy wouldn't set right.

 Listening to Sarah Jarosz

So it goes...

WWBD...

Badtux is on a roll, Ian Welsh with a solid point, and what I'll be following today...

Here's that proa cartoon by Michael Schacht to peruse.

There's a lot of interesting stuff going on in this Bolger inspired thought exercise. Obviously, it's very different to the Bolger sharpie cartoon that got the ball rolling but, for me at least, Michael was able to channel the Bolger vibe, sensibility, and the original wish-list while keeping it his own design.

Good stuff.

Listening to Gogol Bordello

So it goes...

a couple of cartoons to look forward to...

John Scalzi with a couple of spot on posts (1 & 2), Badtux with a needful point, and Chuck Wendig saying what I've been thinking for the last couple of days...

It seems we've all had something of a momentous weekend akin to waking up from a three and a half year nightmare and, as a result, a lot of us are just a bit, shall we say, frazzled.

But hey, this is supposed to be about boats and suchlike so, just maybe, we should get on track and do a post about a boat design or something like it...

As it happens Michael Schacht recently showed me a couple of very enticing "ideas" which, hopefully, I'll be able to share with folks in the very near future. One an interesting 30-foot catamaran for serious voyaging I find kind of exciting. Secondly there's a Proa that was influenced by a conversation we had about one of Phil Bolger's cartoons and Michael asking himself "What would Bolger do?".

This, as it happens, is the Bolger cartoon we were talking about...

 
 

Hopefully you'll get to see Michael's "WWBD" proa interpretation soonish.

More soon come.

Listening to Karen O and Willie Nelson

So it goes...

a lifeboat/dinghy of choice...

On the GIGO front, Sail Delmarva making a very good point, and a new citizen speaking out...

The other day a reader wrote asking for my opinion of the Portland Pudgy dinghy. The short form is that I think it's an excellent dinghy and when you consider that it can be used as a lifeboat as well it makes a whole lot of sense.

That said, like just about everything that floats on the water, it's a compromise but, as compromises go, it's better than most.

Which, sorta kinda, brings me to my next dinghy build which is going to be the tried and true Bolger Tortoise. The Tortoise and I go way back and over the years I've built quite a few and each one has has been a testbed of sorts as I tried to improve and refine what is just about the simplest and easiest to build dinghy design around.

 

This time around I plan to modify the overall design in favor of making it a better dinghy/lifeboat in the process. Which, I expect, will cause some folk to freak out with the idea of the lowly diminutive Tortoise doing double duty as a lifeboat. Of course, I should add that I've already crossed the Atlantic with a Tortoise as the designated lifeboat which shows I have some faith in the viability of the concept of using a dinghy as a lifeboat.

Admittedly, building a Tortoise or Big Tortoise as a dedicated dinghy/lifeboat requires a bit of compromise and a bit of rethinking but quite a bit less than you'd expect due to the overall simplicity of Bolger's design. 

Next up is the need/want list for the Dinghy/lifeboat and the thinking behind it.

Listening to five good covers

So it goes...

Why I don't review boats I've never sailed...

Not the America most of us signed on for,  a little bit of Groucho helps explain 2020, and Hugh Howey talking about "Freedom"...

A couple of readers wanting to know my take on something from the web today where someone was somewhat negative regarding a Phil Bolger design of the squareish persuasion.

The thing is, everyone has a right to their opinions. While I personally opine that the person in question really does not understand how Phil's squareish designs work as well as they do and that, just maybe, he might, want to invest in a bit of study and some hands-on experience sailing a design before trashing it.

To be totally candid, once upon a time I had a mostly negative opinion of "Bolger Boxes". It was only after building and sailing them did I learn to appreciate their abilities, performance, and Mr. Bolger's genius in (no pun intended) designing outside the "Box".

Of course, I do have the advantage of sailing thousands of miles on Bolger designs so what I do know is through actual experience rather than conjecture.

Just saying...

Listening to Buscabulla

So it goes...

So many deisgns/rigs and so little time...

A very needful read, some suicide cult hijinks, and in the "well this certainly sucks" department...

Over at the Junk Rig Association website, the featured boat for August is a junktified Phil Bolger Micro and it's well worth reading about.

For those who are unaware of the Bolger Micro, I'll refer you to a couple of posts (part 1 and part 2) regarding the general wonderfulness of the design by Ross Lillistone.

While Phil was never a big fan of the junk rig, replacing the sprit rigged leg-of-mutton mainsail with a junk main makes all kinds of sense and I'm pretty sure that if Phil were still around he'd both appreciate and study the results.

Personally, I'd love to get a junk-rigged micro up against an original design in a side-by-side test that would answer a whole lot of questions.

Listening to a falsetto playlist

So it goes...

A couple of Bolger classics...

On the subject of legalized wage theft, depressing news from Florida, and a deletion of note...

Two Bolger boats on CraigsList...

A Black Skimmer.

A Devlin built St Valery.

Listening to Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers

So it goes...

A boat story of sorts...

G&T on capybaras/blogging, regarding some flawed economic analysis, and something you may have missed...

So, last night, a friend popped me an email with some pictures of a Bolger Lion's Paw sharpie he'd come across.

As it happens, back in the days when Loose Moose 2 was was in the "maybe we need a bigger boat?" thought process I often found myself idly perusing Lions Paw in Phil's "30 Odd Boats"...

It was a sharpie.

It was flush deck.

It had leeboards.

It was a schooner and salty as all get out.

It may not not have been a full tilt boogie love affair but I was certainly smitten.

I still really like the design but it had a couple of issues that restrained me from building it. In short, it was steel and, at the time, I perceived the general lack of headroom as problematic for someone who was 6'5".

Today, in hindsight, I've come to the conclusion that standing headroom in boats is not as advantageous as I once thought. In point of fact, I've joined the fraternity of folks who believe that excessive headroom in boats is actually a big (with a capital B) negative and one of the reasons that so many modern boats look like crap in the lines department.

As far as the whole steel thing goes... Well, I'll have to be honest and admit that dealing with rust on a daily basis is about the second least fun thing I can think of (number "1" would be working on an internal combustion engine) and, while steel has all sorts of advantages, I'm still a wood and composite kind of guy.

Sadly, I'm unaware of any Lion's Paws which actually got finished. I know of several that never got beyond the hull stage and seem to surface, from time to time, as fixer-upper projects in out-of-the-way locations. Par for the course it would seem as underlined by my friend's comments...

"It never got launched. Still sat in a farm field where he built it. He zinc sprayed it so it was surprisingly intact except for the wood deck going to total crap over the years. He'd even sewed up a Chinese junk sail for it but never put it on. He was reluctant to even talk about selling it. He also had a Bolger Black Skimmer behind his actual farm house, on a trailer.

"About a year ago I had my friend inquire if it was still there and the builder said it was "about gone now". What a waste."

What a waste indeed.

Listening to a bunch of Sly & The Family Stone covers

So it goes...

and in the "if it were anywhere near me I'd buy it in a NY second" department...

A bit of possibly overlooked Bison news, stuff you might want to check out before election day, and some pretty good listening on the subject of John D MacDonald...

So, there seems to be a Birdwatcher designed by Phil Bolger for sale over in the UK.

Just might be the deal of the century...

Need I say more?

Listening to Branches

So it goes...