18' Catboat
The original print version of this article can be viewed as a PDF or purchased from the WoodenBoat Store.
Join to view PDF Purchase 18' Williams Catboat PlansIf your taste runs more to the traditional, and if your building skills are correspondingly more advanced, this 18-footer by Fenwick Williams might be worth considering. She’s only slightly larger than the Wittholz catboat (WoodenBoat Plan No. 48) and has about the same cabin arrangement; however, her hull is carvel planked and round bilged—shaped just like the old-time cats that Cape Cod builders were noted for.
Designed in 1931 at the height of the Great Depression, Williams’ first catboat was intended as an inexpensive craft for people who couldn’t afford larger boats.
Williams, who first drew this boat in 1931 for himself and has added to and improved her since, had the amateur builder very much in mind. The drawings show a sawn frame at every station; these take the place of, and save having to build the usual temporary hull molds. Added later, in between each pair of these sawn station frames, are a couple of conventional steam-bent frames. To eliminate steam-bending elsewhere, the cabin sides and coamings are shown with corner posts, perhaps giving a less graceful appearance than the traditional oval shape, but making those assemblies easier to build.
The boat features a single gaff sail with its mast stepped forward.
The original sail area was 247 sq ft, and if you want her rigged conservatively, this is probably the best size. In later modifications, Williams increased the sail area a little; there are sail plans for both 257 sq ft and 265 sq ft. There are also drawings for a shorter oval-shaped cabin with matching oval coaming, an outside ballast keel, conventional all-bent frames, and an inboard engine.
Plans call for carvel planking and solid backbone timbers.
This beautiful and traditional Cape Cod catboat from the dean of catboat designers, with her shallow draft, stiffness under sail, and overall roominess, could be just the cruiser you’re looking for.
Arrangement plan
The set of plans for the Williams Catboat comes in 11 sheets including: four sail plans, lines, offsets, construction, outboard profile, cabin construction and sections, and keel model. WB Plan No. 56. $125.00.
Plan 56
DESCRIPTION
Hull type: Round-bottomed, centerboard catboat w/optional keel
Rig: Gaff cat
Construction: Carvel planked over sawn and steamed frames
Headroom/cabin (between beams): About 4′
PERFORMANCE
* Suitable for: Somewhat protected waters
* Intended capacity: 4-6 daysailing, 2 cruising
Trailerable: Yes; permit required
Propulsion: Sail w/auxiliary Speed (knots): 2-6
BUILDING DATA:
Skill needed: Advanced Lofting required: Yes
Alternative construction: Cold-molded, strip
PLANS DATA
No. of sheets: 11
Level of detail: Above average
Cost per set: $125.00
WB Plan No. 56
Completed 18′ Williams Catboat Images
F. Marshall BauerSome of the catboat’s traditional characteristics are the single gaff sail with its mast stepped well forward, cat’s-eye (elliptically shaped) portholes in the cabin sides, and a barn-door rudder.
Photo by F. Marshall BauerGhosting along on a starboard tack, LYDIA shows Fenwick Williams’s saucy sheerline to good advantage. The green bottom, without a boot-top, is reminiscent of old-time yachts.
A couple of thoughts: A friend of mine had one of these cats, a boat beloved at the Antique & Classic Boat Festival, held for many years in Salem, Massachusetts. I loved the boat, but found that I could not sit up in the cabin–the joint between the deck and cabin hit me in my neck, and the overhead was too low.
I also went sailing on the boat once. While at the helm in a fresh breeze, I decided that I did not want to spend my declining years fighting the pressure that the wheel took in order to resist the pressure that weather helm exerted. To bad, because she’s a lovely craft.