Small Boat Designs | Small Boats Nation

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19′ 6″ Sloop Mist

A plywood cruising sloop

Mist is a cozy pocket cruiser that combines simple sheet-plywood construction with more than a touch of elegance.

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16′ Gentleman’s Runabout

A 16′ waterborne roadster

The Gentleman's Runabout is a low-power, moderate-speed inboard runabout for protected waters.

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The sloop rig here carries 72 sq ft of sail. The plans include options for single sails: a balanced lug rig, with boom, carrying 64 sq ft of sail; and a standing lug, loose footed, carrying 55 sq ft.

11′ 6″ Guillemot

Robust stability and pleasant appearance in a small package

The plans include options for single sails: a balanced lug rig with boom, and a standing lug, loose footed.

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12′ 3″ Spike Skiff

A simple skiff

This good-looking skiff shows us plenty of flare and a pleasing sheerline.

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10′ 2″ Acorn Dinghy

Designed for seaworthy service and multiple uses

The chunky Acorn Puffin is a good load carrier for her length.

12′ 4″ Yankee Tender

Designed by WoodenBoat, and wicked handsome

Yankee Tender is a capacious, seaworthy, flat-bottomed skiff weighing less than 150 lbs.

13′ Beach Pea Peapod

Elegant lapstrake, plywood peapod for oar and sail

A fine tender to a larger yacht—and a good daysailer in its own right.

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11′ 3″ Asa Thomson Skiff

A classic example of form following function

Flat-bottomed rowing skiff elegant enough for a yacht tender.

17′ 10″ Seguin Kayak

A sports car of a kayak

Rob Bryan's Seguin will reward experienced paddlers with spirited performance

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The author's Ruth is rigged with a homebuilt rowing rig for solo rowing and is without floorboards and a seat for a passenger. A False transom covers the edges of the fabric skin for a tidier appearance.

18′ 6″ Ruth Wherry

Quick to accelerate and rewards good rowing technique

Plans include a 22-page illustrated manual and full-sized templates for the stem, frames and transom.

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14′ 11″ Wittholz Catboat

A small boat with a big heart

The 14′11″ Wittholz is a gentle catboat that rewards proper handling. Her buoyant hull is handsome from nearly any perspective.

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22′ Ninigret

Simple, unassuming, and well-mannered outboard cruiser

John Atkin designed Ninigret for fishing the choppy waters of Block Island Sound, but she also makes a superb camp-cruiser.

16′ Beaver Canoe

Iain Oughtred’s “Canadian Canoe”

Strip-built, the Beaver Canoe should come in at about 40 lbs, an easy weight to manage for cartopping and carrying.

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15′ Sailing Skiff

Simple to build, easy to sail

The versatile Sailing Skiff 15 seems about perfect for the noble purposes of education and relaxation (and perhaps an occasional fishing trip).

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White wooden rowboat moored in the water.

7′ 10″ Acorn Tender

A versatile little gem

This sweet-lined tender is the smallest in Iain Oughtred’s design series of Acorn skiffs and dinghies. She is sufficiently burdensome to be useful as a general-purpose shuttle from ship to...

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15′ 11″ Penny Fee

An Oughtred design suited for oar and sail

Penny Fee is truly a multi-purpose boat; she both sails and rows very well.

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22′ 2″ Cruising Sloop, Grey Seal

Plywood lapstrake double-ender that pairs rough-water ability with good looks

Designed by Iain Oughtred at WoodenBoat's request, Grey Seal displays a subtle blend of Scandinavian characteristics.

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14′ 5″ Biscayne Bay Sailing Skiff

This V-bottomed daysailer can be shallow or deep drafted.

The Biscayne Bay Sailing Skiff is an unusually fine boat, and one that can be built easily by careful woodworkers.

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18′ Williams Catboat

Husky, round-bottomed centerboard cruiser for two.

The Williams Catboat design keeps the amateur builder in mind. This beautiful and traditional Cape Cod catboat is a great cruiser for two.

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21′ Zimmer Utility Launch

Comfortable for two people cruising, or six to eight people day running.

The Zimmer utility launch design takes its cues from the slim, handsome launches and cruisers that silently and gracefully passed by Nelson Zimmer's waterside home in the days following World War I. If you're looking for a relaxing launch with an able hull, give this project a try.

4

16′ Pulling Boat, Shearwater

Norwegian-influenced rowing/sailing craft designed for glued-lap plywood construction.

No lofting required for the Shearwater design plans. This boat is great for the intermediate builder looking for the performance of a Maine peapod.

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17′ 1″ B. N. Morris Canoe

A general use wood-and-canvas canoe.

Rollin Thurlow's beautifully detailed drawings describe three different construction methods for this canoe: traditional wood-and-canvas; all-wood strip-on-frame; and wood-strip fiberglass.

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20′ Crocker Yawl, Sallee Rover

A heavily built smart sailer with accommodations for two

The Crocker Yawl, Sallee Rover, can be built as a yawl or sloop, with a cabin adequate for shelter. Celebrate wooden boats with this project.

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22′ Friend-Ship Canal Cruiser

A house/canal boat designed for slow, enjoyable journeys in protected waters.

The Friend-Ship canal cruiser's 14 sheets of plans include construction details, options for windows, and instructions for the sequence of assembly.

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16′ 6″ Elfyn

An Oughtred faering designed for sheet-plywood construction.

Plans for the 16' 6" Elfyn include 7 sheets plus 17 pages of additional notes from the designer. No lofting is required, and this one is ideal for an intermediate builder.

Designs

Boat Types