Candlefish 13', 16', 18'
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Join to view PDF Purchase 13' Candlefish PlansOther plans for purchase include the Candlefish 16 and the Candlefish 18
Sam Devlin designed the 13′ Candlefish skiff for a woodsman who wanted to haul it to Alaska’s Far North on his truck’s roof rack. That limited the boat’s size, but not its versatility. The hull form was inspired by the pangas that Devlin admired during his stays in Mexico. Like the pangas, the Candlefish has a high bow to cut through sloppy seas and a narrow beam to get the best speed and fuel economy from a small outboard.
Candlefish Particulars
The construction, typical of Devlin boats, is stitch-and-glue plywood. The interior of the hull is braced by three bulkheads. The two amidships support a broad seating area and enclose a voluminous compartment where the fuel tank sits and where gear can be kept dry and safely locked up. The forward bulkhead provides access to more storage and isolates a recessed foredeck from the rest of the boat. You can haul up a muddy anchor, chain, and rode, pile it on the deck, and pour a bucket of water over it, and the mess drains out through scuppers. A plank seat for the helmsman spans the cockpit between two side benches; a half frame underneath it strengthens the aft third of the hull.
Construction
The transom will take an outboard of 6 to 25 hp. With 20-hp at the stern, the Candlefish will speed a solo operator along at over 20 knots, and at 17 knots with a passenger aboard. The boat carves turns smartly and with its narrow beam it banks into them like an airplane. With a load of 1,300 lbs, the Candlefish won’t be moving quite so fast but it will still have over a foot of freeboard even at the lowest point on the sheer.
Open version
For a 13’4″ skiff the Candlefish 13 has more than its fair share of potential. You won’t have any trouble figuring out what it can do for you. If you need a bigger boat, Sam drew up two larger versions: the Candlefish 16 and the Candlefish 18. The Candlefish 16 can be built with an interior like that of the 13, or with just side benches for seating and an open cockpit without the central storage compartment. The Candlefish 18 adds a pair of plywood longitudinal bulkheads to brace the bottom and provide additional enclosed storage compartments. Plans for the Candlefish 13, Candlefish 16 and Candlefish 18 include detailed scaled drawings and offsets for the transom, bulkheads, and planks.
Bridgedeck version
Check out Devlin’s Boatbuilding Manual for More on Stitch-and-Glue Construction
Plan 167, 168, 169
DESCRIPTION
Hull type: Round-bottomed, transom-sterned
Construction: Stitch-and-glue plywood
PERFORMANCE
Suitable for semi-protected waters
Intended capacity: 1-4
Trailerable
Propulsion: Outboard 5–20-hp (13′), up to 30-hp (16′), and up to 70-hp (18′)
BUILDING DATA
Skill needed: Beginner to intermediate
Lofting required: No
PLANS DATA
No. of sheets: 7 (13′), 9 (16′), 10 (18′)
Supplemental information: No
Level of Detail: Above average
Plans Format: Print or Digital
Cost per set: $85 (13′), $85 (16′), $155 (18′)
Related Publications: Devlin’s Boatbuilding Manual
Completed Candlefish Images
Thomas RowleyThe Candlefish 13 LADY LOUISE has comfortable seating for the family and plenty of freeboard.
Thomas RowleyWhat was designed as a hunting skiff serves as the family’s water taxi, getting to shoreside destinations quicker than they could drive to them.
With the Candlefish’s 20-hp outboard at full throttle, Sam Devlin skims smoothly along at over 20 knots.
Those look like good boats, but I think the term “narrow beam” needs to be redefined. Bolger designed some truly narrow-beamed boats, including “Slicer,” at 20′ by 6’2″. That’s an extreme example, admittedly.