Two for the amateur boat builder

Ferrocement as a boat-building material goes back some 120 years.

Only recently has it gained popularity with anyone other than the odd ex perimenter. When properly used it is a strong, cheap, albeit time consuming method of construction, which lends itself to amateur and one-off boatbuilding. The recent up surge in popularity has caused naval architects to jump on the bandwagon with designs specifically for this form of construction.

Over the past few years English and US yachting magazines have featured many articles written by one Chris Cairncross, perhaps one of the world’s leading authorities on the subject. One wonders why he waited so long to get around to writing a book on his pet subject.

Called Ferrocement Boat Construc tion, Cairncross’ book reflects the author’s enthusiasm for his subject in a dose just large enough to make reasonably enjoyable reading of what would otherwise be a dull textbook hke subject.

Contents of the publication run the gamut, from historical development to choosing a building site and plaster ing the hull. Illustrations are plenti

ful, instructive and of good quality, with many of the boats pictured being the ones the author has consulted or actually worked on.

For a somewhat slim volume, Ferrocement Boat Construction manages to be quite comprehensive; enough at least for a rank amateur to purchase a set of plans and, armed with this book as a guide, build him self a well-found vessel.

At the other extreme of the boat building scale is fibreglass, a material that has grown in acceptance since the war until now it is as common as wood. Fibreglass is normally thought of as the preserve cf the mass pro ducer who buys and builds in quantity to keep costs down. This preconcep tion is adequately dispelled by Mervin D. C. Willis, who advocates the build ing of several boats to one design, by a club of like-minded enthusiasts.

In writing Boatbuilding and Repair ing with Fibreglass, Mr Willis is not without qualification, having worked in several boatyards and with the US Coast Guard. In fact the book itself is the outcome of a series of lectures, given by the author to a chapter of the International Amateur Boat Build ing Society.

Comprehensive seems a little in adequate to describe this publication’s contents. Mr Willis has attempted, with reasonable success, to cover every question that the would-be ship wright could reasonably ask; tools, materials, repairing, costs (in US dollars), even rubber gloves and barrier cream, so that our intrepid sailor’s hands won’t say “boatbuild ing”.

The book does, however, stick mainly to the construction of smaller craft, and to one method of construc tion (the others are touched on briefly), though it is pointed out, that to build a bigger boat, one just adds more material and cash.

According to the dust-jacket blurb, you don’t have to be a prospective builder to gain value from this book, for the repairing of fibreglass is covered quite extensively.

An excellent book for a do-it yourselfer who wants a maintenance free boat, at a minimum of cost and has several friends who are willing to

humour him.-

John Collins.

(Perrocement Boat Construc

TION by Chris Cairncross, International Marine Publishing $15. BOAT BUILDING

And Repairing With Fibreglass By

Melvin D. C. Willis. International Marine Publishing, Camden, Maine, USA.