Captain Flint, 17' cat-schooner

  • Vessel Specifications and Comments

    • LOA: 17' 0"
    • Beam: 6' 10"
    • Draft: 1'4" B/U
    • Displacement: 2500 lbs
    • Sail Area: 155 sq.ft.
    • Construction: Plywood on sawn frames, sheathed-strip planking over plywood bulkheads
    • General Comments: Why did I give Captain Flint a schooner rig? It's different, it fits with my desire to create a salty character in the Captain, and it's practical. The two-masted rig means short masts, which keep sail centers are low and this means shorter heeling moments. The short masts can be unstayed, simplifying construction and cutting cost. The masts are in the right places to work well with the interior arrangement...

About the Plans

    • Construction Method and Materials:

      Plywood on sawn frames, sheathed-strip planking over plywood bulkheads.
    • Number and Type of Drawings:

      • Five sheets of drawings;
      • Lines and Offsets,
      • General Arrangement and Sail Plan,
      • General Construction,
      • Full Size Construction Details,
      • Spar Plan.

Comments

Captain Flint is one of four small sailboat designs created for the article Sailing Cruiser Design -Part 1 PDF published in Wooden Boat #175. Sailing Cruiser Design -Part 2 PDF was published in Wooden Boat #176.

From the WoodenBoat article: Captain Flint will take about 400 hours to build. I arrive at these numbers by taking the boat's total weight (design displacement) and deleting the payload (people, stores, and liquids), to arrive at a 'light-ship' weight. You can figure construction hours by the pound. I base the calculations on 3 lbs per hour; but the rate can range anywhere from 3 to 5 lbs depending on finish level, construction method, and work habits. For Captain Flint's calculations, I subtracted 900 lbs from the 2,100-lb displacement to account for people, stores, sails, outboard, and gear. Then I divided the remaining 1,200 lbs by 3 lbs per hour and arrived at total of 400 construction hours. If you double the construction hours and multiply by the hourly shop rate, you will have a rough value for the boat's total cost.

Why did I give Captain Flint a schooner rig? It's different, it fits with my desire to create a salty character in the Captain, and it's practical. The two-masted rig means short masts, which keep sail centers are low and this means shorter heeling moments. The short masts can be unstayed, simplifying construction and cutting cost. The masts are in the right places to work well with the interior arrangement: the foremast is out of the way, and the main is amidships, properly braced by the after end of the cabin. The mainmast will be on the boat's centreline, and we'll build the centreboard trunk clear of the mast on the port side of the keel.

Tad Roberts