Customer Reviews

Clinker Plywood Boatbuilding

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I agree with the reviewer who found the organization difficult. I have about 20 books on boatbuilding and I seldom consult this one except to compare to what others have to say on a particular subject.

I find Thomas Hills' method more interesting and I find his instructions to be clearer (but not without leaving some questions).

Note to those who have trouble with the bindings: On any book I expect to use while doing something else, e.g. building a boat, I immediately take it to Kinkos where they cut off the spine and put one of those plastic combs on the book. Make sure the person understands what they are doing. Once they cut the binding holes on the side opposite the original binding. No wonder it was confusing!

I find it ironic that some of the highest quality writing is packaged in the poorest quality books.

This is a beautiful book. Highly detailed, with great pictures of the lovely boats in various stages of construction.

What a shame the binding falls apart so easily! I'm tempted to buy another copy and try to find a way to give it a spiral or comb binding.

I also wish there were more details on the bigger boats -- only one picture, as I recall, of a completed Grey Seal cruising boat. The great construction details are almost all of small day-sailers.

Buy the book anyway, if you have the slightest interest in beautiful things made of wood.

I recently purchased a set of boat plans from Iain Oughtred. I developed a list of questions after reviewing the plans. The author's book answered all of the questions quite well. The illustrations are top notch and well placed throughout the book. The only complaint I have is that the bookbinding could be of a higher quality to withstand workshop use.

This is probably the fifth book I read on the subject and maybe it's just because the author is British but i have a hard time understanding his text and It seems like a leaky book to me (as in it has a lot of holes in the explanations). I prefer John Brooks' ``How to Build Glued Lapstrake Wooden Boats `` book by far.

This book is excellent for what it is: tips & tricks on building lapstrake plywood boats. It's laid out in a topic-by-topic fashion, with nice bits of information on all stages of the building & finishing process. I'm just finishing up one of Oughtred's designs, a 14'6" Whilly Boat, and I've found it nearly indispensable.

That said, I don't think this is a good first book or only book on the subject- that book is Tom Hill's Ultralight Boatbuilding. I recommend that anyone building their first boat buy Hill's book, then Hill's video (...) and then this book. I have half a dozen other books on building boats, but those are all you need to do an excellent job with plywood & epoxy. After absorbing Hill's material, this will fill in little gaps and help you work quicker & more efficiently.

Enjoy!

(...)

If you're going to build an Oughtred designed boat, you'll find this book indispensible. Otherwise you'll find some good information, but not the best book on the subject. The layout and organization are very odd and hard to follow. Tom Hill's "Ultralight Boatbuilding" is a better book on the subject.

The 'workshop index', whereby you simply fan the pages with your thumb and the chapter title shows on the page edges is so good especially for those of us who cant be bothered looking up the conventional 'contents' or 'index' lists.

...

It is probably the best 'how to' text on this seemingly difficult subject I have read.

Well done Iain!