Oughtred Mouse Pram

[asbw]

I - a complete beginner - am planning to spend the winter months building the Oughtred Mouse Pram. The plans have left the Isle of Skye and should arrive here any day!

Has anybody here built this particular boat before?

I have lots of questions, but the main one is: should I try
construction without a kit, or get somebody (i.e. Jordan Boats) to do a kit for me?

Cheers,

ASBW

 

[Bajansailor]

I think it will depend on how detailed the plans are.
Will Iain be providing full size patterns to use for cutting out the plywood panels?
If yes, it should be fairly straightforward to then lay these patterns on to your sheets of plywood, and cut out the panels with a jig-saw.
If the plans just include offsets, which you then have to transform on to paper patterns (or to the plywood sheets directly), then it would probably be worthwhile getting a kit, IMHO.
More info about the Mouse kit from Jordan Boats here at http://www.jordanboats.co.uk/JB/IainO_Catalogue/Mouse%20Pram.pdf

She does look like a very fine and able (and pretty!) dinghy.

 

[Peterduck]

It is my understanding that I ain's drawings and instructions are very detailed. After all, he is catering to the beginners, and certainly the Mouse is an excellent choice for a first boat. Whether you go for a kit or not depends upon your woodworking ability and experience in other areas, and what tools you have to do the work with. Whatever you have, you can be sure that you will end up buying something halfway through the project. Remember this when considering the cost of a kit versus the cost of the basic materials. The best kind of 'apprenticeship' is assisting someone in the repair of a clinker boat. This not only teaches you how to do it, it also teaches how not to do it!
Peter.

 

[ianc1200]

I'd say take your time, get good quality timber & ply, & you'll get an enormous amount of satisfaction from both the building and the use of the dinghy. I built the Wooden Boat Nutshell pram dinghy in 89/90, had great fun with it, and having not used it for about three years am considering a make over so to be able to use next season.

Beware though, it can get to you! I would like to build another, and designed my house extension around being able to build the John Leather 16' 9" Oyster design, but the plans haven't been available for many years. Building such a pram dinghy can give you the confidence to try something bigger/more complicated/or more usually a restoration.

Have fun!

IanC

 

[srp]

[ QUOTE ]
I built the Wooden Boat Nutshell pram dinghy in 89/90

[/ QUOTE ]
Snap. In fact I built two (like you say it can get to you!). It's really fun to sail, and is so much nicer than most pram dinghies. The Mouse is very similar- excellent shape and full of character, unlike a lot of the bathtubs you see around. My brother has built one of Iain's other designs straight from the plans and is very pleased with it.

Edit - Classic Boat did a 'How to build series' which may even be included with the plans, so you might not need to go down the kit route.

 

[Grajan]

Alex Jordan's kit is virtually foolproof without being like a piece of "Ikea" furniture
This method will allow you to build your woodworking skills and achieve a finished dinghy to be proud of.
I would say the ideal way to build your first dinghy

 

[asbw]

Yes, I am expecting a copy of the how to build series with the plans.

Jordan Boats doesn't yet have a kit for the Mouse Pram (as far as I know), and they aren't answering my emails, maybe I'd better give them a ring...

I suppose I will make my decision when I have had a good hard look at the plans.

Thanks for all the encouraging words. I am hoping it will get to me! If the mouse is a success, I would love to build the puffin...

ASBW

 

[tutti]

I'm building his Auk (or Wren) the smaller version of his Puffin, and it's my first,if you do the Mouse 1 step at a time it's easy.My plans came with a complete materialslist and 'how-to'.
If in doudt, measure again i'd say.
There are a lot of sites by boatbuilders like yourself, this one is a really good one: web page unfortunately for you it's in dutch, but i'm willing to translate.