Brent Swain
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Steelboats
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rotrax
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Brent Swain
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I first met Evan Shaler in the summer of 1983, while building a 31. He had talked to the Pardeys , and had spent ten months building a male mold for a 26 ft Bristol channel cutter . He priced the fibreglassing materials , for hull and decks, and had been quoted $12 K.
Then he watched me build the hull, decks, cabin, cockpit, keels, rudder and skeg for a 31 for $3500, in three weeks.He tried to sell his mold, but no one wanted it. So he abandoned it ,and built one of my 31s for a fraction the time and money. He has built several dozen for others since.
The 31 sailed south to Panama, several seasons in the west indies,and on to England .One of the owners visited her old job ,and saw that the guy who had advised her to buy a plastic boat, who was still working and making payments on his, having gone nowhere.
The last quote we got ,a couple of years ago, for the steel for a 36, shell, was around $9K. It has remained steady or slightly less since then. You don't buy much fibreglassing material for that little.
Then he watched me build the hull, decks, cabin, cockpit, keels, rudder and skeg for a 31 for $3500, in three weeks.He tried to sell his mold, but no one wanted it. So he abandoned it ,and built one of my 31s for a fraction the time and money. He has built several dozen for others since.
The 31 sailed south to Panama, several seasons in the west indies,and on to England .One of the owners visited her old job ,and saw that the guy who had advised her to buy a plastic boat, who was still working and making payments on his, having gone nowhere.
The last quote we got ,a couple of years ago, for the steel for a 36, shell, was around $9K. It has remained steady or slightly less since then. You don't buy much fibreglassing material for that little.
Brent Swain
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rotrax
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NormanS
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bbg
Well-Known Member
I don't believe you. Lying on a beach, maybe. But not 16 days of "pounding in Baja surf".
I know of a lightweight GRP race boat that was pulled off after a week of pounding in the Brazilian (yes, Atlantic) surf. With no damage.
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rotrax
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dom
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What on earth is going on with the quoting system 
DownWest
Well-Known Member
What on earth is going on with the quoting system
Works for most of us. Just not BS.
Think I have seen enough of this going round and round to no point. Should spend more time in the shed, where I am building a wooden boat
newtothis
Well-Known Member
meanwhile, in alternative universe...
Hi
My name’s Brent, and seeing as this is a thread about steel yacht design, I thought I’d offer up my two cent’s worth.
I’ve been designing and building small steel yachts for a few decades now. You can read about them at my website and see the advantages they provide in terms of strength and low-cost construction.
I know steel boats have a bit of a bad reputation, but I’ve come up with some techniques, particularly for rust protection, that have proved to be quite effective. If you’re interested I can provide further details.
While not to everyone’s taste, I, and some of the people that have built from my designs, have found these to be sturdy vessels for long-term liveaboards and passage-makers in off-the-beaten-path areas. Steel can be forgiving and has proved so when some of my designs have ended up on lee shores and reefs. They’re also reassuring when offshore and concerned about running into semi-submerged objects or marine life.
They’re not the fanciest of boats, and the engineers among you might baulk at the aesthetics of some of the welding, but I’ve found them strong and usable. I prefer low-tech but functional solutions and they’ve served me well.
I chose to go off-grid and live a cruising life at an early age and this design has made this lifestyle possible. Again, not everyone’s choice, but it’s worked for me.
Anyway, if you have any questions about steel construction, rust prevention or living on board on the cheap, fire away and I’ll share my experience.
Brent
...it could have been so much easier.
Hi
My name’s Brent, and seeing as this is a thread about steel yacht design, I thought I’d offer up my two cent’s worth.
I’ve been designing and building small steel yachts for a few decades now. You can read about them at my website and see the advantages they provide in terms of strength and low-cost construction.
I know steel boats have a bit of a bad reputation, but I’ve come up with some techniques, particularly for rust protection, that have proved to be quite effective. If you’re interested I can provide further details.
While not to everyone’s taste, I, and some of the people that have built from my designs, have found these to be sturdy vessels for long-term liveaboards and passage-makers in off-the-beaten-path areas. Steel can be forgiving and has proved so when some of my designs have ended up on lee shores and reefs. They’re also reassuring when offshore and concerned about running into semi-submerged objects or marine life.
They’re not the fanciest of boats, and the engineers among you might baulk at the aesthetics of some of the welding, but I’ve found them strong and usable. I prefer low-tech but functional solutions and they’ve served me well.
I chose to go off-grid and live a cruising life at an early age and this design has made this lifestyle possible. Again, not everyone’s choice, but it’s worked for me.
Anyway, if you have any questions about steel construction, rust prevention or living on board on the cheap, fire away and I’ll share my experience.
Brent
...it could have been so much easier.
DownWest
Well-Known Member
Nice try..
But..
Fat chance
You missed the bits where every alternative method of construction was trashed and any body designing, selling or owning GRP boats were called liars, cheats, con artists or just plain stupid.
Brent does have a few good ideas, but they get lost in his constant wilder attacks on anybody who doesn't follow his creed. Not to mention the examples of 'proof' of his ideas/sales that are not anywhere like realistic.
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Brent Swain
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Brent Swain
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That is what I have been saying all along. ANY suggestion of ANY advantages of steel over plastic, automatically get a pile on attack by plastic advocates ,on most sites, except those with a lot of steel boat owners and builders, who have actual hands on experience with good steel boats.
Brent Swain
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You have my deepest sympathies!.
. Should spend more time in the shed, where I am building a wooden boat
Brent Swain
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Brent Swain
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Brent Swain
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Brent Swain
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If you have made some changes to a design, and are not sure where to put your ballast so she will float level, the solution is simple.
Jack her up and put a piece of shaft under the keel at the designed Longitudinal centre of gravity. Move your ballast inside, fore and aft, until she rocks easily on the shaft. That is where your ballast should go.
As most boats tend to squat , and go down by the stern when you load them up, slightly heavier in the bow is a good thing.
Trim ballast?
On a cruising boat, that is your tools, spare anchors , scuba gear, and any other heavy stuff
Jack her up and put a piece of shaft under the keel at the designed Longitudinal centre of gravity. Move your ballast inside, fore and aft, until she rocks easily on the shaft. That is where your ballast should go.
As most boats tend to squat , and go down by the stern when you load them up, slightly heavier in the bow is a good thing.
Trim ballast?
On a cruising boat, that is your tools, spare anchors , scuba gear, and any other heavy stuff
Brent Swain
N/A
Another trick was just posted on the origami boats site for determining the centre of lateral resistance.
Make up and ballast a model . Run a line from bow to stern with a ring on it. Tie a line to that ring and move it until she he stays broadside while being pulled sideways . That is your centre of lateral resistance. Modelers use it all the time. Far more reliable than the calculations normally used, which are abysmally naive
Make up and ballast a model . Run a line from bow to stern with a ring on it. Tie a line to that ring and move it until she he stays broadside while being pulled sideways . That is your centre of lateral resistance. Modelers use it all the time. Far more reliable than the calculations normally used, which are abysmally naive
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