Melonseed plans?
tu...@removespammindspring.com
NOTE: Remove "REMOVESPAM" from the return address.
I recently saw a small boat that appeared to be exactly what I want
for duck hunting in protected marsh areas. The owner called it a
'Melonseed" but had no idea where to get plans. It was obviously and
home built boat and was made of plywood with glass covering. It was
about 13ft long and shaped like a melon seed.
Does anyone have any idea where I might find the plans?
Thanks!
Garry
Dan Miller
Melonseed plans can be had from at least two sources. The first
is an adaptation for lapstrake plywood construction, comes
in 13'4" or 16' lengths, and is available from WoodenBoat for
$90 each (800-273-7447).
The second source is Howard Chapelle's _American Small Sailing
Craft_, which is still in print available from a number of sources
inluding WoodenBoat Store. Full size drawings of every plan
published by Chapelle, and then some, are available from the
Smithsonian Institute. The Melonseed, which is drawn for traditional
lapstrake construction, is $5 as I recall (being to lazy to look
it up).
Cheers,
Dan
--
Daniel Miller - dmi...@gcg.com
Independent Boatbuilder and Small Craft History Enthusiast
Five Lakes Wooden Boat Center
http://www.paddlin.com/fivelakes/canoe.htm
A Tyrant Run Amok
tu...@REMOVESPAMmindspring.com writes:>
> < freely edited... >
> 'Melonseed" but had no idea where to get plans.
> Does anyone have any idea where I might find the plans?
>
Andy Follansbee notes elsewhere in this thread (replying to you)
] The Chappell plans are available from the Smithsonian at:
] Transportation Collection
] Room 5010 MRC 628
] Smithsonian Institution
] Washington DC 20560
] make check payable to the Smithsonian ($5.00).
As of ten days ago, Smithsonian sez, for faster service,
Ship Plans
Division of Transportation
NMAH - 5010 / MRC 628
Smithsonian Institution
Washington DC 20560
"Melonseed" plan is listed currently at USD 3.00.
USD 10.00 gets you the "Ship Plans List" listing all their watercraft plans
holdings with descriptions, sources, and prices. Neat stuff for playing with
boats (or sailing ships!)
E dC
*** A Tyrant Run Amok! ***
Jon Etheredge
Garry,
I have done a little research into the availability of melonseed skiff
lines in the past so I thought I'd pass the info along.
Plans for melonseed skiffs are available from Mystic Seaport Musuem
(http://www.mysticseaport.org/public/collections/ships.plans/planprices.html).
They sell plans for a 14' boat that is referred to as a Melonseed Skiff.
You might also consider one of the "Seaford Skiffs". They sell plans for
two different 13' boats and a 14' boat. Many historians contend that the
Seaford Skiff is simply a melonseed skiff with a different name. In
fact, Mystic Seaport built a series of melonseed skiffs a number of
years ago that I have been told were built from the one of the so-called
Seaford Skiff plans.
Another source of plans is the Independance Seaport Museum in
Philadelphia, PA. The lines they have are from Josef Liener, formerly of
the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. These lines are in turn based on the
lines that Chapelle had obtained from W.P. Stephens and published in
American Small Sailing Craft. Joe filled out the bow sections a bit to
improve what was already an outstanding design. Unfortunately, the lines
are incomplete (no construction plan, offsets, or sail plan) and really
are only a sketch. Making the lines useable requires extensive work on
the loft floor to refair them (not work for the timid!). I have built
one boat to these lines and she seemed to sail quite well although I was
only able to sail her once before the owner took delivery.
As Dan Miller pointed out, the Chapelle/Stephens lines are available
from the Smithsonian. This truly is a very fine little boat. Marc Barto
based the 13' melonseed plans that WoodenBoat sells on these plans in
fact (he filled out the forward sections a bit ala Joe Liener and
adapted for lapstrake ply). Marc's plans are also good.
If you don't want to build your own, Crawford builds a terrific
melonseed in fiberglass. Hes got a web site at http://www.melonseed.com/
if you want to check them out.
Hope this helps,
Jon Etheredge
P.S. Have you considered a sneakbox for duck hunting? The sneakbox seems
to be the boat of choice in the Delaware River Valley and along the New
Jersey shore. Independance Seaport has plans for a nice sneakbox.
>
> I recently saw a small boat that appeared to be exactly what I want
> for duck hunting in protected marsh areas. The owner called it a
> 'Melonseed" but had no idea where to get plans. It was obviously and
> home built boat and was made of plywood with glass covering. It was
> about 13ft long and shaped like a melon seed.
>
john....@fisc.com
In article ,
tu...@REMOVESPAMmindspring.com wrote:
>
> NOTE: Remove "REMOVESPAM" from the return address.
>
> for duck hunting in protected marsh areas. The owner called it a
> 'Melonseed" but had no idea where to get plans. It was obviously and
> home built boat and was made of plywood with glass covering. It was
> about 13ft long and shaped like a melon seed.
>
> Does anyone have any idea where I might find the plans?
>
>
> Garry
I don't know where you might find plans for this boat but the melonseed
you mentioned caught my eye because of a boat that I use to have. A
neighbor of mine had an old boat in his yard for years which he was
trying to sell for $100 or so. He ended up moving and giving me the boat
and trailer. I had looked the boat over previously and noted how well
built it was. It needed a new deck which I spent a winter putting in. The
boat was a 14ft with very wide berth for its length. On the bow was a
cast plate that had the name Manitoba, built in Wisconsin. in the late
40s or early 50s. It had a serail number of 000 which means it was the
first off the line and for all I know maybe the last. The previous owner
said that it was originally used on lake Erie by the life gaurds at one
of the beaches. I ended up having to move to Florida the spring I
finished the boat and never got it in the water. I sold it to a friend
before leaving Twinsburg Oh. I later talked to him after he had put it in
the water a few times. He kept calling it a melonseed because of the way
it floated high up on the water. If the guy you saw in this melonseed
boat had carrot red hair and was somewhere in OH. area it was probably
my old boat. If not, sorry for the long boring story.
-------------------==== Posted via Deja News ====-----------------------
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Andy Follansbee
The Melonseed, which is drawn for traditional
> lapstrake construction, is $5 as I recall (being to lazy to look
> it up).
>
> Cheers,
> Dan
>
Hi - Chappelle said that the originals were often lapstrake but some
were carvell too so that they could more quietly sneak up on
unsuspecting ducks.
Cheers,
Andy
Andy Follansbee
Hi-
The Chappell plans are available from the Smithsonian at:
Transportation Collection
Room 5010 MRC 628
Smithsonian Institution
Washington DC 20560
make check payable to the smithsonian ($5.00).
Also, I maintain some fun Melonseed pages on the web at
http://www.castle.net/~follans/melonhd where you can see
lots of pictures of these boats under sail.
Thanks,
Andy
Andy Follansbee
that's $10 ($5 for the plans + $5 for shipping and handling)
craig o'donnell
In article <5nns88$s...@camel4.mindspring.com>,
tu...@REMOVESPAMmindspring.com wrote:
> NOTE: Remove "REMOVESPAM" from the return address.
>
>
> I recently saw a small boat that appeared to be exactly what I want
> for duck hunting in protected marsh areas. The owner called it a
> 'Melonseed" but had no idea where to get plans. It was obviously and
> home built boat and was made of plywood with glass covering. It was
> about 13ft long and shaped like a melon seed.
>
> Does anyone have any idea where I might find the plans?
Hi Garry,
several sources. There's a planked one available from WoodenBoat
<www.woodenboat.com>, check the woodenboat store list and/or have them
send a free catalog.
IN a recent Boatbuilder, Tom Firth Jones wrote up a version he adapted
from Howard Chapelle's design. Email me if you want his contact info, I
think it's in the article.
Smithsonian has plans, again for a planked boat, from Chapelle's "American
Small Sailing Craft".
I don't know specifically of any plywood Melonseeds but perhaps someone
else does; the shape would be tough in plywood, is my guess. You could
cut plywood into planks, of course, that's been done.
Glen-L Designs or Clark-Crfaft, who both have hundreds of plans, might
have a Melonseed-type in plywood. Check www.by-the-sea.com for Clark
Craft; I dunno abou Glen L.
-- COD
craig o'donnell ||| author of Cool Mac Sounds
dada...@friend.ly.net . . . craig_o'don...@bmugbos.org
The Proa FAQ
<http://www.cyber-dyne.com/~jkohnen/proafaq.html>
tu...@removespam.mindspring.co
To reply by e-mail remove "REMOVESPAM."
Thanks to all of you who took time to reply to my request.
Unfortunately the boat everyone described to me is a sailboat. The
boat I saw was shaped like a pumpkin seed and fitted with a small
outboard. It was not suitable for sail.
Evidently the owner gave me the wrong name or more than one style boat
carries the same name.
Does anyone have any suggestions for finding plans for the boat I
described? It is very shallow, about 13 or 14 ft LOA, 54in beam and
perhaps 16 inches from keel to gunwales.
Maybe a source of sneakboat plans?
Thanks again!
Garry
Dan Miller
Andy Follansbee wrote:
> The Chappell plans are available from the Smithsonian at:
> Transportation Collection
> Room 5010 MRC 628
> Smithsonian Institution
> Washington DC 20560
> make check payable to the smithsonian ($5.00).
Don't forget to add $5 shipping for the first 12 sheets.
GWright802
To an inquiry about Melonseeds, craig o'donnell wrote:
<<There's a planked one available from WoodenBoat
<www.woodenboat.com> (...snip...)
I don't know specifically of any plywood Melonseeds but perhaps someone
else does; the shape would be tough in plywood, is my guess. You could
cut plywood into planks, of course, that's been done.>>
To clarify, the plans from Wooden Boat are *plywood lapstrake*, both 13ft
4in and a 16ft version are avail. If you want a little more info before
laying out $90 for the plans, you can see brief study plans in <Forty
Wooden Boats>, also from Wooden Boat bookstore.
GW
Gary Wright, Whippoorwill Wood Canoes
gwrig...@aol.com