Pocket Change Possibilities

This post is directed at John and the crew at CLC. I've been looking for a good boat to build, since finishing my Peeler Skiff in 2014. The Peeler is perfect for its purpose, but I'm getting the itch to sail again. I think the Southwester Dory is a wonderful design, but I'm 70 years old and I prefer to overnight below decks. The PocketShip is another wonderful design, but too big a project for me and too expensive to get past our family's Chief Financial Officer. The proposed Pocket Change fits my requirements very well, but seems to be hanging fire or at least on a very back burner. What are the chances of getting lines, offsets, and/or panel dimensions for Pocket Change?

I've built a traditional Amesbury Skiff from scratch and I've built the stitch-and-glue Peeler Skiff from the CLC kit. I've been using and maintaining boats for over 50 years and I've gotten reasonably confident I could handle building Pocket Change without a kit. Is anyone else interested in Pocket Change?

Regards,

Dick


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RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

   Where did you see this design?

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

Camper,

I first noticed it in the Lug Nuts article by John Harris on April 2012. I was very interested in its size and layout.

Regards,

Dick

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

Dick,

I am in much the same position - looking for my next boat to build.  My short list include: Nanoship, Autumn Leaves, Scamp and if available Pocket Change.  I have a few remaining house projects to finish this winter, but would like to start this time next Fall.  In addition to my Peeler I sail a Cape Dory which is a great boat for Buzzards Bay.  I am looking for something smaller and lighter that can be quickly lauched to take advantage of the stray warm winter days, and also be trailered south when we get to that point.  While I would prefer a CNC cut kit, I would be happy to build without a detailed manual.

Jeff D

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

Jeff,

Maybe, if we can stir up enough interest, Pocket Change might make it off the back burner. I know I'm intrigued.

Regards,

Dick

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

Thanks for the reference to the article, Dick. Yes, that is a pretty cool little boat!

[Note: I think there was a minor error in the article. 

"Jibs function like leading-edge slats on aircraft wings, accelerating the flow around the lee side of the mainsail."

If I remember well (it was a long time ago), Ross Garrett says, in "The Symmetry of Sailing", that the jib works by decreasing, not increasing, the maximum acceleration around the lee side of the mainsail.  This makes sense, since the lee side of the main is on the windward (slow moving) side of the jib.

I recall the explanation this way: the jib solves the problem of excessive peak acceleration on the lee of the main which leads to boundary layer separation, which destroys lift.

]

 

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

I have a Pocketship and really enjoy sailing it. I primarily sail on inland lakes but finally hit salt water last summer and was pleased with its handling. The interior cabin is very handy for camping out (which I have done, most recently at Okoumefest 2016 -- it is a very spacious area given the boat size), but I mostly use it to entertain friends in the huge cockpit area.

I built Pocketship from plans as a "budget" boat since I was a student at the time. If you can't get approval to buy the full kit, consider ordering Meranti plywood (cheaper). Pocketship requires a lot of hardware and that would probably be the largest savings here. You could always substitute racelite for harken to cut costs (that's what I did for most of the hardware), use pine instead of sitka spruce for the spars, plywood for the cabin sole instead of solid pine, etc. Lots of possibilities to save a little money if you want to build it. Ship everything to your neighbors house so the CFO doesn't know how much you are buying (just kidding on that last point....)

 

 

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

Also, to anyone interested in Pocketship, make sure you check out the forum http://www.pocketship.net/phpbb/

Lots of posting activity, questions, and construction tips.

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

I remembered this from a while back.

http://www.clcboats.com/forum/clcforum/thread/33436.html

John says in there that Pocket Change didn't create enough interest, but the eventual design for Autumn Leaves started from that idea.

-Matt

 

RE: Pocket Change Possibilities

Forgot to mention, he also said Autumn Leaves would be a similar cost to a PocketShip... 

-Matt

 

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