Boat Builder

Find various books on being a Boat Builder, from fact, to fiction. SA Career Focus has assembled these titles for your convenience.

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Boat builders are also called Shipwrights. They build and fit out all types of water vessels, for pleasure, commercial, competitive or naval use. A variety of materials are used including metal, wood, aluminium, fibreglass, plastic and composites. Work is done according to design specifications.

Build Your Own Boat

From start to finish, from selecting the hull to fitting out, Ian Nicolson gives amateurs the confidence to begin building.
The techniques covered can be used to build anything from a small craft to a 75-foot yacht, and they are applicable to almost all building materials, including wood, steel, aluminum, ferro-cement and especially fiberglass. The result for the boat-builder is new vessel that is sound, seaworthy and far bigger than any shipyard boat of comparable cost.

Review by Kalahari.net

Canoecraft: An Illustrated Guide to Fine Woodstrip Construction

Canoecraft teaches more than how to build a canoe, it teaches about life. Much of what can be applied to building a canoe well can be applied to doing anything well. In this new edition of Canoecraft, the first in its 17-year history, you will find significant updates, improvements and expansions. New resins, tools, a changing audience and more than a few new things learned by the author, meant it was time for a complete revision. There is more advanced information for the second-time boat builder, a larger variety of and clearer plans, an additional series of builder's tips - tricks of the trade and a new chapter on making your own paddle, along with new techniques like building a stapleless boat. We hope you will agree this new version of Canoecraft, "the Bible of canoe building" has something for everyone, particularly those looking to build well-crafted wooden boats. Ahoy there! Whether your goal is to build a general-purpose recreational canoe, an efficient modern tripping canoe or a full-decked fast-cruising canoe with walnut veneer, "Canoecraft" can help you make it happen.

Boatbuilding is a practical handbook and boatshop assistant, designed and written to meet the needs of the builder, covering the complete process of wooden boat construction. The text covers all types of craft from flat-bottom rowboats to ocean cruisers and commercial vessels, and aids the builder in overcoming difficulties and discouraging delays resulting from the lack of easily available information on the practical side of boatbuilding. Boatbuilding gives detailed instructions, with many illustrations, on all phases of boatbuilding written out of actual boatbuilding practice and aids the builder in planning each job in its proper sequence in relation to those that follow. After a chapter discussing the choice of plans suitable for amateur work there are chapters on lofting, the backbone and setting up, flat-bottom hull construction, V-bottom hull construction, round-bottom hull construction, deck framing and building, special construction (plywood, strip planking, lap-strake, diagonal, ribband carvel, canvas), heavy construction, joiner-work, iron-work, and spar making. Each chapter is organized for easy and quick reference, and the book is completely indexed. An added feature is the inclusion of building plans for nineteen boats designed for this book and suitable for amateur building.

Bright work, Hull Finishes, Interior Finishes, Design, Layout, "Floor & Wall" CoveringsBright work: Stripping old finishes, Surface preparation, Proper application of clear finishes. Hull Finishes: Surface preparation, Fairing compounds and usage, Filler compounds and usage, Sealants above the waterline, Sealants below the water line, One part paints for wood, Two part paints for fiberglass and wood, Paint preparation, Brush selection.Interior: Finishes: "Walls", Trims, Hardware, Coverings, Paints, Clear coats. "Floor" Coverings: Types available and their usage, preparation and installation. Using plastic laminates and veneers. Appendixes: Addresses and phone numbers for Manufacturers, Distributors and Retailers; Tools and supplies needed; Thorough glossary of boating terms.

This book covers all aspects of yacht design and uses a newly designed 40-footer to demonstrate the practical application of yacht design theory. It covers the new regulations encompassed in the European Recreational Craft Directive which is set to become the international standard. Also included is a chapter on the hydrodynamics of power boats .

Arthur Edmunds is a top naval architect and his knowledge of the boat building industry has never been more apparent than in this book. He has written this book so the reader, unfamiliar with the construction process, will understand every aspect of the process. But this is not a beginner's only boat building book. Advanced craftsmen and top professionals have equally as much to learn from the author's years of experience. He takes the reader from the first step of building a fibreglass boat to the last step, in a manner that will certainly inspire all who ever pondered the notion. The book describes the two most popular sizes and styles of boats as examples for the project; a twenty-five foot open boat and a thirty-three foot cruising boat. Sail is also explained, although there is little difference in the basic construction methods. By referring to these example boats, the reader can envision a boat of any size, limited only by the reader's imagination and wallet thickness. There are no "trade secrets", only knowledge not yet learned.

Kayaks are growing in popularity as a fun, low-impact way to explore rivers or paddle on local waters. Combining easy-to-follow instructions with 472 colour photographs, Kayaks You Can Build takes the reader, step-by-step, through the entire construction cycle of building a plywood kayak. This simple construction process demands neither special skills nor a wood-working shop. This book includes: - Short history of the kayak - Choose the right kayak for your needs and skill level - Setting up your work area and how to build a work table and cradle forms - Details of all the necessary tools, materials and supplies - Tricks of the trade - Laying fibreglass cloth - Minimising exposure to toxic fumes and dust - Avoiding and correcting mistakes - Popular kayak kits - Ted Moores is the bestselling author of Canoecraft. In 1972, Moores pioneered the woodstrip / epoxy boatbuilding system for canoes and, since then, has promoted the fine art of wooden-canoe and kayak construction. Greg Rossel builds and repairs small wooden boats and is an instructor at the Wooden Boat School in Maine. The definitive book for kayak builders. Drawing on more than thirty years of boatbuilding and teaching experience, it enables the first-time builder to assemble a kayak with truly professional results. 472 clear step-by-step colour photographs show you every stage of construction.