Indians For Guns

Am on the lookout for a 12'-15' rowing boats which can be used with a outboard motor. If any of you know of any manufacturers do let me know. I am in touch with a few boat builders in the South India, transportation cost is very high.

The other option is I purchase the plans & have it built by a local boat builder.


sat

Sat,

What kind of boat are you specifically looking for?

A rowboat would be either a fixed seat or a moveable seat two or three seater - not quite big enough for an outboard motor. That said, motorboats have a pair of oars for use when the motor breaks down....

There are some fibreglass boat manufacturers in Kerala as far as I know and Chennai has Neptune Inflatables who make inflatable rafts with outboards for the army.

I long for a boat myself - a nice scull like I used to row many years ago. Hopefully next year I'll have one. It is too tempting - as tempting as a good rifle if you ask me, especially as I have a nice lake not very far from my place.

Cheers,

Mehul

Mehul,

Am in touch with a boat manufacturers in South India. Was looking for someone closer home. Transportation cost are high. The other option is for me to buy plans for rowing boats, plenty available on the net & have the local boat maker build the boat.

The 1st boat I am looking at is a simple flat skiff 12' designed for rowing, a small outboards of 1.5 hp will move her at hull speed.
http://www.boatplans-online.com/proddet ... L12&cat=10

Another option is the Fast Skiff 12 is the planing hull, vee bottom version of the FL12.
http://www.boatplans-online.com/proddet ... ?prod=FS12

Difference between the FL12 and FS12:

The FL12 is a displacement hull. That means that she will move easily through the water at displacement speeds, with oars or a small outboard. The FL12 will not plane even with a large outboard because of the rocker in the hull. The transom of the FL12 is above the waterline at normal trim and she can be lighter than a planing boat.
The FS12 is a planing hull without rocker. A planing boat must withstand heavier bottom loads and the transom must be able to transmit the thrust of the engine to the hull. For those reasons, the planing boat hull must be stronger and heavier. With her immersed transom, the FS12 will not row as well as the FL12.


The FL 14' pic -






The FL 12' -

I built a 12' sailing dinghy out of plywood some years ago. If you are interested let me know and I'll see if I still have the plans laying around somewhere, if not I can draw some up for you in CAD.

What are you intending to use the boat for? Do you need to transport it frequently?

Mark

Mark,

Would be interested in the plans of your dingy. If you have a picture of your 12' dingy could you email them.
I intend using the rowing boat in lakes a few times a week for 6 months of the year. At places there are weeds, lotus in the lake.

thanks

sat

sat wrote:Mark,

I intend using the rowing boat in lakes a few times a week for 6 months of the year. At places there are weeds, lotus in the lake.

thanks

sat

sat

My experience with row boats and canoes is one needs lot of practice against tipping and watchout for weeds. Its not safe to be in any lake with weeds per my experience and discussions with friends who are avid kayakers..

All the best

navdeep

Sat,

It may make sense to buy a fibreglass boat in this case. There should be manufacturers in Mangalore/Goa/Gujarat and that would be closer to Rajasthan than TN or Kerala. Let me check - I have friends who may be able to help. Will e-mail them and revert to you in a day or two if I have any info. Is this rowing going to be at the lakes on your property which you sent pictures of some time ago? Lovely place - it should be great fun.

Navdeep,

I have taken even Empacker sculls which were half the width of my backside when I was a lot younger out on the Adyar River near my parents' place in Chennai weeds, driftwood and all that all around me. The route also went upto locks with the sea of the Bay of Bengal pounding them just across and causing the water on the river's side to heave. We thought it was fun and a challenge. No one told us that it was dangerous and I never fell in the river once. I guess with a motorboat you would run the risk of something entangling itself in the propellers, but it is a matter that could be handled by experienced boaters without trouble. Most outboard motors tip up on a hinge kind of thing if you need to access the propeller anyway. It would be interesting to see what Sat settles on.

Best wishes,

Mehul

My experience with row boats and canoes is one needs lot of practice against tipping and watchout for weeds. Its not safe to be in any lake with weeds per my experience and discussions with friends who are avid kayakers..

Navdeep,

No plans of using canoes at the moment, thought I would love to get a kayak/ tandem kayak to explore all the lakes and there are over 200 man made lakes in the area. The row boats will be wide enough to be stable. We avoid the part of the lake that has weeds, not all the lakes have weeds. In the past when the propeller of the little transom motor which runs off a car battery has got entangled, we just row out of the weed patch, clear the propeller and off we go again.

Mehul,

Its look like its going to be FRP, though I would have prefered classic wood design with one of the boats similar in looks to the Atkin's vintage, photo below. You can call me old fashioned

10' Lapstrake Sailing Dinghy

Is this rowing going to be at the lakes on your property which you sent pictures of some time ago?

yes mehul, attached is a pic of the local fisherman's boat with some friends in it, cost about Rs 3,000/- or USD 64. Made of tin sheet over a wooden frame, fishermen really load up the boat with their catch. There are several such boats in the area, no mishaps yet....

Wow!! Amazing pictures...

Regards
Ranjeet

Mehul

That?s fun what you just described,
When I was living in Minneapolis, saw small rowing boat with outward engine using the locks one of the on upper Mississippi river. Its probably the first one on waterfall in downtown area. It was quite an unnerving site with old grandpa with his grandson, in a dingy boat 30 feet below the river level.

Sat

I used to think of taking a kayak from US to India, since these are reasonably priced. My uncle?s farm is next to Beas river and Punjab has lot of canals with falls, importantly Sukhna lake in Chandigarh which has a boat club. I was gungho even send life jackets to India, until a kayaker co worker explained to me that most dangerous spots for eddies are man water falls near canals or dams. something to do with fluid mechanics laminar flow etc. So canals were out and he also explained that?s its important to have training before going solo on kayaking.
Another thing you can do is check with boat clubs on rowing boats, Chandigarh has one and steel / fiberglass will be more cost effective than a wooden one.? All the best and please have requisite number of life jackets. Nobody is wearing one in the photos and safety first since you might be taking kids with you.

regards
navdeep

Hey Sat,

Really Nice Pics, Thanks a lot for sharing

Inder

he also explained that?s its important to have training before going solo on kayaking.

Agree with you. Training is very important before going solo. My friend with year of windsurfing behind him had a very close shave on Juhu beach, Mumbai. He got trapped between the 16' sail of his surfboard & the sand while coming to shore in a few feet of water.

Have ordered a lot of life jackets too.

sat

Navdeep,

Kayaking is very different from the kind of rowing I'm talking about. A kayak has a fixed seat and you use the oars just to navigate and keep balance. A scull has a seat that moves on rails and you have your feet strapped up so that you can pull and push with them, giving yourself a decent workout while going very, very fast. Both are fun sports - I wish I could start rowing again in the US. My health is somewhat better now and it is summer...

Sat,

Incredible pictuyres as always. Thanks for posting them.

Mehul

mehulkamdar wrote:I wish I could start rowing again in the US. My health is somewhat better now and it is summer...

And there's a Lufthansa airhostess just beyond the horizon, aye?

Mack The Knife,

Beautiful women, beautiful guns, beautiful cars...Sigh! Who could be without them?

Reminds me of a friend who wrote to his girlfriend - I could swim the seven seas for one look from your eyes. I would climb the world's highest mountains for a kiss from your lips. I would fight the wildest beasts for your embrace. Let's meet tomorrow if it doesn't rain.

Before I break the rule about OT posts,

Cheers!

Mehul