Choosing the right boat, 11' Power/Row or 12' Power Skiff

[Hucklebe]

Hello All,

I'm trying to decide on the best boat for my application. We have a 42 ' Krogen trawler yacht that needs a new tender. We can fit an 11' +/- on the bridge deck. There are several requirements: 1.) must be stable and seaworthy in a moderate chop; 2.) must be easily rowable but also accept a Yamaha 15 hp, 2 stroke outboard; 3.) must be able to be towed behind our boat in moderate seas (1-3 foot wind waves on inland waters of Puget Sound); 4.) must be easily built by first time boat builder with amateur woodworking skills.

The models that I have been looking at are the 12' Power Skiff 12- S&G skiff and the 11' Row-Power Flat Bottomed Skiff. Specifically I would like to know if the Power Skiff could be fitted for rowing and if there is a big difference in the construction techniques for either boat.

Any advice and comments would be greatly appreciated.

John Brees

[mjggjm12]

The 12' S&G skiff is a stitch and glue construction, the power row skiff is built on a build form with temporary frames that you remove after construction.

[AaronStJ]

I'll expand on that answer.

First off, both boats look like they have a fairly similar hull shape, so they should handle about the same. It looks like they can both carry a 15 hp motor. They can both be rowed. So the big difference is the construction method, which is very different between the two boats.

As mjggjm12 said, the Power Skiff uses stitch and glue construction, which is quite different from a traditional framed boat. The hull panels are stitched together with wire, and glued into place with generous amounts of thickened epoxy. It's generally considered a very easy and pretty forgiving construction method. A lot of beginners start with this method. There's no reason you shouldn't be able to add row locks. Pretty much any boat can be rowed (I know one sailor who has a pair of oars for his 27' sailboat).

The Power-Row Skiff uses more traditional construction, with the plywood fastened to permanent longitudinal members, which are bent over frames (the frames in this design are temporary). Lots of shaping and fairing, sanding and planing go into traditional construction. I personally prefer this style because it's the "classic" way to build a boat, but structurally, there aren't any major advantages.

Heres a good comparison of the two methods: http://www.spirainternational.com/a_stitchorply.html

[Hucklebe]

Thanks for your input.

I chose the 12' Power Skiff mostly due to the purported ease of construction. I do have some concerns about the design and my intended use. I will mostly be using it under power with a 15 hp Yamaha 2 stroke outboard. Ninety nine percent of the time there will be 2 passengers with a large dog, total weight of approx 425#. I'm fairly certain that I can distribute the weight for good trim while under power by placing passengers on the various seats.

At other times I will be rowing either alone with the dog or with other passengers. My question is if I would be able to either add another center seat or have the center seat movable to allow for another rowing position farther forward. I think I would wait until I have launched the boat and tried it out under various configurations before modifying but then I would need to determine how and where to position the second seat.

I would rather have a movable seat rather than 2 permanent seats. Is the center seat brace that supports the seat by the keel absolutely necessary? The seat could be braced with a cross member that does not contact the keel unless the keel support is required to take weight off the side planking. The seat could be designed to be more easily removable without the keel brace.

[thudpucker]

I grew up in Seattle. I got stories....

You might be better off with the V-bottom boat. Those Flat bottom boats can be a hand-full in bad water.
For a 12' Boat, a 10 hp motor is the right choice.
Idle's slow enough to troll, and drives the boat just about as fast as you can handle it if the water get's up on you while your fishing and not watching.