How To Design A Model Yacht?

Model boat building is a popular hobby for boaters who enjoy the variety of designs available for full-scale yachts. Building model boats from plans or kits, whether static or radio controlled, sail, electric power, or steam, is not as difficult as it may seem. Scratch building a model ship is not as difficult as it appears, as many people have built several models from kits, so they already possess many of the skills required for scratch building.

Designing a boat from a half-hull model is covered in full in this episode of the Art of Boat Building. Boat Builder Bob Emser discusses Nathanael Herreshoff’s old master way of designing a solid hull using prototype ship lines plans. For smaller sized models, cutting and shaping the hull from a single block of wood is the easiest method. There are three plans of a model to be drawn out: the sheer plan, which represents a view of the boat when looking at it directly from the side; and the plank plan, which represents a view of the boat when looking at it directly from the side.

Model yacht building is a wonderful hobby for boaters who like the many different designs available for full-scale yachts that can be made by several techniques. Starting carving models of their ideas at the tender age of 9 or 10, builders like Herbert Fisher have created beautiful hulls with flat sides and a chine. One of the problems with scratch built model yachts is the keel ballast, which can be solved with the Panache, which is just sheet lead flashing.

Many model boats have been built from scratch as a first model, and it is essential to find the building method that suits you best. A good way to start is with strip or sheet planked plank-on-bulkhead model boats, using balsa or basswood to limit the need for power tools. To fix these, screw two screw eyes into the mast just below the ferrule or right through the ferrule, about one-third way up it and into the mast.

The author has been a designer of model and radio yachts since 1968, with many designs winning State and National Championships in Australia and overseas. New designs are added periodically and occasionally, and the hobby continues to grow.