Aluminium Boat Plans

[Welshy]

Greetings. 

 

 

I need some construction plans for a 55 - 60 ft longboat.  Blueprints with metal? thickness, angles.  basically enough so I can give to a boat builder and they have everything they need.  

 

If you can point me in the right direction, that would be awesome. 

[NB Lola]

Use of terms is important.  Do you really want a longboat?  I suspect you mean wide beam or narrowboat.

 

i then suspect that such information will rest as intellectual property, if not I would be surprised and you will be fortunate.

[Welshy]

17 minutes ago, NB Lola said:

Use of terms is important.  Do you really want a longboat?  I suspect you mean wide beam or narrowboat.

 

i then suspect that such information will rest as intellectual property, if not I would be surprised and you will be fortunate.

Then I shall be more specific.  I am trying to obtain construction blueprints for a narrow boat of between 50 to 60 feet.  

 

There must be home built boats that have used plans themselves. 

As for intellectual property, no one has claimed the design of a narrow boat. 

[nbfiresprite]

Try this site https://www.thefitoutpontoon.co.uk/narrowboat-widebeam-plans/

[Alan de Enfield]

36 minutes ago, Welshy said:

As for intellectual property, no one has claimed the design of a narrow boat. 

Similarly, no one has claimed the 'design of a car' but each maker has their own design features and intellectual property.

 

Many 'steel fabricators have tried to make a quick-buck building a 'simple steel tube' that is all that a narrowboat is, however the reality is that the shape is quite complex to actually get 'boatish' performance instead of a 'waterborn waste skip'.

 

The length and designs of the swims (the below water shape at the stern) are critical to handling - get it wrong and it just won't steer and will be a pig in reverse.

 

 

[Murflynn]

2 hours ago, Welshy said:

Greetings. 

 

 

I need some construction plans for a 55 - 60 ft longboat.  Blueprints with metal? thickness, angles.  basically enough so I can give to a boat builder and they have everything they need.  

 

If you can point me in the right direction, that would be awesome. 

if a boat-builder is competent to build a decent quality narrowboat hull, why do you think he needs plans from you?

 

on the face of it, any hull designed for steel construction could be built in aluminium.

 

if you have any interest in aesthetics then you should be able to distinguish a fair hull from a pointed box, and that should lead you to competent builders who are capable of building a fair hull.

 

I think the mere fact that you ask the question suggests that you are coming at this from entirely the wrong direction.

[john6767]

1 hour ago, Welshy said:

Then I shall be more specific.  I am trying to obtain construction blueprints for a narrow boat of between 50 to 60 feet.  

 

There must be home built boats that have used plans themselves. 

As for intellectual property, no one has claimed the design of a narrow boat. 

Any engineering drawing will be subject to copyright, just like any other written material.

[Welshy]

34 minutes ago, Murflynn said:

if a boat-builder is competent to build a decent quality narrowboat hull, why do you think he needs plans from you?

 

on the face of it, any hull designed for steel construction could be built in aluminium.

 

if you have any interest in aesthetics then you should be able to distinguish a fair hull from a pointed box, and that should lead you to competent builders who are capable of building a fair hull.

 

I think the mere fact that you ask the question suggests that you are coming at this from entirely the wrong direction.

Greetings.  

 

I believe you are grasping the wrong end of the stick.  I do not have plans...  I am trying to get blueprints so that a boat builder here in China can start construction for me.  

[IanM]

35 minutes ago, Murflynn said:

if a boat-builder is competent to build a decent quality narrowboat hull, why do you think he needs plans from you?

 

on the face of it, any hull designed for steel construction could be built in aluminium.

 

if you have any interest in aesthetics then you should be able to distinguish a fair hull from a pointed box, and that should lead you to competent builders who are capable of building a fair hull.

 

I think the mere fact that you ask the question suggests that you are coming at this from entirely the wrong direction.

Seems it’s to be built in China 

 

 

[Chewbacka]

33 minutes ago, Murflynn said:

if a boat-builder is competent to build a decent quality narrowboat hull, why do you think he needs plans from you?

 

on the face of it, any hull designed for steel construction could be built in aluminium.

 

if you have any interest in aesthetics then you should be able to distinguish a fair hull from a pointed box, and that should lead you to competent builders who are capable of building a fair hull.

 

I think the mere fact that you ask the question suggests that you are coming at this from entirely the wrong direction.

As always, yes and no.  As Aluminium is expensive and corrodes a lot slower than steel it would make sense to not use the same thickness plate, this in turn would require a lot more ribs and stiffeners if it wasn’t to dish and twist etc.

[ditchcrawler]

https://www.acornengineer.co.uk/plans-drawings-set-of-enginering-drawings-for-narowboat-steel-shell-fabrication/engineering-drawings-for-steel-narrowboat-shell-construction

 

http://www.dutch-barges.net/steel_kits.html

 

https://www.thefitoutpontoon.co.uk/narrowboat-widebeam-plans/

 

 

[Welshy]

6 minutes ago, ditchcrawler said:

https://www.acornengineer.co.uk/plans-drawings-set-of-enginering-drawings-for-narowboat-steel-shell-fabrication/engineering-drawings-for-steel-narrowboat-shell-construction

 

http://www.dutch-barges.net/steel_kits.html

 

https://www.thefitoutpontoon.co.uk/narrowboat-widebeam-plans/

 

 

Thank you! I have contacted the FitoutPontoon and am currently waiting on their reply 

[Murflynn]

1 hour ago, Welshy said:

a boat builder here in China

how the hell were we supposed to know that?

[Graham Davis]

5 minutes ago, Murflynn said:

how the hell were we supposed to know that?

Psychic??

[Higgs]

2 hours ago, Murflynn said:

how the hell were we supposed to know that?

 

 

The first thread - earlier today. Greetings - First post - Boat Build

 

 

Edited September 19, 2019 by Higgs

[blackrose]

57' Narrowboat plans here for about £300.

 

http://www.selway-fisher.com/Mcover30.htm#AVONCLIFF NARROW

[0000]

As others have pointed out, narrowboat plans for steel built construction are ready available - I used Acorn engineering plans. You specifically stated aluminium in your post so I'm not sure plans for steel narrowboat would be suitably detailed for your purposes. The leading builders of aluminium narrowboats in the UK was Sea Otter, sadly no longer in business, they differed significantly in hull design from steel narrowboats both in profile and also incorporated a ballast tank.  There is a sea otters owners club, I would suggest you contact them who may be able to provide with more detail information on aluminium narrowboat construction.