Chesapeake Skiff Build - Kinda Rack of Eye

Before you get your tools and lumber out you should get a general idea what your boat's shape will be. This is the first step of rack of eye. This doesn't all come at once. I got my look from Google Map and looking down on some boat images from Smith Island. If you study these, you'll see that most of the boats follow the "Law of Thirds" meaning they are generally 1/3 as wide as they are as long ... and they the widest part of the boat comes 1/3 forward of the transom. Again, this is a generality and you can adjust it to fit your need. But this is a good starting point. Setback: is the width at the transom. This can range from 0 (square stern) to several inches less than the Widest Beam. Only a few inches of setback will give the boat a graceful line. Too much setback will likely make the boat squat when engine power is applied. But at this early point I'm sitting with some important information. I know how long and wide my boat will be, and I also know...

The following terms will be used in this blog:

This is a blog about how to build a skiff without plans. This sounds kind of scary, but folks around the Chesapeake have done it this way for hundred of years. But they possessed knowledge and experience -  some of what we may lack - but fortunately we can do some reverse engineering to make sure we come out with a nice looking boat. The goal here is to allow you to deviate to build what you want. You should be able to build a boat anywhere from 12' to 30' using the concepts presented here. Since this "build concept" maximizes flexibility, it will suffer if you are anticipating a prescriptive and complete dimensions. This allows you to vary based on your needs, but you will end up a boat that looks generally like the one below. <insert finished picture> You will need to know how to do shop math, or how to use a calculator. We will be dealing with angles, but hopefully I'll present a simple calculation that will not require you to go back and dust you...