Melonseed Hull.
Fairing with a longboard and cabinet scraper.
March 29, 2009
an infrequent repository of mostly new stuff
an infrequent repository of mostly new stuff
Melonseed Hull.
Fairing with a longboard and cabinet scraper.
March 29, 2009
I just sneezed.
Hindsight. Of course in boats everything is a compromise. I love my melonseed. I use it often and get tons of compliments. I’m also super happy with my decision to design and add my bowsprit and jib which makes a ton of difference. In retrospect though, I wish I would have modified it by adding a minimum of 5 inches to the hull making it more of a big water boat while also significantly increasing the underdeck storage. That’s what happens when you decide on a boat design without knowing what you would eventually be doing with the boat! All my Texas 200 friends want me to build a plywood junker to do the 200 in and Not use my melonseed, my current plan is to use the melonseed, then the week after the boat goes on shipyard to get a new bottom! Time will tell. https://www.facebook.com/buddy.simons.39/videos/408541720772994
Love the video. Such a great boat you have. If you use it a lot and enjoy it, then you definitely built the right one for you. A big part fo the Melonseed’s appeal is the low freeboard. The slim profile is not only elegant, but makes less susceptible to headwinds and crosswinds – more important for rowing a duck hunting boat in a marsh than in a big sailboat, maybe, but it’s a real factor. It’s like boat designs naturally evolve to fill every little niche on the water, and boat is optimized for that use and less so for others. That’s why I now have 8 boats, ranging from the smallest kayak and paddle board up to the big Lightning. I got the Lightning for the reasons you want 5 more inches of freeboard – I love sailing the Melonseeds, but they aren’t suitable for big water and a week of camping with friends. Hence the Lightning, which is perfect for that. Problem solved. But you know what? Of all my boats I use the Lightning the least. Except for those occasional big trips, the big boat is just not as much fun to use. If you redesigned your Melonseed for the Texas 200, you might find that’s all you use it for.