The Nature of Boats

Acknowledgments

A Note on Metrics

Introduction

Part 1. Boats to Note--Designs and Types Worth a Noodle

1. The Earliest Yachts--a Gift from the Dutch

2. The Dory--The Seaman's Sea Boat

3. Sharpshooters--The Catboats that Never Were

4. Sea Skiffs: Sea Bright and Otherwise

5. The Best of Both Worlds

6. A Cruise Aboard Crackerjack or an Imaginary Cruise in a Dream Boat

7. Presto and Sharpie: The American Answer to the Dutch

8. A Tug of the Heart Strings

9. My Own Double-Enders

10. The Ultimate Sportfisherman

11. The Sutherland Paddle Boat

12. Nester Dinghy and the Terribly Trying Dinghy Dilemma

Part 2. Theory for Everyone or Why Boats Do What They Do

13. How Big Is She Really?

14. Displacement and Shape--the Practical and the Forgotten

15.The Great Stability Mystery

16. Flotation and Trim

Part 3. Shaping Her Up or What's Hull Form About, Anyway?

17. Defining Her Shape

18. Reading Between the Lines

19. Speaking Volumes

Part 4. How Fast Will She Go?

20. Power Yardsticks

21. So You Like to Sail Fast?

Part 5. Fads, Trends, and History

22. Thanks to the Rule . . .

23. Speed with Style

Part 6. The Iron Breeze

24. Engine Lore

25. Let's Talk Torquey

26. The Care and Feeding of a Power Plant

27. The Case of the Boat that Shook or Engine Nightmare

28. Outboard Info

Part 7. Electricity and Water Sometimes Mix

29. The Case of the Boat that Burned

30. Controlling the Flow, Keeping Electrons on the Straight and Narrow

31. Comprehensible Corrosion: Keeping Your Electrons from Jumping Ship

Part 8. Analyzing the Eggbeater

32. Power to the Propeller: Propeller Selection You Can Understand

33. Understanding the Sailboat Propeller--The Art of Compromise

34. Getting the Shaft, Pulling the Prop, and Taking Its Measure

35. Speed Demon Drives

36. The Boat that Wouldn't Fly

Part 9. Catching the Wind: Sailing Simplified

37. Getting a Lift

38. Lift from Cloth: Sails and Their Workings

39. Rigging Rules of Thumb: Demystifying the Rigging Game

40. The Delicate Balance

41. Homemade Self-Steering

42. Miracle Rope!

Part 10. You Built Her of What? Construction for Everyone

43. Even from Cheese Whiz (Almost)

44. Scantling Rules of Thumb

45. It's Only Plastic

46. Secrets of Space-Age Hulls

47. Believe It or Not, Wood Is Best

48. The Ring of Metal--Boats from the Smithy

49. Home-Built Boatyard

Part 11. People Power or Your Boat Should Fit Like a Glove

50. Room Enough? The Human Dimension

51. At the Helm: Steering Station Ergonomics

52. Staying Afloat

Part 12. Getting Where You're Going

53. Rudders, Hitting What You Aim For

54. Controlling the Rudder

Suggested Reading

Index

Boat noodling. Boat lovers suffer universally from this benign affliction. In its mildest form, boat noodling is nothing more than wondering why that sloop in the next slip is faster than yours. In a more significant manifestation it could mean serious daydreaming--drifting off for extended periods, sketching design ideas on the back of an envelope. Chances are, if you've picked up this book just to see what's in it, you're beyond help.

Naval architect Dave Gerr offers the perfect antidote, a browser's reference to understanding how boats tick: all you've ever wanted to know about boats--power and sail, racer and cruiser; dinghy and motoryacht.

In the clear, friendly, nontechnical style that has made his column for Offshore magazine so enduring and popular, Gerr explains everything from how thick a hull should be to why one sailboat tips less than another, from choosing an engine to designing a rig for your trawler yacht, from building a dinghy to simple rules of thumb for dozens of design quandaries.

Gerr writes for the boat noodler in all of us--those seriously interested in learning and dreaming about all types of watercraft. There is no better way to become a better sailor, equipped to handle any contingency. And there's no better place to start than right here.