Bowdidge Marine Designs/ Bosuns Mate 23

@ WEB DESIGN BY BOWDIDGE MARINE DESIGNS

We have boat plans (both yacht designs, catamaran designs and power designs) for all sizes. From the 12ft Mushulu Dinghy stitch & glue yacht tender to the Oceansky 57 catamaran. We design timber boats, plywood boats, strip plank boats, fibreglass composite boats, steel and aluminum boats to very modern styling for both monohull designs or multihull designs, powerboat or sailboat and in round bilge, multi-chine or radius chine hull forms.

The Path to your Dreams, may take you places...

You've never Imagined.

Breaking camp early, the early morning fog lifts as you slowly explore and work your way through the endless estuaries, inlets and headlands. The smell of the coffee and the warmth of the mug within your hand, reminds you of the simple pleasures of life. A life away from the endless grind of work and suburbia.
Exploring your way around a small headland, you notice a small break within the giant boulders. An opening finally appeared with clear waters, a sandy beach, and grasslands behind. The excitement begins to build as the kids begin jumping up and down and pointing. We've finally found our next campsite and even better, there's no one around for miles.
Welcome to the Bosun's Mate 23

Bowdidge
Marine Designs

The Bosun's mate 23 evolved from the same seaworthy fishing boat designs used in third world countries, resulting is a strong, yet simple to build and economical to operate. Designed for long range cruising and minimal fuel consumption, she boasts a waterline Length/ Beam ratio of 3.75, with fine entry for wave penetration improving speed, easy driving and sea keeping abilities, but it also reduceing fuel consumption.

The brief called for interior to be clean and simple, with a lot of room and for the builder to be given complete freedom in this regard. With all the open space, as long as the frames shown on the plans are present and common sense is used in weight distribution, almost anything is possible to easily accommodate a family for a day on the water, it's totally up to you.

The following list of materials is approximate and intended for calculation of approximate costs. We offer no guarantees of accuracy.
The list is for all timber in the construction of hull, deck and interior, including building stocks, temporary bracing etc. Allowance has been made in the quantities for about 10% wastage, with the exception of the building stocks and chipboard, which are net.
These figures allow for building with 1/4 in (6mm) plywood for hull /deck and 3/8" (9mm) for the floors, frames and interior.

MARINE PLYWOOD 4'x8' (1.22x 2.44m)
6mm (1/4") - approx 14 sheets
9mm (3/8") - approx 11 sheets

RESIN & GLASS (for coatings and reinforced areas)
Epoxy resin - 72kg
450g biaxial fabric - 53sq.m
Cabasil (glue powder) - 3 kg
Q-cells (fairing Powder) - 4kg

With the best technical support: we will help you succeed!
All our plans come with full technical support and are Australian Builders plate compliant.

Bowdidge
Marine Designs

We will respond immediately. At the same please visit our Boatbuilding Forum site, to share ideas about our boats and thousands of pictures - see completed boats and many of the building steps done by builders like you.
Also, all the fiberglass supplies required to build our boats are available at Bowdidge marine Designs, delivered to your door.

CONSTRUCTION METHOD
Built from marine or boatbuilding plywood and completely fibreglassed in an epoxy matrix both inside and outside, the Bosun's Mate 23 was designed for very easy building: no compound curves, no unnecessary complications, ease of construction, easy maintenance and a long life.

The 1/4" (6mm) panels, cut flat from our expanded plates dimensioned drawings, are bent around the 3/8" (9mm) frames and fastened to the transom and bow with stitches
The plans show all dimensions needed for each method: accurate expanded plates dimensions and all bulkheads and transom dimensions with spacing for building on strongbacks if desired.

With no lofting, beveling or scarfing required, the sides and bottom panels are cut from standard 8x4 plywood (1.2m x2.4m) and joined with a simple fiberglass butt block. All seams are then taped with fiberglass and epoxy (see our "Boatbuilding Forum " section for details.) As these epoxy joins are much stronger than the plywood, the assembled hull is then completely fibreglassed for extra strength and easy maintenance, resulting in a boat with less maintenance and a better finish than a production fiberglass hull.

MATERIALS LIST FOR THE BOSUN'S MATE 23

Proudly Australian

Designed Boat Plans

Proudly Australian

Designed Boat Plans

The Bosun's Mate 23 Specifications

LOA...........23' 0" (7.00m)

LWL...........20' (6.09m)

BEAM........ 7' 9" (2.13m)

DRAFT/ hull.. 9 1/4" (238mm) @ dwl

DEADRISE at transom... 10 degrees

HORSEPOWER...... 30 - 50Hp

APPROX HULL WEIGHT... 731# (331 kg) depending on materials and options.
*weight @ designer's suggested materials; different plywoods plus
different fiberglass weight and optional gear will change boat weight.

MAX PERSONS...... 8

Pounds Per I" immersion 468# (212 kg)

Required Skills:
All our stitch and glue boats are easy to build. No woodworking skills or special tools are required. The plans include all dimensions and patterns to cut all the hull parts flat on the shop floor.