Hull info

The semi-displacement hull has a lapstrake design, which makes perfect sense when building out of wood using 1" thick oak (or wood of your choice) planks. I think the 1971 market for these fishing boats preferred wood because there was little experience with fiberglass so they stayed with a wood boat look.

The result is a hull that has a minimum thickness of 1". I found out that most of it is not 1". When installing a triducer at what I thought was a thin spot I needed the extended transducer housing as the 1" housing was too small for my hull.

So the hull appears to be a little over 1" at it's thinnest which increases to 2" every few inches all solid fiberglass. It's just fiberglass and resin, no wood, no filler, just solid fiberglass. Think of a 1" thick hull with 2" stringers built into it.

This makes for a crazy tough and heavy hull. Between this very thick and solid hull and the extensive use of 1" marine plywood, heavy is a good description.

Though only 34' long it has been weighed at over 22,000 lbs and has a gross rating of 27,500lbs, which given it's narrow beam is almost twice as heavy as a much better outfitted modern 34' cabin cruisers.

I don't think the lapstrake is the most efficient hull design. It looks like more wetted area for the weight and more edges to work against the water and it takes more time to paint than a smooth hull.

There may be some anti-roll to having to push those edges into the water and many people think it makes the boat look great with a classic feel.

Under certain conditions little waves can slap up against those edges and be very noisy when trying to sleep. Nothing ear plugs can't deal with and sometimes the sound is quite pleasant if nautically inclined.

Given a choice I would go with a smooth hull at and below the waterline. 

At anchor I use Rocker Stoppers. They turn rock and roll into easy listening. I'll have to do a separate post on how to get them to work properly. Just following the directions will have them floating and bobbing more than resisting rocking.

The hull with it's wide stern does not work well in following seas and can roll uncomfortably. In those seas we tack like a sail boat searching for the best line, only to find it and have to steer a new course to avoid crab pots, other boats or land.

The boat with the lower helm closer to the water line than most new boats, heavy displacement for it's size, flared bow and high foresides, can comfortably handle waters others wouldn't dream of.

We have had it in 10'+ swells with 25knot+ wind and waves. The swells were large enough that the boat would slide back as the swell passed underneath causing the water to flow against the prop making considerable complaining noises.

The boat was in constant spray with lots of white water on the forward deck. Very little green water which is a very good thing. The fish boat design is good but when the cabin was installed they took it to the edge.

This gives great interior room normally only available in much larger boats but it extends all the way to the edge of the forward combing.

The result is very limited drainage for water from the forward deck. Should the deck get pushed into a breaking wave, or worst yet green water as we have done with our Island Packet, the boat must carry that water until it drains through a very narrow pinch point behind the lower helm.

Most owners simply avoid such waters and given that some sets of waves were large enough to capsize the boat should the helmsman make a mistake that is the best course of action and that is what we are doing for now.

But eventually we will improve forward deck drainage, the aft window hazards and seal the rear hatches dramatically improving the ability of the boat to handle larger seas safely.