BYYB Forums

Greetings from the flat soybean and corn fields of west-central Ohio!

I purchased plans for Triad, Weekended and Pocket Cruiser in early Feb. I want to build Triad as a primer and to learn to sail on first, then I'd like to build one of the other two. I'm 6'-4" so I'm kinda leaning towards PC as it looks to have more room, but I like many features of Weekender also. I'd sure like an opportunity in the next year or so to be able to take a close look at both of these before I make a decision. Will this fleet be getting together sometime this summer where I could visit and look them over?

Any other fleets or gatherings that I could possibly attend also?

Thanks!

Allen

Allen Welcome to the BYYB forum. If you don't have any luck getting a look at the P/C and Weekender close to home you might want to come to some of our messabouts in the southeast fleet. we have both boats at some of our messabouts. It is a little early but there has been some talk of having a messabout on Kentucky lake this year. Just stay in touchand something will come along. Bud.

Welcome Allen

It's nice to see another new builder out there. I just posted on the SE fleet about a proposed messabout in April that you might like to attend. I can assure you that you will have a fine time and hopefully will be able to see up to 3 PC there and hopefully a Weekender and certainly my Vacationer. We throw a great messabout here in the SE and we would love to have you join us

Keith

Well,

We used to have all three pocket yachts represented in the Erie fleet, and every event hosted all three. Now, we've got a Weekender that's got a chopped cabin for more cockpit space, though it still sleeps my 6'1 frame, and the extra 3 inches could have been managed. My wife's only 4'8, so height wasn't a concern for her.

You're right though, the cabin is far more roomy on the pocket cruiser, and the cockpit is kinda more spacious since it goes all the way to the transom and is a fair bit beamier.

Part of the choice comes down to sailing preferences too. The weekender is almost always heeled over, the PC sails pretty flat. They're both a lot of fun, and have comparable performance, and both are easily beached.

Scott Widmier used to have a PC before selling it and moving to Georgia. He's probably done the most post completion modification and enhancement out of all our builders, and his input would be very valuable from the PC side. There's tons of builders of Weekenders out there, so help on that front is almost overflowing.

As to gatherings, We've got a few ideas we're planning, including trailering boats onto a ferry and heading to Pelee island. We can't sail our boats there, since it's very open water on a lake that can change her mood very quickly, but once there, it's somewhat protected for launching.

There's also talk of East Harbor, close to cedar point, and a few other destinations. Typically, some folks from Ohio head out to Jamestown, PA for a week for a boat builders gathering, primarily a Cleveland CABBS (Cleveland amateur boat building society) event, though us BYYB folks have been known to crash repeatedly.

Either way, the designs are both fun, so you can't really go wrong. Welcome to the madness, and enjoy.

I am also 6'4 (and 270#) I chose to build the weekender after considering the two. I looked at Scotts pocket cruiser, and liked the stability as I moved around. I boarded the wild goose, a weekender, and although she responded to every step I took, I feel in love with the design and styling overall, and the ability to make her heel with ease. During the build, I had no difficulty moving in and out the cabin and around the cockpit. The building resources are readily available, and many modifications have been tried, and tested by others. I have 4 in the family and 3 fit in the cockpit, and one sits on the companionway. The wife and I overnighted, and it was cozy, but doable.

Thanks everyone for your feedback!

I will keep on-the-lookout for any gatherings within a few hundred miles.

In the meantime, I need to finish the 'Little Gem' rowing skiff I already started in Nov, and hope to get started on Triad this fall. Again, I probably won't start the PC/Weekender project for at least a year, so I have plenty of time to look around, receive opinions, and think about it. :?

Allen