Feeling the pinch from the current financial chaos? You are not alone, people all over are having to scale down their lives to fit what they can afford.

Now may be a good time to build that new boat that you want, rather than buying one that you can't afford. Build from plans or a pre-cut kit.

Scroll down to see some of our smaller boats that can be amateur built and which may fit your budget. If you want to build a bigger boat, we can help you with that too.

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Canoe or small dinghy? Built from readily available materials by very simple methods, these little boats are within the abilities of almost anyone. Hundreds have been built as first time boat projects from plans published in newspapers and magazines. Use it as a confidence builder to lead up to a bigger project.

Multi-purpose dinghy. Build one for fun with the whole family. They can all be rowed, sailed or motored. Ideal for teaching the kids the basics of boating of whatever kind takes your fancy. A small boat can give children hours of inexpensive entertainmant while also keeping them fit and healthy.

Trailer-sailer. This type can fill all your needs for racing or cruising, on a small budget. Dry store at home in winter to save marina fees. Trail to other waters to expand your horizons, without the costs of buying, owning and maintaining a large boat.

Canoe and dinghy plan packages include panel cutting diagrams, details, material list and building instructions. The exception is the Challenger 13, which is a more advanced project and should not be tackled as a first time build. The Argie 10 can be ordered as hard copy or as computer files for supply on 3.5" disk or by email. The computer files can be viewed on any web browser as if you were accessing them via the web. The other designs are on hard copy only.

Trailer-sailer plan packages include all drawings and instructions needed to build the boats. If you want full size patterns of bulkheads and skin panels we can supply those also.

If you get stuck while building, take a look at our FAQ pages, where your question may have been covered. If not, email us for advice.

Click on the design names below to see more information. Order from our pricelist, with payment by various methods.

Dixi Dinghy

8ft Plywood stitch & glue 3:1 dinghy

Great "own boat" for kids.

Sails 1 adult or 2 kids, rows 3 adults

Length 2.44m [8'0"]

Beam 1.28m [4'2"]

Draft - board up 0.12m [5"] - down 0.54m [1'9"]

Hull weight 22kg [48lb]

Sail area 4.23sq.m [45.5sq.ft]

Outboard power max 3hp

Argie 10

10ft Plywood stitch & glue 3:1 dinghy

Ideal 2-person training boat.

Sails 2 adults or 3 kids, rows 4 adults

Length 3.08m [10'1"]

Beam 1.35m [4'5"]

Draft - board up 0.12m [5"] - down 0.54m [1'10"]

Hull weight 29kg [64lb]

Sail area 5.25sq.m [56.5sq.ft]

Outboard power max 5hp

Cover courtesy of SA Yachting Magazine

Challenger 13

13ft Plywood lapstrake 3:1 dinghy

More challenging construction

Ideal 2-3 person training boat.

Sails 3 adults or 3 kids, rows 5 adults

Length 4.0m [13'1"]

Beam 1.6m [5'3"]

Draft - board up 0.15m [6"] - down 0.8m [2'7"]

Allup weight approx 100kg [220lb]

Sail area 8.79sq.m [95sq.ft]

Outboard power max 8hp

Paper Jet 14

14ft Plywood stitch & glue performance skiff

Club or family trainer

Sails 1 adult or 2 teenagers

3 Rigs on 1 hull

Length 4.10m [13' 5"]

Beam 1.63m [5' 4"]

Draft - board up 0.12m [5"] - down 0.8m [2' 7"]

Hull weight 45kg [100lb]

Sail area - Lite 7.3sq.m [79sq.ft]

Sail area - Standard 10.3sq.m [111sq.ft]

Sail area - Turbo 14sq.m [150sq.ft]

Argie 15

15ft Plywood stitch & glue 3:1 dinghy

Ideal group training boat.

Sails 3 adults , rows 5 adults

Length 4.70m [15'5"]

Beam 1.80m [5'9"]

Draft - board up 0.16m [6"] - down 0.82m [2'8"]

Hull weight 60kg [132lb]

Sail area 9.8sq.m [105.5sq.ft]

Outboard power max 10hp

Lynnhaven 16

16ft Plywood stitch & glue touring canoe

Paddle as a canoe

Row as a small pulling boat

3 Flotation/storage compartments

Length 4.725m [15' 6"]

Beam 0.92m [3' 0"]

Hull weight 20-32kg [45-70lb]
(depends on plywood thickness used)

Plans include full size patterns and
instructions with many photos

Cape Cutter 19

19ft Lapstrake plywood trailer-sailer cruiser

gaff or marconi cutter rigs

Comfortable week-ending, sleeps 4

capable little cruiser

Length 5.8m [19' 0"]

Beam 2.2m [7' 3"]

Draft 0.45/1.22m [1' 6"/4' 0"]

Displ light 870kg [1918lb]

Plans include full size Mylar bulkhead patterns

Cape Henry 21

21ft Lapstrake plywood trailer-sailer cruiser

gaff or marconi cutter rigs

Comfortable week-ending, sleeps 4

capable little cruiser

Length 6.38m [20' 11"]

Beam 2.42m [7' 11"]

Draft 0.495/1.34m [1' 7"/4' 5"]

Displ light 1160kg [2557lb]

Plans include full size Mylar bulkhead patterns

Didi Mini

21ft Trans-ocean racer

Exciting powered-up round-the-cans or distance racer

Mini 650 (Mini-Transat) class

Length 6.5m [21' 4"]

Beam 3.0m [9' 10"]

Draft 2.0m [6' 7"]

Displ light 850kg [1874lb]

For alternative cruising version see Didi Cruise-Mini

More comfortable, smaller rig, lifting keel

Didi 26

Round-the-cans racer

Accommodation for family weekends afloat

Lifting keel trailer-sailer or fixed keel

Racing or cruising layouts and cockpits

Length 8.0m [26' 3"]

Beam 2.47m [8' 1"]

Draft 0.5/1.7m [1' 8"/5' 7"]

Displ light 1000kg [2200lb]

For smaller version of this concept see Didi 23

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