Building a Row Boat - Things to Consider

Building a rowboat, like any project would require planning and thank goodness, basic skills in woodworking. Though, there are certain things which you have to keep in mind to build a boat that is safe to use and very easy to maneuver through the water.

Some factors that plays a great deal are:

Ratio of Width to length

Wider boats offer more stability in its structure while allowing more space on board however, longer boats are easier to row and can hold a course well. Therefore, you have to determine the most efficient ratio for the boat to maintain a good balance of these factors. Generally, a 1:4 width-length ratio works most effectively.

Hull Shape

The hull shape would also play a great part for overall stability and design of the rowboat. To build a row boat, you need to determine the shape of the hull the suits you best.

A flat bottom hull proved to be very good in terms of stability especially initially when boarding the boat. It is also comparatively easier building a rowing boat with flat hull. The downside perhaps to this hull shape is it can get very noisy as the bow slaps into the water.

Another hull shape is the round bottom which is also quite stable especially when leaned to its side. Streamlined and more curved shape moves quietly through the waters.

Oars

Longer oars allows more efficient rowing adding more leverage and power to each stroke while short oars fit nicely. A good ratio would be approximately twice the boat's beam.

Design

Rowing, although can be pleasurable, has the tendency to become an ordeal. That is why the overall boat design plays a huge part in easy maneuvering of the row boat.

As discussed above, there are certain things which you have to consider that should go into the design of the boat.

Personally, I opted to work with a good and workable boat plan to build a rowing boat.And I strongly suggest you do the same. It has the definite dimension and measurement in place so I don't need to worry about such things.