Design Books

[cb32863]

I have done some searching of the recommended reading thread for design books but I came up a bit short. That or I suck at searching here. Anyway, I would like to increase my knowledge of boat design and why some designs, keels, rigs, etc.. are better or worse than others. Want to make informed choices in the future and not ask the same questions as others have and been answered. I also did some searching on Amazon but, I don't want to waste money on something that doesn't have the info I want or just is not a good resource. So what books would you recommend? Need this to help get me through the upcoming winter as well. If someone can search better than I or has a link, that would be great.

CB

[Tempest]

Bob Perry has a pretty good book out on the design of his vessels that's very good. It's specific to his designs for the most part..but then he's designed some pretty nice vessels.

[svs3]

Try Ted Brewer's book and Skene's (sp?) Elements of Yacht Design, as well as, Seaworthiness: The Forgotten Factor, Fredric Mate's book might be worth looking at too. Also check out: Desirable and Undesirable Characteristics of the Offshore Yachts

[jephotog]

In a previous post someone suggested "The Nature of Boats" It looked interesting enough to put in my wish list but I have not bought it. Hopefully it will be in my stocking this Xmas.

[sailingdog]

Another good book to read is Dave Gerr's The Nature of Boats. While not really a design book per se, it does a great job of going into their construction and issues that can arise from it.



LOL... I see Jordan beat me to it.

[Zanshin]

By far and away the best design book I've read is "Principles of Yacht Design (3rd edition)" and in second place is the perennial favorite by Lars Larsson & Rolf E. Eliasson "Elements of Yachts Design" by Norman Skene

[jephotog]

Originally Posted by sailingdog

LOL... I see Jordan beat me to it.

While I'd like to take credit for my brilliant suggestion SD, I'm pretty sure I found out about this book from you in a previous post.

[cb32863]

Thanks everyone! This all should keep me busy over the winter.

[kwaltersmi]

I recently picked up Charles Doane's new book titled "The Modern Cruising Sailboat: A Complete Guide to its Design, Construction, and Outfitting."

It's a good read with great illustrations and pictures. The first half of the book covers design and construction and has been informative, if not all-together new information for me.

There's also a section at the end where Doane reviews 40 cruising boats ranging from 27' to ~60' feet. He chooses boats that he recommends based on his personal experience and gives a wide-array of different styles.

[deniseO30]

You may find also, free or very cheap boat design software out there in internet wasteland.