PT Watercraft designs dinghies that are efficient, functional, modern, and attractive—available as kits you can build yourself. We also carry small boat parts and instructional books.
The Port of Port Townsend is under new management and is eager to welcome leisure and work boats alike. The port has recently been collaborating with the Marine Trades Association and community members to adjust prices and attitude to better represent our beloved working waterfront culture. Port Townsend is unique with its concentration of amazing skills, services, and integrity, supporting that culture.
Please contact the PortofPT.com for quotes and/or PTMTA.org for services directory and additional information.
The boat yard is already using Winter rates for the 75 ton lift with a minimum of 60 days.** This fee schedule compares with regional yards that offer similar services. In my humble opinion, however; there simply is not a boat yard anywhere that offers as much in excellent services and great atmosphere. Just sayin’.
AEB 😉
*SHIPYARD RATES: (This is for Storage Rates only:for boats hauling out on the 300 ton travel lift. Current daily rate is $1.15 ft/day. Current monthly rate (20% discount) is $0.92 ft/day. New Seasonal 300 Ton Shipyard Storage Monthly Rate (30% discount) is $0.80 ft/day, with one month prepayment, October 1- March 31.)
**70-75Ton lift yard rates..
Port Townsend is one of the most highly respected working waterfronts on the west coast.
Just because I could, (and the opportunity to learn something new came up), I have made a limited supply of unique sterling silver pendants that feature the PT Swift silhouette that is our logo. Each one is different in design and with its own serendipitous imperfections. If you think this might make a nice appreciation gift for your partner, your can order them HERE. There are only eight (8) all together!
I will ship First Class with tracking and I will include a leather or hemp cord, or for a little more, a 1mm, 16″, silver ball chain. In order to price them easily, I can only ship within the USA. (The rope chain pictured is not available)
Book sales proceeds from Sailor Sai, Toti Bleu, and Project Cheers, benefit three special women and their projects. Pendant proceeds just might pay for another batch of silver clay and more pendants for next year.
Another wonderful and creative person in my family has a sale running on her amazing accessories. Fun and beautiful, these already under priced gems may not be available again for a while. FEELGOODGEMS by Dana Ecelberger
Port Townsend Watercraft is closed June through mid July this year as we will be sailing the boat back from Ketchikan after the Race to Alaska, discovering places new to us along the way. Getting to take a cruise of some kind every year is a big reason why we run our own business and it supports our ability to maintain our high standards of quality. It refreshes our minds and spirits so we can devote ourselves to producing these custom kits, writing books, and develop new ideas.
If you have just discovered our site or have been following our designs for some time, it is good to let us know sooner rather than later that you have decided to build one of our kits. We have a convenient Quick Deposit button on our website that puts you in a ‘first come, first serve,’ position. Upon our return, we will contact you and begin the process of preparing kits on order.
While we are away, some of our products can still be purchased with timely delivery. See the links below image.
Our booth with WEST SYSTEM EPOXY and 3 PT 11’s on display!
I am told that there will be several PT 11’s, Spears and Skiffs at the festival. We also hope that anyone in the area with a PT 11 or PT Spear, will come over for the “under 26ft” Regatta in the afternoon on Friday. Wouldn’t it be fun to have a fleet of our dinghies to compete against each other? There is also a rowing race on Saturday morning. They should have a schedule up soon; Tickets go on sale July 1st. We hope some of our PT11 family club will set up one class regattas over the next year and we will help spread the word via our Quarterly Newsletter.
We hope you will enjoy discovering all of the information on our website, Videos on our Youtube channel, and please do not hesitate to send your questions to info@ ptwatercraft.com. (no space) We will respond as soon as we can.
As the days tease us with warm waves of air and then sudden plunges in temperature, I know Spring is almost here. Suddenly it feels like there is just so little time left before we have some deadlines looming. The biggest is the Race to Alaska in which Russell will be participating in a Gougeon 32 Catamaran. I am quickly learning just how much preparation there is in taking on such a challenge! Be sure to follow the race. It is entertaining and inspiring!
Entering the R2AK also means that we will be unable to ship orders during the period from June 1st through mid July. We will be sailing the boat back from Alaska so the office will be closed during that time.
At present, we have a number of kits available; Both Spears and PT 11’s. If you have been planning this Spring/Summer project, please let me know!
If your PT 11 or Spear is almost finished and you are ready for your sailing rig, We have a run of rigs almost ready!
The new batch of plywood is BEAUTIFUL and kits are rolling off the CNC machine.
Out of this batch of PT11 ans PT Spear kits, everything is beautiful, except….one PT11 foredeck. As it is not cost efficient to cut just one new foredeck, we are offering this kit with a $50 discount. See the photo below to better understand this somewhat deep but pretty small flaw. (smaller that a quarter) Anyone want to try their hand at an inlay repair?
Now available, Project Cheers is a candid tale of single handed Trans-Atlantic racing in the ‘early days’. (ON AMAZON – Or directly from PT Watercraft)
Project Cheers is a narrative by the late Dick Newick, Tom Follett and Jim Morris about their American entry into the 1968 OSTAR (Observer Singlehanded Trans Atlantic Race) Things were very different in 1968 in the world of yacht racing. Newick’s unusual design, Cheers, a proa, shook things up a bit and forever changed certain ideas about ocean racing.
The book was only ever published once in England in 1969 and original copies are hard to find and precious. With multihulls in the spot light in the America’s Cup and breaking records at an astonishing pace, we wanted to honor Cheers and the three men who created and raced the boat, for their vision and perseverance. The story is an inspiration to anyone attempting the “impossible”.
In St. Croix after the race..
Over the last 2 years, I have acquired permissions from the publishing house of the original book, and worked with the copyright heirs to obtain original photo scans and feedback on what direction we would take in re-publishing the book. (Nothing about the book had ever been saved digitally) I also nearly checked myself into a loony bin trying to work on MS WORD but was saved by MAC’s Pages to format the book. Many pictures were not found in originals. It took a special scanner to get scans of them that did not produce Moire distortion when printed. We even had the photo curator at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News VA looking for original pictures. The museum hosts an extensive multihull collection.
While I would have liked this to be a glossy hard cover, my budget did not allow it. If there is interest, I can work on it. I did choose to print it with slightly larger print, and created a new cover to distinguish it from the first edition.
Profits from book and poster sales will benefit the Newick family.
Special thanks to everyone who participated in this republishing project. You know who you are. Besides the unusual grammar in the book, (we left all of that as per original text) any major mistakes can be corrected if you find them. I almost published the book with a super big boo boo (thanks to MS WORD auto format) but that was caught, (Thank you Katrina for your expert proof read!) just before going to press. Yay!
Finally, I have digital videos produced in 1968 by the BBC and CBS. (Not to mention reels of 16mm film!) Permission to upload these to the internet is still in question. These would be extremely fun to share and it seems like after more than 45 years, it should not be a problem to do so. I am working on it and if anyone has connections to those agencies, that could be helpful.
Enjoy a little clip that I think is from the 1960 (first) OSTAR race. The BBC has been very reserved about releasing such features to the public domain.
There is a good reason we have a business based on boating. We love sailing! But what good is it if you only get to hear about others going on voyages? We have been pretty good about getting away from time to time but generally we keep those trips short. For 2015, we have been planning something bigger.
A sailing trip to the Queen Charlottes (HAIDA GWAII) has been on our radar for years and this Summer we know a few friends that are making the trip. After a year in the planning, we are going too, for what might be our last real trip on our sailboat Jzerro. (raising the FOR SALE flag)
This means PORT TOWNSEND WATERCRAFT will be closed from early June through late July. I will have someone shipping out books during our absence. {UPDATE: for more immediate print book ordering, please see the links below}
I am bringing this up now because we do get some orders, primarily from the southern hemisphere, during the summer months. Besides that, it is a slow time for us
Jzerro in Port Townsend
since most folks who get this newsletter in our hemisphere are on the water playing. So here is the plan; -We will be shipping kits through May but the sooner we know about your order, the better.{All done here.}
-Some orders will go out in August. Again, the sooner we know about them, the better. {some are already on order. Yours can be too. See below for quick deposit instructions}
-We will be participating in the Port Townsend Annual Wooden Boat Festival in September and will be taking orders for shipping from October on. We hope to see you there!
Visitors study the PT 11 nesting dinghy
How can you secure a kit quickly? There is a quick deposit link (green box on the right hand side bar under the form links) on our ordering page. A hull number is assigned to names in the order deposits are received. Kits will ship in that order.
Upon our return we will go through all mail and reply in detail so please do email us! We apologize in advance if this timing inconveniences anyone.
The reality about this trip is that we do not expect to have access to internet or mobile phone coverage except on rare occasion. Yes, that is still possible. I am so excited! (AEB)
Our print books are on AMAZON: But, beware of crazy prices in the “used” section. Our books new are priced under $20. There are likely to be delays getting builder’s manuals shipped. Our apologies for this. Please use the BUY NOW buttons (not the order-form) on the manuals page and our trusty caretaker will get them shipped.
Scarfing Basics is the latest ‘how-to’ book by Russell, since publishing Epoxy Basics in 2013. These books do not come into being casually. Every photo requires a good subject and what presented itself in the shop in between ‘business as usual’ this summer was scarfing. There are often ‘how to scarf’ questions online and a wide range of opinions shared that can sometimes cause more confusion than real help. The builder is still left to pick and choose how to proceed. For Russell, “strong, clean, and accurate” are the words of the day. This book describes the methods he prefers, in direct, concise language and large color photographs. While there are multiple ways to scarf plywood and lumber, this book is a great place to start and/or perfect your scarfing skills. Amateur and professional woodworkers alike will find a lot of good information and tips in this book for Cutting and Gluing, Strong, Straight, and Clean Scarf Joints in Plywood and Lumber, including making your own jigs for table saw and router.
The book is currently in its final proofing stage and will be available as an ebook first, and as a print book in late January from Port Townsend Watercraft.
Multihull enthusiasts may know that designer Dick Newick passed away last year. Among his things were a stack of posters of his amazing, and historically significant, proa, “Cheers”, as painted by artist Bruce Alderson. One of these posters has graced our walls for many years and we are pleased to be able to offer them at a special price. Please read more about “Project Cheers” HERE.
Initially, we have set the price for the USA as postage is easily assessed.
For Europe, we would prefer to send several posters to a distributor. Individual postage from here to Europe, runs at $24 for the cheapest method. We hope that by having a distributor in France, postage will be far less.
Interested persons from outside of the USA should contact me to get on the list. Anyone interested in buying several for resale should contact me. QUANTITIES AT THIS PRICE ARE LIMITED.
Please note that a portion of the proceeds for these posters will go to Mr. Newick’s widow. In addition, there are a limited number of posters signed and numbered (253-294/400) by painter, Bruce Alderson. We are also in the process of re-publishing the book, PROJECT CHEERS. Please see our webpage for details.
