Category: Nesting Dinghy Activities

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Russell and I want to let everyone know that we are much closer to having the PT Eleven nesting dinghy done.
The final prototype is very close to completion. All the hardware (some recently posted on the blog) and most parts of the kit have been developed for production.
Writing the manual is progressing daily and formatting it is not far behind.
We will be able to cut kits for the PT Eleven after we finish this boat and the manual.
We are aware that it has been a long wait for some of you and you may have moved on to other ideas.  We have had some pretty impressive charachters view this boat and their critiques have been extremely positive. The PT Eleven is a very highly developed kit boat and will be complete before putting it on the market.
Pricing update: We still think we can sell this kit for $1,500.00 including the glass kit.
Options including rig and foils kits, water tight hatch kit and other small parts will be priced when fully developed. (Some of these have been posted on the blog)
We are working on a very well developed sailing rig.
The foils (daggerboard & kick-up rudder) are CNC cut from Okoume plywood and finished by the builder.
The mast is a 2 piece tapered carbon tube that fits into a sleeve in the hull. The boom is a tapered carbon tube as well.
The sail is a smaller version of the one in the videos, about 60 square feet. The design is complete and beng made locally. Prices for these will be announced.
We apologize to those who have been waiting for awhile. This has been a far more involved process than we expected, but we believe that the extra time spent has been time well spent.
This show model of the PT ELeven, as well as the PT SKiff will be at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival on the weekend of September 9-11. Port Townsend Watercraft will have a booth with Gougeon/West System Epoxy.
Feedback and questions are welcome. If those of you who plan to buy a PT Eleven kit this year would like to reply and let us know, it would help us a lot in our scheduling.
Best regards to all,
Ashlyn & Russell Brown

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On March 5th, we unofficially joined in the 20th Annual Shipwrights Regatta in the nesting dinghy with a rig borrowed from a previous prototype.  We started out of the harbor in a light shower and extremely light winds but the sun actually showed its warming face between clouds for the better part of the afternoon. Russell and I missed the skipper’s meeting but the committee graciously said we could join in.

Nesting Dinghy on at the finish line
Big thanks to Craig Wester for this photo.

We took off on the third start after the racing and cruising boats with 4 other inshore boats and then took the long course instead of the short course for lack of better directions. There appeared to be a lot of confusion on what the course was so we went after the bigger boats. It was our good fortune to see when the lead boats hit contrary current and a no wind zone at the same time and we were able to skirt around at a totally comfortable pace.  We actually managed to be the second boat around the first mark even though we (along with a couple others) passed the bell on the wrong side...  oops.We rounded the second mark amongst the lead boats and then hit some glassy water of our own just before the finish line.

After rounding the second mark

It turned out to be a fun and relaxing day and we were happily surprised about the way the Nesting dinghy performed. Can’t wait to get out there in more wind and see what happens.
Some pictures follow and the link to the PTSA race report. See side bar..

in the bow of the Nesting Dinghy

"CRUSOE"

Nesting dinghy in Shipwright's Regatta A little video clip...

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We are back in PT after an interesting, albeit wet, trip to California with the nesting dinghy prototype. We arrived just in time to catch the downpour that lasted nearly a week while the cold and rain we left in Washington turned to sunshine.
We made the best of it by visiting a few brilliant and dear people who shared their enthusiasm and their wisdom about boats, business and the nesting dinghy.

On the first clear day we put the boat in the water in Monterey and rowed out of the marina, There were some swells piling up on the other side of the pier so Russell dropped me off and joined a paddle boarder and a young surfer to catch a few. I managed to get a couple of short videos.  On another day we got the boat in the water in San Francisco with a friend of ours and set up a borrowed sailing rig. Unfortunately it was dead calm and we had to get back on the road and over the mountains before the next snow set in. It’s all in this clip: Surfing the nesting dinghy prototype

Now back in PT, Russell continues the design work in earnest to make it all work as close to his ideals as can be AND as a kit. The sailing and small outboard options directly affect the basic kit components and have to be essentially clear before we can cut the ‘final’ version of the 11’ model.
The Shipwright’s Regatta in Port Townsend is happening this Saturday, weather permitting, and we plan to be on the water sailing the nesting dinghy. See you there or here when we post again. A few photos follow...AEB

PT Watercraft
Our Nesting dinghy packed into the back of our little Toyota truck.
PT WATERCRAFT
We traveled with all our camping gear in there too. The truck got caked in dirty slosh coming over the mountains.
PT WATERCRAFT
Discussing the boat with Dick Newick
PT WATERCRAFT
John & Michel Marples
PT WATERCRAFT
Brian Clark & Anne Cooper

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The latest prototype of the nesting dinghy is currently being trialed.
LOA: 11ft
BEAM:4' 2"
NESTED LENGTH: 6'
NESTED HEIGHT: 19.5" at one end, 16.5" at the other end. 

We have a SHORT VIDEO of the boat rowing and of assembly in the water.
Next, we are making a road trip to California with the boat in the back of our little Toyota truck. We are making a tour of some of the smartest people we know to get their input before finalizing the details of the design.
The next and final prototype will reflect minor changes from this one, that are intended to increase performance, ease of construction and lower production cost in an effort to keep the kit price attractive.

For now, in spite of a list of creative names, we are tentatively calling this boat the PT 11.  We are inviting everyone interested in this boat to send in their suggestion for a design name, keeping in mind that it will eventually have sister designs of different sizes.
If we decide to use your suggestion as the market name of the boat, we will give you a nice discount on a kit.

Your feedback is always welcome.  Russell & Ashlyn