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We have returned from our trip to BC feeling generally refreshed. Our main goal of getting good video of the nesting dinghy was largely thwarted by successive gales and torrential rains! However, we did get a few light winds clips on our last day in the San Juans and we had some time on our trip to simply chill.  Today I will post a few photos. It will take me a bit longer to sort through the video clips and put something together. One thing was for certain on this trip; wherever we went, the PT Eleven attracted enthusiastic interest. This is very exciting for us!
For those of you who have ordered your kits already, our CNC shop is scheduling a session for the plywood parts, and the  connective hardware, gaskets, and other stuff are on order to complete the packages.  Russell is working on  the adjustments to the manual. More updates to come soon! ptwatercraft.comThe PT Eleven nested on the trampoline of Jzerro ptwatercraft.comVito Dumas sailed with us for most of the trip to Desolation sound. ptwatercraft.comRussell and I having a leisurely sail. ptwatercraft.comA row around the bay with Peter. ptwatercraft.comAlex, an avid “SUP (stand up) board guy” sailing the PT Eleven. ptwatercraft.comWatmo Bay.

 

 

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Hello All,    Before I update the blog with any news, I would like to invite everyone interested in the nesting dinghy series from PT Watercraft, to take a moment and fill out our questionnaire.  Your input is our best guide for certain developmental decisions along the way.  Many thanks!  Click here to go to the questionnaire.

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Well!!...we are recovering from a super weekend at the Port Townsend Wooden Boat  Festival. We want to thank all of you who came by to see us. We were surrounded the entire time and absolutely loved it. The positive feedback was overwhelming and we thank you all.  Also, being in the tent with WEST SYSTEM worked out wonderfully as people's epoxy questions could also be so expertly answered. I am posting a few images from the festival especially for those of you who did not make it and also to show the PT Eleven that was nested on a 33ft boat in the festival.

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Our booth at the festival with the PT Eleven out front
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sail designer Sandy Goodal and Josianne
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The PT Skiff at the dock
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PT Eleven nested onboard the 33ft LOD, SV Kuan Yin
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The PT Eleven, 11ft nesting dinghy nested onboard SV Kuan Yin under sail
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boat festival panorama

Russell & I will be away until the end of the month on an R&D trip. We will be trying the nesting dinghy out in all kinds of conditions and taking pictures and video. We will post this on the site when we return. There will be someone  “in-office” to take phone calls, answer emails, and to take deposits for those of you who would like to be in line for a kit. Kits will be cut in order of deposits received and there are a few in line already. Shipping/pick-up starting mid October. Cheers, everybody!  Ashlyn & Russell Brown

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We are at the Festival. We have a booth next to the presentation stand out on the point. The PT Skiff is in the water at the dock. We hope some of you can make it over the weekend!  We will be accepting orders for both kits for shipping in October. The PT Eleven will be having a few file adjustments and these need to be reflected in the manual.

I will post a couple of sailing pictures with the new rig up. We just got one chance to try it out yesterday. Worked great! ptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comAlso there is all new info on the website. Still some blank spots but it will be filling in soon. Cheers to all..

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As Promised:

These measurements were taken with the nested package laying on a flat table.

Seat tongue extends 2” past the 70” package length at the height shown.
Therefore;
Maximum package = 6ft x 4ft 2”  (with bumper)  20” height at bow/stern,  17” height at bulkheads.
It fits neatly with gate closed into the 6ft bed of our Toyota truck. It also fits into the back of a Toyota 4Runner.Ptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.com

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There are several options that we have been working on to be able to offer for this boat. I will begin posting them.  Pricing will be announced on our website soon.

We are using Australian made Gaco gated oarlocks because they work beautifully and they are lightweight and also because of the reduced pin size.
The socket only requires a 5/8” hole. We plan to offer both the oarlocks, sockets and riser blocks kit as shown as an option. ptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.com

LEATHER PADS
When nested, the forward half touches the after half in four places, three of which are edges against edges. Leather pads glued on with contact cement nicely protect these edges. The leather pads that we sell have a center-line mark to help position the pads. ptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.com

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Monday August 15th, we put the new PT Eleven in the water for the first time. The launch committee included the major contributors to the development of the boat. ptwatercraft.comEveryone took a turn rowing the boat. Here are a few of the pictures from the day.. ptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comptwatercraft.comSince we have been working on safe loading calculations that have come out to the odd number of 3.9 people or 518.78 LBS, we got 4 of these guys to get into the dinghy and take a row. Each of them admitted to weighing 180LBS and possibly more so we casually demonstrate here where the boat sits with at least 720LBS and rowing at a fair clip.  This demonstration was not about safety but simply to see how much free-board would be left. We could have tried to load the boat to near submersion but that will be a test for another day.ptwatercraft.comEveryone present was thrilled with the boat, “a delightful boat to row..”  and impressed with the ease with which it assembled and disassembled.
As a footnote to the day...We brought the boat back to our shop where Russell pulled it out of the back of our Toyota truck and rinsed off the 2 halves. We had friends visiting from Canada and while Russell was deep in conversation with them, I jumped into the truck to run an urgent errand. I had seen the boat in the shop. In fact, I had seen the aft half on its stand, and felt confident to back the truck out. Confident, that is until I heard a loud 'pop!'.  My heart stopped and thankfully I had the presence of mind to stop the truck. Completely out of my field of vision, near the front right wheel, the forward half of the boat had been on the ground. I had rolled onto the corner of it with the front wheel of the truck. Distraught, I ran into the shop for Russell. We freed the boat and Russell studied the damage. He tells me today that it is pretty amazing that it was not worse. A little epoxy and a touch up on the paint completed the repair but he could see by the tire track that a great deal of weight had been applied to the hull and that it had withstood it. The loud ‘pop’, was the sound of the corner of the gunwhale giving way.

I share this embarrassing tale because...well...because this kind of thing happens sometimes and while I still feel pretty bad about not making sure the entire boat was inside the shop,  I count our good fortune that it was not worse.  We came very close to not having a boat for the upcoming festival!