David Nichols new Sea Eagle 16.5 'Pandion'

Designer and builder David Nichols puts his latest creation Sea Eagle 16.5 through her sea trials on Lake Huron

Plan and profile views of the Sea Eagle 16.5

The original sketches for the lug rigged cat yawl.

After sailing Pandion for a summer, David is considering revising the sail plan with a batwing main for easier reefing.

Detail of the hatch hinge, David and crew designed and fabricated all of the bronze hardware.

Bow detail

Stern light.

Another view of the stern light showing exquisite attention to detail.




all photos courtesy David Nichols, Arrowhead Custom Boats and Canoes

The March/April issue of The Small Craft Advisor featured a boat in their Plan Study column which really caught my eye. David Nichols is a long standing Texas boatbuilder/designer who also summers in Michigan where he teaches at the Great Lakes Boat Building School. He is best known for his small canoes and fishing boats, but is branching out. His latest creation is intended to be a family of small yachts ranging from 14'5 to 27'. His design precis states that he was looking for a beach cruiser that could easily be launched from a trailer while capable of standing up to some fairly big water, The Sea of Cortez, for example, and having shallow enough draft to allow use in his local skinny Texas water. The built prototype is the Sea Eagle 16.5 Pandion. David trailed her to Michigan for sea trials last summer. He wrote a full design brief including the results of his trials in the Les Cheneaux Isles on Lake Huron for the SCA article. Originally designed as a lug rigged cat ketch, David wrote me that based on his experiences sailing her last summer he is rethinking the sail plan and working on an alternate rig, reference the drawing above of a batwing main. Here is an excerpt from David's new book, soon to be published by Breakaway Books on the 16.5 and 14.5 Sea Eagles. Plans for both boats included.

The sails

"I spent last summer sailing the boat with standing lug sails and I love lug sails. The sails are fast and easy to rig. They are reasonably weatherly and easy to handle. I particularly like the ability to brail up the sails but I felt I wanted to make some changes.

The balance of the boat was good. There was a small amount of weather helm but the helm was light and pleasant. That meant I needed the combined center of effort of news sails to match the CCOE of the old sail plan when and if I changed the sail plan.

So why did I decide to change the main sail and why did settle on a batwing? Let me go through all the sails I considered and then I think those two questions will be answered.

First, boomless lug sails are somewhat difficult to reef. It’s an involved process not easily done in open water and single handed. Also, I found storing the sails when struck but still under way a problem. It was always a wrestling match and in open water and high winds not something I wanted to do.

The oblivious change would be to add a boom to both lug sails and if I hadn’t intended to make my own sail this would have been the easiest and most cost effective solution. And a good one I might add. Actually, that’s what I did on the mizzen sail.

The first sail I considered was a boomless gaff with a foot of 8 feet. This gave about the right sheeting angle and I do like a boomless sail. The gaff sail could be scandalized (with the right gaff jaws) and I could get plenty a sail area. The main problem with this and all boomless sails for that matter is the sheeting angle off the wind. I could have compensated some with a vang off the mizzen mast and a Cunningham but that still left the reefing and storage issues.

The next choice was a boomed, loose-footed gaff sail. Scandalizing was still an option and the loose foot would allow the sail to be thriced up as well. The only problem was being limited to a 7 foot 9 inch boom (The distance between the main and mizzen mast is 8 feet) and I couldn’t get quite enough sail area.

But if I filled in the area between the gaff and the mast I came up just a few square feet short of the 101 square feet of the old main lug sail. I found that by adding just two battens I could get the batwing shape I wanted. The Batwing eliminated the ability to scandalize but I could still run the vang from the mizzen mast to the lower batten for control of off the wind twist.

Jiffy reefing could be done single handed and the whole sail collapsed on the boom captured by lazy Jacks. All this had the added benefit of a single sheet for the main and a single sheet for the mizzen. A pleasure when sailing single handed.

The final point that sealed the deal was the CCOE of both sails were almost identical. So by keeping the old mizzen sail the combined COE of both sails remained the same.

All of this does come with a price. The original rig had a halyard and brailing line for both sails (total of 4 lines), two sheets for the main and one for the mizzen (total 3 lines) and a rigging time of less than 30 minutes solo.

The new rig has a halyard for the main and a halyard for the mizzen, a sheet for the main and a sheet for the mizzen, topping lift for main and topping lift for mizzen, lazy Jacks for each sail, Jiffy reefing for first reef and jiffy reefing for second reef for both sails, a down haul for the main, a main boom and a mizzen boom, and a rigging time yet to be determined (you can bet it will be considerable longer than 30 minutes).

Is the new rig worth the extra price? For me, yes. For someone else, perhaps not. But that’s the joy of building your own boat. You get to tailor it to exactly what works for you. You’re not stuck with a one size fits all boat.

Is this sail plan set in concrete? I doubt it seriously. I will, I suspect, add the batwing to the mizzen and I may try the boat as a cat schooner. I had intended to change to a schooner but the CCOE moved too much so I abandoned that rig, for a while anyway. So many sails so little time.



There is an extensive chapter on how to make the sails for the Sea Eagles. The purpose of the chapter is to give the builder the knowledge and confidence to make the sails as well as build the boat.

I think there is a ‘completeness’ or immense satisfaction that comes with moving through the water in a boat that you built and made the sails for. Your hand connects with both the water and the wind in a very personal way. It’s a very Zen experience."

The book also has an exposition of why David chose tandem centerboards, visible in the profile drawing above.
David and his team fabricated all the bronze hardware for the boat( see the detail photos above ), and he suggests that anyone with brazing and welding kills can do the same, but adds that given the price of bronze, maybe stainless is better. I believe there are also larger boats in the works, David mentioned a 27' and a 22' version. Stay tuned.

And, thanks David

Building the Sea Eagles, David Nichols

Pandion, David's prototype

the lines for the 14.5

Chapter 5, Setting up the Strongback and Bulkheads




Caapter 6 Planking the Hull




Chapter 12 The Big Turnover




Chapter 24 The Sails




Chapter 25 Odds and Ends

all material courtesy David Nichols

Back in April I had written about David Nichols new creation, a pair of Sea Eagles. The design had been featured in the Small Craft Advisor, and really caught my eye. David is not selling plans of the boat in the traditional way, but is rather offering the plans as part and parcel of a construction guide. A meticously detailed guide it is, too. I've offered a few pages from the book here to give you an idea. This work is so thorough and well photographed that I think people with only the desire, determination and some basic woodworking skills should be able to complete the project. The price of the book is a fraction of what most designers charge for plans. Published by Breakaway Books (see David's other books there as well) and is available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders and many other booksellers.

From David's introduction:
...Most of us dream about sailing off into the sunset to wander the oceans of the world, but for me that just isn't practical. For that matter, it isn't practical for most of us. What I do find practical is a small, simple beach cruiser that I can in a variety of waters both big and small. A boat large enough to provide some creature comforts but not so big that her size limits where I can take the boat. The boats in this book fill that bill.
Both Sea Eagles do have some creature comforts. In the cockpits, the seats are wide for pleasant sleeping and both are easily rigged for a cozy cockpit tent or sunshade. The 16.5 has a small cuddy with comfortable quarter berth for sleeping when the weather is frosty and both boats have plenty of storage space below decks. It' possible to carry enough gear below decks for lavish beach living and still have the cockpit clean and uncluttered. And both boats carry a portable head, an important consideration for many.
Also, I want boats that are forgiving and I designed the Sea Eagles to be forgiving. You'll find both boats stable to at least 90 degree of heel and the cockpits are self bailing. The heavy bottom and generous fixed ballast in the keel help to bring them back in case of a knockdown. Her tandem centerboards keep her balanced on all points of sail and well mannered in a following sea.
Good manners and a forgiving nature are crucial, but I think that a sailboat that is easily launched from a trailer is important as well. Boat slips are expensive and becoming increasingly hard to find. A boat that lives on a trailer doesn't need a slip and has virtually unlimited cruising ground. Sea Eagle's free-standing masts and simple traditional sails mean the time spent getting ready to launch is short and their shallow draft makes them as easy to launch as a power boat.
In addition I want a boat that is relatively simple to build. And because these boats go together with a modified stitch-and-glue building technique using epoxy, they are less complex and labor intensive to build than more traditional methods.
So that is what you'll find with the boats in this book. Both Sea Eagles are boats the are simple and easily handled, boats you can take on big adventures or small adventures, and boats that you will not easily outgrow.
You will also find that this book is writtenas if you had little or no boatbuilding experience. My goal was to make the book turn-key. That is, show you not only how to build the boat but make the sails and most everything you need to get the boat out on the water.

The book is so well documented that I believe it could be used as a construction guide for other boats built with this technique. Check into it. David's business is Arrowhead Boats.

Stewart Brand Liveaboard in Sausalito

Tugboat Mirene, 1912

Stewart Brand

courtesy Long Now Foundation

Stewart Brand, mastermind behind the Whole Earth Catalog,  an author concerned with subjects as varied as cybernetics and the evolution of buildings who describes himself as a finder(of ideas) and a founder (of foundations and such), a perfectly 'Brandian' turn of phrase,  showed up in an email from my brother John today. Originally an article in the NY Times by Edward Lewine, it came to me as a post  on South Williard . Stewarts current project is called the Long Now Foundation and is dedicated to fostering long term vision and thinking as opposed to the faster/cheaper paradigm which  seems to (still) be the vision of most business and political thought. Stewart and his thought and projects, WEC in particular have been a huge influence in my life. Enjoy this: 

Brand lives on Mirene, a tugboat moored in Sausalito, on the San Francisco Bay.

By EDWARD LEWINE

NY Times Published: April 15, 2009

Deceased 1960s pal he’d like to see again: Abbie Hoffman. He was brilliant and a card and dangerous to know and delightful in every way.

His best line: In 1966 I had buttons made with the paranoid-sounding slogan, “Why haven’t we seen a photograph of the whole Earth yet?” Well, we got the photos from NASA in 1969.

Moving house: The Mirene is a working, 64-foot-long tugboat built in 1912. We take the boat out cruising from time to time. We turned the wheelhouse and skipper’s cabin into our bedroom, with two rooms and a bath below.

Why a boat: The main thing is our houseboat community here, which is exceptionally congenial. The boat is inexpensive to live on, and you have no problem with earthquakes, wildfires or rising sea levels due to global warming.

Green living: I didn’t choose the boat because it’s green, but it is. It doesn’t take much to heat 450 square feet. Cooling is no issue on the water. We have solar panels and a demand water heater and use biodiesel fuel when we cruise.

Morning routine: Get up at 6:30 or 7:00 a.m. The trip from the bedroom involves going down a ladder outside. I breakfast in the galley and then go off to work.

Job description: I design stuff; I start stuff; I found stuff. On the passport I put “writer.”

Bad trip: That was my first trip. I had 400 micrograms of LSD under quite clinical circumstances at a psychological research institute in Menlo Park, Calif. It was in a white room with therapists sitting around.

Good trip: In 1963 or ’64 I showed up at the door of Ken Kesey, the novelist and LSD evangelist. I was involved in Kesey’s Acid Tests, which were happenings where LSD made its way around and everyone was there to entertain each other.

Acid Test memento: I have my Acid Test graduation diploma. The conceit was, “Can you pass the acid test?” Mine was signed by Neal Cassady, who inspired Kesey and was the model for Dean Moriarty in Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road.”

On the wagon: Since 1969 I haven’t used psychedelics. I realized I’d seen all I needed to see.

Drug of choice: I’m stoned right now on two cups of coffee. I’m 70, and the easiest way to young-up your mind is to drink caffeine.

Worst thing about the 1960s: Let’s see. I made the mistake of being married during the sexual revolution. Nice marriage; inopportune timing.

Pets: We had cats, but we had to put them down. That was horrifying, and we replaced them with a life-size stuffed tiger.

Home office: I work in a landlocked fishing boat named the Mary Heartline, which sits about 100 yards from the tugboat in a parking lot. It looks like a Victorian cottage.

Item you need on a tugboat: You’ll always be glad that someone has stolen a shopping cart, so you can get stuff from your car to your boat.

Controversial stand: That technology can be green. The book I just finished, “Whole Earth Discipline,” has chapters on why nuclear is green, cities are green, genetic engineering is green. The romantic nature-is-perfect approach is just horse exhaust.

Back to the WELL: I founded the WELL, a pioneering online community, in 1985, with Larry Brilliant and some others. The name is short for Whole Earth ’Lectronic Link. I have the American Heritage Dictionary I used to find the name.

Exercise routine: I hike Mount Tamalpais.

Evening routine: My wife, Ryan Phelan, and I tend to go to restaurants or throw together a dinner around 9 p.m. I’ll read a novel or a comic. We’ll take a bath together and be in bed by 11:30.

Favorite gadget: I have this memo-keeping device that must be 75 years old. It’s from the house I grew up in in Illinois. It uses rolls of adding-machine paper — which you can still get — and you write on it and tear the paper off.

Obsession: Getting rid of alien, invasive plants. I bear down on this form of pampas grass that comes from South America and has no business in California.

Art collection: We don’t have room for much. We do have a 1.5-inch-long enamel drawing of the Mirene under fireworks in the bay.

What he drives: A Land Rover LR2. As soon as there’s a good hybrid S.U.V., we’ll get one. We need a mountain vehicle.

Favorite item in boat: I have the table at which Otis Redding reportedly wrote “Dock of the Bay.” An antiques dealer in Sausalito obtained it. Everyone likes to believe the legend.

Native American memorabilia: I used to be a member of the Native American Church. I have my old peyote-ritual gear: the feather box, eagle-bone whistle and tortoise-shell rattle. That’s for use with peyote, a spineless cactus that gives you an eight-hour trip.

Favorite vacation: We got a weekend place on the Petaluma River. It is a dead dairy farm, and that is where we are every weekend.

Always in fridge: Root beer and Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream. I love root-beer floats.

Next big purchase: Hearing aids. That is going to be $2,000 or more.

At age 5, he wanted to be: A veterinarian. As an early teenager I wanted to fight forest fires.

Current project: With the Long Now Foundation, I am helping to build a 10,000-year clock inside a mountain in Nevada. We are trying to get people to think long-term, because civilization’s shortening attention span is mismatched with the pace of environmental problems.

MAY 2ND, 2009