100 Boat Designs Reviewed: Design Commentaries by the Experts (Woodenboat) [Paperback]

Peter H. Spectre (Author)

Book Description

Series: Woodenboat | Publication Date: October 15, 1997

Information has been compiled from the best boat design reviews from WoodenBoat Magazine. The reviews are comprehensive and thorough. An analysis of the lines, construction plan, accommodation plan plus recommendations for improvement.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Well-known as the editor of the best-selling annual Mariner's Book of Days, Peter Spectre lives in Spruce Head, Maine.

Product Details

• Paperback: 266 pages
• Publisher: Wooden Boat Publications (October 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0937822442
• ISBN-13: 978-0937822449
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,038,103 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you love to study boat designs...., January 15, 2000

By 

Robert E. Miller (Rhode Island) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: 100 Boat Designs Reviewed: Design Commentaries by the Experts (Woodenboat) (Paperback)

I have been unable to put this book down. In the few days I've had it, I have already studied each set of drawings several times. There are many beautiful designs here, and the commentary is enlightening. Great book for wooden boat owners and dreamers. My only complaint is lack of an index. Sections on each design are titled decriptively, but do not include the name of the boat or the designer, making it hard to find a particular boat. This should be corrected.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars buy it only on sale, September 14, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: 100 Boat Designs Reviewed: Design Commentaries by the Experts (Woodenboat) (Paperback)

The essence of any boat review is the drawings. They say as much to a prospective builder as any collection of writings can.
This book has excellent and well-written design reviews, accompanied by drawings that vary from good to unusable.
In particular, those drawings of boats provided by Woodenboat are among the worst, and appear to be copies of copies of copies.
Although the shading work of Susan Bray helps salvage some of this mess, unfortunately she was not comissioned to redo, or at least clean up the numerous blurred, faded, or just hard to look at line drawings in this book. At the list price of 24.95, this is a waste of money.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Somewhat better than bargain bin material, November 6, 2005

By 

Dave (The PNW) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 100 Boat Designs Reviewed: Design Commentaries by the Experts (Woodenboat) (Paperback)

I agree with a previous reviewer, in that many of the drawings needed to be cleaned up - a lot. Some actual photographs would have greatly enhanced the book as well! The cover photo is just a teaser, and ultimately becomes a depressing example of how nice this book COULD have been. Also, I found this compilation, often word for word, duplicated many of the designs and descriptions already covered in the "30/40/50 Wooden Boats" series. The reviews were based on previously written descriptions (see above), the reviewer's own interpretation of the drawings, or on hearsay - NOT on the reviewer's actual experience with the boats. Many times the experts just describe a boat from the drawings without any interpretation at all. Not too impressive, since even I can see if a boat is ketch rigged, has 3 berths, a starboard galley, etc.

That being said, the book does have 100 boats to dream about, including paddle, sail and power boat designs of all different sizes. Most are fairly conventional, older, wooden boats - but some of them are not, and are pretty interesting and thought provoking. When the expert reviewers venture their own opinions, the reading becomes more entertaining, and it is nice to get a different slant than the one promoted by the designer or plans broker.

If you don't mind the lack of photographs, and aren't already familiar with the other boat design books put out by Wooden Boat magazine, then this is a nice book to have.

If you're looking for in-depth information, real visual inspiration and originality, then save your money.