Source: Wooden Boat Foundation • http://www.woodenboat.org

Jean Alden


Palo Alto, California / United States
Jean Alden Jean Alden Jean Alden sailing in South San Francisco Bay

Vessel description

The Jean Alden is modeled on the traditional Cape Cod catboat. I started with Phil Bolger’s design for the twelve-foot Bob Cat, scaled it up to fourteen feet, added a small cabin and copied the rig from a Crosby catboat described in a monograph by Barry Thomas. I also modified the stem profile to have the tumblehome that is characteristic of this traditional design. I built her in my garage and driveway over a three-year period, starting in July of 1997.

The primary hull construction is Okoume plywood reinforced with epoxy impregnated fiberglass cloth. Topside thickness is 6mm. Bottom thickness is 8mm. The deck and cabin top are laminated Douglas Fir and Red Meranti strips over 6mm Okoume plywood with a total thickness of 1/2 inch. Cabin sides and coaming are 5/8-inch tongue-and-grove Douglas fir. Cockpit seats are 12mm Okoume plywood. Cabin sole is 8mm Okoume plywood. The stem and other deadwood are laminated Red Oak. I used Iroko for the cap rails. The spares are hollow and constructed from Douglas fir with birds mouth joints. Wall thickness varies from 1 inch for the mast to 1/2 inch for the boom and gaff. Fastenings are silicon bronze and epoxy. One Christmas vacation I used a large conference room at my job as a loft for making the sail.

The result is a sweet sailing pocket cruiser that has brought our family much joy and satisfaction.

Vessel details

In WBF Festival:10,09,08,07,06,05,04
Boat captain(s):Mike Higgins
Type:Sail
Construction:Wood
Wood hull:Yes
Engine:None
Year built:2000
Builder:Mike Higgins
Designer:Mike Higgins
LOA:14'0"
Beam:7'0"
Draft:0'10"
For further information contact
Wooden Boat Foundation
info@woodenboat.org
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