TOPIC: Glen-L Boats

How do you guys feel about the Glen-L boats? I never thought I'd say this but I'm actually considering a wood boat. The Glen-L boats seem pretty durable. They look fun to build too.

I'm looking at the 14' Jet Cat, a catamaran design. It can handle up to 90 horses. I would love to throw two 1955-1959 JohnnyRude 35 horse outboards on it.

I'm convinced the Catamaran design is superiour to the mono hull. Ive never owned one though so that's pure speculation on my part.

www.boatdesigns.com/14-Jet-Cat-smooth-riding-power-catamaran/products/329/

www.glen-l.com/designs/outboard/dsn-jct.html

The guy in the boat looks kinda like my Dad in the 50's.

I was looking at theyre pland but then got a boat to restore i think it would be cool to do

I'm on the fence, find an old Fiberglassic or build a wood boat. Some of thier boats look like the old Chris Crafts. Beautiful designs on some of those boats.

I think it would be fun to build one. I may do one when I have more time.

Glen-L has some really cool boats, and a great following- Owners associations, etc.

Building wood boats is a fun pastime- I've built a couple of smaller ones myself... To get started, try something really small and simple first. Try out one of Phil Bolgers designs- Dynamite payson wrote a couple of books about them (Build the new instant boats). They aren't much for looks, but you can put one together in 1 or 2 weekends, and get a 'feel' for what's involved in a bigger project without the investment in time & money... I built one of his designs (the tortise) in 2 days with nothing but leftovers that I already had in the garage!

-Andrew

If you have never worked with wood before, I would start out re-building an old wood boat first. You're looking at a really big project. My Larson All American is half Mahogany. It was a pain in the butt. I like the twin 35's though. I have everything including the dual controls.

my oldest brother built the flying saucer ,it is a glen-l boat, back in 1962, i have pic's of it and i'll try to scan them and post them. it was rated for a 25 hp motor and he had a 1961 merc 400 , 45 hp on it and it held up and went like all get out. i have the plans for the rebel, and when i retire i am going to build it. i use to live in bellflower ca. about 20 blocks from glen-l, that was back in 1965, when my folks shut there resort down for the winter. lived out there for 2 winters 3 months a year. wood boats are cool, and fun to build. i built a 3 point hydro in wood shop, when in high school, and took it home on the school bus. don't think you could do that today,lol. frog

Although I'm not a super woodworker I make metal parts all day long. I manage the CNC and manual machining departments where I work. I can draw in Cad, program CNC's, design fixtures etc. If I can machine titanium, mahagony can't be that hard to work with.

My concern is the fiberglassing portion. I've never really worked in glass before. This does not seem over my skill level though. I learn fast and I'm good with my hands. Glen-L seems to have a good support system. If I have any questions they have forums to help out.

Andgoot I though I was starting small. I had my eye on the 18 foot cat at first. LOL

my 2 bits worth
Gail Brantuck took over the company from her dad. I am on the mailing list. They are a very good resource if you want to build oneof their products and they also have quite a community of builders as well to reach out to. You can start off easy and work your way up to any level of boat building with what they have to offer.
I have a Glen-L Squirt set aside for me to build with my sons. I have restored boats both wood and glass in many sizes and the knowledge base transfers all around. Go for it and start with something that yoiu feel comfortable with is all.

You can do it B-Don, go for it! Seriously, on the upper left hand corner of the Glen-L home page you can sign up for their newsletter and get their "101" book (pdf file) on building a wooden boat. Of course they're trying to sell their product, but still pretty interesting reading. (And FREE).

Free Newsletter
Sign up & receive Free e-book, "Boatbuilding 101"!

Bwana Don wrote:
Andgoot I though I was starting small. I had my eye on the 18 foot cat at first. LOL[/quote]

And you'd probably be just fine- If you are determined enough

But, A small- and I mean VERY small- first project will really help establish some skills, and let you know if you really want to consider tackling a larger project... There are a couple of boats in the Book I mentioned (build the new instant boats) that use the same tack & tape (or stictch & glue, whatever the particular designer calls it) method- One is just a little 8 foot rowboat.You can build it with a couple sheets of ply, some glass, and epoxy. With focused work, you'll be done in a few weekends. It is a great way to test the waters, and try out some fiberglass skills on a smaller scale. EVERYTHING you need is in the book, plans, material lists, etc.

Then, after you've finished- If you still have the itch to build, go for the bigger boat!

4 words .... Band saw, drum sander

If you do not have these start looking. A boat can be built without them, however you will wish you had each

also with the band saw you can save wood and money by re-sawing thick stock

Been watching Donrh (Don_GT160 here, I think) build a wooden boat from scratch, excellent thread;
www.classicglastron.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=3933

TT's right, there's nothing like having the right tools for the job!

There is nothing like working with wood, or glass. I do them both. This is my Glen-L Missile completed last year and a runner. Although designed for a Nailhead V8 and V drive, it does fine with my conversion to outboard and a tall stack Mercury 1350.

Brian

My father built a Glen-L Jet Cat when I was about 7 in 1963. It was a great boat and served our large family for many years. www.boatdesigns.com/14-Jet-Cat-smooth-riding-power-catamaran/products/329/

When i was 23, i built a Glen-L Stiletto... it was a great boat, fast with my 105 Chrysler outboard. www.boatdesigns.com/16-Stiletto-SK-ski-boat/products/361/

I enjoyed building the Stiletto, it was a long and expensive, but very rewarding project. If you are up to it and really want to do it... do it. You will be proud of your accomplishment! But here's the deal... plywood boats, even if fiberglassed on the outside, require a lot more maintenance than any FG classic. You need to be prepared for this.

I eventually gave my Stiletto to my brother and moved onto a 1959 Glasspar Avalon. I still have that boat today and use it every season. Today I am restoring a Glasspar 1959 G3. I'm going to stick with the fiber glassics.

Neither of our Glen-L boats still exist. They saw better days but ended up with rot, they were burned on the beach. Respectively, both of my FG classics are alive and well and over 50 years old.

Bawana, Go with a Glassic!

Dean

Dean thanks for the input. Maintenance is a deal breaker for me. I want to build it and enjoy it. I have no desire to strip and paint or re-epoxy anything.

They are some beautiful boats though. I would rather spend my time fishing than stripping and varnishing. I think me and a Glassic are a better fit.

Thanks to all for your replies. Back to Caigslist (Searchtempest) for me. I'm an addict anyway.

One thing about Glen L is that they have copies of plans for every boat they ever had. I had a 1958 Swish at one point and they were able to get me copies of the original plans.

I had picked up an old Glen-L Ski Tow that had been built in 62. It had some rot but nothing large and it was around the drain plug. I cut out all the bad wood and made a perfect plug and epoxied it into place and then covered it inside and out with glass and epoxy. It was stronger than original and kept the boat high and dry. Nice riding boat. I have plans to build a Glen-L Miss Mist.

Pete

If anyone is interested, we went to West Point this weekend. One of the security guards who processed our Jeep started talking to me about boats. He has a Glen-L 14' (can't remember the model) kit that he never did anything with and wants to sell. If anyone is interested, post here and I'll get a contact number for you.

crosbyboat wrote:

If anyone is interested, we went to West Point this weekend. One of the security guards who processed our Jeep started talking to me about boats. He has a Glen-L 14' (can't remember the model) kit that he never did anything with and wants to sell. If anyone is interested, post here and I'll get a contact number for you.

Glen-L 14 is a sailboat, I think.

Crosbyboat, your Missle is a real looker. Tudor your swish is pretty nice too. I have to admit they (wooden boats) are some damn fine looking boats. It's hard to find a glass boat with as much charactor!

I'm still thinking of the Jet-Cat. I'm going to price it out. Just for kicks.

My first post here. I was searching for some Glen-L stuff and saw your thread and couldn't resist joining and replying. I am currently building a Glen-L Malahini. There are plenty of guys on the Glen-L forum who have built beautiful, head turning boats that win ACBS awards. Many of those guys have never built anything like a boat before. I started out with a Chesapeake Light Craft (clcboats.com) kayak kit. I think I built it in four months. I worked many nights until 2am. It was fun and actually easy to assemble. It turned out great and I get compliments all the time. If you read enough and ask questions on the forums, you'll be prepared to do it. The fiberglass part was actually easy...a little messy, but easy. The worst part is the sanding. You'll sand for days. You will sand and sand and sand. If you use a cheap sander, you'll burn it out in a day. A good random orbital sander is a necessity. Also, be prepared to spend a year building a power boat. No matter how fast you work and how much time you have, you can't make epoxy cure any faster. The other thing is the space. You can build these boats in your garage, but be prepared to lose that space until you are done. I have a 3-car garage and there is only a boat in there right now for a couple of more weeks. You'll also need some willing friends to help you lift and flip the boat upright when you finish the hull (you start out building it upside down). Check out this boat (not mine):
www.glen-l.com/wordpress/riviera-builder-interview

Bwana Don wrote:

Although I'm not a super woodworker I make metal parts all day long. I manage the CNC and manual machining departments where I work. I can draw in Cad, program CNC's, design fixtures etc. If I can machine titanium, mahagony can't be that hard to work with.

My concern is the fiberglassing portion. I've never really worked in glass before. This does not seem over my skill level though. I learn fast and I'm good with my hands. Glen-L seems to have a good support system. If I have any questions they have forums to help out.

Andgoot I though I was starting small. I had my eye on the 18 foot cat at first. LOL