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Andrew Erickson

In article
,
wrote:

OK, I do not want an inflatable dinghy cuz they row poorly. My
original dinghy was 8' of fiberglass and very heavy and took up too
much space. Portaboats (folding dinghy) is both heavy and makes too
much windage leaning against stanchions, my Two-paw-9 nesting dinghy
is also too heavy and a pain to assemble in spite of my advanced L
bracket and clamp system replacing the original bolts.
SO, what I want is a dinghy that works like a modern backpacking tent,
held "up" by tension of strong but lightweight poles. Two
longitudinal ones at gunwales, one at the keel, one across transom ,
one across center and then all joined at the bow. This should have
light weight fabric over it with reinforcing at stress and wear
points. The center crossbeam should hold a seat for good rowing
efficiency and another at the rear for a passenger. Does such a thing
exist? Is any design available?

D.C. Beard's 1911 book _Boat-Building_and_Boating_ describes an
"Umbrella Canoe" along these lines on pages 43-47. Dan Beard was the
founder of the Boy Scouts of America, if I have my history right, or at
the least one of the earliest Boy Scout leaders, and so his books are
aimed more at Boys than at experienced mariners. That said, the design
is interesting and suggests your ideas are at least somewhat practical,
for what you desire sounds more or less like one-half of this boat,
scaled up a fair bit.

A reprint of the book is available from Lee Valley tools for around
$10.00. A good library may also have a copy, or be able to get one from
inter-library loan. (The "plans" are more suggestive illustrations than
complete lines-and-offsets affairs.)

--
Andrew Erickson

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot
lose." -- Jim Elliot