Malahini by Jan Hoffmann, Neukirch, Germany
15 March 2011Here is my story about building the Malahini.
For long time it was my wish to own a wooden boat like the Italian RIVA or a Swiss BOESCH boat. But as I am no super rich person it was out of question to have one.
4 years ago we moved to a house were I got the possibility to use a garage for building a boat. The size of the area (garage) and the point that we need a special exhaust emission standard for the Lake of Constance (it is nearly impossible to put an inboard in a self-made boat without spending a lot of money to get an allowance regarding emission standard. But this is swollen bureaucracy) were the guidelines for choosing the plan. So I decided to buy the Malahini plans.
After checking the plans and buying the first lumber I started in autumn 2006!
Framework was done during the first winter and finished mid
of April 2007. Since January 2007 I have another
“time-consuming hobby”. My son Leon.
July 2007: finished the planking with sheet mahogany
plywood. If you fair the framework well it’s quite easy
to fix the plywood sheets. But you need tons of screws!
…and than…sanding, sanding…..
…and after a layer glass fibre mat and epoxy
…. It is really fantastic how the mahogany wood will
look like.
I painted the underwater hull with a layer of 2K coppery
paint and than a white Teflon Antifouling. Meanwhile I turned
the hull. I have no picture of that adventure because I did
it on my own. (Pulley)
I bought some nice instruments and started the interior
work. I decided to make stripped deck and to close the front
space to have a lockable room.
Than the electrical work has to be done. I hated this part
because electricity is not my friend!
November /December 2008. Decking is nearly finished now.
Time to give the whole project some colour (and varnish!!!)
And as you can see you need not that much space to build a
boat.
Summer 2009. I build a half round seat bench to have the
opportunity to install a little desk to have some
„goodies” on board as you can see on a later
picture.
With extending the bumper rails in the aft it was possible
to build a small swimming platform where I can attach a
ladder to get much easier out of the water.
Inspired by some pictures from several wooden boat builders
and their projects I decided to build the window frame also
out of wood. The other reason for that is it’s nearly
impossible to get those chrome windshield brackets which are
typical for the vintage US wooden boats here in Europe. (For
acceptable costs of course) And this was the first time SHE
lounges here nose in the wind.
Late spring 2010. And than the first time out of the garage
on the trailer in our garden
July 2010: First Launching. Everything was fine and
(that’s of course the fear of every boat builder) She
swims!
Summer 2010: We have had really much fun with the
“Fafa Piti” (Polynesian word for manta ray
– results from our honeymoon trip) this summer.
It’s always a pleasure to read the WebLetter and all other news.
If you have any questions or need more information/pictures don’t hesitate to contact me:
Best regards from the Lake of Constance/Germany.
11 July 2011 Update
The newest from today. Was a nice sunny swimming trip.
I just startet to build the Bravado. Love your plans and
support!
Thank you.