Well boats???

[Cap'n Chaos]

Can someone please explain a well boat to me... I don't get it.

No other boat is designed anything like it....that I know of at least. I don't know anyone that owns one to ask about it.

I do not understand why they are designed that way.

(I am sure there is a very good reason / advantage to this setup that someone here can explain to me - and everyone else that didn't want to ask.)

 

[Beefer]

Re: Well boats???

Ok, I give.... what's a 'well boat'? Got a pic of one?


...and before anyone says it.... I'm sure it's not a boat that isn't sick

 

[JoLin]

Re: Well boats???

I have the same question. What is it?

 

[Shrike]

Re: Well boats???

What it is?

 

[Cap'n Chaos]

Re: Well boats???

... lol, not a trick question.

I've heard them called "well boats".

I'll attempt to explain it... this 'outta be fun... :redface:

It's an aluminum boat (all I have seen is aluminum at least) which does NOT have the motor mounted on the transom... instead it's in a "well".... inside the boat, as in it's own compartment... with the lower unit protruding out the bottom of the boat.

Surely someone here knows what I'm talking about....

found a pic...

 

[spikeitaudi]

Re: Well boats???

So it's a boat that has an outboard engine mounted in the back 3/4 of the boat through a opening. At least that is what the pics look like.

 

[birdgod]

Re: Well boats???

cool inside outboard http://www.atomvoyages.com/projects/outboard.htm
i think the sail boat use this design for back up. never think of this type of setting..

 

[sasto]

Re: Well boats???

Simular to this one???.....but with a "well" built around the motor....and more foreward? I believe Mitchell Boats built several in FL.......made a good work boat...as the operator could work midship.... while maintaing control with a tiller armed outboard. Havn't seen one in awhile.

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Well boats???

That is an O/I Outboard Inboard

 

[Cap'n Chaos]

Re: Well boats???

What's the purpose of having the motor positioned like that?

Dare I ask how it doesn't fill up with water.... is there a shroud that fits over the lower?

I mean, there is a HOLE in the bottom of the boat afterall... lol.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Well boats???

That is an O/I Outboard Inboard

Ayuh,...

 

[Tabman]

Re: Well boats???

Simmons Sea Skiffs are a good example.

 

[Beefer]

Re: Well boats???

Here's your answer to the design straight from the Simmons Sea Skiff enthusiast website:

Simmons' inspiration for the motorwell to house the outboard came from several sources, but paramount was the fact that standard outboards of the day had a 15" leg. With such a motor mounted on the transom, there was a great risk of waves breaking over the stern when running the local inlets. Bringing the motor inboard allowed Simmons to retain the original high, raked transom, which created a huge amount of reserve buoyancy and made being overwhelmed by a following sea far less likely. As a bonus, the motorwell allowed fishermen to run nets and lines directly over the transom and made shear-pin replacement and other underway maintenance chores less hazardous.

An interesting read on an unusual boat.

Something I thought were cool aspects of the boat;

Transoms and motorwells were always built of solid mahogany. framing and longitudinal members were fastened with screws and bolts, and planking was held together by closely spaced bronze ring nails. Simmons relied on a dead fit between joints to keep water out and used no caulking compounds or glue. Another product that Simmons never put into use was fiberglass. He once joked, "Enough people don't like fiberglass to keep me in business."

I wonder if he used packing rope? I know that's not the correct name for it, but...

 

[Cap'n Chaos]

Re: Well boats???

I was a little slow to get my head wrapped around around how it doesn't leak water... but that last pic of the " Z SEA" did it.

There wouldn't be any waves splashing up from underneath the boat now would there...

Thanks everyone!

 

[dlngr]

Re: Well boats???

Thanks!! I learn sumpthin every time I read this forum!!

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Well boats???

OK sorry if I offend anyone in advance but these boats have redneck engineering written all over them!!

 

[JoLin]

Re: Well boats???

OK sorry if I offend anyone in advance but these boats have redneck engineering written all over them!!

Not at all. An uncommon way of doing things, but having a fishing or work boat, outboard powered, with a high transom and noplace to snag nets or lines, makes perfect sense. Since it's an outboard, you don't have issues with leakage from outdrive bellows or inboard shafts, and repowering is a piece of cake.

I'd call it a nice piece of simple, creative engineering for a specific purpose.

My .02

 

[pmillar]

Re: Well boats???

They probably provide better (low speed) maneuverability to boot which wouldn't be a bad thing for a working boat. If not better it would certainly be different. Kinda like driving a bumper car on the water...

 

[likalar]

Re: Well boats???

I saw a well boat (25' or so) this summer on Cape Cod. It was a traditional lobsterboat design with a 90hp Yamaha in the well. The boat was so beautifully maintained with shiny dark blue glass hull, and perfect brightwork. I assumed the customer wanted both the traditional look of a down east boat and the benefits of an outboard, but just didn't want it to be seen on the transom, ruining the classic lines.
Larry

 

[Tabman]

Re: Well boats???

The timing of this thread is pretty coincidental as I worked with an owner of a Simmons Sea Skiff just a few days ago to select Trim Tabs for the boat. I was already familiar with the boat as I have been aboard quite a few boats with the outboards in wells over the years.

I agree with JoLin, it is a rather elegant design, and like just about all traditional boats the design follows function resulting in what I think is a good looking boat with many desirable traits.

The hull bottom on the sides of the well extends the running surface aft of the weight of the outboard and sort of acts like fixed Trim Tabs. The result is that the boat comes to plane quickly with a bit less bow rise.

The added buoyancy in the stern coupled with the high transom addresses one of the biggest reasons an outboard boat swamps, i.e. water coming over the transom. This is often is made worse by the operator's weight aft in the boat trying to fix the motor. In a Sea Skiff you can move areount aft with an added degree of confidence due to that added buoyancy.

Over the years working in the boat business, I have run across many hull designs that incorporate "pods or sponsons" in an effort to extend the running surface of the boat. It seems to me the Simmons Sea Skiff was ahead of it's time!