How to Build the Haven 12 1/2-Footer

Some reviewers don't know what they don't know. Some do.This book describes the build. It does not intend to provide enough for you to build the Haven 12 1/2.This is neither a beginner's model, nor is it a complex craft. The Haven 12 1/2 is in between--it is a small 'little' yacht. Adequate Builders Plans do not come in a book for a moderately complex boat, perhaps for a model, but not when lives are carried by the vessel. And yes the photos are black and white--this book was prepared in the 1990's by a marine historian with the help of the vessel's designer. The photos taken were during an actual build and are therefore immensely helpful in understanding the process of building a boat, full of details if you know what to look for.The book provides a floor of understanding for how to build this boat. If you were quite handy, yes you could-- with a set of plans, or an offset book build a facsimile. Lacking those necessary conditions, if you want to build this boat make the commitment to buy the plans, the book, and get some help in learning how to build.Time estimates are not included but it's not a weekend project, not even over several weekends if you've never built a plank on frame boat. If you know what you are doing, and have the tools and materials at hand its a several hundred hour project.A new Haven 12 1/2 will run you about $40,000 in 2014, perhaps a bit more depending on the profit motive and overhead costs of the builder. Roughly that's 1/3 for materials, 1/3 for labor, and 1/3 for the government/overhead. That's a lot of work and materials.Author Maynard Bray did a fine job on this and it's a fine reference book for what is intended. Nothing more, nothing less. Like the Haven itself--it is good at what it intended to be--the book is a guide and the boat is a lovely daysailer.

no plans included

I saw a lovely little boat in Penzance Harbour, decided I liked the look of it, and tracked down what it was - a Haven 12 1/2! I bought this book to whet my appetite with respect to building one sometime in the future. First off - this book assumes a certain level of boatbuilding knowledge. That is not to say that you must be an experienced builder; you'll just need to read "Building Small Boats" by the same publisher concurrently (which I also own - it is fantastic). This is not an easy boat to build, and the first thing that will strike you is the amount of work involved. It's at least twice the amount you're expecting if this is your first boat. Prepare to be shocked.As for the content, the book pretty much consists of 224 individual steps in building the boat - each with a black and white photograph and a paragraph or two describing what needs to be done and some common problems you might encounter. As I said before, sometimes these descriptions slip into jargon which you need to have prior knowledge to understand, but if you're serious about building this boat you should be researching the topic quite well anyway. Some of the photos would benefit from being in colour but this isn't really a concern. They get the general gist across.The book closes with some beautiful sketches of the boat in plan and cross section, and small excerpts from the boat plan. Note that this book does not contain actual plans. Unless you are very adept at lofting (and not too concerned about accuracy) you will need to buy the plans too.The book also gives you advice on how to care for the finished boat and use it.In conclusion, a fantastic book for what it is, but you will need to buy the full-sized plans (which are expensive), and if you are a first timer you should also buy "Building Small Boats" or a similar book as well.

Just perfect, thanks.

Great book taking the prospective builder through the construction of this beautiful boat. As good a book on boat construction as I've seen. Check it out with the book, then buy the plans and build it!

I had high hopes for this book based on the reviews but was disappointed. The photos are all Black & White & very poor quality. It's hard to see what's being discussed because there is no real contrast in the fotos - all a bit foggy. Black & White images are known for their ability to contrast the varying shades of gray but the publisher/photographer/author - I don't know who - skimped on the image quality to save a few bucks. The text is simply a paragraph or two about each image. Could've been a great reference but they opted go the cheap route. Only 63 pages of small foggy photos to build something very complex - but then they send you to the website to get more images - but that'll cost you $50 to get in for just a look-see. Kind of like they planned it that way. I'm not impressed.That said, the delivery was prompt & the book arrived in perfect condition. Top marks to Amazon's shipping dept.

This is a step by step guide to building a Haven 12 1/2 with pictures for each step. A very interesting read if you want to know how one builds a wooden boat on a set of molds. However, it does not include the blueprints or a license to build this design. So, don't expect to build one of these until you buy the plans with a license to build one. This book is very useful as a preview of what you will be getting yourself into should you go ahead and buy the plans. So, highly recommended if you are thinking of building an Haven 12 1/2.

Very useful book

Sehr gutes Buch zur Haven 12 1/2 auch wenn man nicht gleich das Boot bauen möchte.

This book became my best friend