Hybrids Ugly?!

R

Rich M

New member
Hi guys, I haven't been on here in a long time. I look at 1 post and find out how ugly my boats are! LOL!

The Hybrid NL is a nice looking boat IMHO. Granted, I tend to keep things more basic and left out most of the stringers and cross member supports. The cockpit and the side supports the deck while the bottom, transom, bulkhead, and bow support the sides.

Is she still ugly???

10 ft version with a 15 hp on it - the boat handled the water as well as many larger boats I've used - even at 30-40 mph. Not bad for an 82 pound boat.

20090515154709_Capture_3.jpg


20090515154709_Capture_2.jpg


20090515154709_Capture_1.jpg


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This is the 8 ft version

FreeStanding.jpg


Fronton.jpg


Rear.jpg


SideProfile-1.jpg

 
Hi guys, I haven't been on here in a long time. I look at 1 post and find out how ugly my boats are! LOL!

The Hybrid NL is a nice looking boat IMHO. Granted, I tend to keep things more basic and left out most of the stringers and cross member supports. The cockpit and the side supports the deck while the bottom, transom, bulkhead, and bow support the sides.

Is she still ugly???

10 ft version with a 15 hp on it - the boat handled the water as well as many larger boats I've used - even at 30-40 mph. Not bad for an 82 pound boat.

20090515154709_Capture_3.jpg


20090515154709_Capture_2.jpg


20090515154709_Capture_1.jpg


20090515154709_Capture_5.jpg


This is the 8 ft version

FreeStanding.jpg


Fronton.jpg


Rear.jpg


SideProfile-1.jpg
Click to expand...


I can't help but wonder how much flotation foam you have in there and what the USCG calcs for HP work out to on that boat. I don't see any lights or numbers on it either?

Tod
 
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I can't help but wonder how much flotation foam you have in there and what the USCG calcs for HP work out to on that boat.
Click to expand...


But Tod, look at it this way;

When it sinks, the motor will be so much easier to find seeing as how it is attached to two sheets of plywood.
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[font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]
I can't help but wonder how much flotation foam you have in there and what the USCG calcs for HP work out to on that boat.
Click to expand...


But Tod, look at it this way;

When it sinks, the motor will be so much easier to find seeing as how it is attached to two sheets of plywood.
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Click to expand...


He is in Florida so there are not a lot of rules about that kind of stuff.

What were Dani's calcs on her foamer?
 
I would guess the hybrid is as seaworthy as other boat in its class with similar hull design and length. Just like anyboat you need to respect its limits.

As far as looks, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I'm sure a limit of ducks across the bow of any boat adds to its beauty.
 
and thats DBL BUTT UGLY.....10 lbs of ugly ina five lb gun ugly.....

That said "who cares" if it does the job that you want it to do......

80 lbs doesnt' seem "light" to me and up till now I had heard that wt was one of the Hybrids pluses?...


Steve
 
Rich,
I like it. Heres why. You built it yourself and it works for you. I can see from the pictures that it is fun to run around in and its low profile I am sure hunts well.
Have fun this season, esp with the grassed up layout setup.
 
Very cool little boat you've got there. The best part of this site continues to be the great and different contributions that always end up here.

Thanks for sharing the pics and have fun and be safe out there.

-D
 
Rich, Do you have any pictures of the build? Did you draw up the plans youself or use existing plans and modifiy them? That boat looks very functional.
 
[font=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]
I can't help but wonder how much flotation foam you have in there and what the USCG calcs for HP work out to on that boat.
Click to expand...


But Tod, look at it this way;

When it sinks, the motor will be so much easier to find seeing as how it is attached to two sheets of plywood.
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Click to expand...


Based on what I know about Rich and his boats, I'd say he's got more than enough flotation in there. I know several people who have built versions of the Hybrid, and they're all tanks - rigidity is not an issue. 82 pounds doesn't seem overly heavy to me for a 10ft glass-over-plywood boat. And since the pictures are likely from it's original floating/motor test, I'd say that's why there are no registration numbers on it yet. How many folks actually have numbers on their home built boats when they get float tested? Not many, I'd wager. It may not be rated for 15hp, but if it's only a quick out and back run as a test to see what she'll do under that kind of power, I don't have an issue with it. I don't think it's a bad looking boat, and if it runs well in skinny water and disappears in the marsh, who cares? There aren't many duck boats out there that'll win a concours for beauty, anyhow. That's not why we build 'em.
 
HP ratings are primarily figgured by floatation, not strength of the transom or performance. There has to be enough floatation and room for it to float the boat, motor, persons and gear level and upright while swamped in seas.

That boat looks like a little rocket, looks like fun. I sure would have on a life jacket personally, though!
 
You gotta figure thats 85 lbs with decking. Not bad, I'm currently building a 15.5 ft dory that should end
up at that weight without decking!

Give a man some credit, what do you think Devlin went through to get some great designs?
Hell, even Bolger made some butt-ugly boats. They worked great though!
 
and didn't I say IMO it was? And then didn't everyone that said, or implied, that it was, also say, "SO WHAT as long as you like it and it does what is supposed to"?......so whats the beef? Where does a "break" need to be made? Or should we now be PC in our answers to direct questions and say...."gorgeous, best looking ________ I've ever seen" as is applied to so many things that simply aren't these days?

Curious in Seattle....

Steve
 
Ahh Steve you know I love you man. And I am probably the least PC guy here besides you!!!
I try to tamp it down at the risk of offending too many people.

I was trying to say that I didnt think 85 lbs. was all that bad. Ugly? Hell yeah, that was my earlier "Beerholder"
comment. If I close one eye and squint at 50 yards it doesnt look too bad! Then again I used to use that technique
in bars too at closing time.

Hey, you ever coming back to Maine? There are lobsters and birds you know!
 
one of the things that I've heard REPETEDLY abou thte hybrid has turned out to be almost exactly the same thing you hear about the Aqua Pods.......start talking about Hybrid vs Kara and the first thing you hear it "Hybrid is lighter"......same thing with the Pod....pull up with a DP and a 10' Pod owner will hiook his thumbs in his wader straps and crow...."LIGHTER".....

Well turns out the answer to both is DUHHHHHHHHHH...cause its notsapples to apples and thats what I was referring to when I said 85# doesn't sound all that light....agreed as has been said that its not a BAD wt. its just that since I have heard repeatedly that its the "cats ass" in handling that now doesn't sound so true since if you cut a Kara down to 10 feet it wouldn't weigh much more than that either....and I'd bet that I could slap a transom on the back of a Kara, clamp my 15 on it, fortify myself with Mr.Patron's finest and run that sucker on flat water like a "raped ape", (in a straight line at least)....

None of that makes the Hybrid a "bad" boat...it just means that TO ME I had been led to beleive that it was somehow "different" and that turns out to not be true, (other than looks), once the wts and pictures of it are known....

Is it a good boat? Got me, never seen one...seems like a lot of work for a little boat what with the complex angles and the stitch and glue technique but I've never been close to one so I'll stick with "Ugly-no big deal as a "light wt" boat-and WHO CARES what I think if it works for them"? How's that?

I can't seem to get back to the upper East Coast...whatch for Mark Vanderhoof to be up with that way with a boat and friends in tow this fall to hunt with Bill...I'll make it back it back eventually...

Steve
 
It's nice not to have everyone liking the design and such. That way I get to see areas that may use improvements. Here's a video for your viewing pleasure and yes I'm wearing a life jacket in this one. I'm intentionally running it with the bow up - this little boat works great within its limitations and I have yet to finish testing those. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blumcB0x2Is

They are all original designs. The first Hybrid was the result of stubbornly wanting to build a small & light duck hunting boat. The consecutive ones are simply modifications to the original. No computer programs, no boat building books, nothing. All from scratch. Any similarities to anyone else's boat is purely coincidental - the Hybrids are all built the same way and that's the beauty and simplicity of the design.

The stitch and glue was needed so I didn't have to worry about all those unnecessary cross pieces or ribs or whatever you want to call them. All they do is add weight. The FG and glue adds the strength without all the bulk.

Why wouldn't you build a boat out of 2 sheets of plywood if you could? LOL! The boats take less wood than a coffin box and are so much more utilitarian. Not everything has to be able to handle a 2-4 ft chop.

How much should a 10 ft FG over ply boat weigh? 82# aint bad - the next one won't have the heavy plywood transom and bulkhead, I think I can get it down to 70-75#. I was also told that I couldn't get any lighter in foam composite building from the guys over at Bateau when I wanted to order the foam from them.

The lightest 8 ft boat I've built was in the 45# bracket. Incorporating heavier plywood to help the build adds some weight and they go between 55# and 65#.

A Hydroplane the same size runs with a larger motor legally so how's that all work out? The motor works great but it is a little heavy, weighing 77 pounds - only 5 pounds less than the boat. I will run a smaller one on there but only due to the weight issues.

Where'd the foam concerns come from? Everyone is responsible to do their own math for the USCG requirements. It is their deal, not mine - I don't want that responsibility. So I don't say anything about the requirements other than to read the USCG Backyard Boat Builder and apply it.
 
I like the 8 foot version. It would be a great little boat for the back water here on the Barnegat Bay. Who cares so much what it looks like, we are only going to cover it with grass anyway. As long as it floats, conceals well, has ample storage and brings us home safely that all most of us should care about. A lot of times, beauty is more work. I remember an old boss of mine always singing this song.....If you want yourself a happy life....then you better marry yourself and ugly wife. His ex took him to the cleaners.
 
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