Eastport Pram

Product Description

The Eastport Pram, with more than 800 built, is one of the most popular small dinghies.

The design and the kit you produce is really first-class.

K.A.M.

The Eastport Pram is pretty, light, tough, roomy, and easy to build. It is just 7′ 9″ long and 48″ wide, but will hold about 375 pounds. She's built from 6 mm okoume using the LapStitch method so that it resembles clinker. The finished boat looks like it was built by a seasoned craftsman, but it will take a novice only about 50 hours to assemble the Pram.

This boat is for people who want a light boat to take to different waters and to mess about in when on holiday. The Eastport Pram is so light it is very easily put on a roof rack. It is small enough to be carried whilst towing a caravan. Many people use inflatable boats to ferry goods and crew between the shore and their main boats. The problem with inflatable boats is that they are hard to row so inevitably noisy outboard motors are needed. The Eastport Pram is designed to overcome the problems and be light and easy to row.

Small tenders should be able to withstand heavy handling alongside the mothership or in the dinghy park. Planking is 6 mm okoume throughout, with three 9 mm frames and seats. There's a big, deep skeg for tracking under tow. In addition to fibreglass reinforcement on the bottom panel, there are two rubbing strips on the bottom to take the abrasion of dragging on a beach. For added safety, permanent flotation tanks are built in beneath the seats.

The Eastport Pram has a deep rocker for low wetted surface and to keep the transoms from dragging. The result is a boat that is as easy and satisfying to row as you can expect on such a short waterline. Used as a tender to a larger boat, or kept at a dock, it's possible to undertake a long afternoon row around the local waters without breaking a sweat.

The Eastport Pram is built using CLC's patented LapStitch™ joints which means that the result is a remarkably stiff and strong hull that has the appearance of traditional lapstrake or clinker planking.

This is Mark II of the Eastport Pram: the panels on this kit are pre-drilled and the bulkhead positions are pre-marked so that it is possible build the boat without having to measure for locations.

This pram would also make a great first boat-building project, a wonderful fishing boat for a small lake, or a child's first boat.

There is also a Nesting Eastport Pram, which is split into two sections so that the forward section can nest completely in the aft section for compact storage.

We recommend 6ft 6in oars for this boat.

Few have visited without taking her out for a spin and learnt – or relearnt – the pleasure of messing around in small boats. And one of the nicest features is the smile she puts on people's faces when they're not even sailing her. We often feel like minor celebrities when sailing her with people taking photos or calling out ‘nice boat!’.

Mungo and Rosie

The kit includes:

• Pre-cut wooden panels with pre-cut joints, pre-drilled tie holes and panel location marks
• Epoxy resin and activator
• Epoxy fillers
• Copper ties
• Woven glass fabric
• Woven glass tape
• Hatch, seals and screws
• Pair of silicon bronze rowlocks and sockets
• Comprehensive building manual
• Free technical support from a competent builder

The daggerboard slot is pre-cut in the central seat and the mast partner hole is pre-cut in the forward seat for upgrading to sailing at a later date. If you don't intend to sail the boat, we can also provide these parts without the holes cut, on request.

What else do I need?

Broken inwales option

Broken inwales add elegance to any boat by mimicking the ends of the ribs in traditional frame-built boats. This option includes everything you need to install broken inwales in the Eastport Pram:

• Pre-cut quarter-knees
• Rowlock riser blocks
• Inwales
• Spacer block material

Some trimming and fitting will be necessary. Broken inwales take longer to install because each block has to be carefully positioned and glued in place. Sanding and varnishing are also made more complex. We recommend reading the installation instructions before deciding to install broken inwales.

Plans and manual

The manual is the one that accompanies the kits. It describes all of the techniques that will be used during the building and also a step by step guide to construction. Scale drawings are used throughout as well as photographs of critical jobs.

The plans for the Eastport Pram contain full-size drawings for every part. Using the plans of the panels with the cutting instructions it is possible to build the boat from scratch.

Study manual

This is intended for pre-build study or to help with the decision to purchase. Reading this manual will help you decide whether or not you can build the boat. It is the manual that accompanies the kits. It describes all of the techniques that will be used during the building and also a step by step guide to construction. Scale drawings are used throughout as well as photographs of critical jobs.

If, later, you decide to purchase the kit the cost of this printed manual will be deducted from the kit price.

This does not contain the plans of the panels with the cutting instructions so it is not possible to build the boat from scratch using only this.

PDF study manual

The construction manual for the boat is also available as a PDF download. After credit card authorisation a download link will be sent to the email address put on the order form.

PDF study plans

These study plans are intended to give you an overview of the construction of the boat. They are in PDF format that can be viewed using Adobe Reader. There are two pages and they measure 279 × 216 mm (11″ × 8½″). They can be printed for carrying around.

After credit card authorisation the plans will be sent to the email address put on the order form.

When you have studied the plans, your next step might be to order the printed instruction manual, which will walk you through the project step-by-step.

Wood

This option contains the pre-cut wooden components with pre-cut joints, plus the construction manual. It does not contain the plans (these are not required because the wood is pre-cut), any of the epoxy to glue and coat the boat, the fabric or tape nor any of the hardware.

Sailing upgrade

This option can be retrospectively fitted and it turns the Pram hull into an able sailing boat. The rig is powerful for its size and easy to set up and handle. Please note that the base kit (or a completed hull) is needed in addition to the sailing upgrade.

With the optional sailing rig the pram makes a splendid sail trainer. Tiny responsive boats like this offer immediate feedback and give sailors tremendous confidence in their ability to predict how any boat will behave. It is often said that you will learn more about sailing in a few days in a dinghy than in years of ‘cruising’ in big boats. Many big boat sailors still get nervous sailing up to a dock or manoeuvring through a crowded harbour without an engine. These are the very skills that are improved in tiny boats. Of course, improving sailing skills is not the only reason to sail a dinghy; charging around in the Eastport Pram is simply fun. The Pram has been designed with a strengthened hull and longer skeg to make it ideal for towing as a tender.

The upgrade includes:

• Sail
• Mast blank
• Boom blank
• Yard blank
• Mast step
• Daggerboard blank
• Fittings
• Rudder blank
• Tiller blank

The sail is available with or without a reef point. Whether you need this depends on how and where you will be using the boat. Please feel free to contact us for advice if you aren't sure.

The sailing upgrade does not include the warp – it is in the rope package.

Sailing rope package

The rope package contains the warp needed to rig the boat. It includes the sail lacing, main sheet and halyard.