michalak sailboat

A weekend cruiser from Jim Michalak

S eeing an AF4 on the water for the first time is a bit of a surprise. At a distance, the raised deck profile fools you into thinking you are looking at a classic cruiser from a bygone era. As the boat gets closer, you realize she is smaller than you thought, and that she is built of plywood. When you get a closer look at her elegantly utilitarian form, you think that maybe it is a classic after all—a new kind of classic.

As a young aerospace engineer, Jim Michalak moved from his native Massachusetts to work at a missile plant in St. Louis, Missouri. Finding a flat land of broad lakes and rivers, his attention wandered to boats. After building a Gloucester Light Dory and the prototype Bolger Birdwatcher, there was no going back. Jim now has nearly 100 designs to his credit, and the AF4 is one of the most popular, for this simple cruiser is among the most accessible designs available.

What do I mean by “accessible”? Most obviously, external-chine “Instant Boat” construction is conceptually simple for the beginner, as well as quick and easy to build for anyone. Yet this simple construction provides a purpose-designed beach cruiser with about 4″ draft. This creates access for boating in places many of us haven’t even considered. With a low trailer, an AF4 has cruised where few motorboats can even launch.

AF4, an outboard powered beach cruiser with 4″ of draft, can boldly go where most boats can’t.

Ease of launch touches on another element of accessibility: setup time. Jim stresses that a boat that can be launched quickly and easily gets used more—sometimes a lot more. Consider how much more boating time the average working person has available if a weekday evening can be a meaningful outing. After the necessary errands, twenty minutes’ setup time can derail the whole thing; the AF4’s setup time is under five minutes.

Of course the flat bottom is not very capable on wide, unprotected water, but this is intentional. The AF4 is optimized for the sort of boating that is most accessible and appealing to most people: cruising protected waters on nice days. The AF4 is more capable than she seems, however. Flatties have a reputation for pounding in a chop, but AF4 owners feel that at 15 mph she pounds about like a deep-V hull does at 35 mph. Getting every- one to sit on the same side also eases the ride by using the chine as a shallow V.

Another element of accessibility is cost. Cheap and easy repairs encourage us to forget about resale value and use the boat. Inspired by Bolger’s Instant Boat work, Michalak designs all of his boats to be built with common lumberyard materials. These materials are not meant for continuous immersion, so I would not leave such a boat at a mooring; indeed, Jim’s Birdwatcher is kept on a trailer under cover and looks great after 20 years.

AF4 is a simple boat. Her designer, Jim Michalak, was unabashedly influenced by the late Phil Bolger, whose Instant Boats work inspired legions of amateur builders.

Michalak keeps his plans prices extremely low. At little more than the typical cost of study plans, he puts construction plans in the hands of dreamers so they can immediately become builders. He also lends confidence with information through his online boat-design articles (www.jimsboats.com) and his book, Boatbuilding for Beginners (and Beyond!) (www.duckworksbbs.com/ media/books/michalak/index.htm). Fuel efficiency makes for longer trips. As an engineer, Jim thinks a lot about things like power-to-weight ratio, efficiency, and range. The AF4’s flat bottom gets her on slow plane at 10–11 mph with about one horsepower per 80 lbs. This means a whole family doesn’t need more than an 18-hp engine, and a solo trip can get by with less. Jim makes this speed solo in his own AF4 with a 50-year-old 7.5- hp motor, yielding 15 mpg. A modern motor should do better. Even if you can afford to feed a go-fast boat, there is a limit to how much fuel you can carry. The AF4 lets you carry enough fuel to go a long way without resupply. Range—getting away—is an integral part of the designer’s concept of a camp-cruiser.

“Getting away” was, in fact, the whole reason for this design. Jim originally designed the AF4 as an efficient camp-cruiser for his own use. In this role, the AF4’s flat bottom is not just a simple method of construction. Jim is known for his spartan interiors— his cockpit contains only a folding lawn chair. This minimalist approach not only saves weight, but also provides lots of usable space for sleeping and stowing camping gear. This boat truly sleeps two in the cabin. The flat bottom also lets you creep into tiny, secluded waterways and beach gracefully. Indeed, you can pole her into places where canoes run aground.

The “slot top” allows passengers to walk nearly the length of the boat without leaving the safe confines of the cabin.

A cabin allows you to bed down with less fuss than a cockpit tent, but at the price of stooping. This cabin is an exception. A full-length “slot top” lets you walk upright all the way to the bow. Personally, I don’t know how I ever got by without this feature. When beaching, you simply walk forward, lean on the foredeck, and swing your legs out to plant your feet on dry sand. You can even fish from this slot, and its mechanics are handy when a hooked fish crosses under the boat. A few builders have made boarding even easier (myself included), modifying the cabin with a dropboard entry to the self-draining forward anchor well. Recently Jim went even further with his own boat and added a fold-down door in the side of the well. It looks a little odd, but kids and old joints appreciate it greatly.

That anchor well is very useful for muddy shoes, clothes, fishing gear, or anything else you don’t want messing up the cabin. If you run out of space there, the motor is mounted in a slop well with space for fuel tanks and reboarding after a swim. Keeping the tanks in a draining well is a nice touch, since vapors drain overboard to eliminate the risk of explosion.

A sailor seeking a powerboat tends to be uncomfortable replacing the quiet bliss of sailing with a noisy, expensive gas-guzzler. The AF4 strikes a balance, as the motor is small, quiet, and economical. She is small enough that you still feel in touch with the wind and water, but you can cover much more distance in the time available. And Jim is right—with no rig to fuss with, most people go boating more often.

A well forward of AF4’s outboard motor provides a secure, remote place for fuel; a high transom at the end of the cockpit keeps water where it belongs.

T he AF4 is capable of 25 mph, but not comfortably. She is happiest at slow planing speeds of 10–15 mph, and there is no apparent “hump” in getting to them. This is her most efficient range as well, creating less wake than many motorboats do at “no wake” speeds. Wakeboarding wouldn’t be much fun behind an AF4, but it can pass a canoe at slow plane without causing the paddlers much trouble (crew coaches take note).

I was on the water one day in my AF4 Breve—the 15-1/2′ version of the original 18′ AF4—when a group of folks in a raft of large powerboats waved me over to ask about my boat. Apparently they had been impressed with her looks and performance in the day’s light chop—and were even more impressed that we had only a four-gallon fuel tank. The fellow I was talking to started listing those advantages, along with cost savings on fuel, storage, mechanical work, slip fees, and maintenance. Apparently, the fuss and fuel cost associated with boats like his lead many to use them essentially as lakeside cabins. Friday after work they motor out a short distance and raft up with friends, then get around in the dinghy all weekend.

AF4 at speed. The specified power plant is small enough to keep noise and vibration to a minimum, allowing passengers to enjoy their surroundings.

The AF4 (or AF4 Breve), the man suggested, would be a welcome improvement over the typical dinghy in this application. Kids and groceries ride out of the weather, and the adults can stand in the slot and lean on the cabintop while chatting with fellow boaters. The slot top makes easy work of docking and coming alongside, as well, which is very welcome after staying up too late chatting. Perhaps best of all, meaningful day trips become possible without moving the big boat.

The AF4, in short, is a weekend cruiser that gives you everything you need and nothing you don’t. Whether you are a neophyte or salt-crusted, this efficiency equates to accessibility. Accessibility means you get on the water more often.

AF4’s construction requires five sheets of 1⁄4″ plywood and four sheets of 1⁄2″ ply, joined by nails and glue.

This Boat Profile was published in Small Boats 2010 — for more information, visit Duckworks .

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Bolger, Michalak & “The Simplistic Sailboat Cruise”

• Post author: OutYourBackdoor
• Post published: Feb 21, 2009
• Post category: Boats
• Post comments: 0 Comments

More Photos Below! Gallery I’m charmed by the innovative, practical, high-performance, thrifty boat ideas of Phil Bolger and Jim Michalak. And to me these ideas morph and come to life in the book, “The Simplistic Sailboat: A Family Cruise in a $600 Boat,” by Dan Hookham.

Dan was inspired by Bolger & The Gang then took their ideas and ran with em to create a boat that was just right for him and his family. He didn’t want to use plans, wanted the project to be organic and living. I don’t think they’d mind. He clearly had plenty of skills already, as he and his family were living aboard another boat he had built. The new project was a little family-trip beach cruiser. He put it together in a couple weeks, with $600 and scavenged materials from area dumpsters. His little book is the story of this process, his worldview, and the resulting summer cruise their family went on in their new little boat. It gives lots of info on the islands in the Puget Sound region that they traveled among. I also really liked how he included the cultural setting for what he was doing and why—that’s the worldview part, I suppose. He gives plenty of props to the working fishermen and their make-do values. Now, quarters might be viewed by some as being a bit cramped. 2 parents and 3 kids on a, what, 23-foot beachable boat?

Oh, the book is also about family and marriage. It’s a wonderfully integrated tale.

Ordering link: www.amazon.com/gp/product/0965595447/jeffpottersoutyoA

Here’s a link to the technical concepts bible, by Phil Bolger, with a totally new view of boats if you haven’t heard of him before. Plenty of culture in there, too:

www.amazon.com/Boats-Open-Mind-Seventy-Five-Unconventional/dp/0070063761/jeffpottersoutyoA

Here’s a how-to book featuring Phil’s designs converted into backyard potential:

www.amazon.com/Instant-Boatbuilding-Dynamite-Payson-Harold/dp/0071472649

Another easy-build book by another tiny boat guru, Jim Michalak:

www.amazon.com/Boatbuilding-Beginners-Beyond-Everything-Motorboat/dp/1891369296

Here’s a website offering several Bolger’s Black Skimmers, a handy thinwater boat, for chartering in the Keys; $750/wk:

www.hallman.org/bolger/BlackSkimmer

Here’s an amazing central resource for all things “cheap boat”:

www.friend.ly.net/users/dadadata/boats.html

Mike O’Brien’s “Boat Design Quarterly”:

www.boatdesignquarterly.com

Phil Bolger plans—and more—available online:

www.common-sense-boats.com

Gotta always mention the huge cheap-boat resource of Duckworks:

www.duckworksmagazine.com

Black Skimmer — early semi-trailerable Bolger — from a website offering these handy tinwater boats for chartering in the Keys; $750/wk; see link above

Ah, Martha Jane. Trailerable, beachable Bolger family boat. Triumphant daughter of Black Skimmer

The Bible. Phil’s latest book. Full of it. Lots of culture, too; stories. But “Simplistic” really brings the Bolger worldview to life in a nutshell.

23 feet looks darn small on the beach. That’s good. Easy to handle. Weight is everything for a one-man (plus family) low-budget trailer boat.

Top view of family at sea in cheap digs. (from the book)

Beach life. (from the book)

Cover of a fine look into life with a cheap, small family boat.

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So, I have spent the last few weekends laminating and shaping the mast, boom and spar after sourcing some high quality hoop pine. I had ordered and received the 139 sq ft sail from Duckworks back in July. I purchased ropes (or should that be sheets?), blocks and cleats and attached them to Bob based on Jim’s building instructions and essays from his website. I particularly studied his essays on rigging and jiffy reefing lugsails. Bob has what seems to be a fair spread of sail and so control of the sail seemed worth thinking through and following Jim’s advice.

Today was the day. It is a bit scary taking your pride and joy to the water’s edge for her first sail. Will it all work? Can I manage her on my own? Will she have lee, weather or neutral helm? How much will she heel? Have I got the sail rigged as it should be?

It all went so wonderfully smoothly. Bob slipped easily off her trailer and we (just me and Bob) then motored out to the middle of the lake, threw out the anchor and set about raising the mast and tying on the boom, spar and sail. Then the moment so anticipated came – pull on the halyard and up went the yard with sail attached. This was surprisingly easy! Tighten the tack line (read Jim’s essays!) and there was the sail set pretty well for a first attempt. Under motor to keep her head to wind I pulled in the anchor, went back to the cockpit and turned off the outboard. I was not really sure what would exactly happen next, but Bob simply moved a little off the wind and started to sail. I worked the tiller and mainsheet and off we went.

This was it! Yeehah! Bob and I were sailing! Now, I’ve owned a 21 foot keel boat, a 20 foot catamaran, built and sailed a Mirco, and read everything about sailing I could lay my hands on over some 30 years but I cannot say I’m an experienced or competent sailor. The truth is I’ve probably ‘been sailing’ no more than a dozen times in my 53 years.

Yet here I was with Bob actually sailing. We tacked. We reached. We ran. It all worked! I had the mast partners held on using g-clamps so that I could adjust the rake of the mast to fine tune the balance of the boat. There was just a hint of lee helm so after an hour or so of sailing I anchored again and moved the mast partner back about ¼ of an inch. Up went the lugsail again and off we went. Now Bob had just a hint of weather helm – perfect!

How does Bob tack? Easily. Helm down and around she goes. Even when the wind dropped to a light air I had no problem tacking. I’m not sure how close to the wind I could get her but it did seem to be about 45 degrees. We certainly had no problem making headway tacking up wind.

A little later in the afternoon the north-easterly wind picked up from light to moderate. I was keen to see how Bob’s water ballast would work in practice - down below Bob has some 270 kilos (600 lbs) of water held beneath the cabin sole. Wind strength was reported by the weather bureau to be 11 knots gusting to 13 knots. Close-hauled Bob heeled a little, perhaps about 15 degrees, and marched on. This is not a keel boat yet Bob ‘firmed up’ at each gust and at no time did I feel she was tender. I think she would be quite happy to press on reefed in stronger winds.

As to how fast we were sailing I’m confident we reached hull speed (about 5 knots). We were certainly moving as fast as under motor (Mariner 6hp). The video clip I took (one hand on camera, the other hand on mainsheet and tiller) gives a good impression of our speed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41Hqgdz_yoI

I am really pleased with how this design all works so well. The cockpit is large and comfortable. The cabin is enormous for a boat just short of 16 feet in length and easily accommodates two people and storage for camping aboard (including the porta-potti). The slot-top makes the whole boat very user friendly and makes the raising and lowering of the 18’ mast a quick and simple job. The walk-through bow makes beaching and boarding a breeze. I tow her with a 4 cylinder 2 litre Honda CRV. And, as I found out today, she is a pleasure to sail. Jim Michalak is one very clever designer!

Michalak's Blobster plans are available at Duckworks.

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2016 Michalak Mikesboat, 17 ft.

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Go to Sailing Texas classifieds for current sailboats for sale Michalak Mikesboat, 17 ft., 2016 Palm Coast, Florida

Built with fiberglass and epoxy over plywood by professional boat builder. Dacron balanced lug and sprit mizzen sails in excellent condition. Solid trailer, ready for road trip. New full boat cover. Large dry storage/flotation chambers fore and aft. 8’ cockpit with comfortable seating and legroom. Does not come with a motor. Boat is titled and the trailer is registered Great design for expeditions/camp cruising.

This listing is presented by SailingTexas.com . Visit their website for more information or to contact the seller.

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Mayfly 16 Plans PDF

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Mayfly16 is large enough to swallow up three men or maybe a family with two kids. She has two benches that are 7' long and there should be plenty of room for all. I would say that her fully loaded maximum weight might be 900 pounds and her empty weight about 350 pounds, leaving 550 pounds for the captain and crew and gear.

At the same time the Mayfly16 can easily be handled solo, athough with just the weight of her skipper she will not be as stable as when heavily loaded. The boat also has two large chambers for buoyancy/storage and I can see her used as a solo beach cruiser because the floor space is large enough for a sleep spot. I've made her deep with lots of freeboard.

Mary and George Fulk built the prototype and passed by here on their annual migration north for the summer and I had a chance to see and sail in Mayfly16 for a short bit. Weather was hot and the wind light and steady, perfect for testing. She sailed quite well I thought and everything worked as planned. It certainly was roomy and easy to rig and use.

The balanced lug rig sets on short spars and sails very well reefed, in fact can be set up with jiffy reefing. The spars are all easily made and stowed, the mast being but 14' long setting 91 square feet of sail. In addition there are oar ports for those with lots of time and little money and a motor well for those with lots of money and no time. Two horsepower is all that a boat like this can absorb without going crazy.

The motor well is an open self draining well that uses the full width and depth of the stern. It will come in handy for storing wet muddy things you don't want inside the boat, like boots and anchors. I've suggested in the plans that the rudder can be offset to one side a bit to give more room for the motor. We did not use George's little Evinrude since the boat sailed easily in all directions, but George says the side-by-side sharing on the stern of the motor and rudder works fine. There was no interference with the rudder. (As with any outboard on any sailboat, the motor has a desire to grab the sheet with each tack so you usually have to tend the sheet a bit.)

Mayfly16 uses conventional nail and glue construction needing six sheets of 1/4" plywood and two sheets of 1/2" ply.

SAILBOAT, 15.5' X 5.5', 350 POUNDS EMPTY

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