Boats

Draught

Definitions

Draught, normal (T)

The depth of water needed to float the boat, when it's loaded to its design displacement and sitting on its design waterline.

Draught, minimum (Tmin)

In a boat with retractable appendages (rudder, daggerboards, outboard or sterndrive engine), the depth needed to float the boat when all these appendages are fully retracted. Again, this measurement is based on the design waterline.

Units: Linear measure (usually metres/centimetres or feet/inches).

Topic: 

Beam

Definitions

Beam refers to the width of a boat. As with length, there are a few ways to define beam, depending on what you need the number for.

Units: Linear measure (usually metres/centimetres or feet/inches).

Topic: 

Length

Definitions

There appear to be no less than six commonly used ways to measure the length of a boat. Most of the discrepancies have to do with whether stern platforms and bow pulpits are "integral parts of the hull" or are bolted on separately.

Units: Linear measure (usually metres/centimetres or feet/inches).

Topic: 

Model testing the Almaguin, part 1: The framework

Submitted by Matthew on

Computer simulations are pretty good these days, but there's still a lot they can't do. And as nice as it would be to have my own full-scale prototype of every boat I draw, that's just not feasible- there's never enough space or money for that. Models, though, are inexpensive, don't take up much room, and are fun to build- and, if done carefully with the right mathematical backing, can offer a lot of insight into how the full-size boat will perform.

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