Devlin Designing Boat Builders - Peeter Leppik's Dipper

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Home ► Builder & Owner Testimonials ► Peeter Leppik's Dipper

Last updated on: 07/22/08

Peeter Leppik's Dipper

	Started: Completed: Type: 16'-4" x 7'-0" Power Cruiser Location: Ontario, Canada Built By: Peeter Leppik Link to the Dipper Page in the Design Catalog
	I wanted a small boat with relatively shallow draft to take day trips at my cottage on the Historic Trent Severn Waterway in Ontario. The waterway is pretty shallow and sheltered most of the time. Canals are beautiful and very narrow. I wanted the boat to have an enclosed wheelhouse, sleeps two, plenty of storage space and a generous cockpit area. It should be powered by a fuel-efficient gasoline engine. She had to have traditional character with a sense of solidity. I could not find a boat like this to buy. If I could have, I would have. So I decided to build Sam Devlin's Dipper with the stitch and glue method. It was my third home built. My first was sea flea when I was a kid (actually a restoration). The second was the kingfisher rowing shell when I was in my twenties - and now Sam's Dipper, which I named Little Bear. I suppose I could have built bigger - for example the lovely Surf Scoter, but space was limited and costs and time goes up. The risk of a money pit is greater. Some guys build at leisure but I pushed to a schedule. Fortunately I have a wood shop at my workplace (my company) so construction was quick. Easy with pneumatic tackers etc. It makes things go a lot faster.
	I built Little Bear in 6 months most evenings and weekends. The interior is now being finished although she has already been launched. I wanted to run the boat for a while before completing some interior berths. There were some modifications, which were decided on only when one has used the boat enough. That's one good thing about building your own.
	Another modification was to change the windows in the wheelhouse to 360-degree view (lots of traffic on our canal) with arched frames. Things went together very well with no really painful lessons, except one. Painting is a black art with very finicky inter coat adhesion issues and a general pain in the butt. Something I would rather sub out next time.
	Every time I take Little Bear out - other boaters give the thumbs up. Neighbors poke around hinting at taking it out for a spin. In a time where people blast around in plastic boats taking their kids tubing (that's fine) a traditional shape like Little Bear's reminds us not to rush and remember slower time. I think that's why Little Bear continues to charm everyone on the water. -- Peeter Leppik


Devlin Designing Boat Builders 2424 Gravelly Beach Loop NW Olympia, WA 98502	(360) 866-0164 Email Sam Devlin www.devlinboat.com

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