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Today I want to give you a little behind-the-scenes look at what goes into developing a Glen-L design and what makes these boat plans much more valuable than the small price we charge …

Back in the early ’50′s, my dad and his brother Elbert loved boats, played with boats and worked on boats. When they decided to build their own, it was hard to find plans for the average guy. So, Dad decided to design his own boat and eventually became a Naval Architect. This is a very condensed version of the story so you’ll understand that our plans are …

Developed Just for You

Each Glen-L design begins with an idea that comes from client requests or popular trends in the marketplace throughout the 57 years we’ve been in business. That idea is then put on paper and the design process begins. I don’t want to bore you with all the mathematical calculations, how the lines are developed and all the intricate details of designing a boat. But, there are a few things you should know …

Most Glen-L plans come with a “Plywood Utilization” drawing. This little detail shows you how to lay out the patterns on a piece of plywood to get the best use of the material. This feature is done to save you money and is something you won’t find from other designers, as far as we know.

You’ll notice that Glen-L provides full size patterns … again, not many other designers will provide this time-saving feature. Dad discovered early on that most folks don’t have the patience or knowledge to take a bunch of numbers and create patterns, so he decided we would do that for you. This process is called lofting and is best left to the experts.

All Glen-L plans are hand-drawn, not computer generated. This is the real thing folks, these plans were drawn by hand just for you, the beginning or seasoned boat builder. We didn’t just punch a bunch of numbers in a computer and have it spit out a design. These plans were developed over many months with much thought and care, not just in an afternoon spent on a computer program.

Phase by Phase Instructions

Many wonder why the instructions for our boats are not “step-by-step” and there is good reason for that. Building a boat is done in phases and there is no one step that should be done first, but rather certain phases or tasks that are done in order. The key is to STUDY the plans, patterns and instructions. Picture how the boat is built, get it firm in your mind. If you feel you need further help, get our book, “Boatbuilding with Plywood” or other texts to fill in the gaps in your understanding … persistence is definitely the key and since so many others can do it, so can you!

I hope this helps you understand a little about the value of Glen-L plans. In this day and age of immediate and computer generated information, just know that these plans come to you the old-fashioned way–with hard work! Put them to good use and be sure to send us photos of your finished boat for our website so we can brag about you to the rest of the boatbuilding community.

Visit our online Boatbuilder Forum and get to know the other Glen-L builders. If you have any questions, this is where they will be answered by the experts who are actually building our boats.