Ebihen 15 clinker

Traditional sail boat, 4.5 m long, with outboard motor well, clinker plywood

Hull length / waterline	4.50 / 4.24 m		Sail area	14 m²
Breadth / waterline	1.85 / 1.64 m		Outboard motor	6 hp
Draught	0.45 / 0.98 m		Design category / Crew	C4 / D5
Light weight	480 kg		Building time	600 hours

Drawing    See photo albums Ebihen 15 (previously named Ebihen) is a seaworthy, stable boat with good carrying capacity, it is suitable for family sailing, as well as fishing. Despite its length of 4.50 m, it offers a big and pleasant cockpit. She was inspired both by the fishing boats of Northern Brittany, especially Saint Jacut (the Ebihens are the islands in front of that port), and by the boats of Basse-Normandie, which were clinker built.
Many different rigs may be chosen according to your specific needs, from the very simple lug sail to the well-canvassed gaff cutter (see drawings). Ebihen 15 is fitted with a metal centreboard that allows excellent stability and good windward ability.
A well for the outboard motor is built aft of the cockpit, with the motor handle at helmsman reach. The propeller is just ahead of rudder for good manoeuvrability. A 4 strokes – 3 to 6 hp – motor may be installed.
Ebihen 15 can be built and stored during winter time in a common garage. It is of course trailerable. The first boat of the series was strip-planked, with laminated frames and backbone, and almost no plywood. It is a beautiful wooden construction. The clinker version is mainly made of plywood, for the hull planking but also backbone and transverse bulkheads, then much more easy to build by a first-time amateur. The strip planked version is built from a dedicated plan package.

A longer version (4.8 m), with same breadth and depth, is also available. She is named Ebihen 16.
Ebihen 15 plans are also available for a traditional carvel construction. Ask the designer.

I strongly advise you to visit Aarnoud Kraan’s blog which gives a particularly detailed and illustrated description of the construction of his Ebihen 16 clinker.
I also invite you to visit the blog of Stan Richards (California) describing the construction of an Ebihen 15 (clinker).