Sunrise River Boatworks, Wyoming, MN 55092

Ready for Launching.

Duane Kelm sent these photos. He writes:

“Last week I received a wonderful Christmas present. Sunrise River Boat works has completed work on my Bay Pilot 18, Blue Moon. As you can see, Tom Moravec has done an excellent job.

“I picked the boat up Dec. 20th, and took it directly to the scale. Boat, motor and trailer weighed 2490 pounds. I am very pleased with the weight,” (which is within about 60 pounds of design displacement). Duane made a few slight modifications, including raising the pilot house floor two inches, adding storage/flotation lockers aft, and adding a hinged center windshield panel. The battery, electronics, cushions, coolers and canvas were all on board at weight in.

Duane adds, “The Bay Pilot 18 is a beautiful design. We are all very pleased with how nicely Blue Moon has turned out. In the spring I will send photos of the boat in the water, along with information on how she performs.

“If spring would just come early.”
January 3, 2008

A Bay Pilot 18 Takes Shape

Tom Moravec of Sunrise River Boatworks is building this Bay Pilot 18 for Duane Kelm, of Greenwood, Minnesota. Tom writes:

“Construction began in mid July of 2006, and the last photographs were taken on November 11.

“We have remained true to your design except for a few minor changes. We have installed a vertical partition between the stem and Station 0-7, allowing two sets of ground tackle to be carried. Tom added some camber to the top edge of the transom. Only the center 1/3 of the transom will be cut out to accommodate a single Honda 50PH motor. There will be storage boxes on each side of the motor well. The lower portion of the boxes will be filled with foam blocks.

“Tom has received many compliments on the Bay Pilot design. Someday he would like to build one for himself.” That’s Tom standing by the boat.

November 26, 2006.


	The Bay Pilot 18 is a smaller boat with very much the same underbody as the Jiffy V-22, which has earned high praise from its builders for good performance and excellent sea-keeping qualities. The developed plywood bottom and built in spray rail are combined here with glued lapstrake topsides, which allow more flare to be built into the forward sections, further helping to knock down spray. Construction uses the girder method (one each side in this boat); the hull is built upside down over a series of bulkheads and frames. The girders slot into these, for a very strong, light, egg-crate type structure. The lapstrake topsides planking is laid over fore and aft stringers. This method has proven very successful in the Penobscot 14 and 17, giving less experienced builders a way of producing very fair, tight hulls.

Affordable, Reliable, Exceptional Workmanship

References available on request.

Find out for yourself why Wooden Boat owners nationwide
are bringing their projects to the "Master Craftsmen" at:

Sunrise River Boatworks, LLC
Tom Moravec
5390 260th Street
Wyoming, MN 55092
(just east of I-35)
651-462-0550