I've liked tugs ever since I was a small kid and had a wind up toy in the bathtub. I seems I am not alone, a swift trawl of the internet brings up all manner of small self build "mini tugs" that we can build to satisfy our craving. Many of these smaller tugs look like tugs at a distance, but their underwater profile is often not at all tug like. Many have basically flat bottoms and do not appear to be able to stand up to anything more than a six inch chop before they become uncomfortable. One series of boats that I have always liked the look of are the designs from Ken Hankinson. These plans are sold through the Glen-L website and I liked them so much that some years back I even went as far as ordering the plans for one of his boats. Sizes of the boats go from 16 up to about 22 feet, so even the largest is not that big by any stretch, but look closely at the drawing of the sixteen footer above and you will see that it has a proper displacement under body. This little boat could easily by driven by a small single or twin cylinder diesel. There's no point in overpowering it, 4 to 5 knots is all your going to get out of this boat. But the deep forefoot, hearty bilge and workmanlike keel that protects the prop and rudder hint at a very seaworthy hull for its size. As the engine and tanks would be mounted low down I imagine that the motion would be sea kindly and purposeful, just the way that it should be. She should be able to stand up well to bite of a blow when other flat bottomed tugs are afraid to leave their moorings.
The proportions from the drawing look absolutely right, despite the short length. The sheer is a delight and the round counter stern, although more difficult to construct than a transom is very pleasing to the eye.
The plans are available for building in steel or plywood. Scantlings are robust in nature so far from being a toy these boats could very well be useful as marina work boats. Add a substantial set of towing bits aft of the pilot house and a fire hose and this could be a very businesslike vessel indeed, all for a fairly modest cost.
I like this a lot. Perhaps it's time to dust off those plans......
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