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Customers' Croc Photos
(Click on thumbnails for larger photos)
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 Don
Short's Croc from New Zealand |
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"The 16 Hour Croc" |
Thank you guys for the great
plans, I have wanted a boat for my backyard pond for years. I built this
thing in one weekend and floated it the next. NO LEAKS!!! I've since added
oar locks and plan to add a trolling motor. My daughter says "Ya know dad,
not everyone can build a boat" but she doesn't know how easily it all came
together. My helper in the boat had his first boat ride and was my sidekick
for the layout and painting on the project. There are stray pencil marks
everywhere on it to prove it. I used epoxy garage floor paint for the
painting. That's 290 lbs. in the boat. |
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Member: Mike |
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Forum Member:
Larkbill
St. Peters, MO |
Forum Member:
Foss |
Forum Member:
Beekeeper
Louisiana |
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Henry and Gatorboat folks,
Finally finished our first little boat and got 'er in the water...what a
pleasure! No leaks, and she handled fine even in slightly choppy conditions. We only had time to motor around for
about 30 minutes, so haven't put any fish on deck yet, but God willing it
won't be long. Thanks again for the affordable pleasure that your plans and
tech support provide for the average guy. I'll try to stay on the forum with
questions and personal experience concerning the boat.
Bob Bowden
Lakeland, Fl
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Henry,
Here is the CROC that Clint Frady and I built over the winter months. Clint
and I had spoken numerous times about building a boat. Never in our wildest dreams did
we think we could come up with this unique craft. We took our time and came
up with a new idea for the front of the boat. We took Advantage MAX-4 HD camo and put it on the front and accented it on the transom braces. To top
if off, we bought a brand new 5 horse Briggs and Stratton 4 stroke with the
matching Advantage MAX-4 HD camo pattern. It matched up nicely. The boat,
named the "CLINKE B" (clinkey bee), is very sturdy and has epoxy and
fiberglass on the bottom and epoxy coating on the oak sides. She rides
nicely in the water and even took on some waves as we doubled back on our
wake during the maiden voyage at Lake Rabun in Lakemont, GA. We hope to
build more as we found a really rewarding hobby. You can go and buy a boat
and have fun in it, but nothing is like riding in a craft that you actually
constructed by your hands. Thanks for the plans, Henry.
Sincerely,
Benn Keith and Clint Frady
Toccoa, GA
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To the Folks at Gatorboats:
Just wanted to show a little of the progress we've made on our Croc. It's
been fun, and the finishing stage is about to drive us insane, what with the
normal time process of it added to by our
inexperience/hesitation/corrections, etc. Hopefully the next set of pictures
will include fish in the bottom of the boat! Thanks for all the help on the
forum.
All the Best,
Bob Bowden/Lakeland, FL
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A Croc Model under construction by Nick Proietto
of West Grove Pa.
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Gatorboats,
Here are some pictures of my Croc two-man boat that I built. I live on the
Guyandott River in Gilbert, WV. I built this boat my last year of teaching
in 2001. My classroom was hooked onto the gym, so on my free period I would
work on the boat and no one knew about it. I would work on it and when it
was time for class to start I would hide it in a water room that was hooked
onto my room. One day when I had the plywood outside sawing out the sides
and bottom the janitor went by and asked me what was I doing and I told him
I was building some shelves. When I got the boat built I took it home and
fiberglassed and painted it in my kitchen. I put the camouflage on the sides
with a stencil that I ordered from a place called Wings. I have a three HP
canoe motor that I put on the boat. I can also oar, paddle and sail the
boat. It is a great boat and will turn on a dime. I put three extra coats of
epoxy with a black powder in it on the bottom so if I get a scratch it won't
show. It is a great handling boat.
Thanks for the plans,
Zane |
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Hi Gator Boats,
I finally got a digital picture of my boat and I'd like to share it with all
on your web site. She’s made from cherry and maple plywood and trimmed out
in oak and walnut. The seat is made from poplar and stained dark oak. The
front deck is 3/4 maple plywood as is the transom. The bottom is 1/2' maple
ply and the sides are 1/4' cherry. All together it has a very classic look.
the front deck is also decked out with an am/fm/cd and a purhna2 fish
finder. I modified the plans here and there and added the U shaped seat. I
took her out in the Licking River in Northern KY for the first real test.
She performed wonderfully (17" perch and no leaks) I only wish I had a 5 or
10 horse power motor instead of the 36 lb electric motor I am currently
using. Again I'd like to thank you for the plans I've wanted to do this for
some time and I really enjoyed building her. Thanks again,
William Klingenberg |
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My Croc
"Fox" |
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Hi Henry,
I finished the "Croc" some time back. A friend liked it so good I had to
build another!
Great plan/boat. Here are a few pictures of the completed project before we
hit the water.
Thanks,
Dick Faucette |
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See Attached; Just had to show you this little Croc I just
finished on 3-31-03. It is 10' 11&3/4" long, 16" deep and 42" wide.
Ray Bakker
*Ray also built a very
attractive Dragonfly with laminated cedar strip exterior - Henry
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Hello Henry;
I purchased your Croc 2 man boat plans as a father son project. My 14 year
old son has been asking to build something in wood. I have a bunch of power
tools from various home projects, and he's been wanting to learn how to use
them. I've never built a boat before, and I thought this would be a good
project for the both of us and when it was done we would have something to
use together. I found the plans to be easy to understand and follow. This
was supposed to be a winter project but the boat was so easy to build we were
finished building in a couple of weeks in October. I'm going to build
another when winter actually gets here! Building the Croc was an easy, fast,
fun and very satisfying project.
I used 4'x8'x½ in AC grade for the jig; the seats and the stern. I laminated two pieces together,
making it 1 in. instead of ¾. This not only saved a few bucks, but we got
stronger stern. And there was enough left over for the drywell box. I thought bending the bottom chines would be
difficult, but it was really easy with the simple jig in the plans. My son
thought this was the cool part, and so did I.
I used polyurethane construction adhesive as suggested. I liked it because
it was thick and stayed were it was applied while assembling the parts. I
used Gorilla Glue® to laminate the plywood together. This is an excellent
glue but more expensive than the construction adhesive and not as easy to
apply. I finished the boat with Pettit one part polyurethane paint on the
outside and clear marine poly on the inside, top and rails. I was able
to put on three coats in one day.
My only disappointment was the selection of plywood in my area. The best
grade of wood, off the shelf, was not as clear as I'd liked it to be.
Although it was an AC grade it looked more like a BD grade. It
still turned out pretty good.
Can't wait to launch it. I picked up a used trolling motor from ebay for
power. Here in Pennsylvania you have to register a boat if you power it in
public waters. So I'm waiting for the registration to get here. This has
taken the most time in the project.
Ralph Brescia
Newtown Square Pa. |
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Henry,
We modified your plans to build what we needed; a combo Sneak/Layout boat.
We took 3.5" off the sides and added a enclosed deck with a small cockpit.
It is now a great one man or small water two man boat. It handles like a
kayak and is way more stable than any canoe I have been in. Nice boat. We
also modified the transom to hold only a trolling motor, for now
our plans are to launch it from my bigger boat. The epoxy paint is really
the trick for our needs, as we wanted the entire boat in gray. The plans
were simple and easy to follow. I studied them for several readings and
referred to them to be sure I didn't mess up any cuts-no problems with any
boards. My brother and I built this boat with almost exactly the 24 hours of
building time-4 @ 6 hour days and never rushed a bit. The drying time on
paint slowed us just like you said it would. I am definitely going to order
more plans, as it was not only easy, but fun to build. Thanks for a
wonderful site and for all the help. I'm sure I will be referring people to
you when they see our ducks and our boat.
Larry Helm |
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Attached is a pre-finish picture
and a completed picture of my Croc. The inside, stern and midrail are
finished in Helmsman glossy spar varnish. The outside is finished with
Interlux BrightSides polyurethane paint. All seams
are fiberglass taped and finished out with epoxy resin.
With the 7.5 outboard and 3 gallons of gas, I can cruise longer than I can
sit. The only thing I would change is to use a lighter weight outboard like
a 3.5 hp because the transom weight makes her lie a little too far aft on
her rockered bottom. It was completed in three weeks of nights and weekends.
Of course, most of the time was in the finish.
John French |
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Hello Henry. I really enjoy the Croc I built
with your plans. I did make some changes. I laid fiberglass around all seams
for added strength. I added running lights, and eyehooks for trailering the
boat. It rides great !
Sits high in the water and is very stable for a small boat. I have a 34lb
thrust trolling motor which is fine for the small lakes in Northwest
Arkansas I put the boat on. I spent about 35 - 40 hours building it (it took
a long time to sand the fiberglass so it would hold paint). Everyone that
has seen it asked if it was a kit. I plan on building another one that I
will stretch to 14 feet, widen to 48 inches, and double the transom for
added strength ( I plan on putting on a 9.9hp motor). I'll send pics of that
one once it is finished !
Thanks again for the satisfaction of building my own boat !
Satterfield |
Hi,
I put my newly finished "Croc"
into the water for the first time this Labor Day weekend. My wife and I
both had a blast playing with it and even caught a few fish. I installed
a 34 lb thrust electric motor on it and it performed very nicely. We
found that it paddles very good also, very similar to a canoe. I had a
lot of fun making the boat and the satisfaction of putting it in the water
for the first time is hard to put into words
I have never made a boat
before and I am, quite frankly, not a very good woodworker. Even so, I was
able to build the "Croc" in about 35 to 40 hours using the minimum tools
of a circular saw, jig saw and electric 3/8" drill. (Yes, I put every
screw in by hand). It turned out very nice and had no leaks at all. I
think it is a fantastic boat for anyone considering building a first
boat. I found the plans straightforward and very easy to follow.
THANKS!!!
Dan & Toni Shades, WA
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Hello
Just wanted you to know that the construction of the Croc went very well,
put it in the water this weekend, no leaks and even caught a couple of
modest bass. Got the Plans on May 10 and was in the water on June 25.
The boat is completely done except for some of the bright work. Could
not find the solid brass fittings I wanted so will wait till I do.
Thanks Lee Starnes |
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Henry,
I bought plans for the Croc @ the Georgetown boat show in Oct. I have never
built a boat but do have woodworking skills. Boat was very simple to build
but the finishing did slow things down a bit. I taped the seams with 3"
tape, painted the outside with 3 coats of top quality oil base, left the
inside natural and covered the whole thing, inside and out with 3 more coats
of spar urethane. I then rigged it with a 53 lb. thrust trolling motor with
footpedals and a maximizer for river fishing. I am glad I built the 2 man,
(I use it as a 1 man). Croc has 450 lb. capacity but with me, 200lbs, a
trolling motor, deep cycle battery, rods, cooler, camera, etc, it is
perfect. It will take more maintenance than a fiberglass or plastic boat,
but the comments at the river or dock is well worth it. I have not had the
boat out once that somebody didn't come up and compliment it. I really took
my time with mine and it looks great. It was cheap to build but I did have
to add a tin roof off of my shop to store it. (I don't want it to get wet,
ha ha ). Thanks again for the plans. I will probably build another one now
that its spring.
Happy Fishing, Paul |
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Henry,
The boys and I launched boat #2 (Croc) this morning. I installed two keels
on the bottom as last time. We also added oars and a car radio under the
front seat. I call it rowing to the tunes; my boys call it rowing to the
oldies. Your boat plans are easy to follow and much less expensive than
others I have seen on the Internet. They are sinfully easy to build, small
enough to fit in the back of our truck, and tough enough to handle two
boys. They also turn heads where ever we go. The Gator has been in lakes
and rivers in 3 states (Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma). Building your boats
has truly been an inspiration. I think I'll tackle a runabout next.
Thanks,
James and the Boys
NOTE: The Andrews boys built the
Gator and Croc models
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"Built By A Woman!!"
Hello.
It was a sheer pleasure building your boat. I love it. It was simple enough
for a woman to build. I've had it in the water 8 or 9 times now. Too bad I
don't need another one, cause I sure enjoyed building this one.
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First time builder. I loved making this boat. I plan on
making another gator boat.
Thanks
Jerry T.
Rochester NY |
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BLACK SWAMP GATOR
We enjoyed building this gator !
Tommy Dale (picture)
Ernest Berry
Johnny Bundy ( fiberglass)
Belvidere N.C
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