When asked how well the Melonseed goes to upwind in very light air, the response is “Pretty good, and if necessary she goes dead to windward at three knots!” Under oars that is.

The “standard straight blade oars” are just that. They offer reasonable quality and performance for a fair price and will get you where you have to go. They are stored up under the side decks with shock cords that come standard on the boat. Beautiful bronze oarlocks are also standard equipment. The boat needs an oar of exactly 7½’ in length. If you have some of your own, that’s great, or we are happy to provide them.

There are upgrade options with oars that you might consider, although we do not provide them. Here’s the thinking on this. If you are not an experienced rower or have little reason to think you will row other than on rare occasions when necessary, then I would not consider spending a penny more than you have to on oars. If you are a rower of average skill, then the standard oars will do quite well. If you are a long time rower of considerable skill then, yes, the standard oars will still do nicely but you might long for something spiffier. This is where the Shaw & Tenney spoon blade oars come in.

Shaw & Tenney spoons as they are set up with leathers and buttons and are each works of art. They are very expensive and should be handled with care. When used by a skilled oarsman, the difference between the standard straight blade oars and the spoon blade oars is like regular gas compared to jet fuel!

They are well worth the money if you row very well or want to learn to row at that level, but frankly a very unnecessary expense if you are just going to be dubbing around with your oars upon occasion.

You can investigate these oars at http://www.shawandtenney.com/wooden-rowing-oars.htm

If you call Shaw & Tenney to order, then you will probably speak with Steve, and when you do just simply tell him that you are having a Melonseed built for you and you need oars. He’s a most pleasant and accommodating fellow and will know just what to do for you. You can have the oars sent to us to be awaiting you with your new Melonseed Skiff, or they can be sent right to your door.

The adhesive qualities of the vinyl are excellent and yet if it was damaged from abrasion, it can be easily removed with a warm air hair dryer, and a new section applied in minutes. This is a lot less expensive than paint or gold leaf.

Maybe the overall benefit of the addition of the name and pinstripe is to think of the saying “What’s a kiss without a hug”.

This option takes a little explanation. First of all you can have the teak finished with hand rubbed teak oil at no charge, and this looks fine. For a while. It is the very nature of an oil finish that it dries out and fades after a short while and the teak starts to look a little lackluster. You can always put on some more on, and it will fade and the process is ongoing in this cycle. At some point however the teak starts to collect salt and dirt and gets gummy and needs a good scrubbing and cleaning and then a fresh coat of teak oil. There is nothing wrong with this scenario though IF you are faithful about the maintenance.

Teak is a remarkable wood. It is very expensive, beautiful and will last a lifetime as it is impervious to rot. In some cases you can in fact to nothing at all to teak, and let it weather to a dry silvery state, but not on the Melonseed. The slender 3/8” thickness of the wood might become unstable if left to dry out and warping or cracking might occur. So some sort of a finish is necessary.

Cetol is far and away the best finish for teak that has ever come along. We have been using Cetol on the Melonseeds since 1994 and find it to be excellent in its performance and appearance.

Cosmetically, it is not a high gloss finish and has a slight “satin” look. It highlights the beautiful colors and grains of teak and gives it a rich appearance.

There are two outstanding features to note about Cetol. First, think of is as behaving like “Gore Tex” because it breathes. When water vapor gets behind the Cetol finish, it can migrate back out without causing the blistering and cracking that occurs with the hard finishes like varnish or paint. Secondly, and maybe most importantly of all

is that you can spot touch it up, and unlike varnish it just blends right in to the old finish within minutes and is a perfect match.

Typically the annual maintenance with Cetol is to just go around the boat once a year with some fine sandpaper and lightly scuff up any worn or scratched areas and then touch it up with a dab or two with Cetol. Cetol lasts so well and looks great for so long that it may be several years before you have to completely re-coat it. When that time comes, sand off the surface layer and apply a new one with a 2” foam brush, and when you do that you will find that it brushes out beautifully and easily. Note that the manufacturer, Sikkens Paint Co., suggests that you only have a total of three coats of Cetol on the wood as a denser layer of it will negate the micro porosity feature. A new Melonseed with Cetol has just that….three coats.

So here’s the bottom line; if you do a time vs. money comparison you will find that to achieve the same quality of appearance, you spend only a few minutes a year caring for your Cetol and it always looks good as opposed to a LOT more time and effort caring for your teak oil finish which at times is not always in prime condition. In either case, your mooring cover does a lot to keep the wood in good condition.

If you are economizing and trying to reduce the overall purchase cost of your new Melonseed, then Cetol would be the first options to decline. The boat sails just as well with oil or Cetol on the teak. If you want the best looking boat possible and the least maintenance then Cetol is a great choice.

Load Rite is one of the best brands available in the trailer business, and we have been using them for about 20 years with satisfaction. They make a small boat trailer that is perfect for the Melonseed, it offers plenty of weight capacity (it is rated for 800 lbs.), and the trailer can be set up nicely to support the MS hull shape. The overall length of the boat with the trailer sitting on it is about 17 ½’ and will fit into most garages easily.

When each new trailer arrives at the boat shop, we disassemble and rearrange the bunks, rollers and supports so that the Melonseed’s hull is cradled and carried perfectly. We will build you a strong and beautiful boat, and it is in our best interest as well as yours that “our” boat lives a happy life when it is not in the water and on the trailer.

You are welcome to shop around and find your own trailer, and we will offer guidelines on what you need and how to best set it up yourself, although if it requires any significant time on our part to readjust it you may be charged for that service.

The Load Rite trailer comes standard with 8” wheels and they are adequate for most people. If you do a great deal of long distance highway driving, then it might be to your advantage to upgrade to 12” wheels. These larger wheels turn fewer RPM’s and will generate less wear on the bearings. The boat is a little easier to launch in very shallow water with the 8” wheels as you are lower to the water, but either height works fine.

You’ll need to know the following to set your vehicle up for trailering:

The coupler connects to a 2” trailer ball

The plug on your vehicles wiring harness that connects to the trailer’s light plug is best described as a “FOUR WIRE, FLAT” plug. Your mechanic will know what you mean with that description.

The “tongue weight” of the trailer, that is the downward load that the coupler puts on the trailer ball is minimal, and it is only about 35 pounds.

The total weight your vehicle will be pulling, the combined weight of the boat (235 lbs.) and the trailer (180 lbs.) is only a modest 415 lbs.

You will not need a monster sized hitch system to pull the Melonseed.

We’re pretty good boat builders here at Crawford Boat Building, but not great car mechanics, so it is imperative that you get the wiring for the trailer lights and the hitch installed and working properly before you leave home and not when you arrive here.

In order for you to drive the boat and home with a legal license plate from your home state, you’ll be mailed a bill of sale for the trailer showing it paid in full, and a “title” or Certificate of Origin showing the ownership legally transferred to you. You provide these documents to your state agency and they will issue you a registration and license plate that you then bring here and put on our new trailer.