Core Sound 17
Construction Album Finished Boats Build Logs Materials List
The Core Sound 17 was the first kit that B&B developed and it remains one of our most popular. We strive to make our kit boats easier to build and more complete than any other on the market. We believe that when you look you will not find another kit like this one.With close to 400 combined plans and kits sold, the Core Sound 17 is one of B&B’s most recognized and revered designs. Performance has been sparkling, this model won the grueling 4th of July Great Race two years in a row. For a description of this exciting race go to the article “The Great Race“. She also took line honors in the Everglades Challenge in 2006. A truly shallow water friendly design with kick-up center board and rudder. She is quick and easy to rig and launch, easy to sail, self tacking, and open water capable. No special building skills are needed to have one of your own. Combined with a dodger, she is an able cruiser and with a simple home-made tent, and lifting floorboards, it sleeps two adults comfortably with room for cooking and a porta- potti. If you are not familiar with this rig, we suggest you read the article “Why a Cat ketch“.
LOA……………17′ 0″
BEAM………… 5′ 10″
DRAFT…………71/2″ – 3′ 6″
SAIL AREA …….119 sq. ft.
HULL WEIGHT…350 – 400 lbs
Sailing weight 1000 lbs @DWL With people and gear
Can't decide? Bay River Skiff 17 v.s. Core Sound 17
Kit Information: Click here for Current Kit Pricing
The CNC kit consists of all the plywood parts needed to complete the boat as well as the CNC cut building cradles for attaching to the building frame. This kit faithfully produces a perfectly developed Core Sound 17, not a simplified or modified version. Our kits are manufactured to extremely tight tolerances. Instead of plain cut plywood panels, your kit will come with various joining methods which will make it much easier and much faster to assemble. The plywood for the hull panels and longitudinal bulkheads are joined using machined finger scarfs which produce a simple and effective plywood joint. Wire holes for stitching are pre-drilled for you. Bulkheads, both transverse and longitudinal, are tenoned into position. Stringer positions are “CNC-drawn” onto the side panels and bulkheads are cut to accommodate the stringers.
Pictured (below) is an assembled hull ready for glass taping the seams and adding the interior. The temporary center frame seen below is used to hold the hull shape while the interior is installed.
All plywood is BS1088 okume ply. Below, the machined dovetails in the side and bottom at the bow which gives perfect alignment during assembly.
What is not included in the kit?
The long solid stock is NOT included in this kit but is purchased locally by the builder to complete the standard kit. This includes the wood for the cradle frame, side stringers, gunwales, keel, centerboard, and cleats needed to stiffen the plywood structure.
Aft deck or Aft cockpit?
When ordering a kit you must specify if you would like the “Aft-deck” model or “Aft-Cockpit” model. There is no difference in price between the two. See below for a comparison. The “Aft-deck” model provides a large stowage compartment through a full aft bulkhead hatch or on-deck hatch. One draw back to this option is the need for a motor well to be added for short shaft motors to be used. Long shaft kicker outboards can be used with a bolt on mounting bracket.
The “Aft-cockpit” model has this bulkhead cut down to seat height and the stowage is replace with seating all the way to the transom.
The Epoxy and glass package is based on historical use of materials and waste conscious building. Some builders choose to cover the entire bottom of the boat with fiberglass cloth which we now supply in the standard package.
The CNC cut solid wood parts included can be difficult for the home-builder with limited experience or tools to produce accurately. These include:
-Two curved bulkhead beams (fore and aft)
-Horizontal and vertical transom stiffeners
-Forward hatch beams
-Rudder cheek spacer
-Tiller halves
-King posts
-Cockpit hatch coaming parts
The centerboard blank is easy to make but can be daunting to shape. The CNC centerboard is made of laminated pine and CNC shaped to perfection. Sand out the tooling marks and you are ready to finish. The following videos made for the Core Sound 15 centerboard building process but it is identical for both the CS-17 and CS-20.
Video of Centerboard Blank Lamination
Video of CNC Centerboard Shaping
Video of CNC Centerboard Finishing
The Rudder is CNC shaped from 3/4″ (18mm) Meranti Marine Plywood.
The Mast kit for the CS-17 includes all of the precut 6061-T6 aluminum mast sections for the main and mizzen mast as well as the plastic end caps and sail stops for both masts. The individual mast tubes are joined to each other by wrapping the masts in fiberglass to form collars and then sanding the glass to a tight fit and gluing the sections together with epoxy. Click here to watch a video from the Core Sound 15 building series on wrapping the mast tubes with glass. Click here to watch a video of the fitting process. The same process is used on the CS-17 masts. In addition, B&B’s custom aluminum sail track (below) is also included and all rivets for installing the track on the masts. The masts are simple and easy to build. There is no standing rigging as both masts are free standing.
B&B offers a complete hardware package for the CS-17 that includes all of the hardware you will need to get your boat sailing. There are many ways to rig a boat and even more opinions on how it should be done. We have come up with a hardware kit that allows for some customization such as cheaper clam cleats for the sheets as opposed to cam cleats which are more robust. Click here for the complete hardware packing list. By all means, if you would like to customize your rigging go right ahead but we think you will find that the stock configuration is very well thought out. If you would like to make minor changes to your order just let us know and we will do our best to accommodate you.
B&B offers high quality sails for all of our models. The standard CS17 sails include battens, and two reef points in each sail.
Photo credit: © 2008, Wesley Kisting
How long does it take to get my kit?
All kits are made to order. We require approximately a 4-6 week lead time before shipping depending on material in stock. The kit is packaged in a sturdy OSB plywood box. More on shipping options can be found on our policy page.