Punt (boat) - Punt Construction

Punt Construction

A traditional river punt differs from many other types of wooden boat in that it has no keel, stem, or sternpost. Instead, it is built rather like a ladder with the main structure being two side panels connected by a series of 4 in (10 cm) cross planks, known as "treads", spaced about 1 foot (30 cm) apart.

The first punts are traditionally associated with the River Thames in England and were built as small cargo boats or platforms for fishermen. Pleasure punts – specifically built for recreation – became popular on the Thames between 1860 and 1880. Some other boats have a similar shape to a traditional punt – for example the Optimist training dinghy or the air boats used in the Everglades – but the most similar boat is the European Weidling a type that can be tracked back to Celtic boats built more than 2,000 years ago.

Since a punt has no keel, it draws only a few inches even when fully laden; this makes it very manoeuvrable and suitable for shallow water. A punt can be punted with equal facility in either direction; this is handy in narrow streams where turning round may be difficult. The square-cut bow gives greater carrying capacity for a given length than a boat of the same beam with a narrow or pointed bow; it also makes the boat very stable, and suitable for passengers.

Punts are still made in England to supply the tourist trade in Oxford and Cambridge or for racing purposes. The construction material of choice for most punts is wood. Fibreglass is used for some very light and narrow racing punts. The sides, the ends (known as "huffs"), and the "till" are normally made of hardwood such as mahogany. The treads are often made from teak. The bottom is made of softwood and may be replaced several times during the life of a particular boat.

A traditional punt is about 24 feet (7.3 m) long and 3 feet (0.91 m) wide. The sides are about 18 inches (0.5 m) deep. Both the bow and the stern are cut square, with a long shallow "swim"; this is to say, the underside of the boat slopes very gently at the front and the back.

Both smaller and wider punts are made. Extra large and wide punts may be seen in Cambridge, where many are used as water-borne tourist vehicles. Single seater Thames punts were normally made only 2 feet (60 cm) wide, and somewhat shorter than a standard punt; very few of these are still afloat. Racing punts, which are still used by a few specialist clubs on the lower Thames, may be built even narrower. Thames punts have occasionally been adapted for other means of propulsion: including sails, tow-ropes, and paddle wheels. With the addition of iron hoops and canvas awnings, punts have also been used for camping.

The bottom of the punt is made with long, narrow planks stretching fore and aft, attached to the flat sides and the treads. In order to allow the wood to swell when it gets wet, the planks are set a small distance apart (traditionally the width of an old penny, about 1–2 mm). The gaps are caulked; this caulking normally needs to be renewed annually. The treads are attached to the sides with small wooden "knees", which may be vertical or set at an angle. The diagram above shows a punt without seats. The seats are usually just a simple board fitting against blocks on the sides, with cushions. The gaps between the treads are normally fitted with gratings to allow the passengers to keep their feet dry.

A punt can be punted with equal facility in either direction, so it is not obvious to the novice which end is the bow and which the stern; however, one end of the boat is strengthened with a short deck, usually called a "counter" or a "till" (terms from cabinet making), that extends some six feet (2 m) from that end.

The Thames punt-building tradition was that the end with the till was the stern, as shown in the diagram. The till provides some extra torsional rigidity, and is normally closed in; occasionally a locker may be built into it. A small minority of punts, such as those made from fibreglass at Magdalen College, Oxford have no single till in the usual sense, instead having very small tills at either end.

The forerunners of pleasure punts, fishing punts, usually had an additional compartment, called a "well," which extended across the width of the punt a little way in front of the till. This compartment was made water-tight, and had holes in the bottom or sides so that it could be flooded with water. It was used for keeping any caught fish.