Design
Runabout 16
Designed by Jacques Mertens
A 16 ft classic outboard runabout by Jacques Mertens for Bateau, the largest of three boats based on a 1950s magazine design called Victory and redrawn for plywood, epoxy and fiberglass composite. It is meant to cruise at a good pace on modest power: built light it planes with 20 hp and is better with 30, and the recommended range is 25 to 60 hp. Beam is 5 ft and hull weight 200 to 250 lb. The standard layout is a twin cockpit.
The hull goes together upside down on a jig of frames and stringers. The designer says it suits builders who enjoy fine workmanship and is not a first-time project. No build time is published; budget 200 to 350 hours. Measured medians from build logs appear below.
What building a Runabout 16 actually takes
Medians from the build logs kept on this site, not the designer’s estimate. Nobody has logged this boat here yet, so they are empty until the first builder does.
Those medians firm up as more people log this boat.
Builds of this boat
Nobody has logged a Runabout 16 here yet.
If you are building one, yours becomes the reference: the page the next person building this boat finds when they search for it. One photo and one line is a valid first entry.
Start the first log of this boatBoats like this one
Same type, closest in length.
| Design | Plans from | LOA | Logs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sea Strike 16 | Bowdidge Marine Designs | 16′ 0″ (4.88 m) | 1 |
| EdgeTracker 487 | Bowdidge Marine Designs | 16′ 0″ (4.88 m) | 0 |
| Flat Chat 16 | Bowdidge Marine Designs | 16′ 0″ (4.88 m) | 0 |
| Gulf Explorer 16 | Bowdidge Marine Designs | 16′ 0″ (4.88 m) | 0 |
| Houseboat 16 | Bateau | 16′ 0″ (4.88 m) | 0 |
| Inlet Runner 16 | Dudley Dix Yacht Design | 16′ 0″ (4.88 m) | 0 |