It is not an attribute you find in most people, but in this case it fits: Carson Forrester is fascinated by boat bottoms. “When most people walk into a boatyard, they look at the tumblehome or finish or craftsmanship. But I bend over to look at the boat bottoms. Always have,” said Forrester.
Forrester was born and raised in Suffolk, VA. As you would expect with a boat builder, he has been around boats his entire life. As a child, his family had a place on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Young Carson visited often. Some family members worked for legendary boat builder Buddy Davis, so Carson was exposed to the best of Carolina boat building at an early age. “I loved the fact that it was a combination of art and function. Those custom-built boats looked as good as they worked. I fell in love with them. I have wanted to build custom boats all my life.”
Forrester continued to learn from the masters in North Carolina. He became a licensed charter captain and landed work for a family that ran custom Carolina boats. While in their employ, the family ordered four separate boats, the last of which was a Spencer. Since Forrester was the captain, he was literally on site during all four builds. He participated in and learned from each one. It was the absolute best on-the-job training. Forrester believed these builders are the best, because they are both charter captains and boat builders. Buddy Cannady, for example, ran charters in warmer weather, but built sportfishing boats in the winter. Most of the assistants in the shop were also captains. This combination of builders who also ran the boats is one secret to their expertise. After building each boat and running it for a while, they learned what needed to be modified to make the boats even better. It is one thing to have customers give feedback on a boat, but quite another for the builder himself to experience the boat first hand on a daily basis. Forrester sincerely appreciates the knowledge these builders have shared.
The Carolina builders are still generous with their guidance. Forrester can call any of his mentors if he has a question. He was hesitant to list his teachers, as he did not want to leave anyone out. When pressed, he ran off a list of the best names in the business, including Bill Keeling, John Bayliss, Paul Spencer, Billy Baum, Billy Maxwell, and Buddy Cannady.
[gallery columns="2" link="file" size="medium" ids="17637,17638" orderby="rand"]
As many builders do, Forrester started small. He made a few hunting skiffs in the barn at his grandfather’s place in Suffolk. That is where he also started building a 17-foot center console. This craft would serve as his demo boat until it sold. However, before the 17 was finished, he received an order for a larger duck hunting boat. The customer wanted a 22-foot center console that would be used to hunt ducks in open water. The boat needed to have a shallow draft, be a good ride, and be stable enough to shoot from. Forrester came up with a design the buyer liked, and the boat is coming together right now.
Forrester had the jig for this boat cut on a CNC machine at Tiffany Yachts. That saved a lot of time. He had to move from his grandfather’s barn to a hangar at the Suffolk airport, as the barn did not have enough room for a 22-footer. The boat will have a seven-foot beam and a double bottom. She will be powered by a 150-hp outboard.
Taylor Cockrell of Tiffany Yachts met Forrester on a fishing trip in North Carolina. “We became friends pretty quickly,” said Cockrell. “When Carson was designing his 22-footer, he came up here for a visit. We reviewed the design with him, and then cut out the jig on our CNC machine. It is going to be a beautiful boat. Carson is a great guy, and we hope to work with him on more boats in the future.”
And while Forrester loves the extra room he has in the hangar, he misses the nostalgia of building custom wood boats in his family’s old barn. He noted, “I use some of my grandfather’s hand tools, so that helps a lot.” If you are like Forrester, and appreciate quality custom boats that look as good as they function, you might want to give him a call at (757) 708-0598.
by Kendall Osborne
Friday, February 3, 2017 - 08:30
It is not an attribute you find in most people, but in this case it fits: Carson Forrester is fascinated by boat bottoms. “When most people walk into a boatyard, they look at the tumblehome or finish or craftsmanship. But I bend over to look at the boat bottoms. Always have,” said Forrester.
Forrester was born and raised in Suffolk, VA. As you would expect with a boat builder, he has been around boats his entire life. As a child, his family had a place on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Young Carson visited often. Some family members worked for legendary boat builder Buddy Davis, so Carson was exposed to the best of Carolina boat building at an early age. “I loved the fact that it was a combination of art and function. Those custom-built boats looked as good as they worked. I fell in love with them. I have wanted to build custom boats all my life.”
Forrester continued to learn from the masters in North Carolina. He became a licensed charter captain and landed work for a family that ran custom Carolina boats. While in their employ, the family ordered four separate boats, the last of which was a Spencer. Since Forrester was the captain, he was literally on site during all four builds. He participated in and learned from each one. It was the absolute best on-the-job training. Forrester believed these builders are the best, because they are both charter captains and boat builders. Buddy Cannady, for example, ran charters in warmer weather, but built sportfishing boats in the winter. Most of the assistants in the shop were also captains. This combination of builders who also ran the boats is one secret to their expertise. After building each boat and running it for a while, they learned what needed to be modified to make the boats even better. It is one thing to have customers give feedback on a boat, but quite another for the builder himself to experience the boat first hand on a daily basis. Forrester sincerely appreciates the knowledge these builders have shared.
The Carolina builders are still generous with their guidance. Forrester can call any of his mentors if he has a question. He was hesitant to list his teachers, as he did not want to leave anyone out. When pressed, he ran off a list of the best names in the business, including Bill Keeling, John Bayliss, Paul Spencer, Billy Baum, Billy Maxwell, and Buddy Cannady.
[gallery columns="2" link="file" size="medium" ids="17637,17638" orderby="rand"]
As many builders do, Forrester started small. He made a few hunting skiffs in the barn at his grandfather’s place in Suffolk. That is where he also started building a 17-foot center console. This craft would serve as his demo boat until it sold. However, before the 17 was finished, he received an order for a larger duck hunting boat. The customer wanted a 22-foot center console that would be used to hunt ducks in open water. The boat needed to have a shallow draft, be a good ride, and be stable enough to shoot from. Forrester came up with a design the buyer liked, and the boat is coming together right now.
Forrester had the jig for this boat cut on a CNC machine at Tiffany Yachts. That saved a lot of time. He had to move from his grandfather’s barn to a hangar at the Suffolk airport, as the barn did not have enough room for a 22-footer. The boat will have a seven-foot beam and a double bottom. She will be powered by a 150-hp outboard.
Taylor Cockrell of Tiffany Yachts met Forrester on a fishing trip in North Carolina. “We became friends pretty quickly,” said Cockrell. “When Carson was designing his 22-footer, he came up here for a visit. We reviewed the design with him, and then cut out the jig on our CNC machine. It is going to be a beautiful boat. Carson is a great guy, and we hope to work with him on more boats in the future.”
And while Forrester loves the extra room he has in the hangar, he misses the nostalgia of building custom wood boats in his family’s old barn. He noted, “I use some of my grandfather’s hand tools, so that helps a lot.” If you are like Forrester, and appreciate quality custom boats that look as good as they function, you might want to give him a call at (757) 708-0598.
by Kendall Osborne