Indonesia Boatbuilding
A Photo Gallery
Here are a few of the many photos we have from our various trips to Indonesia, two of which were related to the construction of the 36m phinisi Silolona, and a third trip in 2006 to begin construction of a 36m Kapal Layar Mesin (KLM) for charter use. Please see the links below for more information about these boats.
2001 - SULAWESI
The first group of photos is from our trip to Indonesia during July and August of 2001. Our purpose in going there was to research the local Phinisi types in order to create the design for a new 36m Indonesian phinisi, the Silolona. This group of images is from the towns of Ara and Tanah Biru in South Sulawesi (except for the Alor photo, which is from Nusa Tenggara).
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Ara Town Center
House Gable in Ara
Kapal Layar Mesin (KLM) - Alor
Boat at Tanah Biru Boat at Tanah Biru Michael Inside a 35m Phinisi 2001 - BORNEO
This next group of pictures is from Batulicin (Slippery Rock), Kalimantan Selatan, where the charter yacht Silolona was built. We met with the owner, Patti Seery and the builder, Pak Haji Abdul Wahab while there and actually began construction by lofting the shapes of the mould frames - a first for Batulicin.
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Builder p'Haji Wahab, Owner & I Builder p'Haji Wahab's Family Phinisi / KLM at Batulicin
Computer Plug In...! Designed by Computer Lofted by Hand in Borneo
Lena & Crew The First Mould Frame...! 2004 - HOMECOMING
The following group of photos is from our Silolona "Homecoming" trip during November and December 2004, during which the charter yacht Silolona of our design made her first voyage to Ara in South Sulawesi in order to visit the boat builders' original home. Our additional purpose in visiting Indonesia a second time was to begin the design of a new Phinisi in the tradition of the more modern KLM types... a new 30m Kapal Layar Mesin for charter use. These photos are from South Sulawesi, where a ceremony was held to commemorate the launching of the Silolona.
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Ka Su So Near Ara Boats of Ka Su So The Beach at Ka Su So
Boatbuilding Apprentices - Ara Their Dance Troupe - Ara Apprentices Start the Journey - Ara
Apprentice Procession - Ara Apprentice Ceremony - Ara Ceremonial Boat - Ara
Ara Women Gather Ara Woman 2006 - BORNEO
The following photos are from our trip to Indonesia during May & June 2006 in order to begin construction of a new cargo style phinisi, locally called Kapal Layar Mesin (KLM) for charter use. Kapal Layar Mesin translates as "Motor Sailor" and reflects the presence of the older sailing phinisi bow, bowsprit, and fore mast. These pics were taken fairly far up the river near Sangkulirang, Kalimantan Timur where we lofted the hull shape and built the actual mould frames for this new vessel.
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2006 - SULAWESI
The following photos taken during our 2006 trip are from South Sulawesi where we again visited the home of the Konjo builders at Tanah Biru and Ara. We made this side trip in order to re-acquaint ourselves with the boat building activities in Tanah Biru, and to say hello to several of the local builders we have come to know. These photos illustrate the beach and the boat building methods in use in Tanah Biru, South Sulawesi.
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MORE INFORMATION
If creating your own phinisi / luxury sailing yacht is of interest, we offer a thorough design service. Our preference is to take advantage of traditional methods to the maximum extent possible, but to bring the construction standard up to a classification society compliant structure. We offer our custom design services by which we can modify these types of vessels to suit a variety of requests to change the size or to modify the layout as needed, and then follow that up with our local knowledge in order to facilitate construction.
For complete information about the design and building process that we recommend please see the following links, or for more information please inquire.
Our articles about building an Indonesian Phinisi or KLM:
Phinisi History | Phinisi Building | The Ultimate Charter Phinisi
Sailing vs. KLM Types | A Cargo Phinisi as a Yacht...?
Phinisi and KLM designs that we have created or have planned:
30m Sailing Phinisi | 36m Phinisi, Silolona | 38m Sailing Phinisi | 50m Sailing Phinisi
30m Charter KLM | 33m Charter KLM | 36m KLM, Dunia Baru | 40m Charter KLM | 50m Charter KLM
Descriptions of our adventures with these boats:
Silolona "Homecoming" | Indonesia Boatbuilding Images
Please see the Plans List page to review our available Boat Plans.
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