Trip To The Jersey Shore

[Ariel 109]

Went down and visited David Beaton and Sons Boatyard in West Mantoloking, NJ. A really nice experience looking at all the old boats and working buildings and talking to Tom Beaton the manager. I wanted to shares these pictures with you guys. The little white koster boat has a blog, be sure to check out.

http://www.sjogin.com/?page_id=17

Ben

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[Ariel 109]

This is the reason for the visit. We went to check out this Herreshoff S-Boat that has been languishing ashore for the last decade. Just a foot longer than a Ariel. These boats have running backstays and their jibs are self tending. They draft almost five feet, old style. There is still an active small fleet racing (5-6 boats) on the western Sound. I'd love to attempt her restoration and get her back racing, just a dream.

Ben

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[commanderpete]

I can almost smell the wood.

Here's a short video about building the Sea Bright Skiff. There's a 20-30 minute version on the internet I can't find right now

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZOujiRfLA0

Edit: Here it is

http://www.folkstreams.net/film,41

My Dad used to keep the boat at this yard, back when it had a marine railway and old-timey craftsmen. Oh well

[Ariel 109]

City Island is long past the golden age of yachting. Some remnants here and there. But it's really now a place for people to go eat seafood dinners and cause traffic jams on weekends. Got to blame it all on the tax man taking all of Harold Vanderbilt's money and the general decline in rich peoples tastes.

Three shots from the wonderful Rosenfeld Collection. Trader John, one of the old timers I've met on City Island used to work for Mr. Rosenfeld on the photographer's boat Foto.

Thanks for the links Commanderpete.

You can spend hours looking over this site.

https://www.rosenfeldcollection.com/index.cfm

The America's Cup sloop VANITIE's 168-foot mast stops traffic on City Island Avenue as two dozen men inch it out of the Nevins spar shop in 1928.

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Launching party of POLLY at Nevins, 1945

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M-Boats, 1935

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[commanderpete]

So much good stuff there. Somebody always buys me a Rosenfeld calendar every year.

Here we have the J-Class "Ranger" owned by Harold Vanderbilt, born at a local Vanderbilt Mansion.

"In 1930, Harold achieved the pinnacle of yacht racing success by defending the America's Cup in the J-class yacht Enterprise. His victory put him on the cover of the September 15, 1930, issue of Time magazine. In 1934 Harold faced a dangerous challenger in Endeavour, as the British boat won the first two races. However, Vanderbilt came back in his yacht Rainbow to win three races in a row and defend the Cup. In 1937 Harold defended the Cup a third time in Ranger, the last of the J-class yachts to defend the Cup. Vanderbilt's wife, Gertrude "Gertie" Lewis Conaway, became the first female to compete as a full-fledged team member in an America's Cup yacht race."

Next is a picture of "Ranger's" Afterguard

"Afterguard on the stern deck, from left to right: Rod and Olin Stephens, Professor Zenas Bliss, Mrs. and Mr. Harold Vanderbilt (Harold is at wheel), and Arthur Knapp dressed casually"

Now we have to be satisfied watching "The Jersey Shore" on TV and the modern America's Cup "yachts" that won't sail in over 15 kts. of breeze. But, they can make 22 kts. in 6 kts. of wind so what do know

[Ariel 109]

I really enjoyed the Seabright skiff documentary. I know somebody who's family had a motorized Ulrichsen "Jersey Sea Skiff" that must of been derived from the fishing skiffs. I'll never look disinterested at those old lifeguard boats again.

Harold Vanderbilt was a expert bridge player. I wonder how much gambling was a factor in yacht racing back then? Do you guys in the SF Ariel fleet bet on your races?


These shots were taken a Brewer's Post Road Marina in Mamaroneck after I chickened out from going sailing in the Ariel today. Too gusty for me to be sailing alone. Tough call because I really wanted to go out. Ah, there will be other days.

The Herreshoff S-boat fleet still wintering. They have taken the canvas boat covers off them.

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This beauty was near by.

...................................

The Hodgdon yard of East Boothbay, Maine launched the 55-foot "P-class" gaff-rigged sloop in 1916. BERNICE was designed by George Owen, a contemporary of Nathaniel Herreshoff. In the late 1920s or early 1930s she was re-rigged to a fractional marconi yawl

....................................

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[Lucky Dawg]

people who collect cars are, ahem, missing the boat...

[Frenna]

That S boat is something special. Not sure how much of it could be retained based on the photos. A shame to see it out in the elements like that.

If you are considering it, you might as well pick up a copy of "Sloop", which came out in the last couple years. Written by a friend of mine who ended up with his family Herreshoff 12.5 sloop, which he managed to put back in shape.

If the S boats are of similar construction, which I suspect they are, I would guess many ribs will need to saved for the wood stove. Or maybe pen blanks.

No question about the boat being worthy, though.

Here is a link to "Sloop"
http://www.amazon.com/Sloop-Restoring-Sailboat-Adventure-Old-Fashioned/dp/0743202392

[Ariel 109]

Frenna, thanks for the book recommendation. I'll defiantly try and get that book.

Ben

[Ariel 109]

Another visit, this time to Barrons, a local yard on City Island. Another neat old crane and another languishing wooden boat. Purportedly a Herreshoff, maybe the R-Boat Scapa from 1914. Remodeled and altered, rumored to have lost some of her stern at some point. She must be full of memories.



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[Ariel 109]

I finished "Sloop" by Daniel Robb that Frenna recommended. Nice book, I think most here would really enjoy it. The mighty Strand bookstore has new review copies for about what you pay for a cup of fancy coffee these days.

I haven't read many books on sailing since I was a kid, Hornblower, Robin Lee Graham and all those Master & Commander books. Right now I'm reading an old copy of Arthur Knapp's "Race Your Boat Right" which though hopelessly out of date is a good book. Any other sailing book recommendations?

Ben


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[Lucky Dawg]

Joshua Slocum's Sailing Around the World Alone, of course. And I like Tania Aebi's Maiden Voyage. My Old Man and the Sea - (I like the cicumnavigation genre) - that one is a father and son rounding of Cape Horn and they take turns writing chapters. More of a survival book as a whole, but Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage is an incredible story with an heroic sail as it's turning point.

[mbd]

There's lots of 'em out there. More are mentioned in these threads:

http://www.pearsonariel.org/discussion/showthread.php?2069-Winter-reading-suggestions

http://www.pearsonariel.org/discussion/showthread.php?1195-Cape-Horn-in-a-Electra

[Ariel 109]

I discovered some of L. Francis Herreshoff's books. I found a used copy of this and "Sensible Cruising Designs" at the old Stand Bookstore here in New York.

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[Ariel 109]

Sailing book of the week. Thanks to jury duty I finished it in one day!

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[Ariel 109]

Got to crew on the Herreshoff S-Boat Iroquois racing against four other S-Boats out on Long Island Sound today. I wasn't able to take many decent pictures between the races but I did have a good time sailing.

And I had my first Commander sighting. Moored at the Larchmont Yacht Club. A contrast to my City Island neighborhood. But old beloved Pearsons turn up everywhere.

Ben


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S-Boat Dilemma

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Iroquois under sail.

[Ariel 109]

Completing the L. Francis Herreshoff ring cycle. Great book, really corny, but a fun book.

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[Ariel 109]

A Commander! This is my first sighting of a Commander. I guess the dues are so high at the Larchmont Yacht Club the poor owner can't afford a new mainsail cover. Second weekend of S-Boat racing and my first Monte-Sano (a dangerous rum drink that originated at the LYC).


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[ebb]

Have to say I've really enjoyed this thread.
Have come back to it a number of times.
Like your class book portraits, yes,

But the S-boat with the gaggle of menacing orange triffids in the foreground is my favorite!:cool:
(post #10b)

[Ariel 109]

But the S-boat with the gaggle of menacing orange triffids in the foreground is my favorite!:cool:
(post #10b)

Last night, coincidentally, we went there for a barbecue. Barron's boatyard, right under their yacht hoist and it's nice view. Surrounded by triffids. Most of the delicious cooking was done by a Triton owner named Woody. Met a bunch of nice people. Later one of those classic Bermuda's cup yawls lazily sailed by while we were having fun.

[Ariel 109]

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Scanned this from an old 'Yachting' magazine March 1965. I was more interested in Captain Kangaroo at this time.

[Ariel 109]

A classic book about the sea, although not on sailing. Found on a Brooklyn street this past week in a pile of thrown out books. Cousteau wrote this, his first book, in 1953.


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[Ariel 109]

Didn't think I was going to like this small book as much as I did. Adam Nicolson is a wonderful writer.

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[Ariel 109]

S-Boats Kandahar and Eaglet during one of yesterday's pre-races.

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I must note that the S-Boat Iroquois, on which I've been crewing, went on to win it's class in the 112th Larchmont Race Week Regatta!

[Ariel 109]

Sailed over to Manhasset bay to look at the mega-yacht "Mitseaah" which is in the background of this picture. Spotted this beautiful old yawl, way more interesting than the before mentioned run of the mill exercise in hubris.


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[Ariel 109]

My friend Hans and I sailed a "free, just get it out of our marina" Ensign from New Rochelle to City Island. Nice, like a small S-boat.

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Hart's Island, Potter's Field from the new Ensign. Beats getting buried beside the expressway in Queens.
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[Ariel 109]

I've been so busy with work and sailing that I've neglected the old Jersey Shore thread!

Here's the freebee Ensign my friend Hans was given. Nice boat, large cockpit doubles as a conversational pit, almost as fun as an Ariel / Commander.

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Went out day-sailing this Labor Day with the competition in the S-Boat fleet aboard Allegro with Bill, Wendy and their son Wynn. These guys are fast and win most of the races. Bill is in syndicate on Allegro with this great guy Howard. Who's retired and living in Maine but races still in the first half of the S-Boat racing season. Howard bought Allegro back in the early sixties and her name honors his profession of playing the french horn for the Metropolitan Opera for 46 years!

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[Ariel 109]

I have been reading. This is a great book. I remember reading it when I was a kid and being so impressed by the line drawings in the book. How nice the world might be today if the internal combustion engine had never been invented and vessels like the ones in this book still plied the waves.

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[Ariel 109]

I took theses running through City Island's mooring field on Noesis (Ariel 109) this morning. This is the boat everyone up here calls Walter Cronkite's boat. Don't know if this is true or not, but it is purportedly a John G. Alden design built in the 50's. For whom I know Carl Alberg worked during the thirties and forties. I think you can see Alden's influence on Carl's designs in this great old boat. It is being looked after. There's a pump aboard and she is parked at a protected dock during the winter. Hopefully she will soon be restored.


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[C38]

Holy Moly!

That boat looks like it came right out of Pirates of the Caribbean.

Amazingly beautiful lines however!

also, how long is it? hard to tell from the photo

[Ariel 109]

That boat looks like it came right out of Pirates of the Caribbean.



That's good! I'll certainly be thinking that for now on when I sail by her. And I would say she is about 45' long not counting the bowsprit.

Saturday there is a classic wooden boat regatta up in Greenwich and the S-Boats are taking part. I know that some pretty spectacular old boats are going to be there. So I should have some more pictures to post real soon.

[ebb]

Sweet lines. Looks like a cutter, from the single mast and bowsprit. Strictly sail.
Cronkite owned a number of boats that got larger and wider as time went by.

They all look like single malt and filet mignon yachts with biminis and pilot houses.
Maybe someone at the regatta can put a name on her?

He owned a Westsail 42 cutter, but that can't be it in your photo.
He also had an Al Mason designed Sunward 48' ketch, that is to die for.... if you got the hat.
google: SUNWARD 48 Sailboat details on sailboatdata.com

an affectionate tribute:
google: Cronkite: a sailor in a news anchor's chair
www.soundingsonline.com

[Ariel 109]

Ebb I'll get to the bottom of this Walter Cronkite rumor. All the old codgers on City Island have a Uncle Walter story. Somebody has got to know.

We took the S-Boats up to Greenwich this evening. Some amazing boats arrived as we were mooring. Here's the bow of Nellie a Herreshoff from 1902.

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[Ariel 109]

Some shots from yesterday's regatta. The overcast sky played havoc with my old trusty digital camera. But quite a day of sailing.

Nellie a N. G. Herreshoff design from 1903

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Nor'easter IV John Alden Q-Class design from 1926

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[Ariel 109]

Great book, written in the early 1980's.

"The dictionary does the word proud. To coast is to proceed without great effort, to move by momentum or force of gravity, to march on the flank of, to skirt, to sail from port to port of the same country, to explore or scour, to bicycle downhill without pedaling, and to slide down a slope on a sled. The coaster--as my school report pointed out in no uncertain terms--is someone who uses the minimum of effort to go down a slippery slope on the margin of things."


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[Ariel 109]

In one of those Francis Herreshoff books I read over the summer he mentions the importance of keeping a copy of this book aboard your yacht at all times. This is not the Arthur Quiller-Couch edition but close enough. Bought as somewhat of a personal joke I've found out it's a wonderful book to read. The mind being so receptive after sailing.

"Sound, sound the clarion, fill the fife!
Throughout the sensual world proclaim,
One crowded hour of glorious life
Is worth an age without a name."

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[Ariel 109]

One of those books too old and musty to be worth reading? I found it magnificent, really worth the time. This edition has a nice introduction, includes an extensive dictionary of nautical terms and is cheap!


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[Ariel 109]

First paying boat project! Building a new rudder for the Herreshoff S-boat Iroquois. She broke her mooring in a violent storm about a month ago and narrowly escaped destruction thanks to a good Samaritan who pulled her off a rocky beach in the middle of the night. Her lead ballast was mushroomed and rudder bashed as she bounced up and down on some rocks. Anyhow it could have been far worse, one less life out of nine!

The owner and I went up to the Berkshires last week and visited a sawmill called New England Naval Timbers, that supplies seasoned white oak for many of the wooden boat builders in New England. What a nice experience! Came back with a beautiful long piece of rift sawn 12/4 that should make a nice rudder. Start tomorrow and I'll post pictures of the progress. An Ariel rudder isn't all that different. And what about that rudderless Pearson Vanguard? Good grief!


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[Ariel 109]

A British Seagull outboard, just like a good old Raleigh 3 speed bicycle. Part of all the junk that was aboard Ariel 109 when I cleaned out the cabin right after I got her. Hans did a workman like job of getting the old girl going again. I think it makes 2-3hp. It's kind of fun to motor around on the dingy. Will we all get fat now from lack of rowing?

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[Ariel 109]

This book is from the Time Reading Program. A series of book reissues done by Time Life back in the Sixties. Some of the best used bookstore treasures I've found have come from this series.

"Logbook For Grace" is the story of a 1912 voyage on one of the last sailing whalers by the naturist Robert Murphy from the New York Museum of Natural History. It's based on letters that Murphy wrote to his new bride Grace during the year he was away. Nice book!

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Found these pictures taken by Robert Murphy on the voyage described in the book. The first is of the Daisy, Captain Benjamin Cleveland's whaler. The second is of a "Nantucket Sleigh Ride" during the harpooning of a sperm whale. Wooden ship and iron men!


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[Ariel 109]

Another wonderful book by Jonathan Raban. Your missing out if you haven't read anything by this writer.

This book portrait, shot on the Johnny B's dock came out very atmospheric!

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[Ariel 109]

Today's "nor'easter" came through and the abandoned sailboats of City Island started breaking their mooring lines. This still nice San Juan 24 has beached herself here a few times over the past year. Last word is she's back afloat and anchored.


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[commanderpete]

I have to admit that I've also put my boat on the rocks at City Island.

Next year I'll have to come over for a visit

[ebb]

Haven't read this guy yet.
He has a website with a photo across the top of a guy single-handing a skipjack of our proportions.

We thankfully don't do politics here.
But I did read some of his de Tocquevillesque (1835) observations on Democrasy in America.
A reviewer quoted on his blog calls him 'sane' - among other compliments.
I read his thoughts on Palin, and he is much much saner than I will ever be.

Think I'll get this book you recommend.
He obviously has a fine lively sane intellectual mind. Sanity is rare in this age. Refreshing in an intellectual!
Looking through some of the reviews:
More than just a travel book, It's a journal that tries to get to 'the meaning of the sea.' through native history, personal catastrophy, 'the dark sea within'.
He takes this vovage alone on a 35' ketch.

I have to find out how he keeps his sanity!

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THE SEA?
(not even google can get you there.)

[Ariel 109]

Commander Peter, would be great to have a visit from you at City Island. Your landing spot is very close to where Noesis was moored this summer. What's that lovely little boat, did you build it?

Ebb, I think you'd enjoy Raban's writing. He takes so many interesting side paths in his writing, sharing and opening up all these ideals. He gives great book recommendations in all his books. I'm searching for a reasonably priced copy of Hilare Belloc's "Cruise of the Nona" because Raban mentions this book in "Coasting" and makes it sound so interesting.

[ebb]

Hilair Belloc has a nice Wikipedia.
A prodigeous literary giant but shackled to a huge bias that kept me from reading him
back in the days when reading authors was an obligation.
My daughter when she was an academic wrote a paper on the cultural bias
writers, professors, archeologists bring to their interpretations of the past.
EG, if your cultural view of man is men before women, that is how you will see the Neanderthal.
And by extension any accessment of the present state of man.

Evidently, like Belloc in 'The cruise of the Nona', Raban takes us down side paths in '..Juneau' that are on his mind when writing his sailing book. These side paths are the plate and color of the feast befor our eyes. However, for me, the lens of the writer has to be crystal clear not one filtered through rose colored glasses.
Maybe Raban has this radical CLEAR VIEW, sanity. Hope so.

That's all I'm allowed to say here.:cool:

[Ariel 109]

Ebb,

Raban has none of the old prejudices which we all know were quite common in Belloc's time. In "Coasting" one theme Raban takes apart is the ideal of the what drives amateur sailors to take to the sea in small boats, a relatively recent human pastime. In earlier times people did not go to sea unless they really needed to. He writes about the early books on yachting and the bias of their writers, quite interesting.

From Raban's "Coasting", the four boats he names below are the yachts of early sailing writers.

"The "Rob Roy", "The Kate", "Perseus" and "Nona" are a lot more than mere yachts. Loaded down on their marks with testaments, theories, dogmas and solutions, that are like arks of the Covenant, holy vessels bearing sacred texts. Jesus Christ...Aristotle...Malthus...Mussolini..each of the lone sailors puts to sea with a ghostly first mate. And the boats themselves are miniature ships of state, their trim style of domestic ecomony set side by side with the ramshackle and disordered house of England across the water."

[Ariel 109]

Another Herreshoff S-Boat. This one is Tern and she's the last one made, 1941. Trimmed in Teak, a rare option resulting from being originally built for a wealthy Newport owner. Also one of the few self-bailer S-Boats made, although now converted thankfully to the deeper soled cockpit. You want to keep that long wooden boom as far from your head as possible. If everything goes as planned she should be racing at the end of May. Anyone interested in crewing?

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[C38]

Another Herreshoff S-Boat. This one is Tern and she's the last one made, 1941. Trimmed in Teak, a rare option resulting from being originally built for a wealthy Newport owner. Also one of the few self-bailer S-Boats made, although now converted thankfully to the deeper soled cockpit. You want to keep that long wooden boom as far from your head as possible. If everything goes as planned she should be racing at the end of May. Anyone interested in crewing?


ME ME ME!! I would love to crew that beauty! though I am not that great of a sailor so I can just be rail meat...

[Ariel 109]

Michael,

It would be great to have you come out and crew on Tern next summer. As for your sailing skills, I'm sure you'll do fine. The S-Boat has a self tending jib so there's not much grinding going on. There is the spinnaker to fly, but only in the medium to light winds for the most part. A most important chores are tending the two running backstays and keeping the big mainsail trimmed.

Thankfully S-Boat racing is not like something out of a Gatorade commercial. More on the order of "simply messing about in boats" and keeping an old one design class active. There are some very fine sailors in the fleet and the racing is competitive and interesting. If all goes as planned there will be ten S-Boats racing in the Western Sound Fleet next summer. That many boats racing together hasn't happened since the fifties.

We're also going to sail the Wednesday night "beer can" races off City Island with the Ariel next summer. If anyone wants to join a quixotic campaign against modern "gear" laden sailboats.

Ben

[Ariel 109]

Another one of those great forgotten books republished back in the sixties by the Time Reading Program. Richard Hughes doesn't disappoint in this classic hurricane survival story. Nice cover by an artist by the name of Tom Ballenger. This picture was taken while the book lay in the eye of the holiday season.

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[Ariel 109]

Yesterday a friend gave me this little pamphlet of the history of the America's Cup, printed in 1930 by the Plymouth Cordage Company. It has these nicely drawn dinky (1" x 1") etchings of all the Cup defenders and some of the challengers. I scanned and enlarged these images.

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[Ariel 109]

Another Richard Hughes book better known by it's original title "High Wind To Jamaica", the American publisher changed the title. Later made into a decent film starring Anthony Quinn and James Coburn. Read the book first, thought by many to be masterpiece. An easy find at used bookstores.

All these great books about the sea!

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[Ariel 109]

Here's an early Carl Alberg design he did while working for Alden just after WW2. Called the US One-Design, the little picture below is of one they have awaiting restoration up at the International Yacht Restoration School (IYRS).

"Maria (1946)
Type: Alden One-Design; Designers: Carl Alberg, John Alden; Builder: Quincy Adams Yacht Yard
John Alden design #757 came off the drawing board of Carl Alberg during World War II. Thirty boats were built in 1946 and 1947 to the highest standards of the day by Quincy Adams Yacht Yard at Quincy, MA. The boats were available with or without a cabin trunk and a minimum of accommodations below deck. Maria's hull form’s short keep and narrow waterlines reduce wetted surface while the long overhangs increase her sailing length dramatically as she heels in a breeze. Her well-balanced long ends give her a stunning look. LOA: 37' 9"; Beam: 7'."


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/imagehelper.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Maria-web.jpg

http://sailboatdata.com/viewrecord.asp?class_id=5023

http://www.iyrs.org/boats/boatstoberestored/tabid/199/default.aspx

[Ariel 109]

Bundled up for an afternoon of winter sailing off City Island in Hans' Ensign "Pleasure". We each had a fortifying brandy served in a plastic cup during the run back to the mooring.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRVlnZIkLN4

I'm the one steering the boat. Hans is the one filming and almost falling off the boat.

[Ariel 109]

Met Bill Schultz the ninety five year old previous caretaker of the S-Boat Tern, the boat I'm beginning to look after. I felt really honoured when he gave me this old hand painted necktie emblazoned with an image of Tern, sail number 70.

Bill told me the first sailboat he went cruising on was a Pearson Ariel back in the early sixties. Remembered having to sleep up in those tight fitting vee berths Also told me there's an Ariel moored in Hempstead Harbor, which is not too far from City Island. The beginnings of a one-design fleet?

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2139.jpg

[C38]

Michael,

It would be great to have you come out and crew on Tern next summer. As for your sailing skills, I'm sure you'll do fine. The S-Boat has a self tending jib so there's not much grinding going on. There is the spinnaker to fly, but only in the medium to light winds for the most part. A most important chores are tending the two running backstays and keeping the big mainsail trimmed.

Thankfully S-Boat racing is not like something out of a Gatorade commercial. More on the order of "simply messing about in boats" and keeping an old one design class active. There are some very fine sailors in the fleet and the racing is competitive and interesting. If all goes as planned there will be ten S-Boats racing in the Western Sound Fleet next summer. That many boats racing together hasn't happened since the fifties.

We're also going to sail the Wednesday night "beer can" races off City Island with the Ariel next summer. If anyone wants to join a quixotic campaign against modern "gear" laden sailboats.

Ben

Thanks, I would love to! Just let me know when the season's getting close! ( I am in eastern LI so it should only take about an hour for me to drive out )

I would love to come on Wed as well but I have my own quixotic campaign Wed night races to attend to!

[Ariel 109]

Michael, won't forget you and I'll keep you informed. It's great that you're going to race your Commander this next season. You have to post descriptions of the races for us like Rico does.

I'll sketch out the current plan to get Tern racing this summer.

Tern is being worked on up in Newport after being stored in a barn for almost a decade. She's in the hands of the boat builder Jim Titus, a kind and quiet craftsman who I feel lucky to have doing the work on the old girl. The plan is to sort out as much of the many structural issues as to allow the boat to safely sail in this upcoming season's regattas. I hope myself to spend at least three weeks in May working on the boat in Newport. Then transporting her down to City Island to splash and install the rig, she's got a beautiful mast. It an ambitious crazy project but I'm getting much support from fellow members of the S-Boat fleet down here on the Western Sound. I don't think I'll be the prettiest S-Boat out this summer, but give me a few years.

Here's a picture of Tern sailing with Bill Schultz back in 1995. That's the Shields class starting in the background.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Ternprestart1995-2.jpg

[mbd]

Ben, in re-reading your thread here, I finally put it together - Tern was the reason for your "Trip To The Jersey Shore"! Doh! It'll be fun to watch her progress from the early posts here. What a beauty! Wish I were closer, I'd love to get out there with you guys this Summer.

[Ariel 109]

Mike (MBD),

The whole thing sort of evolved on it own.

The boat we visited down at the Jersey Shore early last spring was the S-Boat Volunteer not Tern. It's been languishing down there for about decade. I've been pestering the owner this past year with a phone calls every now and again to help motivate her resurrection. I actually enjoy the conversations and have learned many things about the S-Class from him. He bought Volunteer after she sank at her mooring some twenty five years ago. Raised her and got her racing. As we all know life intrudes on our best laid plans and I'm sure that's why Volunteer has been dry docked for so long. Still she not yet firewood and she's got her winter cover on this season.

I'll keep an open invite to you for a sail on Tern.

Ben

[Ariel 109]

More yachting ephemera. Stumbled across this old lockspike knife, made in England. They make these still, so maybe it's not really that old.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2182.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Here's another nice shot of Tern being sailed by Bill Schultz and Donna back in 1995.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DonnaTern1995.jpg

[mbd]

Niiiiiiice!

[Ariel 109]

Found this great old picture and caption of an Ariel sailing with this strange sail arrangement. Sorry about the small size and quality of the photo.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Ariel41.jpg


"Vanitie" Hull ID #41, Owner: Milton Thrasher writes: Here is a photo from 1963 of my Pearson Ariel #41 sailing on Barnegat Bay, NJ. It shows a Star Class jib set off the backstay like a mizzen sail with a missing mizzen mast. I sailed the Ariel for about 10 years on Barnegat Bay and Long Island Sound. I ran an Ariel-Commander YRA newsletter for about 4 years with about 140 subscribers.

[Ariel 109]

Had an enjoyable phone conversation with Milton Thrasher, original owner of Ariel #41, last night and learned some of the early history of Ariel / Commander sailing.

Milton told me about getting to go sailing with Carl Alberg on his Commander up in Marblehead. Designing with his wife the yellow star logo that's on the Ariel / Commander Yacht Association burgee. The difficulties of creating Ariel / Commander one design racing fleets. Seems that the Cleveland Yachting Club had a fleet of about 10 boats racing in the sixties and of course the mighty long lived San Francisco fleet may have been the only two.

Here's some more vintage pictures of Milton's boat down at the Jersey Shore, Barnegat Bay. The spinnaker is cast away from a International One Design. He told me it eventually tore apart in a spectacular fashion during a sail. And I think that's him in the water with his two kids. Imagine beaching your boat like that and going swimming.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/-1.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/-2.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Some more images sent by Milton.


Brand new from the Pearson factory, Ariel #41 being launched in 1963.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Ariellaunchin1963.jpg

Ariel #41 laid up for the winter with Milton's Mercedes 220 Ponton.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/OurArielandMercedes220.jpg

Nancy, Jim and Carolyn on Ariel #41 in 1968. This was taken before disposable plastic picnic utensils became the norm. :)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/NancyJimandCarolynwithhairfixedonourArielcica1968. jpg

Here's a copy of the Ariel-Commander Yacht Racing Association newsletter that Milton produced. This one dates form 1969.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Ariel-CommanderYRANovember51969001.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Another foray into nautical reading. This book recommend and belonging by my good friend Hans.

Alan Villiers was an Australian sailor and writer of great accomplishments. "Sons of Sinbad" is about two years he spent, just prior to WW2, sailing with the Arab seaman of the Indian Ocean. Voyaging from Kuwait to Zanzibar and back in a sea dhow named "Triumph of Righteousness", great name, during the final days of a tradition descended from the Phoenicians. A remarkable book of great insight.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2198.jpg

[C38]

Miltons photos are terrific! thanks for posting them!

[Ariel 109]

By popular request more Milton pictures!

This is a neat photo of Miton's wife Nancy single-handing Ariel #41 back in the good old days. I like how the jib sheets are rigged using blocks attached to those mysterious strap-eyes mounted just behind the mast on the cabin-top. I just took those mounts off my Ariel #109 this week and epoxied up the holes.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/NancyThrasherontheAriel41Vanitie1964.jpg

Here's Nancy again at the helm this time while racing on Barnegat Bay. Good view of the original Pearson off-white gel-coat color.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/NancyonourArielonBarnegatBay.jpg

Milton made this Ariel / Commander half model. He's an accomplished model maker and model kit manufacturer. Check out his website.

http://www.angelfire.com/fl4/mft/

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/PearsonArielmounted.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/PearsonAriel1-24Scale.jpg

[Ariel 109]

I learned during my conversation with Milton that he was stationed at Pearl Harbor at the time the Korean War while serving in the Navy. While there he sailed many times one of the Navy built Herreshoff S-Boats. Said it was made on base in their wood shop and that he met the Boatswain's Mate who built it. The Hawaiian S-Boats are kind of legendary in S-Boat circles. Seems a fleet of five(?) Herreshoff built S-Boats were purchased by the Navy and brought to Pearl Harbor for the enjoyment of the officers in the 1928. By the end of WW2 none of these original boats survived so the Navy went about building a new pair for themselves. Herreshoff Manufacturing being no more, their hallowed shipyard patiently waiting for the Pearson brothers to one day take over.


One of the S-Boat skippers sent me this picture and description.

Hey Ben,

Funny you mention this. I've been in contact with a gentleman in Pearl Harbor for about a year. It started as a secret, odd tale he told of the last remaining S-boat in HI (he was trying to keep it out of the hands of a local who was known to take over care of wooden boats and then let them rot in a yard). It is the Mokulele, one of the S-boats built by the US Navy. As you can see by the picture, from ~2004, she is barely recognizable as an S-boat. Since the picture was taken she has been on the hard and suffered....9 cracked ribs, lots of dry rot, LOTS of modification, and unfortunately, she had been glassed over. He just took on ownership of her from the US Navy and put her up on blocks to determine if she can even be resurrected or not. He is hopeful and intends to put together a syndicate and/or get funding from the Navy to have her completely restored. He is, however, realistic and knows this is a long-term project. I've put him in touch with Jim Titus for advice.

Of other note, he also has the lead from the S-boat Panini, which hit a reef and sank.

Best,

Sean



http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/-1-1.jpg

[Ariel 109]

A fun book. Cult classic amongst the cat boat crowd, is there is such a thing? If you're thinking of a long coastal journey you can conveniently get it out of your system by reading this great book.

Order this book real cheap from the link below. It's a print on demand copy, but nice done.

http://www.alibris.com/booksearch.detail?invid=10436136781&qauth=plummer&quserid=BOOKDPUS&qsort=&page=1

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2204.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Here's that S-Boat rudder project getting started. This is a picture of how I tapered the thickness of the rudder blank with an added strip of MDF glued to the stern side of the rudder. This lifted that side off the planer table and allowed me a cut a precise bevel across the width of the rudder. The two boards that make up the blank are glued temporarly together with a strip of thick drawing paper sandwiched between. The paper rips and allows the joint to crack open with a screwdriver driven into the ends of the joint.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2206.jpg

[Commander 147]

Nice trick... I have seen it done before but never used it myself.

BTW I lust after stationary sanders like I see in your shop. The large belt/disk sander in the background and the large edge sander you showed us previously. I bid on a nice edge sander in an auction a couple weeks ago but someone else was willing to pay almost new price for it. Guess I'll just have to keep my eyes open for a deal.

[Ariel 109]

Sanders, I lust (like Jimmy Carter) after a wide belt!

That Crouch edge sander is a great machine. I was lucky to get it cheap ten years age because it had a burned out bearing. With sanders it's the more horse power the better, I think my Crouch has a 7.5 HP motor on it. The Earth moves when you turn it on. I remember talking with old Mr. Crouch on the telephone years ago, he was a pisser. "You're an idiot if you think you need an oscillating edge sander", he told me.

Here's a picture with both sides of the rudder blank beveled. The next step is to repair on the hull the rudder fairings on the S-Boat's rudder post so that they will line up nice with the new rudder's width, eighty years of wear and refinishing.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2208.jpg

[ebb]

Indeed,

"Why Not the Best?"

[Ariel 109]

Thanks Ebb! Admit I didn't get it and I had to look it up.


From a review on Amazon on Carter's book "Why not the best?".

"He takes the title from the question Adm. Rickhover asks of all naval cadets, 'in your life was there ever a time in which you did less than the best?' He would follow up the question with "Why not the best?" as a way to focus young men, including James Earl Carter, on striving for excellence."

[Ariel 109]

Some more shots from the S-Boat rudder project. We need to increase the thickness of the S-Boat's rudder post in order to match the thickness and fair to the front edge of the new rudder. The ideal is to epoxy two thin boards to each side of the post that we can then form down to shape. I had to chisel and hand plane down the surfaces to a flat plane first. I still have so more work to this end. Kind of exciting and intimidating hacking into a boat like this one, slow and easy. I held off the power tools for now.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2209.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2210.jpg

[Frenna]

Seeing as how this thread seems to have become, in part, a reading list, I offer up the following:

The Water In Between by Kevin Patterson.

I have read most of the cruising narratives out there in my day, especially the "classics", by Miles Smeeton, John Guzzwell, and so on.

Found The Water In Between in a used bookstore, never heard of it, and thought "ah, what the hell". Turns out to be one of my favorite vicarious cruising reads. Answers with some credibility what it would have been like to have both the resources and lack of commitments in one's late 20's or therabouts to have actually gone cruising on the Pacific. Especially as I would have wanted to do it, with minimal experience and vague expectations.

What I really like about it though, is how well written it is. I really found myself appreciating Mr Patterson's perspective and self-depricating honesty and self curiosity.

Since this seems to be going down as the coolest spring in recorded history in the northwest, the Pacific cruising fantasy seems to be coming on strong.

A local weather blog had the following image to remind its readers of the crappy weather:7374

Here is the book and amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/Water-Between-Journey-Sea/dp/0385498845#_
7375

[Ariel 109]

Frenna, I really enjoyed your last book recommendation "Sloop". I'll keep an eye out at the Strand for this new book.

Everyone has always been welcome to post on the "Trip to Jersey Shore". If you have something you want to share and it kind of fits into the general theme of the devil and the deep blue sea I beseech you to add to this thread.

Ben

[Ariel 109]

I was given this teak and rope boarding ladder, great simple design. Put some new white rudder bumpers on the rungs and oiled up the teak.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2214.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Here's another shot from ongoing the S-Boat rudder project. Epoxying two boards onto the rudder post to allow the new rudder to be properly faired to the keel. It would have been a whole lot easier to make a new rudder post except that would have entail removing several large 3/4" bronze lag bolts that seem very firmly entrenched.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2227.jpg

[Commander 147]

Ben

I'm not sure I fully understand what it is you are doing on the S-boat. But then I've never seen an S-boat rudder assembly so I don't know what it is supposed to look like.

[ebb]

Right! Can see what Jerry's talking about.
So you got those timbers tight against the keelpost
but it sure don't look like there's any radius there for a rudder to turn.

Would seem to me that the rudder shaft would be a single piece of wood
if it is indeed built that way.
The ruddershaft would be round in the trunk (up to the tiller) but carved out and flatted on the aft side for the first plank of the rudder blade to be attacht to.
Built a small one like that once outta teak.
But the round rudder post or shaft was carved from a single piece of timber that became part of the rudder blade.

It's just that the pieces you have blocked and clamped for gluing look rather light.
Perhaps it IS the keelpost (stern post) that you repair not the rudder or rudder shaft. Damn words.:confused:

[Ariel 109]

Sorry for the confusion. Keelpost or sternpost is what I was calling the rudder post. From this moment on I will refer to the said structure as a keelpost. Note that in the future if by the off chance that I refer to the rudder post I mean the rudder stock which everyone refers to as the rudder shaft.

The S-boat rudder hinges on the keelpost. The rudder's leading edge is rounded convex and the keelpost back edge is rounded concave. The rudder nests into the keelpost's concave back edge. The boards I added to the keelpost are to rebuild the sides of the concave back edge. Ah, it will all be clear soon, I hope......

[Ariel 109]

The next little step. Roughing out a block of wood that will fair the bronze rudder stock as it passes through the keelson of the S-Boat. It's like making a little Henry Moore sculpture. As you can see the old one has seen better days. I need to take the new piece up to the boatyard and check the fit on the hull before I can begin carving away.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2235.jpg

[Commander 147]

Looks like white oak. Not the easiest thing to carve.

[ebb]

Certainly looks like the bamboo wrapped handle of a Japanese pull saw in the photo.
No blade showing, but it could be you have there a favorite of mine:
The Azibiki.
Seldom seen in catalogs or hardware stores.
Lee Valley carries one size. You have to go to the Japan Woodworker for selection.
The large size (5" blade, eg) would definitely be useful on your S-boat restoration. An amazing tool.
Known as a mortise saw, but I've used a small one for everything around the shop.

Every boat builder (indeed, every carpenter) should have one or three in his kit.
(Course it's not going to slice whiteoak like a bandsaw can!)

imco THE most versatile - and best kept secret - hand saw ever invented.:cool:

[Ariel 109]

Jerry, I think I'll do most of the hand shaping on that piece of oak with with rasps and finish with sandpaper.

Here's the rest of the saw. I bought this Dōzuki saw, my first, about 20 years ago in an old hardware store in the Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles, like a movie set in a Roman Polanski film. Use it all the time from cutting dovetails to PVC pipe. I own a little japanese metal file for keeping it sharp, which is easy to do. I have a few other japanese saws but this is my favorite. And it's hand engraved on the blade with the makers name.

Ebb, the only Azibiki I own is the Marples one they sell at Home Depot. I need to find a nicer one.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2236.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Pondering Ebb's coffee maker, I don't like bitter coffee. Would this be right for me?

What did fly off that boat in New Orleans?

More progress on the S-Boat rudder stock fairing.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2238.jpg

[Commander 147]

Ben

If that is your attempt to copy the original piece you seem to have a few things wrong. See how the original has really irregular shaped sides? Not at all like your remake. And the rudder shaft hole in the middle... it's perfectly round on your remake which is not al all like the original. I think you need to work a little more at it my friend. :D:D

Seriously... it's looking good. I'm enjoying the progress photos.

[Ariel 109]

Thanks Jerry. I love posting progress pictures. Small groups of individuals sharing obscure information and techniques online is all that keeping this culture from barbarism, ah!

Got out the trusty round Stanley Sure-Form and finished roughing out the rudder stock fairing. When it's attached to the hull I don't think it will take too long to match up with the hull's curves. This was fun to make. If there had been Sure-Forms back in Old Nat's day I'm sure he'd have been using them to make his half-models.



http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2246.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Here's that rudder stock fairing being fitted onto the S-Boat hull. I'm actually going to try again making this piece. I need to use a thicker piece to make the protruding hump extend further downward and match the original specs. I'm currently epoxying two thick boards of white oak together for second try blank.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2264.jpg

[Commander 147]

I don't even want to talk about the things I made over for Destiny....everything from the structural support beam to the tiller. But a thing worth doing is worth doing right so I do what I must. It sounds like you feel the same way.

[Ariel 109]

Totally agree with you Jerry. I learned a great deal making that first attempt. I'm really enjoying all these sailboat projects, there's some kind of poetry to the work. It's a nice break from my regular fabricating work.

Ben

[Ariel 109]

OK, the second try on the Brancusi like S-Boat rudder stock fairing. Early tomorrow up for the fitting. I left more meat on this one, I'll hog it down after it's been on the hull.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2276.jpg

Some S-Boat details I took last week:

I love these old spinnaker sheet cheek blocks. I got these on my mind because I'm installing spinnaker sheet blocks on the Ariel right now, something modern though, Spectra loops.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2224.jpg

The curved S-Boat mast. These are built curved. The dreaded running backstays are also pictured. You can straighten the mast with an adjustable headstay that is controlled by some kind of leverage in the cockpit. The bow shot shows the headstay running through the deck.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2219.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2220.jpg

[mbd]

Very cool pics! Beautiful! Maybe I'm missing something, but I gotta say, that little piece of hardware attached to the stem, holding the block and the ENTIRE mast up, makes me quite nervous. :eek:

[Ariel 109]

Very cool pics! Beautiful! Maybe I'm missing something, but I gotta say, that little piece of hardware attached to the stem, holding the block and the ENTIRE mast up, makes me quite nervous. :eek:

Thanks!

Well the jibstay, that green turnbuckle thingamajig behind the adjustable forestay is what holds the mast up from the bow. The adjustable forestay is just to take the curve out of the top section of the mast. Most boats that are fractional sloops, like the S-Boat and the Pearson Triton, have masts that get most of their forward support from a cable that is not attached to the top of the mast.

After you see one of these S-Boat masts under load in a heavy wind the Ariel's mast and rigging looks very oversized, which is great.

Up this morning to fit the rudder stock fairing block and this view greeted me as I walked in the boat shed. This is Dilemma and Kandahar floating in the ether.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2277.jpg

The "second attempt" roughed out fairing block fit very nicely, a big relief. Now I'm going to start planing, rasping, filing and sanding all this into shape so we can hang the new rudder. It's all still fun.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2288.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2289.jpg

Here's the latest sailing book I've been reading. An unsentimental record of a journey from Chile to South Africa by an Irish poet.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DSCF2293.jpg

[Ariel 109]

This nice boat was put back in the water today after being stored inside for the past five years. She's a Sparkman and Stevens design built by the famous Derecktor yard in 1955. I really like the tiller lock, winch stands and the trove of other nice details. There's a pretty Commander in the background of some of these photos.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0018.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0019-1.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0020.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0021-1.jpg

[Ariel 109]

I've been progressing on the S-Boat rudder. Roughed out more of the shape and started to attach the hardware. It's all gudgeons and pintles for awhile now.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/-2-1.jpg


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/-3.jpg

[Ariel 109]

I needed to drill holes for the bronze drift pins that hold the S-Boat's rudder together. The challenge being to drill the long holes as straight as possible and not pop out somewhere along on the rudder's surface. First I leveled the rudder's centerline and clamped it to a surface. Next I used an electric drill, 1/4" installers bit and small bubble level which has a vee notched on it's base, for leveling pipe, and rested that on the drill bit to control level while drilling. With the 1/4" pilot holes complete I dug out my old childhood brace and a long 5/16" bit to drill the full sized holes. The large holes you see on the rudder's leading edge are for countersinking the drift pin heads and allowing for wood covering plugs. Next stop red lead paint.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/photo-1.jpg

[Commander 147]

Ben

Like you I sometimes find the old time hand tools really are the best for a particular project. I don't own as many as I would like to but the ones I do I use a lot.

Looks like it worked well for you.

[Ariel 109]

I was able to fit the rudder on S-Boat for the first time this afternoon. I lucked out, the fit is really pretty good. Still a mess more work to do before we can go sailing, but we're getting there!


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/photo-2.jpg

[Ariel 109]

A very hot day in the old city that never sleeps. So escape up to Mamaroneck to fiddle around more with the infamous S-Boat rudder project. Gudgeons and pintles in place, fairing up the keelpost continues and shows great promise. I should be done with all this but real life keeps intruding.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/photo-3.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Finally got the rudder stock fairing screwed into place. Still way more forming to get everything nicely faired.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0090.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0092.jpg

[Ariel 109]

I found this link to a scan of an old Merriman Brothers catalog from the stone age, nicely done.

http://members.cox.net/classicyachts/merriman.html

[Ariel 109]

Spent the day yesterday working on the S-Boat Iroquois' rudder, old story. Random orbit in one hand, yard stick in the other, more to do. She should be in the water by next weekend. The owner Rick did a really nice job finishing the topsides and brightwork. Hopefully with the new rudder she'll be as fast as she looks.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0098.jpg

[ebb]

Beautiful work, beautiful boat.
Nice, simple jack rig.
How do you get it moved out of the shop?
Thanks for the work in progress shots,
it's really been a treat!:cool:

[Commander 147]

I second that... nice work and thanks for posting the progress photos Ben.

[Ariel 109]

Thanks you guys, really appreciate your comments.

I had a conversation with one of the long time S-Boat owners Howard. He's owned the S-Boat Allegro since the early 1960's and was telling me about a visit he made to the Pearson (ex Herreshoff) factory / boatyard up in Bristol RI in the mid sixties to inquire about information on his S-boat. They still had many people who had worked for Herreshoff working at Pearson. And an older gentleman was produced who remembered the batch of ten S-Boats that Herreshoff constructed in 1920 that included Howard's boat Allegro.

I was showing the rudder I've been building for Iroquois to Howard and mention to him that after following the S-Boat plan my rudder was much thicker than the other S-Boat rudders I'd examined. This had gotten me a little worried, were people shaving down their rudder to go faster? Howard put me at ease and told me that a fat rudder was better. The added buoyancy of an original spec rudder would keep the bow of the S-Boat hull in the water, reduced weather helm and give the boat a longer waterline. Something to think about if you are making a new Ariel / Commander rudder.

Here are some pictures of Allegro I took last Saturday after Bill, Allegro's co owner ghosted her under sail into Mamaroneck's harbor to get her bottom painted at the boatyard.




http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0100.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0102.jpg

[Commander 147]

Ben

The buoyancy of the rudder to help bring her to sit on her proper lines is very interesting. Our boats do tend to squat in the aft end so that may have a lot to do with why our rudders were originally wood. Or maybe it was just an easier way to make the rudder back then.

I was talking to a new sailor on another forum recently and explaining to him the proper procedure to tune his rig. When he was done he had a bout 3" of prebend in his mast. Which for the boat he sails is just about perfect. Butt he was all concerned that none of the boats around his had as much prebend as his and thought maybe it was too much. I need to send him your photo of this S-boat wooden mast with it's prebend so set him a little more at ease.

The s-boat sure is a good looking boat.

[Ariel 109]

Jerry one of the interesting things about these beautiful curved S-Boat masts is that they were built mostly in the past twenty years. Many S-Boats had lost their original masts by the sixties and seventies and were racing with conventional aluminum masts. A man named Frank McCaffrey resurrected the art of making the wooden curved S-Boat mast sometime in the 1980's I believe. Hard to imagine an S-Boat racing without a curved mast today.

Almost finished. Rick and I riveted the pintles and gudgeons onto the hull and rudder with copper rods today, fun to do. Still need to make and attached a wood cover which hides the bronze rudder stock, early next week. Primed everything with red lead, the yard needs to fair up the lead keel that was damaged last fall and do the bottom painting.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0109.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0122.jpg

Here's Danae, our shed mate, getting launched this afternoon.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0119.jpg

[Commander 147]

Really does look good Ben. Nice work.

[Ariel 109]

Nice sail label that was on this old jib that my friend Hans bought for his Ensign from Trader John.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/SailLabel.png

[Ariel 109]

Bought this at a used bookstore in Boulder Colorado while visiting my wife's family over the holiday weekend. One of those books that feels like a extended version of an article from "The New Yorker". Written about ten years ago when the times seemed much simpler. Nice Book.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0185.jpg

Did a lot of hiking out there. Great looking clouds!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0158.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0179.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Iroquois sailed and raced yesterday with seven other S-Boats on Long Island Sound, first time since her grounding last fall. She scored a second in the second race. And the first race can be chalked down as a learning experience. The new rudder performed as planned and the whole steering assembly felt smooth and solid under all sorts of sailing conditions, phew!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0187.jpg

[ebb]

Ben,

F A N T A S T I C !
Congratulations!

It has been great looking over your shoulders
and seeing first hand (or is it third hand....?) your mastery
of that mysterious old boat building material they called 'WOOD'.

Also read at least twenty pages online of your latest Michael Ruhlman book find.:cool:

More, please!

[Ariel 109]

Thanks Ebb! Here's some video clips I took during one of the pre-starts of the first weekend of racing the 113th Larchmont Race week. S-Boats, nice winds and weather on a Sunday of glorious sailing.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jO17RKcdcJU


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mT7aVvOpeO8&feature=channel_video_title

Here's the guys we race with, the International One Designs and the Shields.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDWCZEWQxWI

[Ariel 109]

"Last of the Sailormen" was written about the last working Thames sailing barges by skipper Bob Roberts in 1960. A wonderful book, one of my favorites.

More on Bob Roberts: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Roberts_%28folksinger%29

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0234.jpg

One of my favorite boats up at City Island the Freedom 40 Freya


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqwxtPPqnyM


Walking down 23rd. Street in the City stumbled upon this. Eastern outpost of a major contributor?

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0228.jpg

[Ariel 109]

I think you guys might enjoy this article about Everett Pearson. Who incidentally own and raced the Herreshoff S-Boat Whistler back in the 50's and 60's.

Part 1,

http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:gBfnXhjnrKoJ:www.acmanet.org/cm/historical/documents/Pearson_Everett_Part%25201.pdf+everett+pearson+her reshoff+whistler&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESi37QOYj9bOO2VeBTAU1ygxVvaBzqbPDERt7XOn 49vBum_-gzFQpUVlLheVIbS413CQVMlSP-PwT1H1ym6b4NpM-SpHRd1P1sEKu8HKpyBiwN10QWt14kWw6x7GJF4fgrmHOs1D&sig=AHIEtbRgJQbRZcXLvjFM-8SVxnBDBrTlFA

Part 2,

[/URL][url]http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:uNJTr1_6x-AJ:www.acmanet.org/cm/historical/documents/Pearson_Everett_Part%25202.pdf+everrte+pearson&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShO17J_q95OGJdDhA8F6lQHNolSYPCgRXsmxHhd qSuRzitUR6xAFd8FU4UkgInvNz3MuznWWIPyzZWeOXk6VJL4z5-Z5kRTENA0jqH9KCuH5Wn2XRfxprIib5IjVyPRcHiJPIRc&sig=AHIEtbR6zARG_MwhxNqJIvQRfVkDMRJang (http://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:uNJTr1_6x-AJ:www.acmanet.org/cm/historical/documents/Pearson_Everett_Part%25202.pdf+everrte+pearson&hl=en&gl=us&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEEShO17J_q95OGJdDhA8F6lQHNolSYPCgRXsmxHhd qSuRzitUR6xAFd8FU4UkgInvNz3MuznWWIPyzZWeOXk6VJL4z5-Z5kRTENA0jqH9KCuH5Wn2XRfxprIib5IjVyPRcHiJPIRc&sig=AHIEtbR6zARG_MwhxNqJIvQRfVkDMRJang)


And here's a ditty by our Thames barge skipper Bob Roberts, sweet!



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m_ysiV4uVY&feature=related

[ebb]

Alfred (Al or Fred) William (Bill or Will) Roberts Known as BOB Roberts!
Wot's in a name, me lads, whot's in a name?

Be looking 'im up, Ben - thanks for another gem.

As to EBB ("major contributor":D) cast in concrete!!!
- or is that wood painted to look like concrete?
OR maybe it is cast iron made to look like wood.
We have a town close by here in California named Petaluma* famous for its downtown iron-front victorian buildings. Those letters could be:
Enterprise Blues Band - or
Elizabeth Barrett Browning - or
European Biodiesel Board.

More likely the last one, given our borderless global economy and ebbing dollar, the Euros obviously have an alternative fuel office in your hometown.
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________________ ______________
*Petaluma (Coast Miwok word meaning 'backside')
Also remembered for sailing scows like "ALMA" that navigated the P.River and
took fresh veggies and eggs across the Bay to San Francisco during the gold rush.
Alma is the last remaining completely restored scow schooner, and you can get a ride on her.

What's in a name? Carl Alberg's mom was Alma.

[Ariel 109]

I admire naming your vessel after a loved one. The S-Boat I'm resurrecting had the original name Estelle, after the first owner's mother. I think if I had Carl Alberg's Commander I'd change the name back to Alma.

Rockwell Kent was an illustrator, author and a free thinker (artist). Found this book by him from 1930 titled "N & E" about a sailing adventure to Greenland in which he participated. Loaded with wonderful illustrations, hard to pick just four.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/RockwellKentMooring.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/RockwellKentTiller.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/RockwellKentAtSea.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/RockwellKentCabin-1.jpg

[C38]

I'm currently reading the same book. So far I am really enjoying it. The illustrations are amazing, coming from an art background myself makes the book that much better!

[Ariel 109]

Went up to Newport yesterday to visit with Jim Titus the boat builder who's resurrecting the S-Boat Tern. Walked into his shop and low and behold three curved S-Boat masts under construction. First new batch in over a decade I found out, beautiful.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0360.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0356.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Here are some pictures of Tern, warning, not for the faint at heart. Work has just been started on her and the first order of business is reconstructing her backbone so that new ribs can be fitted. What's that old line about long journeys?

Tern's builder's plate is the last version Herreshoff used before going under, I believe. Similar to the Pearson builder plate in shape?


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0413.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0374.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0398.jpg

[Commander 147]

Ben

I am truly jealous of you living right in the middle of all these historic boats and wood boat building masters. Being able to walk into their shops and watch them work and visit with them is priceless. We have nothing like that here in Florida. Wood boats don't come here for more than a short visit and then they are gone.

I need to schedule a vacation to come up there and just marvel over all that sailing history.

[Ariel 109]

This is a good book. An added attraction is Peter Nichols naming off a bunch of sailing writers that inspired him. Eric C. Hiscock, Bernard Moitessier and Robin Knox-Johnson are mentioned. He even brings up the actor Sterling Hayden's autobiography "Wanderer", a book on my reading list.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0433.jpg

[Ariel 109]

It would take too long to describe how many great books I've found in boxes on the sidewalk marked "free" here in New York City. Last week I found these two books together near my shop. My shop is in a rich hunting ground for the "free" books.

"The Shipping News" is a wonderful book. Don't be put off by all the accolade. A great book about getting through tough times. "Cod" is one of those science subject biographies. Maybe you've read "Longitude" by Dava Sobel, a similar good book. After these I want to go up and visit the Maritimes.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0464.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Some pictures I took this summer.

A nice catboat down at Beaton's Boatyard. Don't know what type.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0335.jpg

A few pictures of my one of my favorite topics, derelict wooden boats. First is the S-Boat Sufi up at Newport with Jim Titus at Mt. Hope Boat-works. And the second shot is of the S-Boat Volunteer still down at Beatons, see beginning of thread. Be great to see both of these boats restored and back racing. These boats are out of the Western Sound S-Boat Fleet and sorely missed. Anybody want to keep a few skilled boat-builders busy? Now's the time!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0421.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0320.jpg

Finally another shot of this unidentified R-class boat at Barrons on City Island. Wonder what she looked like before they remodeled her deck and cabin.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0341.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Took this while waiting for the Hutchinson River draw bridge to close on my way up to go sailing on the Ariel this past Saturday morning. Haven't posted a crane picture is some time, working water front!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0565.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Here's the book I'm reading right now, Sterling Hayden's "Wanderer".

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_0586.jpg

Great Interview with Sterling from the Tomorrow Show, 1980.


http://youtu.be/f8WjH5qSGPA

Sterling quote:

“To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea… cruising, it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about. I’ve always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can’t afford it.” What these men can’t afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of security. And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine – and before we know it our lives are gone."


http://youtu.be/N1KvgtEnABY

[mbd]

Good stuff Ben!

[Crazer]

That quote is absolutely brilliant.

[ebb]

Hayden also wrote a novel.
'Voyage' was a critical success as a novel Hayden wrote sometime in the '70s.
Never read it - but Wanderer was read by everybody.

Stayed angry with Hayden for naming names to the Joe McCarthy HUAC character assinations in the '50s.
Never went to any of his pictures after that, except for Dr Strangelove where he had a supporting role as Gen Jack D. Ripper. Got to like him again after he defied a judge and sailed to Tahiti with his kids. But then lost track. Good to be reminded.
Wanderer is a great life story.

It is of course his autobiography. Wanderer is written by a really unique, could say, 'larger than life' guy. He was large, couldn't miss him at 6'5". But not. Because he got himself wound up as a public hunk in Hollywood and nearly lost his conscience by selling out to easy money. People who write about him say he never forgave himself for tattling to the politicians, and that came about because of acting and his association with Hollywood.

Hayden actually ran away to sea at 15. He was afterall a sailor, a voyager, who got stuck in the stink of the lubbers, and paid the price. He always was a thinker, a moralist and a romantic. But foremost, a sailor.

[Ariel 109]

Here's some more progress pictures of the S-Boat Tern.

New floors being fitted on Tern's new forward keelson. The boatbuilders are getting ready to start reframing.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/e57b9394.jpg

Here's a shot of the keelson. There will be a grooves cut along it's length to accept the garboard planks.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/f180d4e3.jpg

Happy Thanksgiving!

[Ariel 109]

Nice book by Christopher Pastore about the story behind the Reliance, largest boat to sail for the America's cup. Looks she's on the back of the Rhode Island Statehood Commemorative Quarter! Get a load at the length of that spinnaker pole, 84 feet long.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/d2d15fdf.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/fb9c97bc.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Had to take some pictures of these decorative vents, drilled into main salon settee backs of a graceful Rhodes R24 (35' overall), circa 1948. I believe they are original, the boat was built up in Mystic by the Franklin G. Post boatyard.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Crab.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/fish.jpg

[Rico]

Ben
Awesome thread...
I really enjoy it. Your tidbits have got me going off 'looking' often.
I enjoy the vintage pictures, the S boats, the woodwork and working harbor (crane pictures). Not to mention the books! -Keep 'em coming!
I am a big reader, and the sail / maritime topic is one of my favourites...

[Ariel 109]

Was looking at this beautiful handmade book of inked architectural renderings that a friend of mine's dad did back in the 1960's. Thought I'd post a picture of this rendering, sailboats in the distance, house on ocean, a beautiful dream. I think this house was built in Corsica.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/740cbd01.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Was lucky to find a copy of the great naval architect and historian John Leather's book "Spritsails and Lugsails" published by the once great International Marine Publishing Company back in 1979. A treasure of images and yarns, here are some.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Lugger3a.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Lugger4a.jpg

This picture is of the Albermarle Sound shad skiff builder Washington Creef of Roanoake Island , NC, 1890's. Pretty boats.


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Lugger1a.jpg

Landseer MacKenzie's Heathen Chinee, built in 1877. She carried two centerboards and the always ingenious Chinese lugsails, designed years before the IPhone. Famous for beating the great 117 foot racing cutter Valkyrie in a race between Southampton to Colne, a not too shabby feat.

Last picture, launching from a beach. The hard work of being a fisherman, heat, cold, wind or no wind. Pushing off when ever possible to earn a living. Soon the internal combustion engine changes everything, including eventually destroying most of the worlds great fisheries. Ah, the price of progress.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Lugger5a.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Wanted to show Ebb some of the Japanese tools I traded for a piece of furniture.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/b3e59c8b.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/76384c80.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/8b27b0b9.jpg

[ebb]

Don't believe I've ever even touch anything like those !

Reminds me I should go into 'The Japan Woodworker' on Clement Av in Alameda
To get a recharge SOON.
I've had various saws over the years including that Ryoba but never one in the HideoShindo grade.
Even the regular grade are too pricey for me these days
and the old ones I have have gone rusty like me and have teeth missing.

I do keep three sizes of Azibiki that are in better shape because they get used.
I've only seen them fairly cheap or moderately expensive. No master grade!
Love the style and can't understand why they aren't more popular here. Seldom seen in catalogs.
It's a close-quarter, get out of trouble, cut an improvise mitre in situ when you have to, kind of tool.
I've used it to cut wood plugs because the flexible one got bent and walked off.
{Acquired a 6" double edged Made in Japan semi-flex Vaughan BearsSaw150D that does mutiple duty.
I bought it because it came with clear plastic edge protectors so it can keep company with the rest of the boys in the band.}

Japanese planes are a mystery to me even tho Mike up in the shop has a number of them
and he would be happy to pontificate their finer points:
which waterstone is best and what style - whether the Shizen blades are really worth the money, and what bed angle is best for teak.
Just jealousy kicking in.

What makes the planes you have there.... special ?:D:confused:
(my Japanese is a little rusty too !)

[Ariel 109]

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/c3aeb6dd.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/72923471.jpg

Here's another of the 70mm smoothing planes from the hoard. It has a Japanese red oak body and in the detail shot you can see the care that went into forging the blade, it's got to be one the most modernest object created by man.

I'm just learning about this windfall Ebb. I really don't know much of what I have.

Ben

[ebb]

Tried to find something that would help decode the etchings on your blade.

Mike didn't know but he thought the blade was in the $1000 to $2000 dollar range!

First google search has cognoscenti talking to insiders who know all about what those marks are saying and don't care to clue us in.
Mike thought the round mark could be a town insignia.

All I know is that master secrets of these blades is still handed down thru Samuri families who no longer make the swords of the past they became famous for. Whether your blade is made with pinewood charcoal, gas or coal is as noteworthy as whether it comes from antique caches, Swedish or even English import iron.
Saw a PBS on one of the last sword makers, still attracting apprentices - no secrets revealed - but some VERY serious quenching and tempering with water and steam and petrified apprentices.. Be an interesting book if the author included some of the metalurgical magic.

Blades are made for cabinetry or carpentry, soft or hard wood, smoothing or cutting.

[The plane body is not the traditional oak usually seen, which is a light beige/brown
with many close non continuous black grain lines running through tit. It could be padauk or rosewood.
Don't know the J. hardwoods.]

[Ariel 109]

Ebb, The cardboard box that held the wooden storage box and second kanna, the one with the moon stamp, has "akagashi" penciled on it. Akagashi is japanese red oak, I've learned.

I have kindly been given a translation of the writing on the saw box from a co-worker's friend in Japan.

As for your request, I tried.

The first one says “original” or “first generation” (syodai in Japanese). The second says “Heijiro Miyano” (Japanese man’s name). I found out from search
he is the 1st generation of saw makers (1846-1917). It also says tool was made for “Minatogawa Shrine” located in Kobe (next to Osaka and Kyoto).

Wow, this must be very valuable and expensive tool. Hope this helps.

Kumiko

[ebb]

Hey Kumiko, you're right! but when you get a moment take a look at

Japanese plane [...have to type into google: japanese red oak wood plane]
forum.woodenboat.com/showthread.php?111022-Japanese-plane [...this blue line is dead]

3 good photos

Jay Geer at post #12 has some interesting things to say on subject.

[Ariel 109]

My friend Hans and I have been babysitting this faded starlet from the golden age of yachting. She's the boat that has the decorative vents I took pictures of earlier in this thread. I've been cleaning her up in preparation of putting her out on a mooring later this week. The last shot is one I found online of this boat or her sister being launched back in 1947.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/7e894d7e.jpg


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/6a41a1a8.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/8eb4bce5.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Windrift.jpg

[Ariel 109]

While taking a break from sanding old paint off the Ariel's deck up at City Island yesterday evening I explored some of the "Fading Starlet's" suite of old sails. One of her sail bags contained this light weight cotton Ratsey made balloon jib, made on City Island. Don't see too many balloon jibs today! This sail has got to be from when the Rhodes was new.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/f0f4b49c.jpg

Here's some of that old timey sailmaking technique.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/d814fe6f.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Worked like the devil yesterday and today to build and setup a mooring for the Rhodes 24 that I'm now looking after, madness! With the help of my friends Hans and Bobby everything went smooth, no drama, thanks you guys!

My research of this boat has found that the complete plans of the Rhodes 24 are located at Mystic Seaport, I called. This will certainly be helpful in the attempt to lengthen the mast back to it's proper height. I think it's short by about six feet at present.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/c0371e96.jpg









e

[Ariel 109]

Mounted this wind and solar powered led hanging light on the boom of the Rhodes. It can run off it's small internal battery for about 12 hours. It's made by IKEA, sells for under $30 and includes an automatic light sensor, turns the light on at dusk and off at dawn. Maybe the spinning blades will also scare off the seagulls, although they are really not much of a problem. The light will hopefully scare off a collision with another boat. The plan is to get another light for the Ariel's boom when she goes out to her mooring.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/16d719e5.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Looking over that old cotton Ratsey balloon jib, saw this cool detail of how the sailmakers tapered the bolt-rope edging around the corners of the sail. I think this is called a rat's tail.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/b32802fd.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Old books, old sailing books!

I enjoyed John MacGregor's "The Voyage Alone in the Yawl Rob Roy". It's an old book, 1880's, by the pioneer of recreational canoeing, kayaking and small boat sailing. MacGregor did his own illustrations, here's one of the "Rob Roy".

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/yawl_rob_roy.jpg

Next, "The Riddle of the Sands" by Erskine Childers, 1903. Great fictional account of sailing in the tricky tides and sand bars of Germany's North Sea coast coupled with a ripping yarn spy adventure. Most of the action takes place aboard the yawl Dulcibella, pictured below. Erskine Childers lead an interesting life. It was ended by his execution during the Irish Civil War, 1922-23, by the Free State's crack down on Sinn Féin. Before his execution, in a spirit of reconciliation, Childers shook hands with each of the firing squad. His last words, spoken to them, were (characteristically) in the nature of a joke: "Take a step or two forward, lads. It will be easier that way."

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/651897-dulcibella-from-riddle-of-the-sands.jpg

I've had some correspondence with the owner of the sister ship to the Rhodes R24 in my charge. Here's his boat, sailing in the Virgin Islands, where it's based. His mast is the correct height.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/fde76cde.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Missed a compartment when cleaning out the Rhodes 24. What I found today in it was a set of blueprints for the vessel. Gently unfolded the damp sheets of the plans and laid them out flat on the vee berth cushions to dry. I even have a sheet for the spars and rigging. Here's the cabin plan sheet, it's in the worst condition of the set.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/f222a39b.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Sailing the Ariel, that's my boom at the top of the picture, this morning and spied this huge crane slowing being towed up the channel from the Throggs neck.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/18bc20b9.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Oh no, another season of S-Boat racing is about to begin with this weekend's Memorial Day Regatta. I helped out in the stepping of Eaglet's mast this past week.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/e8d0d6d8.jpg

Kirsty, Eaglet's skipper and fellow Wayfarer alumnus, is hosted aloft to straighten out her mast's spreaders.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/93a3f9f8.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Discovered the work of the illustrator Edward A. Wilson recently. He was a wonderful practitioner of the woodblock print revival in the first half of the 20th century.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/WoodenShips.jpg

Here's a shot of a pretty Herreshoff 12 1/2 that was being launched as I was up in Mamaroneck doing repairs to an S-Boat. Isn't this all one really needs?

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/Untitled.jpg

This is the award to the annual winner of the Western Long Island Sound S-Boat Fleet. This hangs on a wall next to the bar at the ye olde Larchmont Yacht Club. I think the rope border is really cool. And don't make the mistake of polishing off the clear coat on your brass name plaque. In fifty years it will turn black and people will have a hard time reading your name.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/7d67b343.jpg

Ben

[Ariel 109]

Fell off the sailing book bandwagon and started reading murder mysteries again. But fear not, soon some poor soul will surely sell their nautical library to the Strand Bookstore and I will once again be sailing the seven seas from the comfort of my bed.

Visited my dear wife's family out in Colorado once again. While hiking in my mother in-law's parched "backyard" found this bit of color by my feet. There was a little rain the night before.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/e3a2cfda.jpg

Here's two clips of S-Boats heading off to the races. The first is of Aeolus and the second Eaglet with Kandahar in the distance.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83DbSk-u_74



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VFC_Sc2_xg&feature=plcp

[Ariel 109]

My old friend Hans "won" this vintage 1960 cedar planked Lightning sailboat on EBay during a moment of unbridled nostalgia. He dragged the boat up from Maryland to City Island behind a U-haul. Now after several months of fitful restorations she goes sailing, great fun. Wearing perhaps her original set of sails, stained and yellowed but in good shape.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/C5067874-0D25-45C3-ADA4-496765AB5731-8863-00000640F80043F3.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/F240AB53-37BF-4F0C-9E83-79A8AF18C6DA-8863-00000640F2B7E909.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/E144DA92-4E5A-4DFD-AAF6-202CE7963EC2-8863-00000640FB5C8359.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Farley Mowat is a great Canadian writer and conservationist. "The Grey Seas Under" is the story of the adventures of the ocean salvage tug SS Foundation Franklin before and during WW2. A fascinating and gripping saga!

"It was a hair-raising exploit and, as the salvage arbitrator in London later wrote, "it was accomplished by a display of courage that only escaped foolhardiness by virture of the skill with which it was performed.""

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/EB1FEB6B-1BF4-4E04-9484-4F3AC8E27858-1780-000001057BAD34FA.jpg

[mbd]

He also wrote "The Boat Who wouldn't Float" (entertaining read) and "Never Cry Wolf" (haven't read the book but it's one of my all-time favorite movies). Good author!

[Ariel 109]

These pictures are from the Indian Harbor Classic Yacht Regatta. We raced the S-Boats up there this past weekend and had a very nice time.

First two pictures are of Francis Herreshoff's Ticonderoga, I'd say his most famous design. And in the final picture the two boats tied together are the dark hulled Nor'easter, an Alden Q-Boat, and the 8 meter Angelita.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/5E93DD61-9E7B-41CC-9DF3-A276B94379B9-1041-000000A0178E8ACE.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/0AD8CD55-9436-48DE-8CCB-E85290932980-1041-000000A02342FF2A.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/4839207F-1DA2-4E2F-B8AA-3A401DEC8C71-1041-000000A01DB0C872.jpg

[ebb]

Every time I see wooden boats like those
my faith in humanity revives.


Murder mysteries?

Haven't read one of the best writers in the genre, J.D.McDonald...in a long time.
Have at least one copy of every novel he wrote.
Always believed that reading the Travis McGee 'color' mysteries saved my life
during a very difficult transition from marriage to divorce.

For some reason these stories didn't translate to the movie theater.
[Have never forgiven Sam Eliott (voice in Coors & Dodge Ram ads) for his
incredibly stupid and unfeeling portrayal of Travis in 'Empty Copper Sea' 1963.
Movie also stands as an example of the worst translation possible of one genre
to another. So bad, imco it killed all interest in bringing the series into film.]

The series could now be revived for TV, set in the weird 60s time period they were written in...
and make for a revisit of the best all round sane independant hero ever invented.
It would take a producer with the guts of McGee (& smarts of Meyer) to stay true to the spirit
of the writing. McDonald needs to be restored to us. McGee ("salvage consultant")
has been borrowed from for all our problem solving detectives in the art form.
But none compares to the great original
Travis McGee.

[Ariel 109]

Ebb, Travis McGee is a favorite of my friend Hans. He "won" a box load of J.D.McDonald paperbacks recently on EBay. The writer John Burdett is another his favorites with his Thai detective Sonchai Jitpleecheep.

The spars of my exciting though slow moving S-Boat project "Tern" were brought down to Brewer's in Mamaroneck from their long slumbering storage in a barn upstate.

The Rig

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/A88493E2-F56A-40B8-8A95-7BDA7DC6F254-709-000000668679CE76.jpg

The Hounds

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/DE46311E-F47B-40FE-9715-52401C1D4B64-709-00000066920A053B.jpg

The Outhaul

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/9A1A03E1-1B0B-4951-8787-ED149A77A1C9-709-000000668CE82EEC.jpg

[ebb]

Certainly, THE most amazing hounds!

Wonder why so much support was deemed necessary.
Or do S boats slip their soft eyes if resting on a more tidy thumb cleat?

......the work and skill involved is amazing.
At first they look made of thick leather - which would be easier to shape and carve.

[Ariel 109]

Been reading "The Last Grain Race" by Eric Newby, his story of sailing on the four masted ship the Moshulu from Europe to Australia and back in 1939.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/A7674E1C-68EA-4317-A5FA-2CDBB0D85945-2312-000001F05FE05B5B.jpg

Here are some shot of the S-Boat Kandahar during the testing this past Saturday of our new class spinnaker design. That's me on fore deck.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/E7A366D1-8EC8-4762-9966-CD5AF8439171-709-00000194765D9957.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/45B6BF74-22A2-48D9-A74F-D8257B38E070-709-000001947A0A930F.jpg

[Ariel 109]

With hurricane Sandy approaching, the wife and I decided to go argue about home furnishings this morning at the IKEA in Red Hook Brooklyn. In the Erie Basin, right behind the IKEA store, the fleet of New York's working vessels are bedding down for the duration.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/EDBE8FBE-988D-4638-B210-2FDB44187BEF-5392-000005B05F8612F1.jpg

Pensively Emily scans the Eric Basin while dreaming of closet organization solutions. Another crane picture!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/618F07BC-596B-4969-92EB-2F3D218542B0-5392-000005B0654A7383.jpg

[Ariel 109]

Sometimes when in a hurry and looking for books at the old Strand Bookstore I only read the publisher's name at the bottom of the book splines, usually in the Sea and Ships section I'm just searching for the letters I and M of a book published by International Marine. Scanning away this weekend I came across a book published by Alfred Knopf about sailing by a British writer named George Millar. Loved this book, read it through in two evenings.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Millar_%28writer%29

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/B0A1856E-DB0E-4E36-8DA9-371D67539E42-5117-000005367677C9D6.jpg

[captcraig]

8772Hi Ben, Looking through your thread is very interesting. At the OCBC where I'm a member someone dumped a pickup load of books in the dumpster. I was shocked when I saw them. Pulled them out and now have them in my shop. OCBC was founded in 1929 on a small man made lake here in OKC, I've read a number of the books in the last year and have really enjoyed them. Slocums book was the first. One of my boats is a Chris Craft Cherokee 32, while the Chris Craft boats are not the greatest, some of the Sparkmen and Stephens shines through. I'll post some photos of some of the cool hardware on the boat. I owned a Pearson Ensign and really liked the boat but wanted a bigger version so I bought Ariel 157 that lies Northport MI for the time being. Haven't had a chance to pick the boat up yet but hope to do a little voyaging if I can get away. The boats of yesteryear are to me much more pleasing to the eye even if some are made of plastic. One book I read was written by Olin Stephens called "All this and sailing too" The book gives a good history of boat design and the transition from old school to the computer age.

[Ariel 109]

Congratulations on getting an Ariel Craig! I never thought much about people being able to sail keel-boats in Oklahoma, but with those big reservoirs and all that wind comes sweeping down the plain stuff an Ariel would fit right in. I keep missing out on that Olin Steven book when the Strand gets a copy, somebody always gets to it before me, someday.

I just finished this book. "Once is Enough" by Miles Smeeton is the story of getting somersaulted in a sailboat by a large wave in the icy waters west of Cape Horn and living to tell the tail. A beautifully written book that was published in 1959 and as the Jonathan Raban's introduction states: "It has cast a spell on many with it's portrait of small boats as the last best hope of escape and adventure in an increasingly tame and constrained world".


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/C7429DB2-6CB1-4E26-B18D-E5DDFEDF15FF-1030-000000FDFAD393DC_zps294c1d91.jpg

[captcraig]

8773Can't remember where I've seen that book"Once is enough", maybe in our library. Your welcome to read my book "All this and Sailing too" if you would like. Bookrates are pretty cheap so I'm not worried about that but because I have an S&S design you'd have to mail it back(LOL) Went to Texoma today and the wind was blowing up to 30, so I just worked on the boat. Had a 5.5 inch deep galley sink and I've ordered a 7.5, doesn't sound like much but hope it will make washing a little easier. The books I pulled out of the dumpster (over 150) I hope to put back in the club with some proper bookshelves. We had more books than shelves so someone got a little carried away. Wish I had your wood working skills. The voyaging books have me ready to take off on a voyage of my own. I once did 1600 nm offshore with 5 guys on an Island Packet 45 but believe going alone would be more satisfying for me. I lived on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay and loved all the old wood boat stuff there and there are some pretty cool musuems in the area. The light house is "Sharps Island Light" Once an Island but washed away and the light house now resembles the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Sailed plenty on the Chesapeake as a Licensed Master and sure miss it. Best Regards Craig

[ebb]

In my salad days I had a couple first editions of "Once".
Most amazing couple. Really and truly incredible.
Just went looking for a photo, since I don't remember one.

google images found a book for sale, which I'm going to get,
'High Endeavours: The Extraordinary Life and Adventures of Miles & Beryl Smeeton'
by Miles Clark. With a title like that, the author must be Brit!

The bio has a charming picture of the couple on the cover!

[Ariel 109]

Ebb,

Interesting that the Smeetons and the Millairs, "Oyster River", both bought their sailboats as a way to get around post war currency restrictions against taking money out of Britain. Buy a yacht in Britain, most had been laid up for years during the duration of the war, sail it somewhere on vacation like North America or the Mediterranean and sell it. In the Smeeton's case they even stashed diamond rings aboard their beloved boat the Tzu Hang to sell abroad. This inspired the novelist Nevil Shute to write the book "Trustee From The Toolroom", highly recommended! Of course in the Smeeton's case they fell in love with their boat and didn't end up selling it, don't know what happened with the diamond rings.

Craig,

It sounds like you've had plenty of sailing adventures and way more experience on the water than I have. Thanks for the pictures, please post some more! Love to see what lake Texoma looks like, it looks huge on Google Maps. My grandmother's family homesteaded in eastern Oklahoma, near a town called Nowata. Three hundred years of pioneering across America and my relatives end up farming some scraggly plain of marginal land, oh well.

[mbd]

Isn't Jon, Sirrocco's owner in Oklahoma?

[ebb]

by Don Holm. This book is available online in hugh chunks. I downloaded
a nine page bio of the Smeetons. Holms interviewed the couple for his book
and also saw the famous TzeHang being shipped on the back of a ferryboat.

TzuHang was sold, loaned or given to somebody named Hanse or Nance
and ended up in the drug trade and being executed by buldozer by US narks.:mad:

TAKE THAT, you Naughty boat!

[captcraig]

I've been to Nowata and there is no shortage of water in the area so they didn't name it that for a lack of. My great great grandfather was a landrunner in the Cherokee Strip landrun. My father was a French Canadian from New Hampshire. He fought in WW II and was stationed in Oklahoma after the war and met my Mom here. So I'm half Okie dirt farmer and half French Canadian. Is Sirrocco an Ariel? Lake Texoma is very pretty I think. It has some sandy beach islands and the water is somewaht clear for a lake in this part of the country, I took this picture a couple of weeks ago on My CC Cherokee 32, had it on auto pilot with a light breeze and it was a beautiful day (not rubbing it in for you North sailors) (You can laugh at me when its a 105 on Texoma this summer8781)8780 The photo of the davits is on my old Cal 35 near Hoopers Island on the east side of Chesapeake Bay not too far from Salisbury MD

[Bill]

Isn't Jon, Sirrocco's owner in Oklahoma?

Yes, Jon's location is Tulsa.

[captcraig]

8782Wonder if Jon is a member of Windycrest on Keystone Lake? Haven't been there but they host quite a few regattas. I'll check in to it. Sailed on Keystone in my 20s on a G-Cat 5m. Once was caught in a thunder storm there and backed the cat up on the beach, in the middle of the storm the wind did a 180 and the cat took off, disappeared in to the storm as I watched. After the stormed passed the boat was a good 1/2 offshore capsized. Hitched a ride on a powerboat to retrieve it. One of just a few of my storm sails in Oklahoma. I nearly drowned after a capsize on that G-cat a year later on Lake Hefner, with a date sailing at night we capsized in pretty darn cold water, I tried to right the boat while she held on to the lifejackets (niether of us were wearing one, I know), I couldn't right the cat and she tried to swim to me and couldn't catch me. I dove off the boat to be with her, time passed, fatigue, a boat in the distance. I called directions to a sloop that picked us up. Saved. Funny thing when you survive a near death experience with someone. Her and I ended up being married. The pic is of Cambridge Creek draw bridge leaving Cambridge Creek (MD) taken around 2001 or so. Great place to anchor, when I was there a restaurant called "Snappers" was right there at the little anchorage just on the other side of that bridge.

[Bill]

Clicking on the user name "Jon" in the member list gets you to his profile page. According to our files, you can send him a private message (on the board) or Email him from there (if his Email address is still valid).

[Ariel 109]

You don't need to say anything more than what's written across the top of the dust jacket, "Six men cross the Pacific on a raft! This book unwittingly contributed, along with the Rodgers and Hammerstein, to cause the tiki bar / polynesian restaurant craze across our fine land.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/A44C4F02-EAC6-4429-B9A7-CFA506DDC05E-3200-000003B320AB7331_zpsfd9b88f4.jpg

[Ariel 109]

My long lost George Dyson designed baidarka, a type of kayak, project resurfaces during the moving of my workshop to the Bronx. One day I'm going to get this thing finished. When lofted it's longer than an Ariel. Check out this link, inspirational!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tellytomtelly/sets/72157629447998793/detail/

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/073D59D6-217E-4046-BDD4-22F7A1D30F45-8080-000008959AA08D75_zpsb7012687.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/073D59D6-217E-4046-BDD4-22F7A1D30F45-8080-000008959AA08D75_zpsb7012687.jpg.html)

This is mind blowing! What an amazing planet!!!


http://vimeo.com/61487989#

[carl291]

Hey All,

Just wanted to let you know there is a Triton on ebay right now: located at City Island

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1961-CLASSIC-PEARSON-28FT-W-NEW-YANMAR-I-O-NY-FORR-61-/111064986145;jsessionid=6561B2D4A0AD700F31323D551C 0146A4?ViewItem=&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1123&item=111064986145&forcev4exp=true

[Ariel 109]

Carl,

I know of this boat, named Swifty and earnestly rebuilt by an gentleman named Woody who sold her about two years ago because of heath problems. One of the improvements Woody did was re-cored the decks from below, retaining the original deck pattern. One negative beside the mast issue, suffered during hurricane Sandy, is that there's a crack in the glass on the keel that needs some attention. If one can stand wheeled steering and a cabin mounted traveler on a Triton than I think you will find this boat is just dandy. I am unaware of the condition of the classic vintage plastic laminate in this boat's cabin, which likely will play an important part in the sale.

[Ariel 109]

Time to add to ye olde Jersey Shore Thread!

Annual trip to Colorado to visit the wife's family. Trading New York's hot humid July weather for some cool dry mountain breezes.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/526289A7-F1F2-4E49-B076-AC5015CA5DF6-2825-00000387596341DF_zps97957bed.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/526289A7-F1F2-4E49-B076-AC5015CA5DF6-2825-00000387596341DF_zps97957bed.jpg.html)

Another of City Island's vintage boat yard cranes, this pretty one in the service of the Island Boat Club, vintage 1920's.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/EA6631F4-B48B-4F8D-AA0C-3A431378C60C-2825-0000038746A43B00_zpse3479a3f.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/EA6631F4-B48B-4F8D-AA0C-3A431378C60C-2825-0000038746A43B00_zpse3479a3f.jpg.html)

Returning to the dock a recent Saturday afternoon after crewing on the S-Boats, had the chance to tour on Black Watch during her open house at Larchmont Yacht Club. Beautiful boat, her cabinetry below is made of butternut, a light shaded relative of walnut, unusual. She was made by Nevins at City Island!

http://sparkmanstephens.blogspot.com/2011/07/design-218-edlu-ii.html

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/C7678977-00D9-4DF0-A08F-3FB740A6E6C8-2825-0000038754B0EC9E_zps15ecce2f.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/C7678977-00D9-4DF0-A08F-3FB740A6E6C8-2825-0000038754B0EC9E_zps15ecce2f.jpg.html)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/36B2AF32-A41B-497D-8C21-FB010DCEA55C-2825-000003874FC4EF67_zps18eb55d5.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/36B2AF32-A41B-497D-8C21-FB010DCEA55C-2825-000003874FC4EF67_zps18eb55d5.jpg.html)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/BB6CF4ED-8F02-4F91-865C-72ECD33CCF00-3363-0000046BF86CB6C3_zpse7dd842e.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/BB6CF4ED-8F02-4F91-865C-72ECD33CCF00-3363-0000046BF86CB6C3_zpse7dd842e.jpg.html)

While heat gunning the varnish off Tern's S-Boat Mast I was able to take breaks and walk over and peak down on the 8 meter Angelita docked next door to Brewers at Derecktor, a pleasure.

http://www.cannellclassicboats.com/cbb_angelita.html

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/2EC1D8DA-850D-4877-8912-2978AC1ACF10-2825-00000387404C2D68_zps7165b75e.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/2EC1D8DA-850D-4877-8912-2978AC1ACF10-2825-00000387404C2D68_zps7165b75e.jpg.html)

Finally, I've been refinishing Tern's Mast under the slumbering mass of this huge cruising boat. Nice place to work.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/7F796B1C-7479-472D-9856-0FD236340A12-2825-000003873B41B42D_zps752634a3.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/7F796B1C-7479-472D-9856-0FD236340A12-2825-000003873B41B42D_zps752634a3.jpg.html)




x

[Ariel 109]

Another year goes by and S-Boat Volunteer still awaits resurrection down at the Jersey Shore, survived hurricane Sandy.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/8AF5C72A-9C01-4D62-B63C-E8B62F310E26-6118-00000657EB0E027B_zpsfad366c0.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/8AF5C72A-9C01-4D62-B63C-E8B62F310E26-6118-00000657EB0E027B_zpsfad366c0.jpg.html)

Finished with S-Boat Tern's mast refinishing, ten coats of Epifanes and much sanding! Thanks to all at Brewer's Boat Yard for their help. Getting started on the the boom next.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/0AB4F21F-29CC-4AF7-9DBA-933D1F563221-1943-00000257DE88BD59_zpsf89644c8.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/0AB4F21F-29CC-4AF7-9DBA-933D1F563221-1943-00000257DE88BD59_zpsf89644c8.jpg.html)

Tern's 19 foot long boom is over 70 years old. I'm scarfing a new piece of Sitka spruce onto the rear end of the spar. The boom is made up of two boards glued together, one board at the end of the boom has seen better days. Here's the jig I made to cut and plane down the scarf.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/020A562E-307E-4F0A-A669-33D4FC32CCE9-2825-000003BDEF5912FF_zpseabd5759.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/020A562E-307E-4F0A-A669-33D4FC32CCE9-2825-000003BDEF5912FF_zpseabd5759.jpg.html)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/7D1C65B0-E7DF-48E6-8A62-465B78D815AF-2825-000003BDF610256E_zps62071464.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/7D1C65B0-E7DF-48E6-8A62-465B78D815AF-2825-000003BDF610256E_zps62071464.jpg.html)

More to come, ha, lots more!






x

[Ariel 109]

Made these two video clips of the NY 50 Spartan racing on Long Island Sound this weekend. One of nine NY 50's built by Herreshoff around 1913, Spartan is the lone survivor. Her hull is about 72' long.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSv2vTGNUD4&feature=c4-overview&list=UUcNpdZiq-gWaIriebNWnu1g


http://www.youtube.com/watch?list=UUcNpdZiq-gWaIriebNWnu1g&v=UBGa1DzArf8

[mbd]

Cool! That is the VERY boat I've been ogling all month long on my Wooden Boats calendar. She's a beauty!

[Ariel 109]

Picture of the S Boat Danae, rainbow real, not photoshopped. Owners Bill and Mary Ann just had their golden anniversary a week before this was taken.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/7AB35B6B-85E2-434B-8D65-EC50ED0CD0C6-1425-0000023F8C6ADFD2_zpsf91a049b.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/7AB35B6B-85E2-434B-8D65-EC50ED0CD0C6-1425-0000023F8C6ADFD2_zpsf91a049b.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

Carl Alberg started working for John Alden around the time his firm designed the Q Class boats Nor'easter (1926) and Hope (1929). I was lucky to be able to sail on Hope yesterday and take these images of some close racing with Nor'easter.

Hope on her mooring

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/544910A3-8A1C-4348-8014-9111BA3AD213-1673-00000245AA2BED65_zps59012469.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/544910A3-8A1C-4348-8014-9111BA3AD213-1673-00000245AA2BED65_zps59012469.jpg.html)

Nor'eastern plowing ahead.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGT4LWodGgs&feature=share&list=UUcNpdZiq-gWaIriebNWnu1g

Lookout Bill on Hope's bow.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ys05lpJtKZE&feature=share&list=UUcNpdZiq-gWaIriebNWnu1g

[paulsproesser]

Hi Ben, really great stuff you have posted on this thread . Today is the first time I've seen it since thread #135 . Keep it coming. I suspect your just collecting the Japanese tools due to the age and condition, but they are really nice to work with. I bought some extra fine modern Japanese pull saws when I was splitting and cleaning out my coamings and they were a real pleasure to work with. Cuts so fine the edge feels smooth. P.S. That S Boat in the graveyard has your name all over it buddy.

[Ariel 109]

Hi Paul, Thanks for your encouragement, maybe after S-Boat Tern get's racing again, perhaps with the help of those fancy Japanese tools, I can help with the graveyard boat Volunteer. Happy also to report that I found a caretaker for the Rhodes 24, after looking after her for the past two years. The new owner Nikolai, a good carpenter, has been diligently working on his new boat. There is hope!

Read these two classics back to back. Did these guys sail around the same planet?

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/E926AEDA-8B78-4805-9CDA-A2BE245B8EFE-1900-000001F898635815_zpsd0ffd53c.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/E926AEDA-8B78-4805-9CDA-A2BE245B8EFE-1900-000001F898635815_zpsd0ffd53c.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

Bought this book because of the pretty dust jacket, written by a fellow named Anthony Heckstall-Smith, D.S.C., wonderful find. Heckstall-Smith, who's father was a famous yachting correspondent, grew up immersed in yachting's "Golden Age". Here's one of his reminisces of the perennially America's Cup challenger and tea maker Tommy Lipton.

"One day, when I was very young, he explained to me the principle of advertising by a simple analogy that I have never forgotten.

'Laddie,' he said, 'it's like this. When a chicken lays an egg, she cackles an' tells the whole farmyard. But when a duck lays an egg, she makes no' a sound. An' how many people eat ducks' eggs? Did ye never ask yourself yon question?'"

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/A2A15802-BDC8-45E4-9B6C-1D35FA3484B9_zpsrluqlrmw.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/A2A15802-BDC8-45E4-9B6C-1D35FA3484B9_zpsrluqlrmw.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

Here's a piece of history, a 1930's towing tank model, given to my friend's friend by his grandfather. Nice work of art to hang up in your house.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/4B413597-9B80-40DC-8F8C-9E2E46BC8244_zpsptcjtlkd.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/4B413597-9B80-40DC-8F8C-9E2E46BC8244_zpsptcjtlkd.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

Working again on Tern's boom, scarfed in a new board to replace a badly checked section on the bottom far end of the 19' long spar. With very little heat in my new shop working with a hand plane is great for keeping warm! I've got a bunch of old books I need to take pictures of too, winter reading!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/242D2CAD-B5F4-4AFA-A777-4E8FE495E3EE_zpsqiqltvw2.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/242D2CAD-B5F4-4AFA-A777-4E8FE495E3EE_zpsqiqltvw2.jpg.html)

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/C480ECEE-E0B8-4F3D-A13F-A30DD023D05D_zps9bt5wtql.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/C480ECEE-E0B8-4F3D-A13F-A30DD023D05D_zps9bt5wtql.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

Getting there, some more fairing with sandpaper, then I can work on the outhaul installation.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/42856ACC-93AE-4598-9D8D-B2C45264E865_zps24bjghnb.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/42856ACC-93AE-4598-9D8D-B2C45264E865_zps24bjghnb.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

Another book from the Strand, from a chapter called "The Roaring Barbary Coast". A really fun and informative book that you wish wouldn't end.

""Trust no one--they'll have you hocused aboard an outward-bound hellship before you know you're born", was the tenor of his warning. "There's only one place in 'Frisco worse than the Coast, and that's Chinatown: there they'll murder you for two bits.""

This may explain some of the edginess of the correspondence between denizens of that area on this board, ha!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/A9A7F34E-767D-40C8-9174-7F8D9B9FC4B0_zpsvu4r9naa.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/A9A7F34E-767D-40C8-9174-7F8D9B9FC4B0_zpsvu4r9naa.jpg.html)

It's one thing to cut and glue in a board, another to fair it up with the lines of the boom. My fingers are raw from all the sanding! I was able to carve the boom end to fit this bronze cap that is part of the out-haul on Tern. It's unique to her, I believe, something to do with her being the final S-Boat, built a few months before Pearl Harbor.

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/362EF212-A840-4277-B7F8-FACD2B2C6A11_zpsxduo1jcj.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/362EF212-A840-4277-B7F8-FACD2B2C6A11_zpsxduo1jcj.jpg.html)

[Ariel 109]

I was driving in the Bronx today and spotted this boat being hauled on a trailer. When I got closer I thought it looked like a Commander but something seemed wrong, not enough draft on the hull. Was lucky to be able to snap a picture as I drove past. It was Commander with her keel cut off for the scrap, the rest being taken to the dump. Farewell Cuba Libre!

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_3526_zps59ryxroj.jpg (http://s165.photobucket.com/user/Parlordoor/media/IMG_3526_zps59ryxroj.jpg.html)

[Tony G]

A tragedy for sure. Throwing away boats is a sign of greater problems..

[ebb]

Trying to remember a bon mot I'm sure I've seen here.
Something like: On Judgment Day, standing before St Peter
with the book open to the page of your life...
time spent sailing your boat won't be counted against you.

So I'm thinking, along with Tony, what has that S.O.B. hauling
Cuba Libre
off to the landfill
to look forward to?
__________________________________________________ __
__________________________________________________ __
Scrap lead is worth 15 cents a pound. So he ruined a couple
chainsaw blades gutting the poor Commander, plus the blood
he must have sweated, just to drop that half ton of ballast
out on the ground... for $375.

For we suffer fools gladly seeing we ourselves are wise.
Corinthians 11:19

[Ariel 109]

Here's a quick update on my S-Boat project. The boat was brought down to the New York City area from Newport RI this past fall. I've been able to spent my weekends installing into the hull 66 new steamed ribs, finished reframing two weeks ago. Now I'm making all new floor timbers, over half of the 34 completed so far. In the next few months I hope to have the entire backbone of the hull completed and keel refastened. Ben


http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_4388_zpshukm4cgr.jpg

http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u72/Parlordoor/IMG_4309_zpsgv9uhnv4.jpg