Boats 4 Folks Fleet coming along

Most of the current activity in the boatshop is related to getting boats for this year's youth boatbuild programme completed. The kits for the skiff build are ready to go, the Lightning mast is partially rigged and we will be picking up new track and bronze screws this week to keep this happening, the first sea flea (Mini-Hopper) could go in the water for a test any time now and the TNT is right side up being readied for varnish and paint as well.

Anton shows the use of a scraper blade

flattening the epoxied bottom

Mini-Hopper ready for deck paint

 Within the limitations of our shop, (no varnish booth) we are fussy about finish quality. The bottom of the sea flea was a good example. Three coats of primer then sanded out flat, some fairing filler in a few spots, sand out again and two more coats of primer. Two coats of green marine paint, sand out again and two more coats to get a pretty good result.

Chris reworking one of the bronze fittings

Lightning mast with fittings..

 The Lightning mast and boom are getting their hardware reinstalled now, some rework is required to improve the fit and fastening of some parts. The original brass sail track was brittle and broken up so we are searching for new sections. Brass may no longer be available so we may have to use stainless.

Scott C getting ready for varnishing

George can't wait for testing day....

 The TNT bottom eventually came out well and now we are getting on with the topsides. Scott is countersinking and plugging the screws holding the coamings in place, next day or so should be stain and varnish on these parts.

Scot M is flattening out the outside of a skiff.

One of the challenges with getting good paint and varnish results is the uneven grain of the marine mahogany plywood we use. some areas of the sheet have a nice flat grain and other parts of the same sheet are very deeply ridged and require filling. Often you really can't see this until you have begun to paint...dang!

This lovely canoe-skiff was recently dropped off...

No maker plate is evident but this very light, cedar and canvas outboard skiff has very lovely features. It needs minor woodwork and re-canvassing however the rest seems in very fine condition. If you know who built boats like this or recognize it - please let us know!

12' gaff cat boat - unknown builder

has been upside down for years

the gift of Bruce Weber, a very pretty boat.

Finally in this issue (well maybe), we rescued this lovely gaff cat from a back yard in Mississauga a few weeks ago. She has lovely lines but no builders plate so don't know who made her. Bruce the donor has had her a long time but didn't know her history either. Looks like she could be from the 30's or 40's, doubt you would see cedar planks the width of the one-piece side decks in a boat built after that. Any thoughts out there!

Oh yes the July Shore Leave Night is coming up I think on the 31st. Give us a heads up if you are thinking of coming for BBQ salmon-on-a-plank courtesy Troy!

Oh yes (again) - thank you for the old outboards that have been trickling in! We are getting up to the inventory needed to run the kids programme. The one big hole still is the 3 HP class of motor - if you have one of these not being used any more please consider dropping it off!

motors like this needed!

K&C at Classics Against Cancer Show

Yup, today we spent the day at a car show - with boats.

Not only that but it really worked out well, your team had a lot of fun and we sold out of raffle tickets! Here are some shots of our display which featured the Lightning, an in-the-works skiff, the TNT partially restored and Bernie's very cool new sea-flea design!

None of us had time for more than a quick walk around the car show - we were really busy most of the time we were there - LOTS of interest in the boatshop and the boats! However I did do a quick circuit and here are some of the cars that caught me eye....!

cool rat rod

and rear view

Chevy powered Austin rod

the sine que non of cars, early XK120 roadster

and the best (and most common) view

A one owner, unrestored 1964 MK II 3.8 Jag

Lincoln Zephyr V12 coupe

and the V12 itself

So that's Father's Day for me! Couldn't be better!

a "little" boat progress this week

as in sea fleas, skiffs and TNT! No we haven't restored Jingo yet...

Bernie was wrestling with finding a good repeatble solution to the steering system for the Mini-Hopper SeaFlea and ordered in a new puch/pull cable system for evaluation. Not a chance! Cable is too big for the boat and won't do a sharp enough bend. So back to the drawing board - on the other hand the inside cockpit panels are fitted but not fastened yet.

"Dr" Bernie checks out the fit

which looks pretty good!

looks fast so far...

making sure the tank fits

The TNT seems tantalizingly close to having the bottom painted but we've learned over the years that if you paint too soon you pay even sooner by sanding half of your paint off again to get a flat surface. So one more go around but it is close!

and the varnish work on the skiff if done as well!

Jim took up outboard motor repair under Coach Peter and soon had rebuilt a carburettor, removed a lower unit and got things back together - his first time on this kind of technology.

Jim and George are at it

our 10 HP is coming back together

Glen finishes the water pump for Dileas our 1947 Hunter.

Don't need one on an AJS...

Do you have one of these sitting around? We need two more for our youth programme to really work well. Maybe you know someone with an old motor not being used? Let us know!

We need motors like this - running would be good!

Meanwhile IN the boatshop...

What with cottage opening and boats going in the water - few of our regular volunteers were a bit scarce this week - but lots got done in any case with those of us who don't have those distractions!

Last week we packed up the Gas-Hopper for while as we need the first bay for getting the boats to be used this summer ready to do that! First in was Dileas our 1949 Hunter Runabout. Glen has been rebuilding the waterpump for the Crown and has done a beauntiful job of it. There is also some refurbishing of some of the bottom coating but the varnish still looks pretty good.

one of our most reliable Gatsby Boats

and this will help!

Elsewhere in the shop we carried on with filling, fairing and skiff development....

Anton feels his way through!

current raffle skiff ready for more work

bottoms up in raceboats!

stained and first coat of varnish

George making skiff kit parts for this summer Boats 4 Folks program

So there you have last week and this coming Thursday (May 29th) is Shore Leave Night at the boatshop. This month George will be making up his secret homemade burger patties and some other surprises, Anton to be the cook on the BBQ down beside the river behind the boatshop! Only $10 a head for food and beer but RSVP or nothing for you...maybe.

Our Ditchburn "Jingo" arrives at Boatshop!

Well the rescue of this classic from a bonfire fate in Callander began in November 2012 with a hair raising run from there to a field north of Orangeville. This week saw her make it to the boatshop where the hull cleanup and stabilization can be carried out. Longtime volunteer Scott dropped what he was planning to do on Thursday morning and joined me for the run to Jingo. Volunteer John Way whose farm the boat was stored on, met us with a "no problem" cheery view of the extrication!

Jingo is behind all those trailers...

and up to her knees in mud!

Frankly the situation looked dubious, the roadway in to her was mud and ruts 18" deep in places. There were several trailers parked between her and less muddy ground - all of which was quite downhill from the road. Not a perfect setup. However farmers have quite a different view of things as we were about to see....

John went for the front end loader and began to grade the driveway by back-dragging the blade so he could move high dirt to low dirt places. Along came his nephew who turned out to be a wizard on the excavator - which just happened to be sitting around - this really got things moving. He swung the bucket in a huge arc which flattened the surface then drove back and forth with the crawler machine which further solidified the drive way. Eventually we could get our truck in to move the miscellaneous trailers out of the way. They then used the excavator to drag Jingo's trailer up to the roadway where we could get hooked up. Scott was on board for this ride securing loose items - so he is the first volunteer to have a ride in Jingo!

out of the mud - Scott at the windshield..

up the ramp to the road...

onto the road and ....

ready for us to hook up!

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Once on the road the excavator made picking up the tonge and landing it on our hitch a moments job. We intalled our magnetic lights and magnetic plates, tied her down and off to the farmhouse for tea and air in the tires!

need 4x4 in the driveway!

The ride back was uneventful - thank goodness and she trailed smoothly even on a pintle hook connection.

Once maneuvered into position at the boatshop we had a first real look at her outward condition. Going to be a big job and the move didn't help. More ribs have broken on the port side with considerable sagging evident. Our first task will be to stabilize the hull even before we go inside to clean the junk out. I suspect this can be a tricky thing to do and none of us has done it before - if you have some knowledge of how to proceed - your input would be timely as this needs to be done sooner than later!

We have made it to the Glen!

there is an area of soft in the deadwood strut

 Jingo was built in 1929 by Ditchburn in the Orillia plant - one can see the family resemblance to Windswept III built in the same plant a few years later but the hull construction and style is the same. She may be planked in cypress, I didn't find any soft planks to speak of which is quite amazing considering her last decade or two of life. The cabin is a much later addition, she originaly had a windshield, hard top over half the cockpit and canvas sidecurtains.

a bit sad looking but...

most of the hull looks promising.

So what will her future look like? Hopefully we will get her stabilized and the junk out of her including the ugly cabin - pretty soon. After that we will be looking for indoor storage while a restoration plan is conceived and made ready for execution. Your thoughts on this or your willingness to be on a team to look into creative solutions would be welcome...

let's get back to this condition! (C. 1970)