With police escort and lead by 'Piglet' - the town-crier borrowed from Penzance (how don't St.Ives have their own?), the new jumbo entered the town right at 10am sharp temporarily bringing traffic to a standstill.

By the time we launched her onto the sand to await the flood tide a large crowd had gathered for the naming ceremony lead by Matthew Care.

Next up, the winners of the jumbo painting competition receive their medals from the mayor.
We also received a blessing in Cornish from Mick Paynter, Grand Bard of the Cornish Gorseth and relative of the 19th cent. designer after whom she is named.

Finally, the crew goes aboard in the St.Ives punt that inspired me to build Jumbos.

As you can see, we were unbelieveably lucky with the weather. Early indications suggest William Paynter is every bit as fast as her sister.

The day concluded with the customary pint and shout with the Cadgwith Singers at the Castle. Strangely no pictures were available. (All these, incidentally, were taken by my brother Damian- over from the States

I'm really sorry if you were unable to make the occasion. But here they are waiting for your next visit!

With very best wishes to you all.
Jonny

all photos courtesy Jonny Nance





Jonny Nance and the St. Ives Jumbo Association launched the second Jumbo, the William Paynter, in June. Seems to have been a joyous affair with a large attendance. The two boats are now racing and also available for sails in St. Ives, Cornwall. Mr. Nance and the association are using these boats to promote civic involvement, awareness of tradition, and ultimately, a return to fishing under sail, which was the original purpose of these boats, and which evolved in response to local conditions.

Jonny first wrote about this two years ago on the St. Ives Jumbo page, and I'd like to share that original vision with you:

When sailing the Jumbo you can readily appreciate why the lug rig remained popular for small fishing boats through to the last days of sail. To start with you've a wonderfully clear working area with the masts out of the way, and no boom to duck under. Even when close-hauled the sail and sheets are clear of the work area. This, combined with he manageable scale of the boat and rig makes the Jumbo an ideal model on which to develop skills and explore the potential of fishing for a living - under sail.

Our aim is to establish a racing class of these boats at St.Ives in order to regenerate a waterfront community in decline. How much more effective it would be if, in addition, these boats could be eventually used for the purpose for which they were designed whilst providing a seasonal income for a couple of individuals!

Clearly, there may come a time when, in addition to any green, carbon neutral credentials, a sail-operated fishery could become commercially viable or at least a natural way of conserving resources (as demonstrated by the Falmouth oyster fishery -much celebrated as the last in the world to be worked under sail). In the meantime the skills required need to be developed.

There's a growing recognition that this approach would at least address some serious issues; the sustainability of fish stocks, the rising cost of fuel, the dependence on imported goods and the lack of employment opportunities in rural areas to name a few.

And if successful, the model could be readily repeated elsewhere.

Only a few months ago such a proposal would have been dismissed as romantic fantasy. So far however, my inquiries have been met with a degree of excitement .

Stephen Perham, the Harbour Master of Clovelly, who has been working the herring season there for decades, explained he has been thinking of reviving the 'picarooner' (their Jumbo equivalent) for the purpose. It's no coincidence that a replica of this particular craft is currently under construction by students on the Traditional Boatbuilding Course at Falmouth Marine School.

Nathan De Rozarieux, the Project Director of Seafood Cornwall reckons there's sufficient public awareness to support a significant premium for 'zero-carbon' fish when sold direct to the customer. This would ensure a market for the smallest catches. This view is shared by Matthew Stevens MD of Matthew Stevens and Son, the regions leading supplier of fish and seafood based in St.Ives,who said,

"Clearly the time is right for an initiative like this. We look forward to receiving their first catch!"

Even the authorities are supportive. The Marine Fisheries Agency at Newlyn inform me that obstructive legislation has been amended to allow unlicenced (unpowered) vessels of under 10m. to land and sell fish.

Without realising it individuals from each of the contributing sectors: boatbuilders, part-time fishermen, fishing authorities, and marketting have been quietly thinking along parallel lines but as yet have not joined forces.

We are on the threshold of a revival that could see several small, inshore and engineless fleets springing up around our shores over the next decade.

The logical place to start is where we left off - and engines took over.

Sceptical? Of course - but just think where the organic industry was only 30 years ago!

Also, found on the website today:

"2 years after Jonny Nance put out a press release promoting 'Fishing under sail' the idea is catching on...!

"Readers of Classic Boat have nominated our humble craft - almost unknown before we came along - 24th out of the top 50 classic boats. So there you are. It's official - she's a classic! William Paynter (her 19th cent. designer) would be chuffed!"

There has also been a design competition put forward by Classic Boat to design a boat for British fishing under sail, which was endorsed by the British Parliament. Unfortunately, the Classic Boat search function is down and I haven't been able to reference either results.

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Stephan Lansdowne

Launch first sail

My first time out. Very stable, but shifting from one side of the cockpit to the other while seated on the bottom is not easy for this older body. Sitting on the side deck is a good option if there is some wind. I'm learning how to adjust the sprit (that goes from the mast to the top of the sail) and the downhaul to keep the crease in the sail (which is not very visible here) from happening. The boat can fit two, but it is tight if both sit in the cockpit. In practice the 'crew' can sit on the front deck facing aft with his/her feet in the cockpit, shifting side to side as needed to keep the helmsman from having to change positions at all when the wind stiffens.

Forward spar support in use within mast hole

Hiding from the ducks

Actually this is me installing the cover to the rear hatch which is in the aft bulkhead. I added these to provide an air-filled flotation compartment aft 'just in case.' In practice this bulkhead is too far aft to be easily used, as is evident by the fact that I'm having to lie down just to fit the cover, which is held on (as is the forward hatch) from beneath via shock cord. While it is likely not fully watertight, it will sure slow down water entry if I capsize. Once I sailed the boat, I understand others who say that a capsize is unlikely, as she is very stable.

Launch on trailer

Going into the water at last. The cockpit coaming is cherry, with mahogany quarter round between it and the deck. In practice the square loomed Culler oars I already had and the height of the oarlock risers were not a good match, allowing the square part of the looms to scrape the top of the coaming when rowing. The solution was to make another set of oars with fully round looms and raise the oar lock risers by about an inch, which at present (Nov 09) is being done.

Primed deck and hatch

The 'spoiler' at the top of the transom is part of the decoy rail system that I opted not to install along the edge of the rest of the deck. This boat was originally used for duck hunting in the late 1800's back east. The notch in the spoiler serves to keep the tiller from swinging too far in either direction.

Beam detail 1

Cedar deck knees cut and fitted on the port side. Starboard side knees are in the foreground waiting to be installed. A temporary gusset on one side of each knee was used to hold the knee in place while the glue dried. Circular cutouts in the side of each knee are where the oar will sit. Attempts at steaming green ash knees were not successful -- grain runout and too tight a bend.

Deck beams and carlins in

Deck beams, carlins, etc. installed or ready to be glued in. Atlantic white cedar is a joy to work with. At this point I'd not yet decided to go with a centerboard. Doing so led to a need to modify some of the forward deck beams. Notice how the hull is supported by MDF scraps at the front, with carpet scraps between the hull and the MDF. A similar arrangement is used aft. The horizontal MDF pieces, which are screwed to the strongback, can be easily removed as needed. The flat bottom of the boat lets it rest easily on the strongback.

Planked

Here the outer stem sits where it will eventually be, but it was just placed there for appearance in this photo. After this was well set up, I removed alternate molds and cut extra wood from those that remained before turning the boat over with help from some rope, pulleys on the ceiling of the shop, and a few friends. Those 3/4" MDF mods are very heavy.

Garboard preparation

Trial fastening the first garboard. Chines are held down to molds via blocks screwed to the molds below the chines and screws upward through these to the chines. The chine beveling was slow, but molds needed minimal beveling for the garboard. Still, what mold beveling I did (for other strakes) was no fun!

Ttransom forward

Transom forward -- distortion caused by not shooting photo precisely – ideally the pieces of the transom should have been glued together horizontally, not vertically as I did. Keeping the aft end of the chines in place while the glue dried was rough -- I came back into the shop an hour later and found that the two chines had popped upward (toward the ceiling of the shop) and thus were not still in contact with the stem. Some fast work with some screws through a block screwed to mold 12 fixed that.

Stem lamination

1) A messy job needing clamps of the right size and advance planning. Put waxed paper or plastic film or clear packing tape between the lamination and the clamps/mold to prevent sticking. Don't make the laminations too thick. I think mine are no thicker than 1/8".

all photos Linda Lansdowne, courtesy Stephan Lansdowne

Marc Cozzi

Launched



Ready to go!



Varnished

This really is a three or fore hand job. Pushing in, holding down, aligning and screwing all at the same time. Thanks Kay.

7/8" X 7" ash mast bed mortised, glued and screwed in. Dummy mast pole is inserted in the 3" mast hole. A plum line is dropped to determine the 4" per 10' rake.

It goes slow but the results are good.

Here I've setup a rubber band driven 12' lathe. The idea is that the router will slid along the straight edge on a sled while the mast turns. Holes are drilled for centers in each end of the mast.

First deck beam installed. The arch is 3" per 25" half side.


courtesy Marc Cozzi



Each of these builders sent me links to their story after I'd requested it through the Yahoo Melonseed group. Each of these guys built beautiful boats, both to the Barto plans, I believe. Marc Barto drew detailed plans for the modern builder based on the Chapelle plans, but expanded from one page to ten, at least in the WoodenBoat version. Marc Cozzi started his project in 2002 and finished it in 2003. Stephan Lansdowne started his project in 2004 and finished in 2009. Marc has a nice website about his Melonseed, and a Rob Roy canoe he built as well as links to other melons here. Stephan Lansdowne set up his strongback in Oct 2004 and launched in August 2009. Steve doesn't have a website, but his flickr photo set is so richly captioned that it is as informative as one. I believe Barry Long has communicated with Steve about his build experience. Thanks and cheers to both these fellows, for stepping forward and congratulations on their beautiful boats.

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Mike Wick

Mike Wick's Melonseed, aptly named Pepita, scandalising sail at the basin of the ISM, during the 2009 Wooden Boat Festival in Philly

Mike is building another Melonseed, this one with some design modifications he wanted to implement after his experieince with Pepita.

above photos thomas armstrong

Mike is introducing camber to the deck, visible here in the model, hoping to achieve a drier sail.

The new boat is a Cortez Melonseed, I think drawn by Roger Allen of the Florida Maritime Museum at Cortez, FL, with the hull built from a kit by the FMM by Ted Cook.

Mike is finishing the boat himself.

these photos courtesy John Guidera via Mike Wick

Barry Long

scribing the skeg

one of the completed hulls

both boats half stripped

Set up, keelson, stem and transom in place, twelve strips on each boat

Two at once.

Steam bent stems cooling.

And set up.

Two full sets of molds laid out.

Setting up the strongbacks for the work to proceed upon.

Barry first saw a Melonseed in an historic photo, and the boat grabbed his imagination, but it wasn't until years later that he saw this boat in MD and began his research in earnest. A year later he'd finally identified the Melonseed.

Melonseeds evolved in the Mid Atlantic region and there's been a revival of interest in these boats in recent years. Howard Chapelle wrote about and surveyed these boats and they are included in American Small Sailing Craft, the bible for those interested in traditional American small craft. Although this revival is mainly centered in the home waters of this boat type, the popularity of the Melonseed has spread to other areas, the Midwest, the Deep South and the Northeast, at least.
Two friends of mine are currently building or finishing Melonseeds and I wanted to write about these elegant small sailboats. There's a Melonseed Yahoo group and I wrote to them inviting members to submit their build photos and text, more of that later.
Mike Wick is a fellow member of the Delaware River TSCA group and is a Melonseed devotee. Mike is a prolific boatbuilder and collecter, and has a livery of around 13 boats. He recently sold his lovely Oughtred McGregor sailing canoe to a friend up in the Thousand Island area, in an attempt to lighten his load. He's currently finishing out his second Melonseed. This one is to a design by Roger Allen, head of the Florida Maritime Museum in Cortez, Florida. Dubbed the Cortez Melonseed, an original strip planked hull was built by Mike Lucas, which he gave to Mike, who used it as a male mold for a cold molded hull, seen in the photos.That done, Mike pooped off his hull and passed it on to Roland Anderson who took over the original hull to build another melonseed. The model Mike is using to work out his deck modifications is a lazer-cut kit made by Ted Cook and are available from the Florida Maritime Museum. As seen in the photos of the model, above, Mike is making some modifications, mainly building in a camber to the deck to make his boat a drier sail. Mike's other seed Pepita was designed by John Brady and built by Carl Weissenger, and is a gem of a small boat.

Barry Long set himself an ambitious project. The Virginia based graphic designer and photographer decided, after falling in love with the Melonseed, to build a brace of seeds, one for himself and one for his better half. He's basically done that, but is still adding the finishing touches. He's also chronicled his build on a weblog, which has to be the most detailed, erudite, well written and photographed build blog I have ever encountered. Build blogs can get a little dry, but not so with Barry's, which is interspersed with amusing and enlightening asides, a host of informative comments from his followers and witty, introspective, informative and insightful commentary on the building process. Not to be missed! Barry seems to be completing the dual project and I've pushed him to get the pair done for the October MASCF in St, Michaels this year, owing to my completely selfish desire to sail one, or both of his sprouts this Autumn. I anyone reading this can make this annual celebration, I highly recommend you do so! Also, Barry's photos here will be best read from he bottom up. There are tons more photos at Barry's website.

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The Jester fleet assembled in Plymouth

A Russian contender,Igor Zaretsky, sailed his Peterson 25 The Grand into Newport on the 26 th. of June, being the first to arrive, therefore the 'winner' of the 2010 Jester Challenge, though in my estimation, all entrants, those who got to Newport and those forced to retire, are winners. Read, for instance, about Guy Waites experience, one who had to retire .

Roger Taylor had another idea for his summer cruise, to start with his fellow entrants in the JC, but make for a more distant and exotic goal, the Arctic circle by way of Davis Strait between Greenland and Newfoundland. Here he's checking coordinates mid Atlantic.

Mingming's daily log with Roger's drawing of shearwaters.

Roger celebrated his birthday during the cruise, with cards and newly opened gifts.

Lots of heavy weather experienced on this cruise, here mid Atlantic.

More of the same,

And even more.

Here Roger is hand sewing a Greenland welcome flag in case he needs to make an unplanned landfall. Despite the ensuing events , he didn't need to.

These ingredients make...

A dinner! Typical fare aboard Mingming

The highlight of the cruise, according to Roger, was a visit from this Black Browed Albatross. 8' wingspan.

Davis Strait

courtesy wikipedia

Heavy weather in the Davis Strait.

Mingming was knocked onto her beam ends by a rouge wave in this heavy weather in the
Davis Straits, which flew Roger across the cabin and resulted in his injury

Mingming back in Plymouth Harbour


all photos courtesy Roger Taylor unless otherwise noted

Intrepid voyager Roger Taylor set off this year with the other entrants in the Jester Challenge, but offered a piquant twist. Instead of taking a heading for Newport, RI, like the other participants, Roger decided to make the event his own by stamping off for the Davis Strait, the body of water between Newfoundland and Greenland. He nearly made his proposed goal of entering the Arctic Circle via the Davis Strait, but encountered some very heavy weather in the strait and suffered an injury which caused him to decide to return to Plymouth post haste. A broken rib. Roger:

"A south-easterly gale which started on June 24th built for a day and a half. We were running before it quite comfortably under bare poles. At 0015H on the morning of June 26th, at which point we were about 130 miles west of Cape Desolation on the west Greenland coast, a rogue wave caught us on the wrong quarter, gybing us round and then putting Mingming on her beam ends. I had been dozing on the safe, downhill side of the boat. The gybe moved me to the uphill side, and as we went over I was flipped over onto my back and thrown across the cabin, catching my right side against the corner of the chart table. I did not realize immediately that I had injured myself. My first concern was for my back, which had been wrenched during this short haul flight and awkward landing. It was only a few minutes later, when I was getting us back on the correct heading, and had to reach for a steering line with my right hand, that I heard, as much as felt, a loud 'click' from my right rib cage - the click of two pieces of displaced bone slotting themselves back together again."

At this juncture Roger decided, wisely I believe, to abort further progress and run for home. He returned to Plymouth on July 29th after 67 rather eventful days at sea. Roger reports that he's healing nicely and glad to be home. He counts this voyage as very successful, despite not quite reaching his the circle. I'd agree. Please read the full account at Roger's website.

Also, Roger's second book ,
MINGMING & THE ART OF MINIMAL OCEAN SAILING is actually available now, as opposed to the original date in September. I recommend it.

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Sjogin on the hard for her annual maintenance ,

and this season, measuring.

Here's Russ laying down the first 'finger' at the keel bottom.

The 'fingers' are set to critical measurement points, the rabbet, where keel joins to hull, top of the garboard, or first plank up, and at every lap until reaching the sheer, or top of the hull.

Another view, a little further along

The measurements are recorded and the lines for each section are drawn on a piece of ply . It gets a little congested where the lines converge.

A batten, a thin strip of wood, is used to plot the measurements and allow drawing a line of the hull shape at a particular station.

This is how it's done. The jig is laid down on the table to a preset position. The position of the ends of the fingers indicate the various measure points (at the laps). These are marked on the board,

measured, and the measurement recorded into a sort of spreadsheet, called a table of offsets. A table of offsets (shown above) represents a set of numerical measurements in three dimensions which will allow a designer or draftsman to recreate a drawn picture of the boat.

Here Steve's marking the finger points

Here he's 'pinning' the batten to the drawn finger points.

Batten pinned, here Steve draws the line.

And now taking the measurement from the drawn line to a baseline, giving the height of a point on the hull.

Here Steve is pinning the batten to draw a lie for the next to last station, no.9. Stations are cross sections through the hull at measured intervals, and the measurements describe the hull shape numerically.

I rarely like posed photos, but really felt this was an 'historic' moment, with the lines being taken off Sjogin to be preserved for posterity. Russ and Steve reluctantly obliged

A little poetic license taken in the title for this post, actually, Sjogin described, or documented would be more accurate. Sjogin turns heads, both in person and on the internet, and it's easy to see why. Probably built by a retired Swedish ship captain, there's no denying that, whether by luck or by true artistry and insight, the design of this boat distills the essence of Scandinavian working craft and has an ineluctable charm. I am far from being the only admirer who shares this opinion. Back in February, a WoodenBoat Forum thread was started by 'RodB' about how to get the lines taken off so Sjogin could be reproduced. A gentle firestorm ensued, and to date there have been 271 posts on the thread. Several designers were approached, and at least three, Francois Vivier, Paul Gartside and John Welsford have expressed real interest in producing a set of plans for boats built in their attendant styles based on Sjogin's lines, with the intention of adhering very closely to the original lines of the boat, though with possible variations in the material and construction used. These would be plans available and accessible drawn with the home builder in mind. Two of the designers, Paul Gartside and Francois Vivier have already formed pools of subscribers, meaning interested parties who'd like to get a set of plans, and who band together to raise the funds to pay the initial design fee. Inquire if you are interested. Both Francois and Paul have done preliminary sketches based on photos of Sjogin, but in order to actually draw up plans from which a boat can be built, they need accurate measurements from several areas of the boat. This part's not about imagination, but precision, as the intent is to replicate that indescribable sweetness of this boat, this design.
Paul Gartside sent Russ Mannheimer, Sjogin's owner, detailed instructions on hoe to 'take off lines', ie, to take the measurements a designer would need to draw the boat in three dimensions. There are several ways of doing this and the method Paul described is simple and low tech, but the work is exacting.
The bulk of the work was done last Wednesday, by Russ and his accomplice, Steve Martinsen, up from Oxford, MD. The measuring took place at the venerable boatyard David Beaton and Sons, in Brick, New Jersey. Beaton's is a third generation boatyard still building and caring for wooden boats, and has a fabled history, more on the boatyard later. Beaton's is Sjogin's home, and exudes an atmosphere of the past, moving into the future, a real treasure.
I arrived at Beaton's in the afternoon to find Russ and Steve hard at work. They divided the work, Russ using a jig with fingers set to each of the salient measure points, then laying the jig on a board so Steve could measure the points of each of ten cross sections through the hull, and then measure, record and draw the curve. It was interesting to see this process, but I didn't get it all and am probably not explaining it very well. If you'd like to dig into how this process is done, there's an excellent ebook/resource put out by the Museum Small Craft Association. This is the go to text for documenting boats. I'll also recommend investigating this association, a group worthy of your attention.
All in all, a good day, even great, seeing Sjogin documented for all time. That doesn't imply that clones built to her lines will possess the same grace as Sjogin, but all will replicate her seaworthiness, if built correctly and if lucky have a little of her magic as well.

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Plumbelly underway

Plumbelly's launch off the beach in Admiralty Bay, Bequia where she was built.

Sailing down to Bequia from the US, Grenada in the background.

Landfall in the Caribbean, down from New England.

Carriacou

Carriacou

lee bower

Bequia

Plumbelly at rest.

Tyrrel Bay, Bequia

Patrick and Joel just before Joel manifested his illness in the most visceral way.

It's 5 o'clock somewhere.

Zidan, Cabo Verde Islands

Boatbuilding family, Cabo Verde Islands

Jose and Boteline sailing. Cabo Verde

El Jagdida, Morocco

About half the fleet at El Jadida

Building in Morocco

Plumbelly on the hard.

Well stocked, 'bellies belly.

Galley

Back in New England

Flush decks

Save for the canvas dodger over the companionway

Goals accomplished, surf's up!



all photos courtesy Patrick DaLilla or David Jones

You can just about hear J. Buffet and a steel band in the background. This very interesting boat turned up in one of those tiny ads in the WB classifieds. I've been to St. Vincent and was regaled with stories of the Bequia whalers by my host, Captain Jack Longley. We were to deliver a 65' steel motorsailer from St. Vincent to the Cayman Islands. This is back in the early 90's. I was able to get away and had quite an adventure. But the story of the Bequia whalers, one of the very few traditional whaling communities still allowed to hunt whales, (up to 4 per year, though they rarely make quota, in open boats w/ harpoon, no mods no motors, sail only) has stayed with me and continued to intrigue me over the years. There's precious little info on them on the web.
Plumbelly is the quintessential Caribbean cruising boat, though I'm sure she fares well in other waters, and I've included some photos from Patrick's adventures across the Atlantic. She was built on a beach in Bequia by local shipwright Loran Dewar and Klaus Alverman, a German ship's captain who commissioned her. Built to Bequian whaleboat lines with the exception that she's not an open boat, but flush decked. I'll let the current owner, Patrick DaLilla, tell the story:

"When I bought my boat in Maine six years ago, people told me that she was famous, built on an island called Bequia and sailed twice around the world. At the time I preferred to consider her more “tried and true” than famous. But as I guided my (by now) beloved little boat back to her birthplace after her 28th crossing of the Atlantic, I couldn’t help but revel in her amazing history.
PLUMBELLY was built on the beach in Admiralty Bay under the shade of the palm trees in the place where Tommy Cantina’s now sits. An eccentric German architect and ship’s captain named Klaus Alverman wanted a small yacht to cruise the islands in, and he set out to build it with the help of Bequian shipwright Lauren Joe. They built the boat in the local tradition: hewing carefully selected timber from around the island into the shape of a modified two bow fishing boat. Her full body inspired the name as a passerby commented “look like she got a big plum in dee belly mon!”
She was launched in 1965 and a few years later set out to cross the Pacific Ocean. She had no engine, no electricity and no self steering device. After four weeks of sailing sheet to tiller with the bow down, PLUMBELLY arrived in the Pacific islands sporting a beard of algae on her bowsprit. While resting in Tahiti, a big red double-ender came gliding into the harbor with a wild eyed Frenchman at the helm(could this be Moitessier? ed.). The man had just sailed two times around the world non-stop. The two men became friends and Klaus obtained a design for a simple wind vane from him. He built the wind vane in New Zealand and it is still working it’s magic today.
PLUMBELLY and Klaus returned to Bequia to a heroes’ welcome; the first Bequia boat to be sailed around the world. For those in Bequia that know the story of PLUMBELLY there is a gleam of pride in their eyes when they speak about it. This is my second time in Bequia with the old girl and I’ve yet to meet someone over thirty that doesn’t know the name. And it’s not just in Bequia. In places as far afield as Senegal I’ve had people ask me, “That’s not the PLUMBELLY, is it?” “Bet your boots it is. The one and only!” People just smile and shake their heads.
When Klaus finally stopped after twenty odd years of sailing, PLUMBELLY ended up in the hands of an American science professor in Massachusetts. She was used for day sailing and coastal cruising until an adventurous young man from Maine bought her and once again pointed her bow in the direction of faraway lands. Now I am the third in a line of owners from Maine (actually I’m from Ohio but I bought the boat while living in Maine) whom PLUMBELLY has carried safely across oceans.
I once read that art is an expression of Humans’ love of labor, and people have described Klaus’s relationship with PLUMBELLY as “a grand love affair”. In the case of the Bequian shipwrights it was a love born out of necessity, for nothing less than a sort of love can create a vessel seaworthy enough for whaling. In PLUMBELLY, Klaus created a working monument to this fading tradition, a swan song which fused his love of construction and love of the sea. She is a vessel that has turned into a legend in the waters that she plies, always popping up to the delight of everyone who ever dreamed of just getting in a boat and going."

Design & Construction
PLUMBELLY was designed and built in 19the Bequia West Indies by Loran Dewar and Klaus Alverman. Launched in 1965, she was designed with a spoon bow, round bilge and a deep full keel. She has an attached rudder and a canoe stern. PLUMBELLY was designed and built for offshore sailing. The hull is constructed of 1" pitch pine in the topsides and 1" Silver Balli in the bottom all over 2 1/4" x 2 1/2" tropical white cedar sawn frames. In some areas the frames are doubled. All frames are on 11" centers, the floor timbers are 2" and 3/18" sided on varying centers. PLUMBELLY has an interesting keel structure: the keel is an iron box that is fabricated with baffles and 1 1/18" iron bolts welded into the inner web structure. The bilge area has been filled with concrete for additional ballast. Her decks are also built of planked 1' pitch pine over 2" x 3 1/18" deck beams on varying centers. She is flush decked with a small trunk cabin at the companionway with sitting headroom. Her mast is solid and round, stepped through the deck and lands on a mast step in a reinforced toerail. It is then drilled to take a lanyard from the dead eyes in the rigging. PLUMBELLY is gaff rigged and flies a topsail with a jack yard.

Interior
PLUMBELLY's interior is quite simple: there is a general storage area forward, followed by the cabin. The cabin has a platform with cushions on either side and a storage box in the center that doubles as a table. Aft to port is the small navigation table and an area for some electronics. Aft to port is the galley which has a two-burner kerosene stove and a fresh water pump that uses a jerry jug for a water tank. (Kerosene is also used for cabin light.) Aft of the galley is an area for the batteries. There is then a small companionway that leads to the cockpit.

Surveyor's Commentary
Over all the boat was found to be in good condition. She has had good care and maintenance over the years. The vessel was built to high standards and it is reported that Klaus Alverman sailed around the world in her. This vessel was designed and built for this kind of offshore sailing.

This boat is currently being offered for sale by David Jones Yacht Brokerage and has full specs listed on his site. David has a keen eye for interesting boats and I may do an article on his brokerage, located in Camden ME. The asking price of the boat is 20K, she's well found and has lots of equipment for cruising. If I had the 20K...
Patrick also mentioned, in response to my query, that he's lived aboard for 3 years. She's lying in Rockland, ME.

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link here

Portsoy Scottish Traditional Boat Festival

Though not really apparent in this photo, Lass is here pulling ahead of North Berwick's St Baldred

The 'buieites hard at work on their re-hydration scheme

Lassies, currach, Lass et al

Coigach Lass and Icebreaker hauled out in Portsoy's inner harbour, with a backdrop of what appears to be an enchanting village.

Adrian Morgan of Viking Boats with Leslie Muir, author of Coigach Lass. Adrian has stated elsewhere that he is doing penance as a boatbuilder for his years spent as a sailing journalist, but he doesn't appear too penitential here.

What is this little boat? I'm working on it.

Loch Broom Sailing Club Regatta

Chris Perkin's lovely Oughtred McGregor sailing canoe Scotch Mist. Chris, a veteran builder of Oughtred designs is an ardent supporter of the Scottish Coastal Rowing Project. He's known around the world to fan's of his weblog,... as strathanchris. Chris is a hydrophobe who rarely sails his own creations, but for all that a very accomplished boatbuilder and a keen observer of the UK mall boating scene. He's responsible for all the photos here and I owe him a deep debt of gratitude.

Loch Broom hosted a 'Try the skiff' evening on Friday before the hoopla. Here are some folks trying out Ulla.

Here, the crew from Coigach give Ulla a try.

Reciprocated with a turn in the Lass try by Ulla crew.

I'd forgotten how majestic Loch Broom can be. Here's Ulla and tender at the boat ramp.

And finally, Lass pulling away from Ulla in one of the races to take the win.


All photos courtesy Chris Perkins, aka strathkanchris, thanks Chris

While I'm sure these races are hard fought and narrowly won, I think the real message here is not who wins, who loses, but the bigger picture of communities coming together, sharing traditional cultures and knowing each other a bit better for the experience. My ope would be to see this idea snowball globally, engendering a respect for bringing tradition forward by respecting the genius of the past and creating new connections and new traditions.

That said, my real and fervent hope would be that awareness of traditional boats could lead to the possibility of a return to fishing under sail and oar, which could be an immense boon to struggling overfished populations by limiting catch without artificial limits being imposed. It may sound whacky, but it's more sustainable, and we desperately need sustainable fishing.

OK that's my rant for the day. Thanks to Chris Perkins and to Leslie Muir, and thanks to all those, each and every one, involved in the Scottish Coastal Rowing Project, and in particular, Iain Oughtred for designing the St. Ayles and Alec Jordan for producing affordable kits.

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Harpoon points in the window at the Ironmongers Shop, Mystic Seaport.

The centerpiece of Mystic's restoration projects, the Charles W Morgan. Billed as the last (traditional) whaling ship in the world, the Morgan is projected to be on the water by 2012. Ambitious.

Seeing the boat from the ground up, she appears enormous, immense.

In fact, she is large, though once you've climbed the stairs to her deck, she's not quite so overwhelming. LOA 133', LOD 105'. Her beam is 27.7' and her draft (depth) is 12.6 feet, although fully loaded she could draw as much as 17.6', her registered depth. Her displacement (weight) is 313.75 tons.

The F0c'sle

Stores at Mystic

At the show John and I met vendor Met Chandler, well really his wife Mo, Met does some interesting maritime blacksmithing. Located in West Chester PA, about 20 minutes from my home, I'm sorry to say they are in the process of moving to NH, though that probably makes sense for them. Met offer's hand forged sail hanks, caulking irons, marlinspikes and rigging knives, among other items. Nice work. Web presence here.

Rigging knives,sail hanks and marlinspikes, all hand forged.

Someone from Beaton's Boatyard, Tom or Suzanne, took this wonderful photo of Silent Maid.

Kingston Lobster Boat built by David McCullouh. David
allows he's built 13 or 14 boats. You can view several of them here.

Apparently there are plans available both from Mystic and the Smithsonian under the name Annie B Fuller
I think this photo is of the fish well, probably filled with lobster in the working boat.

This rather compelling canoe yawl was there on Saturday, gone on
Sunday.

Named Kit, there was no info and I never found the owner. Here brother John inspects the rudder.

Working our way through the IBIM display ( I built it myself ), John and I chanced upon Brooke Hayward and his Delaware Ducker Wooduck.

John and I had met Brooke at last autumn's MASCF, held in
St Michaels Md, at the Chesapeake Bay Mariime Museum.

At that time, Brooke was planking the boat in the museum's boatyard. See that here. You'll need to scroll down a bit. As opposed to many of the boats we saw at the WBS,Brooke, very sensibly decided to finish his traditionally planked lapstrake Ducker with ply decks covered withe painted canvas which give a non skid surface at lower cost. This is the approach I would take for any boat I might build.

And finally, here's Steven Bauer's little IO designed HumbleBee, lauchned at the boat show and undergoing her sea trials in the Connecticut River. She'll serve as tender to Steve and his lovely wife Mary's
 Al Mason designed Ostkust, sailing out of Portland, ME. Steve and Mary, friends of Russ and Julia Mannheimer, were at my table for the Iain Oughtred Tribute and it was a pleasure meeting and talking with them.

photo courtesy Steven Bauer

That's all folks, pretty much a wrap on my weekend at the WoodenBoat Show at Mystic Seaport for this year, stay tuned for next. I was enthralled by my weekend in Mystic. This is a great boat show, and some of the nicest people you'll ever meet. Kudos to WoodenBoat for sponsering and Mystic Seaport for hosting this event. I got my money's worth and a lot more. Please, if it's relevant to you, support WB with a subscription and Mystic Seaport with a membership. I plan to be there next year and I hope to meet you there.

An aside here. My fellow blogger and good e-friend Michael Bogogger has been elected or appointed president of the National TSCA, the Traditional Small Craft Association. This is a rewarding group to be a member of. I'm not a joiner or club type, but the TSCA is unlike any 'club' I've ever run across. For the small boat enthusiast in the US, there is no parallel. If you are resident in the US, and you like small boats, please join.

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Sam getting things fired up.

He's always moving, constantly explaining.

His little furnace is homemade, a five gallon metal bucket modified for the purpose and lined with refactory material, fueled by a propane jet.

Sam explaining the two part flask, a container for the sand mold. In the corner looking on is Tom Jackson, senior editor @ WB publications.
Today I read Tom's article in the 2009 Small Boats by WB about the Frederickssund Jolle collected by Christian Nielsen. This boat is featured in the out of print Wooden Boat Designs (english version) which had an introduction by Jon Wilson, founder of WoodenBoat. Tom's article is right on point, she's a wonderful boat, among many in the collection of drawings at the Danish Maritime Museum. There is a cantankerous CD offered by the Museum which has all the boats surveyed by Nielsen. My favorite is an18' ish sailing pram, but if you go to the trouble to find the book or buy the CD, I'm sure you'll find your own favorite among these incredible Danish boats.

Here he's fitting the cope to the drag, upper and lower pieces of the flask.

The mold is executed using oiled sand tamped in aroung the dersired object. I was so taken with the pentimento effect of this stage heightened by the white powder that is a parting compound, that I forgot to take a photo, this was generously supplied by fellow blogger John Almberg who writes The Unlikely Boatbuilder. John must have been standing next to me during a portion of the demo, but we didn't recognize each other as fellow bloggers.

More of the process for preparing the mold here,

Here,

And here.

Mold done and in place, Sam checks the color of the molten bronze, not using a thermometer, but his knowledge and experience, his eye.

He's using an iron rod to skim debris from the surface of the melted bronze which is in a small crucible.

The pour!

The molten bronze is filling the cavity in the mold.

After letting it cool a bit, Sam separates cope and drag...

...and extracts the still hot piece from the mold.

Cope and drag with the casting removed. I find these very compelling images, a result of the process but to me they read as wonderful drawings.

Viola, the newly minted silicon bronze oarlock!

In a matter of minutes Sam is on to the next casting, here sprueing a mold for the sockets the oarlocks will fit into.


all photos Thomas Armstrong except where noted


First thing Sunday last at the WoodenBoat show was a demonstration of backyard bronze casting techniques by Sam Johnson. Sam has worn many hats in his lifetime, he's a boatbuilder, a foundryman, a teacher. He currently maintains a shop in Seattle, but is also the director of the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, OR. He also teaches workshops on bronze casting for boatbuilders at the Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle and at the WoodenBoat School. Sam's teaching style is energetic and informative. He neatly demystified the previously esoteric process of sand casting mold making and pouring in his hour long demo. Having long stood on the fringes, this demo reignited my interest in this craft and empowered me to believe it would be within my grasp. That's what good teaching is all about.
While it's a little hard to imagine the affable and voluble Sam Johnson in business attire attending a board meeting, I'd be willing to bet he's no less formidable in the board room than he is engaging and didactic in the the teaching environment. It was a pleasure to meet you Sam, and thanks for some insight and inspiration.
I'd like to say that a far more coherent, instructive and lucid account of this demo can be found at John Alberg's The Unlikely Boatbuilder.

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Matt Murphy getting things underway

Geoff Kerr of Two Daughters Boatworks had some personal remarks by way of introducing Iain

Himself

A nice turnout, many of these folks are builders of Iain's designs

I sat with my friends Russ and Julia Mannheimer, made some new ones as well, in particular, and out of view to the right, were Steve and Michelle Bauer of Portland ME, owners of an Al Mason designed Ostkust, for which they just launched an Oughtred Humble Bee pram, as tender to their boat, at Mystic. Photo in a later post.

Geoff Kerr's first boat, which launched his boatbuilding career, Ned Ludd

Geoff answering the endless questions, all part of being there.

Geoff's Caledonia Yawl is named for an historic British character, Ned Ludd, possibly originally Ned Ludlam, whose reaction to the industrial revolution was taken as a rallying point for those whose way of life was being radically changed and challenged. They became known as the Luddites.

Geoff and Ned Ludd out in the Connecticut River

Andy Kitchen and Iain Oughtred with Andy's J II, named for Iain's mother and which morphed into the Arctic Tern, hands down my favorite of Iain's interpretations of the Shetland Yoles

During the two days I spent at the show, I never walked past Andy's boat without there being a few admirers.

No doubt because she is such a lovely boat...

A tribute to both her designer and her builder

these four photos courtesy Andrew Kitchen

Here's Ed Segen's Patina, a Caledonia Yawl meticulously finished, down to his cast bronze knees in the shape of a whale. A beautiful boat Ed sails out of Wilton, CT just across the river from Mystic.

Ed allows he spent about 1250 hours bringing his boat to life.

A less commonly built Fulmar, trailed in from WI , this boat is a work in progress. The work is being done by Dave Tilley and his son Eric. My brother John looks on as Eric demonstrates...

...an ingenious innovation for raising and lowering the mast, similar to a tabernacle, except the mast is full length and rotates on a pin set just below the deck. The foot of the mast slides along a little track in the bow as the mast is lowered. Dave's invention allows for easy singlehanded mast manipulation. The beautiful finish was achieved using Le Tonkinois.

Annie is another less commonly seen Oughtred design, the 15'9" Whilly Tern.

Annie was built and is daysailed and camp cruised on the Connecticut River by her owner, John Denunzio of Durham CT


all photos Thomas Armstrong unless otherwise noted


The 19th WoodenBoat Show, sponsored by WoodenBoat Magazine was again hosted by Mystic Seaport. This was my first WBS and it was great fun and a bit overwhelming. The honored guest this year was one of the worlds pre-eminent designers of small craft for home builders, and one I hold in the highest esteem, Iain Oughtred. Undoubtedly best known for his seaworthy double enders based on traditional Scottish boats with a Scandinavian heritage, Iain's work spans a long career and a wide range of boat types. Not only does Iain continue to publish new design's, he is constantly revising and tweaking older designs to make them better.
Saturday last was the night for the tribute dinner for Iain. It was this event which, at the last minute, pushed me over the edge to commit to going to the event. Glad I did, it was well worth it. First up was Matt Murphy, editor of WoodenBoat Magazine, with some anecdotes and introductions. Next, Geoff Kerr, an early builder of the Caledonia Yawl, explained how building this boat ignited the fuse to an explosion of energy which resulted in his transition from a suburban McLean VA corporate worker bee to full time boatbuilder. Geoff now does business at Two Daughters Boatworks in Westford, Vermont. Geoff visited Iain at Struan Cottage, Isle of Skye and desribed the journey as "two planes, two trains and a ferry". He also allowed it to be an insightful and productive meeting of the minds. Geoff then courageously took a mystical tack, describing Iain Oughtred as a 'Wizard' at finding the essence of traditional boats and bringing them forward and making them accesible to the backyard builder using modern techniques. Geoff ascribed this ability to a sort of genetic memory, and challenged the audience to deny that everyone there probably had a bit of Norse or Scandinavian blood in their ancestry. No one spoke up.
Iain took the bait, and agreed, in his talk, that he thought Geoff was on to something. Then he went a bit further and recounted that many years earlier, while touring Norway in his beat up VW van scouring the countryside for examples of traditional workboats, he heard a voice impelling him toward his future. The voice, whether from his own subconscious or the muses, simply said "you need to work with boats". I do not discount this phenomena, having on at least two occasions had a similar experience.
Iain then went on to offer a brief synopsis of his evolution beginning with his building/racing career at a very early age in his native Australia and culminating in his currently vibrant achievement as a one of the foremost designers of neo traditional boats in the world accompanied by a relevant slide show. His talk concluded to vigorous applause!
Much to my pleasure I was able to have a few words with Iain, and brother John kept running into him on Sunday.
As you can see in the photographs above, several devoted builders were compelled to bring their Ougthred boats to the event, both within the I Built It Myself exhibition and at large. The folks above are only a portion of the Oughtred boats present in Mystic. A very rewarding weekend and not one to be soon forgotten.
I'll be writing about other highlights of the show very soon.

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