The sardine carrier WILLIAM UNDERWOOD hits the water after a total restoration at Rockport Marine.
At John’s Bay Boat Company in South Bristol their newest build is ready to go overboard for her owner from Cundy’s Harbor. She was launched 10 August.
Holland’s Boat Shop, Belfast
Anyone who follows lobster boat racing, you know Randy Durkee of Islesboro and his race boat BLACK DIAMOND [Holland 32; 454 Chevrolet], which is actually owned by his daughter Lindsay. Randy has another boat that he has been fishing out of, but last year he placed an order for a new Holland 32, which would be finished out as a basic lobster boat. Down below she has just a set of bunks and for power she has a 425-hp Cummins. She was launched mid-August and already Randy has her over at Islesboro and ready to go hauling with.
On the floor in the shop is another 32, which is being finished off for a customer from Bermuda. She only has a few items to finish up before she is shipped out. Also on the floor is another 32, but this one will be powered with a 250-hp Honda outboard. She has no keel, but the owner is planning to add fins on either side of her bottom back aft, maybe two or three feet long. There is also another person inquiring about a 32 powered with outboards but he is going to wait and see how well this one works and another person is thinking of building a 38 with outboards. Glenn added, when asked if he saw a trend, “I think it would work in lobstering as soon as they get the pot hauler thing figured out. See, the problem they have right now is how to run the hauler. Most of these outboards you can’t put a hydraulic pump on them. That’s the catch. They don’t like electric haulers because you can’t reverse them.
“This 32 wasn’t designed for outboards,” continued Glenn. “I am hoping she is not going to be down by the ass too much. Obviously the outboard is going to be on the stern but the outboard doesn’t weigh as much as a full tank of diesel fuel. We’re moving the fuel tank right up forward as far as we can get them, right where the engine would normally be. We are kind of hoping one is going to offset the other.”
This project will be done later this fall as the owner is planning to take her out to the Bahamas this winter.
Over and above the two 32s on the shop floor, they have a number of 14s to finish. On the floor they have three 14s, another waiting to come in and another in the mould ready to pop out.
Also in the lay-up shop they have a 38 that is almost ready to be popped out. She will be only a partial finish before being shipped to her owner.
John’s Bay Boat Co., South Bristol
On 10 August John’s Bay Boat put over a brand new 45 foot splitwheel house lobster boat for Ed Munsey of Cundy’s Harbor. This is a new model, a little bit wider than they have been doing at 15 feet 10 inches wide. Peter Kass, owner of John’s Bay Boat Company said, “It’s skinny compared to the rest of the world, but it is fat to us, but she seems to do pretty well. People are always after us to go wider and I always fight it, but she sits nicely and feels good going along. She’s got a 16 liter Volvo, which is 600 hp at 1800 RPM, and she went along at about 18½ knots.”
Down below she has four bunks forward, with a hanging locker, a counter with a door and drawer below and on the starboard side is an aluminum work bench. Up in the shelter she has a day bunk across the back with storage underneath and an oil skin locker in the port aft corner, which can be accessed from the deck. She is basic as the owner’s current boat has a generator, heat and other frills and said they were not worth having. He also opted for no tanks under the deck saying a 1,500 pound tank on deck would be more than adequate most of the time.
This boat was built cedar over oak. She has a 7 inch thick white oak keel, 2½-inch shaft, so you have to have the 7-inch keel, 1¼-inch planking, 2½-inch wide frames by 1½ to 2½-inch floor timbers. The platform is plywood and fiberglass covered with rubber bridge tiles.
Already they have their next boat underway, which will be a 42-foot pleasure boat. Peter explained, “This design is actually from a 36 foot model I did for a guy on Chebeague Island, GREAT NORTHERN is the name of her. I made the half-model and because I don’t draw I had a guy named Ted Roberts who at the time lived in Jefferson. He’s from British Columbia but was here working with Bruce King. Ted moved back to British Columbia and we have done some projects together so he had the lines to this 36 footer and we stretched her out and built her for a customer who did not use her very much. This fellow that we are building for now bought her and has enjoyed the boat a great deal. He wanted something just about the same, but a little bigger so we went back to Ted who had expanded the lines, 6 inches wider and another 2 feet longer and we deepened the skeg, so he can put a bigger wheel on her. The owner says he’s going to keep it simple with no exterior varnish, which is smart, but I do think a little bit looks kind of nice.”
Right now they are lofting out the lines and soon they will start cutting the pieces for the backbone, setting up the moulds and then steam the ribs in.
On the railway is PHYLLIS P. which is a lobster boat owned at Cohasset, MA, which they built 20 years ago. She is up for annual maintenance.
Just before her KESTREL from Marshfield, MA, was up for her annual maintenance. She was built 30 years ago.
Stockton Springs Marine, Stockton Springs
In the shop they are replacing the stern in a 24-foot runabout. They cut the stern out and are now glassing it all back in. She will then be faired and once this is done they will gelcoat it. They have also stripped the bottom, added a barrier coat and two coats bottom paint. She will be out later this summer.
Out back in another shop they have a sailboat that is having her topsides painted. They will then begin putting her back together.
Outboard sales have been doing well. They are dealers for Tohatsu and was recently approved to be a dealer for Yamaha.
Already they have several paint jobs this winter as well as another, maybe two, transoms to replace. They will also be making a few changes around the main building, creating a parts room and organizing the upstairs storage area.
They will be doing more storage buildings at some point, which will go on the opposite side of the street where they own 16 acres. They are thinking of building one in a couple of years.
