Guided tour of The Shackleton

Here’s a video of the boat I built in my garage. I finished her last summer but had to wait for a new motor to enjoy my fruits of my labor properly. She hasn’t disappointed me at all. I must admit that the first time I took the boat out on the large swells of the ocean, I had a moment of trepidation. What would happen if she hit a wave and just cracked open like a walnut? But, all that oak, screws, glue and fiberglass have clearly done the job. Click here if you’d like see the progress on the boat over the past three years — certainly the most challenging project I’ve ever tackled. And that includes the doctoral dissertation.

Anyhoo, I’m enjoying The Shackleton immensely during my summer in the United States. I’ll miss her and mid-coast Maine when I return to the United Arab Emirates in September.

Adventures of the Shackleton in Maine

Well, I did put the Shackleton into the water up here in Maine. Unfortunately, I had to row her out of the water. See the dramatic re-enactment at right.

When I took the motor back to the marine shop, the mechanic declared it DOA. I could have poured more money into that 1985 Johnson 40 HP — but the mechanics thought it foolish.

I would’ve been more bummed out if my original boat — the Bluebird II — hadn’t worked so well this summer. She had barely a hiccup and ferried the family all over the Maine coast. We even painted the Bluebird’s trailer in anticipation of driving her south to her new caretakers in the warmer waters of North Carolina.

Since the Shackleton wasn’t in the water I did get to work out a few kinks. I fixed a vexing leak around the drain plugs — found some marine caulk that works wonders. I also installed a bow light and an automatic bilge pump (in case water finds a way back in.)

And the best news is … the trouble with the motor convinced me to play big or stay home. I just dropped the Shackton off at J and M Marine where she’ll be stored for the winter. In early spring, their mechanics will install a brand new 60 HP Yamama. It’s expensive, but I’ve heard the pleasures of owning a new Yamaha are unparalleled. I’m hoping that the profits from my academic editing company can totally cover the cost. The mechanics are going to install a new steering system, new controls, a tachometer, and several other bells and whistles. Can’t wait to post the pictures next summer.

So, the Shackleton will wait a while longer for her first Maine shakedown cruise. But, I’m sure it’ll be worth the wait.

Shackleton heading to Maine

Monday morning I’ll tow the Shackleton northward toward Maine. Yes, I’ll be towing her with my 1999 Toyota Camry — there’s no need to snicker!

I decided that I didn’t want to leave Das Boot in North Carolina after all. I figure I’ll spend the summer with her and bring my other boat, the Bluebird II, back down to North Carolina in early August. I’ll store the Shackleton up there and imagine I’ll get some tips from Mainers on how to properly maintain a wooden boat in northern New England.

Didn’t seem right to enjoy the boat I built for such a short amount of time. Besides, she’s got a new lower unit on the motor — had to replace it after I hit a submerged rock on Lake Allatoona …. but that’s another story.

I’ll be in Elkton, Maryland, this week for a family reunion. So, expect some pictures of the Shackleton on the Chesapeake Bay. Tally-ho!

The Shackleton Soars

Here’s a picture of me on The Shackleton. THE BOAT I BUILT IN MY GARAGE!

I took her out today, and she ran great. With a pair of fresh spark plugs, the 40HP Johnson motor took her to a speed of about 30 to 35 MPH — plenty fast. I had three adults and two kids in her and she was tipped back pretty well — but she easily lifted out of the water and planed. I might need to put some weight in the front to help balance her out. She corners really well and is incredibly maneuverable. All in all, a pleasure to pilot.

A little water leaked into the bottom, but I think it was just from one of my drain plugs not being tight enough — just need to buy a new one from the Wal-Mart. The other one I got from there worked better than the drain plug I bought from the boat supply store.

Tomorrow, I’m going out on Lake Allatoona with my two kids and an old friend from the Jackson Clarion-Ledger and his three kids. We’re gonna put a raft on The Shackleton and tow the kids around. Should be a lot of fun.

In a couple of weeks, I’ll tow the boat to North Carolina and tool around the intercoastal waterway near Wilmington, NC. I’ll leave her there for the next three years. When I come back from the Middle East and visit my family in North Carolina, I’ll have a boat to enjoy while there. Plus, I’ve got a sister- and brother-in-law who should enjoy the boat with their family.

I’ll probably write up some final comments about the entire project later. Right now, I’m just going to enjoy this moment of utter satisfaction.

Das Boot Floatzen

There’s the boat in the water today. As you can see, IT FLOATS! Unfortunately, the motor never did get going. I’m still considering this a victory. I built the boat, after all, not the motor. Received some kudos from passersby impressed with my craftsmanship.

Hopefully, I’ll have the problem with the motor worked out this week.

Das Boot Launchitchgenstein

The motor is fixed. The windshield is finished. If all goes all well, I’ll be piloting the boat down the Chattahoochee River this afternoon with the family.

UPDATE: The motor is NOT fixed — taking it back to the shop Sunday morning. Shackleton is the right name for this craft.

Das Boot Countdownenstach

I’m planning on launching the boat tomorrow. I’ve installed the motor and built the seats — just waiting for the paint to dry so I can install them tomorrow morning. My glass for the windshield won’t arrive until Monday or Tuesday, so I’ve decided to launch the Shackleton without a windshield. We’ll need to bring some eyewear.

Here’s a recap of the last week’s progress:

First, I installed the motor — the wife and I lifted it onto the transom without too much trouble. After we put it on and I’d drilled the holes for the bolts, I realized that I never checked to see if it was centered. It wasn’t. So, we pulled it off and did it again. I filled the holes with putty and painted over them. Heh.

I connected the motor to the controls without much trouble. I did find that the steering arm ran into part of the covering for the back. I remedied the problem by cutting a little recess:

I covered that bit with wood and painted over it. Now, it looks official.

I also discovered that the screw that attached the steering cable to the motor had gone missing — slid down the cable into the boat’s innards. Instead of cutting open the boat’s side wall, I decided to use some hose clamps and a little tin flashing to connect the two pieces:

It doesn’t look like it came off the assembly line, but I don’t think it will fail. If you ever see me steering by turning the motor manually, this’ll be the culprit.

Here’s the finished motor — freshly painted this afternoon:

All of those cables run to important things — like the steering wheel, throttle controls, battery and gas tank.

Then, I worked on the windshield. It took me a long time to get the curve of the decking just write — well, close enough:

The windshield will look like this — just waiting for the glass:

They’ll look smaller because they’ll lean back at quite a slope. I had intended them to protrude in a V as well — but that would have required cutting the glass and building the frames at angles other than 90 degrees. Screw that. Note in the picture above that you can see the brackets on the left windshield. Put them on the wrong side at first. That’s the type of jakeleg mistake I’m prone to make.

Then, I worked on the seating. The driver’s seat is a real one that I picked up a Wal-Mart for $37. Who knew they sold boat seats? I decided to build a short bench for the passenger side and two long benches running down the length of each wall. I figure I can fit 8 people into that arrangement if necessary.

Now, I don’t want to go all Rodney Fulghum on you, but I gotta say that this last part of the project came together in a rather miraculous way — as though some divine order had arranged it. First off, I went to the fabric store and bought foam cushions for the benches. The package was 22″ x 22″, so I figured the benches could be 44″ x 11″. When I got home, I started looking through my scrap wood and I found two long pieces of wood at the bottom of a dusty pile. Their width:

Holy cow! 11 inches! Have no idea what I’d bought that wood for originally, but it was exactly what I needed. Here’s the foam sitting on the perfectly sized wood:

I wrapped it in some vinyl fabric and stapled the bottom. The finished bench seats look like this:

They’ll sit onto top of the benches with hinges so that I can store stuff underneath. Pretty smart, eh?

The benches came together easily as well. I’ve got about seven years of scrap wood in my garage and found every piece I needed for the benches just lying around. They’re made out of plywood and two-by-fours mostly. Here’s my son and our neighbor helping me paint the benches earlier today:

So, that’s it — I’ve just gotta wait for the paint to dry and install the benches. I’ll hook a water hose up to the boat’s motor and start the engine before we leave. Hopefully, the next picture I post will be of the Shackleton on the water.

Das Boat Sucessentach

The boat is now on its trailer:

Thanks to a good group friends who helped me move it:

We ended up sliding straps underneath the boat and just lifting it up and moving it forward. Took about 2 minutes.

Going to attach the motor this weekend followed by the seats and the windshield.

Das Boot Progretzentach

Making progress on the boat. First, I completed the steering system. Had to get creative to fit the steering shaft behind the dashboard:

There’s a few screws, some lag bolts, and some slanted pieces of wood holding that steering shaft into place — it won’t be going anywhere.

Next, I put the decking on the bow. Started by placing a big piece of plywood over the whole space and then tracing a pencil line underneath:

I cut out the piece and then glued and screwed it onto the bow. On the right side, I forgot to add 3/8″ for the inside side planking. So, it’s a little short:

I figure a little wood putty with some creative sanding and you’ll never notice. Measured the other side correctly and it fit into place perfectly:

That’s my son, Jake, wondering about the location of the steering wheel. Here’s the whole boat from the back — I added the inside of the sides and the throttle and direction controls as well:

That’s Jake showing off the strength of that bow decking. We worked on that boat a lot today — will post those pictures later. We sanded the bow and filled all the screws and small gaps with wood putty.

Next is building the motor well in the back and then painting everything. After that, I’ve got to build the windshield — that’ll be pretty tough because the bow decking is curved. Will require a little figuring. Hmm…

Schteering Wheelhausen

Here’s the dashboard and steering wheel. Note the battens on the bow as well. I know that looks simple, but it took a really long time. I’ve got more photos and descriptions but will probably wait till I’m finished to post them. Next is installing the steering cable and putting the decking on the bow.