Category: 219

Our House

Odds and ends

Here are a few pics from the last few weeks. I’ve also added a section on the right side of the page to show the current Instagram pic posted from my iPhone. Let me know if it works for you.

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Done
Speedwell at rest after another spin around Stockton Lake. I’ve managed to set up the dolly to make launching and retrieving relatively easy. (Though she seems to get heavier with each passing week.)

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Cruising along the Army Camp bulkhead after finding a bit of salvage. The marsh by the Camp tends to collect treasures like this. And garbage but that’s another story.

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Old friend
Old friend. Tom’s Columbia Model dinghy ready for a row.

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Look familiar
This is an illustration from L. Francis Herreshoff’s The Compleat Cruiser. This shows Weldon and Corridon down below on the Rozinante sitting by the stove and chatting about boats. I think this image stoked (pardon the pun) my desire to have a small stove on Sjogin. The drawing was done by Herreshoff.

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Original Mainsail
This is Sjogin’s original cotton main. If I have a chance this fall I’ll bend them on for old times sake.

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Late season flopping
Finally a pic from our garden. By this time of year the garden has gone wild and has a mind of it’s own. Wait till next year for a little more order.

Speedwell returns to Stockton Lake

It’s been 35 years, but I finally went sailing on Stockton Lake in Speedwell, our Phil Clarke Duckboat last week. She was bought from Phil in 1977 and kept on Stockton Lake at a friends dock for a while. She’s the last Duckboat Phil built (Number 14) before Pop Beaton took over the plans and molds.

I think the first times my sons Jeffrey and David sailed by themselves was on her. She eventually went to Beaton’s for storage and eventual restoration.

She’s a bit heavy for her size (keeping her in the water doesn’t help) and it’s a struggle to roll her from our yard down to the water. I think I’ll set up a haul-out to a mooring next year. And also give consideration to having a dock built.

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SASAIC
A very light day on Stockton Lake. Even at half tide there’s plenty of water. Hope to have a few more sails before she goes back to Beaton’s.

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Just fits
Here she is pulled up on our beach. A dock and float would make life a lot easier.

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Shallow water steering
The oar was jury rigged to allow steering without the rudder. With the board almost all the way up she can go to windward (sort of) in less than a foot of water. It’s important as the lake dries out at low water. Eventually an oarlock will be installed for sculling as well as steering.

Pics from here and there

It’s been a busy Summer.  We’re having our home renovated which entails removing 24 years of accumulated treasures as the floors are all getting refinished. Many long delayed projects are being done, including widows on the second floor for views of the gardens, lake and distant dunes.

We’ve been up to Mystic for the WoodenBoat Show again, meeting new folks and renewing acquaintances both analog and digital.

All this with the business, gardens and marshaling forces (thanks Andy) for the move out, it’s left little time for things Sjogin.  I go down to the yard to check on her on a regular business and have taken a few pics you may enjoy.

 

I’ll put the Beaton pics first to make Peter S happy
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Smile
Smile, the steam bent coaming for Myth went around the old Lotus house without a problem.

 

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Myth’s deck is almost done.  I have some of her just completed that shows Paul Smith’s fine work at Beaton’s.  I’ll put them up next post.

 

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Here’s an old friend.  Tom Beaton and I built this Herreshoff Columbia model Dinghy in the early 80’s.  Now maybe the next generation will go for a row or three.

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New birdsmouth A-Cat spar
New bird’s mouth mast for Ghost (I think.) Just not going fast enough?

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Opps!
Bettle Cat mast vs. low hanging tree limb. Here’s the loser.

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Indeed a Happy Skipper.  This was taken in late-June; a morning stolen from the move preparation.

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Summer bounty
The garden continues to shine despite my benign neglect. The new Attic window surveys all.

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Sunrise from the Attic
Summer sunrise from the Attic window. When the room is wainscoted and painted white, the sunrise will make the space glow. Fine spot for a first cup.

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Small boat heaven
The John Gardner Small Craft Weekend coincided with the WoodenBoat Show. Double the fun!

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Aida
One of my all time favorites. This is Aida, one of N. G. Herreshoff’s finest shallow draft yawls. She would be perfect for Barnegat Bay as she only draws 3 feet.

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Porch people
After last years gap, we continued our tradition of hosting a quick Saturday afternoon party on the Whaler Porch for our WoodenBoat Forum friends. Margo’s smile fills the foreground.

Sorry for the long wait between posts but other duties call. You can check on my Flickr Page for more frequent pics not otherwise found here. For those so inclined, my Facebook page has occasional postings as well

Russ

It works

but the tiller needs a bit of the cut and shim. For now I’ll fit a custom wedge and glue it back to shape later. Looks like we’ll be sailing this week. (Written 02.22.12)

Friend and carpenter Andy helped me with the installation last Saturday. Andy was nourished with the ship’s best before his “stand here; hold this” efforts.

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Stand there; hold this
Andy passes the stand here; hold this test. A few years ago he passed the sit there; hold this test on Charlotte.

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It fits!
It fits though a bit closer than it needs to be. When very hard over it binds a bit. I’ll fair in the tight spots next haul out. And yes, the cotter pins are in place. I’ll place the lower one when I get a half dozen Beatonites to stand forward.

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It fits as well
The tiller is a work in progress. I need to take a further wedge off the bottom and glue it on top to bring the end of the tiller above the mainsheet blocks. Fun work (as he mutters walking off to the band saw for another slice.)

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Sails on
Sails bent on and about ready to go. Waiting on a light to moderate dry Northeaster, about 40 degrees, bright sun and fresh sausage bread. The water’s still clear so the first order of business is a cruise of the Rudder Grounds. Hope springs eternal.

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Gusty NNW @20+
Plenty of water but gusting from the NNW about 20 and building. No thanks.

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Sea Level Living
The Joys of living at Sea Level. And it is rising. I’ve been driving by this corner for, well forever and you can now see marine growth on the lowest drain and curb. Get used to it.

Done with the Rudder

and the tiller work continues. I found a piece of suitable oak with a decent sweep to the grain in the wood shed. Tom thinks it may be Black Oak. Not as durable as White Oak but will serve well as a tiller. Looks like it will take a nice finish.

Being this close may justify bending on the sails and thinking about actually sailing.

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Done!
Just another coat of bottom paint and it’s done.

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Tiller progress
From the left: the original tiller from 1985, the pine pattern and the oak blank. Should be close to the original but a bit longer. Phil Bolger observed that a longer tiller generally makes for a better sailor. We’ll see.

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At the sizzle
One needs nourishment for the shaping of the tiller. Cozy below as always.

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Rainy day
Rainy day at Beaton’s. Taken from the wood shop after a watch below on Sjogin.

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Spar building
Here’s a pair of fifty foot Skita Spruce 1 X 10s. Ready to be sliced up and turned into a new Birdsmouth spar for Ghost. Looks fast Bill!

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Myth deck work
Myth’s in the shop for a new deck. The old one suffered from melting deck seams on hot days. The new one will be teak over ply.

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Calm morning
Another ice free, high water, calm day perfect for drifting about. I know as soon as she’s back in commission the weather will revert to mean.

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Gilding the Lily
After 23 years we’re about to have a better view of Stockton Lake and more importantly, the Atlantic, from Ourhouse.

Happy New Year

Greetings from Sjogin on the occasion of this bright New Year. Still plugging away on the rudder, now waiting on Tom to order 1/4″ copper rod for the rivets. And of course the tiller still needs fashioning.

And to add insult to injury, December had many fine sailing days and January’s looking good as well. No ice to date which is later than usual. I wonder how the ice is on Toms River?

One of the best gifts I received this Christmas was a half-model of Sjogin by Randy Mauterer. Randy works part time at Beaton’s and has made a number of fine half models. Needless to say I was deeply grateful for this act of kindness. Thanks Randy.

Here are a number of odds and ends from the last few weeks:

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Sjogin by Randy
Something I’ve alway wanted. Randy took the Gartside lines drawing I posted last year and expanded them to size of the model. I think this may move the Tom Beaton half-model of Hard Tack from over the mantle.

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Breezin' up
One of the decidedly non-sailing days last week. Blowing 25 out of the SSE and lively in the slip.

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Drilling for rivets
Drilling the holes for the rivets. They’ll be made from the 1/4″ copper rod Tom’s hopefully ordered. Once that’s done the rudder gets a final sanding, priming (and fixing the riveting dents) and painting. While the paints drying I’ll start on the tiller.

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The new office and store at Beaton's…
This is for Peter. The new office and store at Beaton’s. It will have bathrooms and showers (yes, showers). Thanks Beaton’s. The old office will revert to a workshop.

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End of the Season
A sure sign of the end of the season. Another faithful year of service by the yard garvey.

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Sleeping Ducks
Last in, first out. Speedwell, stern to on the right, sleeps with her sisters.

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Grey Ghost
Ghost faired and primed. Looks like a fast bottom. Here’s hoping she can return to her race winning ways.

Doing better

I managed to slow the leak in the garboard with a bit of cotton in the split so the rest of the weeping is now manageable. The butt blocks on the third plank down are still leaking so they’ll get attended to when Sjogin’s hauled to fit the rudder. That should get her ready for the ice season. (Touch wood!)

Speaking of the rudder, there’s been substantial progress with the fairing just about done and the cheeks chamfered. Looks like painting may start soon after the riveting is done.

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Cheeks and clamps
Gluing the white oak cheeks to the plywood blade. The spacer at the top is also white oak. I’ll finish the top in a simple fashion for now. Perhaps when/if we get iced in the rudder can be pulled and turned over to Jeff Reid for a bit of carving.

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Rivets next
Finished shaping and fairing. Riveting is next and then painting. (And filling in the misses with the hammer.) The plywood will be saturated with epoxy and painted as well. I still need to design and fashion a new tiller.

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Just rigged
Once again swimming against the tide as Sjogin’s mast is stepped while all others are doing the opposite.

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Ed Lowe
Slipmate Ed Lowe and a loud gull. Ed’s well into his 90’s and still messing about with boats. Hope I have another 30 years of this.

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First Sizzle!
First sizzle of the season on board this leaky old tub. Certainly makes it all worthwhile. Cheers!

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Bottom work for Ghost
Ghost has been flipped and is in the shop for a bottom fairing. Paul and Jeff will be chasing the bumps I left almost twenty years ago. Very cool to see how some of my work held up. One of my first jobs was making the oak skeg. Absent some deep checking, it’s doing fine.

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Christmas Party at Ourhouse
A fuzzy but happy pic of the Christmas Party at Ourhouse. Brisk evening which made the fire most welcome.

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Tis the Season
Best of the Season to you and yours dear reader.

Somehow the weeks go by between posts and I can feel refresh keys wearing out. I’ll try to keep the Posts more timely next year. You can always see new pics on Flickr as that page is updated frequently.

Sjogin’s hauled

She’s out for a quick refit and for a new rudder. I had Tom order a sheet of 15mm Sapele plywood today for the lower part of the rudder. The finished thickness will be close to 1 1/2″, similar to the original. I know it’s not the same as the original, but just the blade will be ply. The cheeks and the top will be white oak, hopefully carved to match the original.

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Hauled
Back in her usual spot. This will be quick, as the A-Cats will be hauled for Winter storage in a few weeks.

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Have you seen the rudder?
This is the image I’m using to recreate the same rudder (except for the drifted oak bit). The distance between the pintles is 27″ so I’ll use that to reference the rest of the dimensions.

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Ahhhhh....
This is the carving I hope to duplicate. Jeff Reid is a worker at Beaton’s who’s become an accomplished carver. I think he can do justice to Sjogin’s new rudder.

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Mast out
Pulling the stick and always a sad day.

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Hove to!
Hove to inside Swan Point. She seems to like the sail out about 3/4’s with the wind just forward of the beam. With the board down she drifts to leeward needing just an occasional touch of the rudder. Great fun poking about in search for the lost rudder. (It’s almost Melvillian.)

Note the osprey on the pole. They’re thinking about heading south soon.

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Post Irene
The day after Irene left. Just a bit of water on the lawn and some limbs lost off our Sycamore Maple. Close call.

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Irene pruning
Survival of the fittest limbs.

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High tide mark
You can just make out the high water mark level with the top of the hinge. About eight inches over the wood shop floor.