Salty

[jbowers417]

Last November, I purchased a 27 foot wooden lobster boat that was built in East Booth Bay Maine in 1946. Found it on E-Bay of all places. Paid $8500 for the boat and a couple of weeks later another $1500 for a trailer to get it from Michigan to my home here in Ohio. I'm the fourth owner. In 2005, I'm told, the man I bought it from repacked and recaucked the hull from the water line down to the bottom of the keel. He tells me the owner prior to him did the same from the water line to the gunwhale just prior to selling the boat to him. Boat came with one battery and a 1980 Crusader/Palmer 160 HP inboard engine which hasn't been ran for two years. Running lights were hooked up with table lamp cord and alligator clips. I have taken a marine electronics course through our local power squadron. I now have two twelve volt batteries with an eight breaker panel, and a buse bar for my ground for a 12 volt DC system. Installed a red dome light in the pilot house. Boat sat outside in the rain for a few days. Water ran out of it all over the place. Is there some sort of putty, or seal I can smear over the area below the water line, then paint over that would severly reduce this leaking problem? The boats ribs are built out of oak and the planking is out of yellow pine. Material came from a Navy ship yard where they built mine sweepers at the end of WWII.

[Bergalia]

Is the planking carvel or lapstrake ? And at the risk of sounding rude - any chance of pictures of your 'bottom' ?
Water 'running out' is a bit of a novelty - usually it's water running in that's the worry. But it sounds as though your previous owners' caulking was not done well - or somewhere over time has been allowed to dry out completely and no longer serves its purpose. Before you even think of 'gunking' below the water line check the caulking. Poke it with a knife. Is it caulked - or merely botched up with putty. Was it a quick fix, for a quick sale; a lick of paint to cover earlier sins. The 'table lamp' wiring speaks volumes.
But pictures would help, at the moment it's only guesswork.:(

[marshmat]

I might add that some types of wooden construction, if left on land for a while, will develop leaks. The wood dries out and shrinks, 'cause it's not in the water, thus gaps open up between the planks. Once back in the water, the bilge pumps will run nonstop for three days, then she'll be tight and dry again. Whether this is the issue with yours, I do not know.
As Berg says, photos (some of the whole underside, and some closeups of the leaky areas) would be a great help.

[jbowers417]

I have some picture of the boat on a disc. Not being a computer geek, I'm trying to figure out how to send them to you. Is there an e-mail address that I can send pictures of this boat for you to look at? And by the way, this is not lapstrake. The planks butt up against each other snugly.

[longliner45]

might just need to put it in the water for a week or so to allow the wood to swell,,,,if that dont work ,,then seek help,,,but more than likely the latter will work,longliner

[Bergalia]

...And by the way, this is not lapstrake. The planks butt up against each other snugly.

Carvel, then. Marshmat is right. Carvel is 'prone' to drying-out when left on the hard for any length of time. Best thing is to 'dangle' her in the water (from a crane - if available) for half a day. Then lower her gently and get those pumps working for the next 72 hours. (You may need to sleep aboard) But the wood will swell and 'seal' herself.
As to the pictures - transfer them onto your computer. Use a programme such as GraphicConverter/ Photoshop or etc to bring them down to a manageable size. Then when posting a reply move down to 'Additional Options' - 'Manage Attachments' and click - then follow instructions. :)

[lewisboats]

I have some picture of the boat on a disc. Not being a computer geek, I'm trying to figure out how to send them to you. Is there an e-mail address that I can send pictures of this boat for you to look at? And by the way, this is not lapstrake. The planks butt up against each other snugly.


Put the disc in your drive, and when you are posting go to the advanced button. Below the box you type in is the option for attachments. Click on this and browse to your disc, select a picture or three and click upload. When done close the dialog box and around the manage attachments button you should see the pictures you attached. then submit your message with the attachments and we should see them. Another way to show pictures is to link to them from another web site. Click the button above that looks like a postcard and type in the address to the picture EXACTLY (including any capitals) ie: "nttp://www.blahblahblah.com/pictures/boat/hull.JPG"

Steve

[alan white]

I'm guessing the wood came from the navel shipyard on the Piscataqua river in Kittery, Maine, but may have been Bath Iron Works too. Do you know the builder? Some of those early lobster boats are beautifully made. Generally, they are bigger these days.
The seams should close up in a few days in the water, but you could also run a hose inside to get the process started.
If it won't close up within a few days, you will have to haul the boat and see why not. It may be that the boat is due to be refastened. After many shrink/swell cylcles, even bronze fasteners work loose, compressing under the screw-heads when swelling, and the screw doesn't seat as tight next time.
The boat may be iron fastened too. I would worry more about the fasteners than anything else. If the fasteners are good and tight and not corroded, then the plank seams can be addressed. If the fasteners aren't right, the seams will never be. Adjacent planks will not be lined up, and the joint will "work" and spit caulk out. Check for adjacent planks that are offset at the seam.

Alan

[marshmat]

Another technique I've heard of, when you can't take up 24h of crane time:
Take some burlap or heavy felt, something that soaks up water well. Wrap strips of it tightly over the bottom and secure to the gunwales or rails with rope. Run a couple of those $10 soaker hoses they sell for delicate flowerbeds along this, and wrap tightly with plastic tarps. Let the hoses run at a strong trickle for a few days and when you unwrap, the wood should be starting to return to normal. About $100-$200 in burlap, rope and tarps; cheaper than paying for crane time if you don't have a $free$ crane.

[Bergalia]

Another technique I've heard of, when you can't take up 24h of crane time:

I was forgetting, not everyone has a sister-in-law whose dad runs a marina back in Scotland....

But yes. A great tip from Marshmat (we'll make a sailor of him yet.)
Mind you, we Scots wouldn't go out and buy trickler hoses....we'd 'liberate' them from the local municipal gardens... :cool:

[charmc]

Mind you, we Scots wouldn't go out and buy trickler hoses....we'd 'liberate' them from the local municipal gardens... :cool:

I thought the Scots preferred to trickle "yellow water" ; no cost at all. :D

[Bergalia]

No, Charlie - we bottle it, label it: 'Auld Ben Fuji-ama' and sell it to the Americans.....

[Frosty]

As what?? Iron Brew?

[charmc]

Jbowers,

Getting back to serious, I tend to agree with Matt and Alan that the boat should swell up tightly with water immersion. My vintage Pacemaker was exactly as Marshmat described; in the slings for a day or 2, then another day or 2 of constant bilge pumping, then the pump ran about 5 minutes a day tops. Any of the techniques mentioned for wetting the wood will shorten the process a bit. The point is that wood planking will dry out and shrink after a few months on the hard; immersed in water, the planks will swell up and the seams will disappear or shrink significantly. Unfortunately, I don't know of any way to check if the caulking is good other than by soaking the boat. Given the evidence of the incredible wiring, I'd be a bit cautious. Alan's point about checking fasteners is a good one. Tightening or replacing them is a land job, to be done before any soaking.

[Bergalia]

As what?? Iron Brew?

Grief Frosty - your spelling is worse than Tim's. It's spelled - 'Irn Bru'....
:rolleyes:

[jbowers417]

The builder's name is Hogdon. I've looked for offset planks for reasons you suggested. Everything seems to be lined up the way they should be.

[alan white]

Hodgdon is still in business. You might contact them and get some advice. They would probably be able to tell you a lot about your boat's construction too.

[jbowers417]

to Alan White:
Good suggestion. I'll see if I can find them on the internet again. Sometimes this can be a bit of a crap shoot. ha

[jbowers417]

To Alan White:)

You are also correct on the spelling. I copied the name off of the title from the previous owner. I just came back from the barn where I checked the bronze name plate on the console. And it in fact is spelled H o d g d o n.
I truly appreciate yours as well as the others ( Marshmat, Longliner45, Bergalia, Charmc ) comments and suggestions as they all gave me things to watch for. Just cause I'm 63 doesn't mean I know it all. Far from it. My first boat, back in the early 1970's, was a 16ft. wooden Lyman. I was in my late 20's. Since then all my boat have been aluminum ( 1 ) or fiberglass ( 5 ). Now at this late stage of my life I'm back to wood. With my health, I'm more into comfort which is why the wood as well as the trawler semidisplacement type hull. Much softer on the legs and back. ha Not because I'm a lobster fisherman. Although if I were to die tonight and be reborn tomorrow, that's what I would want to be. On the water and making my living from it. I've told my wife more than once I was born 200 years too late.

[alan white]

Aw shoot--- you oughta take your boat east for a season and fulfill a dream. Lobstering is a going thing out here. Some tend only a few traps, some hundreds.
Even if you just putter around and shoot out to Monhegan Island or Matinicus Rock, it would be a great way to spend time. You oughta see Bernard (Bass Harbor, Me) with all the lobster boats. Or see Spruce Head, or Bailey Island.
Booth Bay is now overrun by rich summer people and tourists. But there are still some places that have seals sunning themselves on rocks in rocky little coves amidst wooden lobsterboats as old as yours that still fish.

Alan

[jbowers417]

Hi Alan;

Not real comfortable on how to use this forum thing just yet. Just found your latest comment. Yup, around these parts, seems like wooden boat owners have a tendency to help each other out. I wish I knew how to get a picture of my boat on this forum so you could see it. Right now the hull is white. I've taken the notion to paint it black next Spring with the exception of the top plank. Thought I'd paint that a medium shade of red. Keep the outside of the pilot house white. The gunwhale or rubrail area, as well as the top of the bow are currently a medium tannish grayish color. Same as top of pilot house and roof area over the "cuddy cabin" area. Got lots of plans for the interior. However, just found out my "ticker" isn't so good. It's operating at 35% capacity. Gotta date with a hospital for a heart cathorization on the 17th. to find out where the blockage is. It's
been three years to this month since my last open heart surgery. So guess I won't be doing any boat work for awhile. Any thoughts on how to get pictures on this forum would be muchly appreciated.
Salty

[alan white]

Click on "go advanced".

Click "manage attachments"

You'll see a series of "browse" buttons. Click on one. This will show you your own file locations. You will, of course, have already filed your pictures in one of those file locations, such as "desktop" or "my documents".
Choosing your file by double clicking puts your chosen file name in the box to the left of the browse button you just clicked. You can now go to the next browse button below the first and add another file if you like. Etc..

Click "upload"

If you have a slow connection like me, put your cursor over the X on the corner of the attachment box and you'll see an hourglass---- the upload can take a while. When the hourglass disappears, the upload is finished.
Click the X and you'll see the written part of your message (which you have already typed, like, "this is my boat").
Click "preview post" and you'll see what the final post including the picture will look like. Always do this to avoid accidentally posting naked pictures of yourself smeared with chocolate wearing a lampshade.
Finally, if the right picture emerged in the preview, click "Submit Reply".

Alan

[jbowers417]

Alan,

Where do I go to find this "go advance" thing? I have DSL, so the computer reacts fairly quickly. Is this "go advance" under internet, or e-mail. or somewhere hiding in boatdesign.net? I have my pictures under favorites. Just got them there. Boat name " Salty Lady ".
Salty

[jbowers417]

Alan,

Where do I go to find this "go advance" thing? I have DSL, so the computer reacts fairly quickly. Is this "go advance" under internet, or e-mail. or somewhere hiding in boatdesign.net? I have my pictures under favorites. Just got them there. Boat name " Salty Lady ".
Salty

[lewisboats]

Look below the box where you are typing in to reply to this, the right button is the Go Advanced button. You will now have a bunch of additional options. Lower down is a button for adding attachments. In the box that pops up, click on the browse button, navigate to where you have your pictures and click on a picture that you want to use. Click on upload. After it uploads, it should show up in the lower part of the box...add any other pictures you want and then close the box. The pictures should show up in the lower part of this "advanced" page. Type what you want in the message box then hit Submit.
Steve