Looking for input and advice

I'm posting a new thread regarding repairs and logistics for the 53ft. pilot house that I have for sale.

It's a long post but I believe may be of interest to some. I'm open to all ideas of how to find her a good home as well as how I or someone else gets her there.

Thanks in advance.

This vessel has a lot of history. She was designed by famed naval architect Arthur Robb and built under Lloyd’s supervision. Custom built at Berthon Boat Works in England. She was built for Lord Craigmyle and used as a crew boat for the Americas Cup race and served as his personal family cruiser. Her original build contract is onboard.

Truly a classic wooden motor yacht. Located in Sanford, Florida.

LOD: 53' / LWL +/-49’ / Beam: 13'9” / Draft: 4’10”', Weight +/- 30 tons, Twin Detroit 4/53 diesels (both engines and transmissions run and are in good condition), Four staterooms, 3 heads (2 with showers), galley, salon, teak aft deck, fuel capacity is +/- 575 gallons in 3 tanks, water capacity is +/- 300 gallons in two tanks.

There are no holding tanks there is a port-potty in one of the heads. There are additional tanks of some sort under some berths. They might be fuel tanks as I was told she had 800 gallon fuel capacity.

She is constructed with 1 3/8”thick x 5” maximum width Iroka (Nigerian Teak) carvel planking over young 1 ½” thick x 2 ¼” steam bent English Oak frames on about 9” centers. Each plank is attached to each frame with 2 copper rivets that are staggered and about a ¼” in diameter. She has external ballast of 3000 lbs. She may have what I have heard referred to as a structural lead keel. The frames appear to be bolted to the keel in the engine room.


The following are the reasons for the low asking price of $14,000. The rudderposts are located in the lazarette with a large water tank between them. Throw in the rudder post shelves and access to the packing glands was about impossible. There is grease tubing running from the packing glands to filler cups located high on the lazarette bulkhead for routine maintenance. I believe that the lazarette bulkhead was watertight at one point. She has been berthed in fresh water for about 3 years. Between some rainwater getting into the lazarette and the packing glands dripping the rudderpost pillar blocks and a bit of planking began to rot. The rot seams to be mostly contained to the lazarette and a bit into the aft cabin along the centerline. I figured that she needed new pillar blocks (+/- 12” x 18” x 3”) and maybe a 100 ft. of planking. Other than that, the starboard exhaust pipe rusted through in the lazarette. It was leaking a bit of water into the lazarette while the engine was running. I performed a get me back to the harbor type of temporary fix that appears to be holding. Also, I discovered that one of the previous owners used green 4” PVC sewer pipe as a portion of the port exhaust pipe. The PVC was hidden in a chase and was not visible in the engine room or the lazarette. I have now idea how long it has been there but I have fired up the engines on several occasions and let them warm up to operating temperature. I’ve had them in forwards and reverse at idle tied to the dock and even ran them slowly in neutral to +/- 2500 rpm (pegged the tachs) for a couple of minutes.

That is the extent of the problems that I know that would prevent her from taking a shake down cruise.

My plan was and still maybe to take out the water tank to gain good access to the rudderpost and inspect the planking more thoroughly. With the water tank out of the way, it would be possible to brace the rudderpost adequately to get her to a good self-serve yard. At one time I filled the lazarette with about 6” of water and it took about an hour for it to weep into the forward bilge. I was planning on doing some kind of make shift repair to make the lazarette as watertight as possible and install a big bilge pump in it before leaving the dock.

While doing my research in finding the proper lumber, rivets, etc. I met an old shipwright that would love to work on her. At one time he took care of the shrimp fleet out of Key West and has extensive knowledge in repairing wooden boats. I believe he has all the odd ball tools such as caulking irons, etc. He also has extensive sea time under his belt and I believe he is or was a licensed captain. He appears to be very familiar with her engines and transmissions as well. I was planning on having him give me a hand moving and repairing her. He was willing to work for a very reasonable rate.

 

Yep, I know that boat, you're on the outer dock all by yourself. Pretty yacht, I'd often wondered about her history. She's a real beauty.

Be careful of "gift horses", those that have exceptional skills, tools, experience typically demand decent rates of pay. More often then not there's a reason they'll work for, as you put it, a "very reasonable rate". The first thing I'd check is Steve at the yard and see if this guy has worked for them or on other yachts in the marina, then contact the owners of these yachts. Men with these types of skills are often very busy as we're dieing off and the skills are disappearing. As far as I know, I'm the last person to actually pound new caulk into a carvel at Sanford Boat Works.

 

"Gift Horses"

I am not so sure that we are refering to the same marina, buttttt if we are:

She is a beautiful little ship. I apperciate that she was designed to be at sea opperating effiently and not a floating condo. She's 49' on the waterline with what i bet is about a 12'6" waterline beam (beam overall is 13'9"). They dont build motor yachts in mine or 99% of the general population’s price range with length to beam ratios of +/- 4 to 1 anymore. Couple that with a couple of 4-53 Detriots geared down 2 to 1 turning 27" to 30" low pitch wheels and you have what I consider an effient yet not too slow motor cruiser. The Original build contract called for 27"dia. I've heard that they may have been replaced them with 30" dia. props. I hope not. While i was conserned with the 5-ft. draft, I've seen pictures of her on the hard and it apears her keel is about a foot deeper than the rudders and props. On my side of the state we have skinny water every where. The bottom doesn’t come up fast; at least I would have a bit of protection. I was planning on having a nice fast dink.

Any ways the “gift horse” lets hypothectically call him Ikee, seams to know his stuff. He is not allowed to work at the marina where I’m at, due to no insurrance. I’m a roofing contractor so I have known my share of characters. I or one of my brothers supervises them. That being said, It takes one to know one and I’m a roofer not a wooden boat builder.

The one thing he was adamant about is having horizotal grain lumber for planking. I tried to show him my book that spicefically called for vertical grain lumber. He admantly yet polityly told my to put the book down, shut up and listen.

He explained that vertical grain lumber has more of a tendancy to split at the fasteners and just by tourgueing it into place. If I rember right, he would prefer clear douglas fir but was acceptable to other species. He pretty much said that if you want a boat that weeps all the time go ahead and use vertical grain.

I’m long winded; I don’t expect you or anyone else to be.

I would apperciate all thoughts

 

Sanford Boat Works on Celery Avenue, in Sanford, Florida. Your boat is visible from this image. It's one of the largest, except for possibly a few of the house boats along the canal.

 

wow
they really are selling boats for nothing these days

 

Okay, forget this guy. Nothing personal, but he's uninsured, which indicates how much he does (or doesn't do) and he's a hack, not a yacht builder. I'll bet he can build a fine chicken coop, but you need vertical grain lumber in your planking. It has vertical grain lumber in the planking now. So either everyone else is wrong or he is. You decide. I can give you a number of reasons why you need vertical grain lumber, but I suspect you already know the majority of them.