Dad's boat

This is the boat my father had built in Maine using Airex foam sandwich construction. It was over built as most of dad's things were. It was " Free at Last" when dad owned her but was renamed "Islander" by her 2nd owner ..... a friend of dad's. The 4th owner just bought her after a VERY extensive re-fit. Islander has her original 6-71 Detroit Diesel engine in perfect condition. She had a fly bridge originally but was recently removed. The most noticeable part of her recent re-fit was not her engine rebuild but her conversion from a lobster trawler yacht to a serious fishing boat. I guess dad knew he'd be needing a tough boat as he got stuck on a rock in Mitchell Bay (Admiralty Is) so many times that the rock became known as "Henning's Rock" in the vicinity. Islander was always a great boat and I wish her the best in fishing and the best in care.

Eric: She looks like a beauty. How old is she and what is the hull shape? Are those paravanes I see?

Larry,
She was built in the early to mid 80s. She is a skeg built lobster style hull. Much like Carey's boat ....very much if Carey's is not a built down hull. She has a very easy entry and soft chines. She was built in Maine by a small yard that usually built lobster boats. Dad would be on the phone every day during the construction tell'in them to make her more this or that .....usually heavier and more skookum as dad was fond of say'in. Paravanes yes. She's got all the bells and whistles of a propper troller right down to the Forfjord anchor. Islander is beamy and stable.

You already know what I think...

Can you remember which Yard built her? The argument as to which is better, "built down" or "skeg built" still goes on among the locals here.

dwhatty,
No and I may have spoke too soon. Now that I think more on it I'm not sure it was a skeg build. I ca'nt remember it out of the water. But if they ca'nt agree on which is better What's the difference. Could be the skeg type is best for higher speeds and built down for more efficiency at slower speeds. Lobster types are so rare out west we do'nt even have any old wife tales about them. I do'nt remember seeing any narrow lobster boats recently and the contemporary boats have huge engines in them and wide beams. As I recall the old boats from about the early 50s had gas flat head six's of 100hp (about). They must have been about 8' wide. Are there any left? Or were they always wide.

Lovely real proper boat!
I think flybridges are overrated, I rarely use mine.
Is that a dry exhaust,does that indicate keel cooling? And what looks like a cylindrical tank on the coach-house,what is that for? BruceK

I know you like those reel type anchor windlass, but to my eye that thing really screws up the lines of what is a really pretty boat.

BruceK,
As far as I know a dry stack has nothing to do w keel cooling. Keel cooled boats probably pump engine coolant through the exhaust manifold but I really do'nt know.
I'll ask Brad about the tank....I do'nt know. It's seems too big for a day tank for the diesel stove. I can't imagine it as a day tank for the engine thinking of the high CG.

Speaking of high CGs fly bridges are great for larger craft or perhaps a cat. If we had a bigger boat I could imagine myself having a beer in a quiet anchorage in the summer up on the FB. If flying bridges were unknown and a friend came up w the idea I'd probably tell him it's a ridiculous idea to put all that weight up there. But would you?

HopCar,
Most boats in Alaska have them so it's the norm up here but you're right it looks out of place like it should be on a piece of logging equipment. But if painted high gloss white w some tasteful trim......but no it's not very yachty looking. But I'd rather have the white winch than a forrest of bow rails. Also the winch could be polished till it looked like chrome and clear coated. Or if it were smaller........naw...you're right.

On the subject of Fly Bridges, you can see my little Yankee boat has one. I also have a station below but I almost always run the boat from the bridge no matter the weather. Of course my little boat hasn't seen ice or snow since her sea trial. That would drive me below.
Maybe that thing on Islander's cabin top is a life raft?

Boy, she reminds me of my buddies Jarvis Newman....

Islander does look a bit like a Jarvis Newman. It was a Jarvis Newman 36 that caused me to fall in love with Yankee boats. Islander's bow is quite different than a Newman but the shear line is just as pretty.

HopCar said:

Islander does look a bit like a Jarvis Newman. It was a Jarvis Newman 36 that caused me to fall in love with Yankee boats. Islander's bow is quite different than a Newman but the shear line is just as pretty.

Click to expand...

And I took it to be an Ellis. Beautiful lines.

I thought you were talking about Islander. You're right my boat is an Ellis 28. Good eye.

One of the things I think is unusual about Islander is her hollow raked or somewhat clipper'ed bow/stem. Most lobster boats are straight or slightly convex.

HopCar,
Got any pics of your hull? Your boat looks considerably larger in the avatar. At least give us a thumbnail of your avatar so we can see it big.

Gents

I think that Flybridges are overrated in most of the Northern part of the Globe, as much as not having one, is overrated in most of the Tropics. Yeah! if you only have 2-3 months of summer a year, it will be a lot of money spent for little time. Yet, if you have 9 months summer time, as we do in the southern hemisphere, then you need a Flybridge.
I have had long hours of discussion with my boat designer about the subject. Believe it or not, on a 46’ Trawler, a flybridge represents 18% of the total cost of the boat, as it does on mine! But with high humidity levels, and constant temperatures in the middle 90’s, a covered Fly is always welcome. Or, be ready to fill your boat with expensive AC units, which require constant work from Genny!

These are my 2 Cents on the subject

By the way I got diverted here. Beautiful boat Many!!!

Cheers!

I don't see a dry stack exhaust, only the vent for a diesel or wood heater/stove.

On the anchor drum. Those are very strong systems, designed for long, all chain rodes. One of the advantages beyond their ability to pull a lot of weight is the chain, along with everything that it brings up is not in the boat but on the deck. Keeps the smells down associated with chain lockers. I like the looks of them actually. Especially on trawlers.

Portuguese,
Interesting......your slant on FBs seems only to do w money. I never even thought of that even though I have little money. To me the downside to a FB is mostly weight and windage.....in that order. And in hot weather I'd want to be in a pilothouse/wheelhouse w AC ......not up in the hot sun. Of course the ideal boat would'nt have any house at all in/on it so it's kind of a line in the sand thing. But I'd go for the house (in moderation) and nix on the FB. It's just too far from ideal boat design. I wonder what your designer would think of that. With yachts though wants that are the bottom line. I go crazy in a small boat when everyone sits on the same side but few seem to care at all.

OK I see there is enough interest to downsize and post more pics. Yes she has a wet exhaust. Notice in the stern shot that the helmsman can see well all around from the aft helm.
The drum/reel winches actually do'nt have that much capacity until they are quite large. And yes ... keeping the rode out of the V birth area is one of the main reasons we have a rode box on deck that takes the whole rode. Most of my rode is 5/8ths nylon Brait and it can fit in a much smaller space than 3 strand.......except on a reel winch. I think the winch would look much better if it visually blended in better w the rest of the boat. Fishermen probably view it's presence on their boat as being confirmed as a member of a select group ...........and they are. The Forfjord anchor and the drum winch admits them to the club....so to speak. The other pic is of my rode box on deck on Willy. I always tie the end of the rode to the port mooring cleat. Notice my Claw anchor is just barely visible even from above. You can see right behind the winch drum the shackle that joins the 1/2" chain to the 5/16ths chain.

manyboats said:

... But I'd rather have the white winch than a forrest of bow rails. ...

Click to expand...

Me? I'd rather have the security of bow rails.



Have no use for a flying bridge. Don't need the additional windage, for one. With five opening windows and two doors in the pilothouse as well as five opening windows and a door in the saloon, I usually have good ventilation. If that's not enough, turn on the fans.

Manyboats, Here are a couple of pictures of my Ellis. I think she looks a little top heavy. Tell my wife I need to step up to a 32' boat so it won't look so top heavy. She's got a deep entry, soft chines and is very flat aft, the boat, not my wife. The keel extends under the prop and supports the rudder. Now that I look at it, I should take that Danforth off the pulpit.
I wonder what all of you Northern boaters think of tuna towers. What a view!

Yes HopCar,
When you're in the pilothouse having to look through that fat Danforth would not be the best. But some people put their fenders out there.... can't relate to that. Sounds like a good typical lobsterboat.
The Ellis may look top heavy but only the windage is for sure. Very light FBs can be made that do'nt raise the CG much but seldom are they seen. I think Steppin (TF member) has such a FB. One can be made out of aluminum tube and fittings along w canvas covering. Some are very attractive.
Thank's for the pics Hop. Been think'in of ask'in you for a long time.

manyboats said:

... The Ellis may look top heavy but only the windage is for sure. Very light FBs can be made that do'nt raise the CG much but seldom are they seen. ...

Click to expand...

Wouldn't the weight of several humans in the FB in such a small boat have a significant effect on CG? If Hopcar's boat has room for four adults, there could be 800 pounds of bone and flesh up there.

markpierce said:

Wouldn't the weight of several humans in the FB in such a small boat have a significant effect on CG? If Hopcar's boat has room for four adults, there could be 800 pounds of bone and flesh up there.

Click to expand...

Windage aside, we had 6 adults on our flybridge for awhile in short period 3' - 4' +/- beam seas two years ago. Didn't seem to make any difference whether all were on the flybridge or only two. Wouldn't want to do that in much higher/steeper waves though.

Manyboats, How about a bigger picture of your fine looking boat?
The CG doesn't seem to be a problem on my boat. I think the heavy six cylinder Cummins mounted low has something to do with that. Yes I often have four adults on the bridge. It doesn't seem to be a problem. If the weather gets bad, my passengers will usually go below and leave me in peace to enjoy it on the bridge. I'm sure the windage knocks a knot or two off my top end. I think the Bimini top is probably a bigger windage problem than the fly bridge itself. I love the fly bridge for it's visibility. There are so many places I'd be afraid to go if I couldn't see the bottom. I love watching the porpoises playing in the wake. One time a little sea turtle decided to race us. We watched him swimming ahead of us for a good five minutes before he turned off and disappeared. We wouldn't have seen any of this from inside the house.

It's nice that unobstructed views can be obtained by taking a step out of the pilothouse with controls still in reach.

When I disregarded this boat's wake, taking it on the beam, the Coot rolled at least 20 degrees (surely it felt like more), back and forth, one side to the other. The experience would have been worse seven feet higher on a FB.

A plus of steering from the flybridge is good vision of pretty much every extremity of the boat. Good for entering a Marina,but puts you out of position to help tie up. Cruising, I`d rather be near the engines.
The best advantage is that in summer, a flybridge is a great cool place for a drink and relax at anchor.Especially if a boat has a small cockpit.
Quite a number, but not all, flybridge boats in northern Australia are built without a steering station at the lower level. BruceK

This is the boat owned by the man (Brad) that own's the GB and did own the Islander. Brad did the re-fit on Islander and she sold fast.

The reason for this post is to show you the boat Brad's going to spend the money on that he got from Islander. She's ferro-cement and getting a new John Deere like Marks Coot and a lot of premo fishing gear. When he was saying he was going to sell one of the boats I was hoping I could buy this boat. And at that time I was'nt planing to leave Alaska. Now that I am the ferro-cement boat would cost too much in moorage. Never liked short boats until now and I just happen to have a short boat. Anyway I love this boat and wanted to share.