From Timber To Tide
From Timber To Tide from Pixillion on Vimeo. This film documents Ben Harris’ love of wood work and boat building, how he acquired his skills, and how incredible it is to be able to take something that you’ve built with your own hands out onto the water and sail it across the sea. Who is Ben Harris? Ben has always loved wood. His mother said that his first word was ‘log’. He has been working with wood throughout the UK since the age of 15. First as an assistant to a cabinet maker, where he started by sharpening the tools [...]
Current Status of Port’s Stormwater Response
Post from the Port of Port Townsend website. Photo from Port of PT website As [the Port of PT has] communicated previously, the Port of Port Townsend is currently in the midst of a Level 3 environmental response to the WA State Department of Ecology. This is the highest level of response, and reflects the serious nature of the level of contaminants entering our stormwater system. Our continued ability to run a boatyard in Port Townsend is dependent on our ability to reduce contaminant levels. There are two primary issues we are addressing: Cleaning up contamination that has [...]
Doug Lockhart Retires After 31 Years at the Port
From the Port of PT Doug Lockhart retires after 31 years at the Port of PT After a nearly 31 year career at the Port of Port Townsend, Doug Lockhart is preparing to make his final haul out as Hoist & Yard Manager, retiring at the end of February. Join us at Doug Lockhart’s Retirement Party! Friday, February 27, 2015, 4:45 at the Pourhouse. Snacks and cake. No-Host Bar! The Port Townsend native got his start in the marine trades with Skookum Marine, building decks and working on bodywork on fiberglass boats. As Skookum’s business began to wind [...]
Jefferson County Annual Moorage Tenants Union Meeting
A recent post on the Jefferson County Moorage Tenants Union website made the assertion that under the current Port of Port Townsend plan for 2015 the monthly moorage fee for a 25' slip would increase from $182.67 to $203.26, an increase of 11.3%. Are you Interested to know if this computation and the possible reordering of priorities to move the construction of a new boat ramp over a rebuild of C & D docks are in next year's plan? Ask Bertram Monday night, November 7th. Annual Moorage Tenants Union Meeting Monday Nov. 17 7:00 PM Marina Room, Point Hudson With [...]
Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding Holds Auction Nov. 8th
Some of the variety of hardware to be auctioned off by the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding in Port Hadlock on November 8 – Photo by Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding via Flickr By Scott Wilson on November 6, 2014 in Events, News for Three Sheets Northwest If you’re a little bored this weekend and happen to be kicking it around the Quimper Peninsula, or if you’re on the hunt for surplus boats and boatbuilding materials of the most serious kind, the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding in Port Hadlock will be holding a public auction in Port [...]
2014 Pittman Innovation Awards
Sail Magazine's annual innovation awards with some interesting new products. The BG-Zeus MFD can show laylines. Sailing has always been a technology-driven activity, and the spirit of innovation that prompted the first Stone Age sailor to cast off and let the wind do the work remains as vibrant today as ever. Of course, many of today’s innovations harness the now commonplace “miracles” that are part and parcel of the modern era. Nonetheless, a surprising number are the product of good-old common sense, the kind of thing that prompt you to wonder, “Now why didn’t I think of that?” [...]
3M Scotchloks, is my Love so Wrong?
Some ideas on dealing with the very small gauge wires that are used on many new electronics. From Ben at Panbo. In October I promised to eventually discuss the 3M Scotchlok IDC connectors I used to tap into Gizmo's engine gauge wires in order to install an Actisense EMU-1 Engine Monitoring Unit. Given that two experienced commenters already strongly dismissed these connectors for boat use, I did more research and testing. Tentative conclusion: while 3M does indeed state that Scotchloks like those tiny UY butt connectors above are meant only for 22-26 gauge solid copper conducter wires, they still seem like [...]
School takes on ‘mystery boatbuilding adventure’ for BBC
Story by Deborah Bach from Three Sheets Northwest Master boatbuilder Jeff Hammond, second from right, oversees students as they frame a replica of the 16-foot Emma Dean, one of the Whitehalls used by John Wesley Powell in his 1869 descent of the Colorado River. Photos courtesy of the Northwest School The Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding recently wrapped up work on three of its more unusual boats — replicas of the Whitehall rowboats used in John Wesley Powell’s groundbreaking 1869 expedition on the Colorado River. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) commissioned the school to build the boats, one 16 [...]
Calculations for I.F. Mariner
If you're interested in what's happening in the yard at PT's Boat Haven, the PT Shipwrights Co-op blog is a good place to start. Naval Architect and Marine Engineer, Jonathan Moore, is working on the I.F. Mariner design project for Port Townsend Shipwrights Co-op. I visited him in his office at Tim Nolan Marine Design. He is determining the best size and placement of the large fish hold bulkhead in order to meet stability guidelines. You may recall a previous blog post about I.F. Mariner where a 3,000 lb. cement block was moved to various locations on the I.F. Mariner [...]
Steam Launches Visit PT This Weekend
Four steam launches will be at Pt Hudson the weekend of March 23rd and 24th. Four steam launches will be docked together at Pt Hudson and putting around town this weekend, March 23rd and 24th. The nice folks assembling this one suggested that they are very open to giving rides if you are interested. Over at Sea Marine a very different boat is being assembled after being trucked up from San Francisco, a 1D48, a 48 foot race boat, owned by a local owner. Maybe we'll see the 1D48 out for a Friday night or two so PEGASUS [...]
HMS BOUNTY: How Sound Was She?
Posted by Charles J. Doane on SAILfeed AS I NOTED in my last post on the loss of HMS Bounty during Hurricane Sandy, one of the big unanswered questions is: why was the ship taking on so much water? That she was leaking enough to sink is especially puzzling in that just 11 days earlier she'd been relaunched at Boothbay Harbor Shipyard in Maine (see photo up top) after spending a month in drydock for repairs. It may or may not be relevant, but my eyebrows did rise up a bit when I learned this week that the very same [...]
PT Marine Trades Association Supports Legislation Change
The PTMTA invites all PT boaters to support legislative changes that will increase tourism and support our marine trades. November 19th, NWMC, 4pm to 5:30pm. From Diana Talley and the Port Townsend Marine Trades Association (PTMTA). Want to show your support of the marine trades in our community? Want more tourists here for a longer amount of time? Make plans to attend an event to support a legislative priority that will do just that. Our local state representatives (Rep. Van De Wege and Rep. Tharinger) and Sen. Jim Hargrove will be on hand to hear more about our [...]
What Are You Going to Do About Your Bottom?
Thursday night. Free for everyone. 2012 racing season skipper's meeting follows the talk.
Spring PTMTA Newsletter Is Out
The latest issue of the Port Townsend Marine Trades Association Spring 2012 Newsletter is out and as always full of interesting stories on the projects and talented trades people who work in PT’s marine trades. You can download your own copy here. Here’s a small sample to wet your appetite. More pictures and stories on the work being done on MARTHA are available here. The Schooner Martha By Rick Petrykowski In the aftermath of the mid-January snowstorm, we sat down with Robert D’Arcy and Chris Grace to get the skinny about Schooner MARTHA’s current restoration at the Shipwright’s [...]
Dan Newland Reports in From the Bleeding Edge
After helping finish up one of the first GP 26s with Brook Dees, and Jim Antrim’s Class 40 built at Berkeley Marine, Dan is again in the Bay area working on the Kiteboat Project, a foiler trimaran that is powered by a kite. Here’s a short report from the always entertaining Mr. Newland. “The boat is a kick. The hulls are 25′ long and weigh about 90 lbs each and (I’m not kidding), overbuilt. We could take probably 20 lbs out of them. Everything is carbon and the core is Nomex. VERY stiff but you can litereally put [...]
Left Coast Dart Auction
A welcome to a new voice on the PTSA site, Larry Fisher of the mighty Columbia 30, SILENT WAY. What if you built it and they didn’t come? Jim Lee has built a wonderful new 26-foot sport boat up in Anacortes, but customer response has been underwhelming. Actually, he hasn’t been able to sell a single one in two years. So he’s hit on a radical measure to sell hull #2 and make way for #3: a reverse auction. He’s lowering the price $1,000 a day until the boat sells. You can follow the auction here. Base price [...]
Shipwrights’ Race Is In a Week!
The 21st annual Shipwrights' Race is coming right up on Saturday, February 25th. Round up your hibernating crew or pick up some fresh crew here on this site or at the skippers' meeting and get ready for a fun race with wacky trophies and valuables prizes. You'll have the choice of three fleets -- Racing, Cruising, and Inshore (small boats). Download your entry form here (Shipwrights' Race Reg. Form 2012) or pick one up at the Chandlery at the Northwest Maritime Center. Entry fee is $20 per boat before Feb. 16th and $25 thereafter. The Sunrise Coffee sponsored skippers' meeting will [...]
WHAT’S MISSING IN THIS PICTURE OF MARTHA?
A lot! But the biggest thing missing is the keel, which was removed early in January. MARTHA is in the Shipwright's Coop building across from Admiral Marine Supply undergoing restoration, the largest part of which is the rebuilding of a new lead keel. Robert D'Arcy is leading the project with the help of numerous local marine tradesmen and volunteers. Meanwhile, over in the Northwest Maritime Center's boat shop, a new foremast is being built for MARTHA under the guidance of Steve Chapin. Both the keel and the mast are works of art, combining old world woodworking knowledge with modern [...]
Getting A Jump On Spring
Quick & Easy Winter Projects To Make Your Boat Safer (And Avoid Big Headaches Later) Sometimes, it's the little things that get overlooked; something as minor as a worn impeller or dead battery can ruin a day on the water. Even major things like a dismasting from a cracked fitting or a ruined engine due to clogged manifolds can be prevented by a quick inspection. This winter, devote some time to a few easy inspections or simple projects to make sure next spring your boat is ready for smooth (and safe) sailing. Change Your Impeller As the Nike ad used [...]
Ladies Who Launch: Ship Christening Photographs from Delaware Valley Shipyards
Ship launching ceremonies have been recorded as long ago as 3,000 B. C. Although modern ceremonies no longer include such ancient customs as animal sacrifice to the gods, the sentiment behind them is the same as in ages past: to officially name the ship and bless it on its voyages. In America, women became the preferred sponsors of ships around the 1840s, charged with breaking a bottle of spirits over the bow. Champagne eventually became the libation of choice for its effervescence. Local shipyards documented their ceremonies with photographs of the participants, leaving us a record not only of the [...]
SLIVER Build at Boat School Coming Along
[slideshow id=37] From Pete Leenhouts, NorthWest School of Wooden Boatbuilding, www.nwboatschool.org, an update on the Perry designed 62' day sailor now under construction at the new Jeff Hammond boat shop. SLIVER's owner has said that he wants his boat built using the best, most cost-effective construction methods possible. For that reason, he chose the School to build the hull using strip planking covered by fiberglass. We can teach our students these methods using his boat as the instructional vehicle. Contemporary Instructor Bruce Blatchley is leading the hull and deck construction team at the Boat School. SLIVER is 61 feet 11 [...]
Whale Fins and Rudder Designs
Bob Perry has a new blog and one of his first posts was on ICON's new rudder designed by Paul Bieker. This is ICON's revised rudder. As you probably can guess the bumps on the leading edge are what was added to my original rudder shape. These bumps are called "Tubercles" and can be found in nature on the leading edge of the fins Humpback whales. They can be seen as vortex generators. So, why were they added and did they work? ICON's original owner and skipper were Happy with the boat's performance and I never heard any [...]
New Boat School Project Starts This Spring
Here are some early drawings of the Bob Perry designed 62′ daysailer that will be built in the new Jeff Hammond Boat Shed at the NW School of Wooden Boat Building. The boat’s name is SLIVER and with a LOA of 62′ and a beam of 9.8″, she is indeed a sliver. In profile her topsides and house are reminiscent of local favorite SPARKLE, but her rig, underwater lines and foils are very different. Very cool and looks very fast. No doubt the Boat School will do a great job building her. More line drawings after the break. […]
Am I Having a Heart Attack?
If you Googled this article because you think you’re having a heart attack — stop. Call 911. Then chew an aspirin. Spending precious minutes searching for information about heart attack symptoms as you experience them is not wise, doctors say, because “time is heart muscle.” Heart Attack Symptoms One of the symptoms for a heart attack in women is pain in the shoulder blades. — Rosanne Olson/Getty Images “If you think you’re having a heart attack, that’s not the time to try and figure out whether you’re right,” says Gordon Tomaselli, M.D., president-elect of the American Heart Association, who adds [...]
PTMTU Proposes Changes to Copper Paint Ban Bill
This morning Bertram Levy of the Port Townsend Moorage Tenants Union sent along the following memo that makes three specific changes to the proposed legislation that phases out copper bottom to recreational boats under 65′. Over the past ten days since we sent out the February 11 position paper on Senate Bill 5436, House Bill 1785 that is similar in many ways to the Senate bill, has been posted on the web. Both bills have undergone hearings and some changes. During this time, three members of the Moorage Tenants Union have been speaking to a variety of people, [...]
Lathe Turns 120′ Tree Into ZODIAC Mast
Another interesting post by Marty McOmber on Three Sheets Northwest. Interesting how this tool was built. Down at the Grays Harbor Historical Seaport, home of the Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain tall ships, they know a thing or two about wooden masts, booms and yards. But what a lot of people probably don’t know is that the organization’s spar shop happens to have what is believed to be the country’s largest lathe — a tool many of us last played with in high school shop class to make a table leg or candlestick. Let me tell you, this ain’t your high school’s [...]
Jeanne Socrates 360’s While Rounding Cape Horn
Jeanne Socrates did much of the refit on her boat NEREIDA in Boat Haven in preparation for her most recent solo circumnavigation. From Bill KI4MMZ KC2IOV Nereida Capt Jeanne Knocked down (Turtle upside down) Damage so far. 2249utc 55-59.68S 071-45.04W drifting S @ 2K hove to. boom broken, Hard dodger smashed.(gone) rope round prop. Chaotic below decks. Good news. Not injured has stay sail, + headsail. engine working. […]
Cape George Brotherhood Rocks
Cape George Marine Works continues to build blue water boats, even in a down economy. The following article was written by Diana Talley and published in the Port Townsend Marine Trades Association newsletter. You can download the entire newsletter here. Todd and Tim Uecker of Cape George Marine Works have developed a business plan that really works. Their full service boatyard offers; boatbuilding in fiberglass and wood, fine cabinetry/joinery, design, fiberglass repairs, a boat yard and inside storage for do-it-yourselfers. Tim’s separate metal fabricating business – Meridian Stainless – makes you wonder why nepotism is a bad word. [...]
Another Storm Victim Faces An Uncertain Future
Tied to the linear dock near the bottom of the ramp, SWEET DESTINY doesn't look so sweet any more and her destiny looks more than a little uncertain. On the day I walked by a couple were hauling off bits and pieces from the once handsome Kennex 380 catamaran. The story I heard was that SWEET DESTINY was tied to mooring ball, the storm hit, the cat parted from the mooring and went into the Port Hadlock Marina breakwater. Once the front cross beam failed, the rig came down. For far too long the boat must have ground [...]
After the Storm
Now that the snow has melted and the sun returned, the toll of the windstorm quickly followed by a wind and snow storm is becoming more apparent. Threesheetsnw.com is reporting in a post by Scott Wilson here that down in the south end of the Bay in Port Hadlock Marina and surrounding mooring field at at least one boat was sunk and four or five boats were severely damaged. One of those boats may well have been Freebird listing a home port of Brayton Lake, Alaska. I first noticed Freebird several weeks ago tied just beyond the small [...]
Port of PT 2011 Budget Meeting, October 27th
from Bertram and the Moorage Tenants Union. Moorage Tenants: Next Wednesday, October 27th, in the Port Commission Chambers is the public hearing on the Port 2011 budget. Sounds boring but this is our last chance to influence how much the Port is going to charge us and where they are going to spend our money in the next year. […]
More Information on Proposed Moorage Rates
From Bertram Levy with minor edits The document below is from Port of Port Townsend, Deputy Director, Jim Pivarnik. It includes an introduction by Jim, followed by a chart which sets out two possible approaches to the redistribution of rates for moorage in the Boat Haven. The staff recommendation is in the columns on the right and is contingent upon a $40 “base charge”. Please note that as Jim points out that this is only a draft. Neither formula has been adopted by the Commission. I think that a decision on rate redistribution will be made after the 2011 budget [...]
Pete Langley Video Interview from Three Sheets NW
Three Sheets Northwest has a new article and video interview with Pete Langley of Port Townsend Foundry here.
High Performance Sailboat Takes Shape at Boat School
From David Blessing It can be hard to give up some of the things we enjoyed when we were younger. Sometimes these things need to be translated into terms that meet our present situation. Some years ago I loved high speed sailing on my 505 in the summer on Chesapeake Bay. From time to time, I would have to swim alongside the capsized the boat to get the thing back under control. With warm water, this was not a problem. Now I live in Puget Sound country where the prospect of landing in the water is not as [...]
Meeting Meteor
When the doors to Sea Marine opened for the Wooden Boat Festival, there was Meteor. The revolutionary 38-foot Meteor was designed and built in 1938 by the Jensen family, owners of Seattle’s Jensen Motorboat Company, for themselves. With double-planked hull and triple-planked superstructure, she has a beautifully flared bow and torpedo-like stern, far ahead of her time. The “streamlined” Meteor was cutting edge boat design in 1938 for she had hardly a straight line and absolutely no sharp corners. To some eyes, she reminds you most of Buckminster Fuller’s Dymaxion car of 1933. The Jensens had [...]
Boat School Launches “New” Yankee One Design
Welcome Gemini, the newest Yankee One Design in the Port Townsend fleet. On Wednesday to the good wishes of the crowd, Gemini met the water for the first time, floated on her lines, dry, glistening, and quite lovely. When last seen on Thursday around noon, Gemini was on closest to land finger of Dock C in Boat Haven while her mast is getting stepped and rigged. As I understand the story, Gemini was brought to the Boat School in need of a complete restoration. After the survey it was decided that she had gone down too far and [...]
New ferry Chetzemoka will sail Puget Sound during sea trials July 20-22
A post by Tim Flanagan on the Puget Sound Maritime blog here. Puget Sound residents may get a glimpse at the new state ferry Chetzemoka this week as it travels through the Sound on sea trials. Contractor Todd Pacific Shipyards is required to conduct these trials to demonstrate the vessel to U.S. Coast Guard and WSDOT Ferries Division (WSF) inspectors before WSF accepts delivery of the vessel. The sea trials team is comprised of a Master and crew hired by Todd with their Test and Trials Department. The sea trials must be conducted away from other marine traffic to complete [...]
The Nordlund Skiff
A wonderful article on building the Nordlund Skiff at the Boat School by Bryan Mann, lifted from the Port Townsend Maritime Trades Association Summer newsletter produced by Diana Talley. We’re fortunate to have so many local treasures from Dale Nordlund, to the Boat School, to the PTMTA. The entire newsletter is available here. Building the Nordlund Skiff Written By Bryan Mann As Dale Nordlund walked into the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding, all of the usual banging and banter came to an abrupt halt. Dale was immediately swarmed by a crowd of anxious aspiring boat builders (myself included), [...]
A New Open 40 Gets Hatched
Dan Newland helps finish a new Open 40. For 5 weeks this spring I was in the Bay area working on the build of a new Open Class 40, “Condor” or more properly “California Condor.” I was originally going to be there for 1-2 weeks to design and build some of the detailed finish composite work but they liked what I was doing and they were far behind schedule so I was invited to stay as long as I could. After 5 weeks of 7 days a week and 10-12 hours a day, (300+ hours in 5 weeks [...]
Cruising World, Alvah Simon, and Hood Canal Shrimp.
Stopping by the bulletin board on the top of C Dock, I happened on a posting for a shrimp pot being sold by Alavah or Diana Simon on the Roger Henry. I had seen Roger Henry first on the dock waiting to be pulled and then sitting on the hard by the fence near the parking. She's a metal boat, French designed with a very purposeful, long-distance look, that look that says I've done a lot of sea miles and I'm ready to do so more. Today. Very deep V-shaped bow section that looks like she wouldn't pound [...]
Sailboat Started in PT 26 Years Ago to Splash Soon
Meet our new neighbors, Greg Kerkof, Sheryl Alfson-Kerkof and Jake, formerly of Mukilteo. They are moving to town with their almost completed cruising sailboat, Toccata. You will find Toccata in the Boat Haven yard near the PT Rigging shop. After some final touches, they plan to leave for a summer of cruising up north and then back to PT to live aboard next winter. It sounds like they are already settling in. They’re planning to sell their house, enjoying long walks around town and calling their trips back to Mukilteo “retuning to the dark side”. Talk about an [...]