Other stat:

Weight = 8lbs 8oz

Length = 20.5"

Head = 15" (that can't be right)

Maxwell Gordon MacCaffray.  Back to boat stuff tomorrow.

The key is to make changes in such a way so that the owner doesn't realize that you are messing with their design.  Then when the boat is finished a comment like "this is exactly how I envisioned it".  Anyway, back to the construction.  Picture #2 shows the first part of the seating down the port side of the wheelhouse.  When the owner arrives next week we'll be able to decide on a height that will work for this project.  Because of the height of the wheelhouse it might be a good idea to raise up the benches so that you can still see out the windows.  A "normal" seat would be about 17 - 19" and this one might want to be 22 or higher.  Then you run into issues with having your feet to high off the ground so the owner is going to have to make the call on this bench.  Storage space and the air conditioner will live in this box once it is complete.

The self-timer on the camera was used for the first time today.  I was trying to show seat height and the space between the seat an console.  Most of the time you want these permanent captains chairs to keep your eye level at the same height as if you were standing.  In the seat two tackle boxes will be installed and down the starboard side of the wheelhouse there will be a "fishing rod box" once I figure out how I'm going to build it.  Sound insulation in the engine room tomorrow along with more construction in the wheelhouse.

Bow pulpit made out of 1.5" Koosa Board.  Sides will be added for the bow chocks and then the windlass and bow bit can be installed.  We lucked out and were able to get three pulpits out of one sheet of Koosa Board, expensive yet awesome.  Strong and easy to work with so I guess it had to be expensive.  Nice boost in the website traffic today thanks to a mention on www.sportfishermen.com.  The jump in site traffic forced me into this post, your welcome.

I expect the visual excitment of that video to lead to 2 or 3 boat sales within the next 48 hours.

The bulkheads in the 38' Northern Bay are being installed in accordance with the the drawings that we were provided with at the start of this project.  Stringers will be fiberglassed into the hull to provide a resting place for the fuel tanks.  Aluminum has been ordered for our welder to make the fuel tanks that are going to fit between these bulkheads on either side of the boat.

These two fiberglass panels will support the shaft tube.  Unlike the 32' Osmond, this tube will run the full length of the shaft and have a cutlass bearing on either end.  Engine bed preparation will be next on the agenda while we try to get the motor and gear into the boat before "real winter" arrives. 

Another day at the shop and lots of stuff happening.  Check back tomorrow for more pics.

The inside "box" is a PSS Dripless Shaft Seal.  A cutlass bearing is fitted into a fiberglass tube and that tube is fiberglassed in at the shaft angle (preferably with the shaft thru both boxes).  The PSS consists of a rubber boot that is clamped onto the fiberglass tube housing the cutlass bearing........on the other end of the rubber boot there is a graphite ring......and on the boatshaft is a stainless steel ring......the rubber boot is compressed back and that pressure holds the graphite against the stainless steel ring............and the dripless shaft seal is complete. (except for a water feed line that has to be run from the motor).

With both boxes locked down the engine alignment could begin.  Because this engine is soft mounted the adjustments are simplified, anytime the engine needs to be moved vertically the nuts on the soft mounts can be turned.  The horizontal movements tended to be more problematic because of the nature of the mounts.  Pushing the front of the motor to the port and then having the mounts flex more/less than you were anticipating.....we were able to combat this problem by putting the weight of the motor on a jack when we need to move side to side.  With soft mounts the engine will always be moving but it should be oscillating around the shaft coupling face so the initial line up is still very important.

Once the engine was taken care of the wheelhouse floor stringers were fired into place and the wheelhouse sides and top became top priority.  Communication between myself and the owner should allow for the windows and doors to be cut out and for any wheelhouse "furniture" to be built.  Wires, hoses, batteries, electronics, paint, sanding, air cond, genset, and more in the coming days so check back in.  Sorry for the hiatus.

Links..............deleted

mention of cibw...............deleted

link to sea trial stats..........deleted

the pics of the boats............spared (just barely)

I'm tempted to set up some fake accounts and pepper the site with back links to www.clarkislandboatworks.com but it would probably end up in my lap eventually.  Or post every pic on my web site individually on one of the discussion boards.  Or type all my responses in lowercase letters and with the only capital letters being WWW.CLARKISLANDBOATWORKS.COM.  If we were building these things in my garage i could put all the info in the world on this site but because we're a "business" there is a different set of rules.

I apologized and promised it wouldn't happen again, unless one of the 34 people i advertised to buys a boat.