In the summers before Covid there was traditionally a slower period for area boatshops between the Fourth of July and Labor Day rush. This year, for the first time in four years, the summer workload is beginning to look like a “normal” summer. The slowdown is not exactly un-welcome as long as it doesn’t get too slow or last too long.
Andy Dize of Roudebush Yacht and Engine Works in Dundalk, MD, sums it up pretty well. “Not much to report this month. I think the heat is slowing people down a bit. Hopefully by next month we will be deep into the Sea Otter refurbishment and have more to report.”
Keith Rhodes, owner and CEO of Tri-State Marine in Deale and Annapolis, MD, agrees about the slowdown. “Things are a little slow right now, but it is mid-summer, really hot, and an election year. People are a little slower to make big purchasing decisions in an election year. And we are staying busy doing service work and refurbishing trade-ins. We will be ready when things pick up after Labor Day.”
Halfway through the summer, Hank Reiser of Marine Services LLC at Pocohontas Marina in Edgewater, MD, reports on his latest project in the shop. “It is a 1954 Larson strip planked outboard runabout built in Minnesota. We replaced the original Mercury outboard with a new Tohatsu 20-hp four cycle. The engine only weighs 94 pounds. It’s the lightest four cycle on the market. Except for the engine, the boat is pretty much all original; it even still has the original cable steering. The Tohatsu pushes it at about 25 miles per hour.”
An interesting detail on the boat are hull extensions on either quarter which extend the planing surface about eight inches beyond the transom. According to Hank they are original and factory installed.
“Outboards were heavy in 1954 and boat designers knew that the longer the planing surface is, the better it works. These were designed to give more lift at the stern and to help get the hull up on plane quickly. They look like add-ons, but she was built that way,” he concluded.
As far as the business is concerned Hank observed, “It’s been pretty busy. We’ve been busy with our bigger projects and with regular summer maintenance work. Bottoms have been pretty clear. Not many short hauls. The marine growth this year doesn’t seem as bad. But we’ve been very busy with our summer work and our bigger projects. I think we are booked for the winter, or just about. But we can always use more.”
Jake Glover at Ferry Point Marina in Trappe, MD, sends us the following report. “Our fiberglass and paint techs have been busy with a number of collision repairs. In the shop now are a 23-foot Key West center console and a 24-foot Tidewater center console. Both of those should be completed next week. The mechanics are always busy! Some of the later boaters are coming through for annual services and commissions while re-powers and re-fits are also underway. The yard crew has been completing some later bottom painting and weekly cleanings for local clients.”
Allen Flinchum of Cypress Marine in Severna Park, MD, reports that he has a new tenant in one of his shop bays who is singlehandedly building a 36-foot catamaran. Peter Norman, a transplanted South African currently living in Ellicott City, is the ultimate weekend boatbuilder. Peter describes his project for us.
“For the last four years I have been building parts of a boat in my garage and storing them in my basement. So now I’ve been pulling out the panels which I will use to make the hull and bringing them here. I’ve rented this marina space at the start of this year, and every weekend I’m working. I used to have a full-time job and just did this on weekends, but now I have got them to give me Fridays off. So, I work here Friday, Saturday, and Sunday on the boat,” he explained.
Peter elaborated on his plan. “I’m building a 36-foot day charter sailing catamaran. It is theoretically a simple boat with no upper deck and very simple accommodations in the hull. It has a hard top, but no cabin. The original boat was skinny and flat, so I had to revise the plan a bit. It’s like a camper; it’s not luxurious, it will be super plain, and you could live on it if you wanted to. I’ve been working on it for four years already in my garage and basement. This is the first year I’ve had room to put the hulls together.” When asked about a completion date, Peter chuckled, “Whenever anyone asks me that, I always give them the same answer: two-year’s time, no matter when they ask!”
Peter explained the process of building the boat. “The construction is three quarter-inch foam. It’s made in strips with a tongue and groove arrangement to fasten them together. Then you fasten them to the jigs, glue them all together, and create this huge shape, sort of like a big surfboard in a way. Once they are all together, you fiberglass them with a heavy TRI-X fiberglass; that stuff’s very strong. It creates a super strong sandwich construction. And the nice thing about it is the foam. If you ding it, the foam is all closed cells, so the water can only go so far and it stops. It’s not like wood which will keep wicking the water all over. So, if you ding it, you just put some filler in and glass it, and you are done.”
Allen’s crew at Cypress Marine is enjoying the slower pace this month. They have been doing a lot of small maintenance jobs, one of which was a bottom painting on Bloody Knuckles, a 20-foot Simmons Sea Skiff. This North Carolina design is rarely seen here in the mid-Chesapeake but is very popular on the Hatteras coast. This design dates from the 1940s. It has a relatively narrow outboard hull with a New England style high dory bow. The beam is carried well aft to a high, broad, flat, and sharply raked transom that lifts easily to following seas and provides ample space to handle nets. With outboard power of 50-hp in a protected motor well, the Sea Skiff is an ideal surf boat or net tender. Allen explains, “This boat is a modified design of a Simmons Sea Skiff that was redesigned and built by Drew Kaufmann. These boats can really handle rough water. They launch them into the surf and haul them the same way. The skiffs handle waves like dorys.”
That’s it for this month. We still have some great boating weather ahead, so get out on the water and enjoy it. Always be safe on the water. See you next month.
By Capt. Rick Franke