DAS BOAT ......

[David Lee]

Yup :D .

Finally dug-out Dad's old Pram , time to get the old paint off , repair the splits , and re-glass 8) .


Here's a couple of views ...
http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/fadoe/P7190001.JPG
And .....
http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/fadoe/P7190002.JPG
Sasha showing how well lil' Border-Collies fit , minus the ice chest
http://img.inkfrog.com/pix/fadoe/P7190003.JPG

My Father build mostly custom Scull Boats - This was his first (and last ...) Pram . I took it out on Shasta back in '97 and it was just about the best small craft I'd ever been in .

This should be amusing ...... :idea:

David :)

[Rob]

looks like a fun project !!!!!!!

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Where did you dad live when he built that pram?

Looks like the ones they built up on the North Coast for tide water salmon and steelhead fly fishing.

[David Lee]

Rob -

It looks like WORK :P (Ugh) !!

Bill -

Dad was in Redding - he couldn't walk for crap anymore (3+ packs of filterless Camels a day .... go figure) so he built it to get off the bank @ Shasta .

He learned to build in the late 40's in Eureka . Back then they build stick and doped canvas Scullboats to hunt Humbolt Bay for Brant (talk about a nutty sport !) - he built all custom Sculls "on the wing" , all just jotted down on a napkin or whatever .....

Strange guy , he used to draw out a plan almost as an afterthought , go to the hobby shop for Balsa , build a 1-12 scale model boat (no kidding ....) , then build the full-sized one . I still have a few of his models ....

Not what I would consider a good human , but a handy fellow .

David :)

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I have heard over the years that around Eureka they made little light wooden prams just like that one to row out and anchor in the tidewater of the Eel River mostly and fly fish for salmon and Steelhead.

I heard they were made out of thin, maybe 1/4" plywood so they could be carried down to the water on the person's back.

That boat looks like it would be very good because the bottom is mostly flat. That is a really well built little boat.

I had an 'El Toro' about 40 years ago which was something like that and actually a little wooden hand made sailboat you could row around too. Trouble with them is that they had rocker which made them less stable than yours.

[David Lee]

Bill -

I'm really , really tempted to NOT fix it -

If I was smart .... I should take the damm thing apart (Dad used Brass screws only) and COPY it . That way , I could build a few more and put the plans somewhere on line for folks to try .

I only took it out once - I have a , shall we say .... dislike of most boats for safety reasons . I launched on Shasta near the Dam , leaned on the oars , and nearly got that sucker up on plane :shock: . Just to see what would happen , I stood and shifted my weight around - the Pram never moved . I then hopped and did a 180 degree half-circle in the air , landing facing the opposite direction - barely a ripple on the surface .

How's that for stable ?

I helped Dad build quite a few boats , but I was pretty young at the time and don't remember most of what he taught me . I'm pretty leery of doing the Fiberglass by myself but I'll find a way thru ....

I'll post photos of the boats progress ......

David

[Hairstacker]

That looks like a great project David! Should be much more stable than the USS Squirrelly. :lol: Good luck and keep us posted!

[mikenewman]

Hi David

Speaking as one who thinks that fishing the Delta from a tube looks about as much fun as running a marathon in a monkey suit, I'm thinking that a little electric troll motor together with the oars would give this baby stealth and range for serious Lee/Wahl Delta enterprises :)

How heavy is she?

Mike

[Ed Wahl]

I've been whining at David for months about that. Sure is a sweet little boat, I think you should photo and measure every component just for future reference. Mike, don't knock running in a monkey suit until you've tried it. :) Ed

[Tracy Chimenti]

David, i loved the story. That is so cool. I'd try to perserve it as close to as dad left it, fish out of it, and take care of it as long as you live. There's something magic about an old boat, especially when it was used by or built with pop's hands. I rebuilt one of my dad's old steel-ferreled fiberglass steelhead rods once. He used to fish with the old heavy whip on the Russian, the Truckee, Gualala, and Deer Creek in the 50's. I fixed it for him with fancy thread and gave it to him for his birthday. I took him out to the lower Feather and he caught several half-pounders on it-- this, after being hid away in a tube for over 30-years. In two years he was gone. When I look at the pole, I think of him in those old black and whites-- redball waders, textile Fedora hat, checkered wool shirt, his old Chevy Fleetline in the background. Those were good days.

You take care of that boat and you'll always be close to pop!

(Actually, I looked at the pictures and thought this was gonna be an episode from Jackass!)

[Tracy Chimenti]

And david, that IS ONE BEAUTIFUL BOAT.

[sculpin]

Nice boat David and I see you have a can of the proper attitude adjuster on hand for the job. I looks like it will make a good flyfishing platform.
When I was a kid my Dad kept his boat on a mooring in the bay. We used a boat like that to row out to the boat and for a shore boat. We called them Dinghys. They were light and rowed very well. I used to love rowing all around the bay in them. Some models even had a sail. Everyone who had a boat on a mooring had one and there would be 20 or more of them chained to a cable at the access points to the bay. After a while, inflateables took over as shore boats.


Mark

[gryhackl]

David
A beautiful little boat! It brings back a flood of memories. My dad and I built one very similar, only ours was a kit boat that we upgraded. I caught a ton of bass, bluegill and perch out of that as a kid, back in the midwest. Your's is a very worthy project indeed. Hope you post photos of the finished boat.

[trikebent]

If you do 'glass it, use epoxy resin- not polyester. Polyester is cheaper- but will peel off after a few years. DO use gloves when working with epoxy, you can devlelop an allergic reaction to epoxy over time. Keep the hull dry when storing, don't let water (rain) sit in it and it will last for years. Cool memories of your Dad there.
Here is a link to a very good group on wooden boats.
http://www.woodenboatvb.com/vbulletin/upload/
They are a good source of advise on this type of boat.

[Jay Murakoshi]

David,

Glassing is easy. Just stand back and take a look at the shape and then lay out your glass and start feathering with your hands. I would take the overlap up 2" on the sides. Then you glass the sides (one at a time). I glass a few wooden prams but my main glassing was surf boards. That's what I did in my younger days. Designed, shaped and glass boards.
Speaking of glassing, I have to add a couple of strips on the bottom of my pram where the ground has started to wear the bottom thin. Yep, to lazy to carry it so I drag it

Jay

[Digger]

David,

Glassing is easy. I glass a few wooden prams but my main glassing was surf boards. That's what I did in my younger days.

Jay
Sounds like an offer to get involved if I ever heard one....
and, thus Lee-Craft Industries was born

[OceanSunfish]

David,

That is one nice looking pram.

I can understand your wanting to "blueprint" the vessel in lieu of refinishing it for use.

If it were me, I would probably "blueprint" it first, then restore it. Then it would go on the 'rack' for display. I'd then go out and buy an aluminum pram to use. :shock:

That's just me. I can be more a museum curator at times.

Thanks for sharing the stories.

[Scott V]

Dave,

That is a sweet pram, and just the whole where it came from and who made it is awesome. But I agree with the others, make a set of plans from it, I can put everything into CAD format and plot scaled drawings. And I think you will enjoy a pram more than your kayak, I have a feeling when you, Ed, and I went to the Cosumens you didn't care for the kayak that much.

Let me know if you want help making the plans, remember making plans and doing drawings is what I do for a living. Besides I am going to owe you once you start teaching me to tie. :)

[Rob]

Daved

How is the pram coming along , any more photos ?????

[David Lee]

Daved

How is the pram coming along , any more photos ?????

Hey , Rob !!

Hope you and the family are having a great Holiday ..... :)

I have done NOTHING to the Pram :? - I got busy a while back (long story , have a few hours :x ?) and left Pram in the yard (tarped , of course) .

I'll be back to being Mr. time-on-my-hands in mid-Jan. ........ I hope to get some work done on it then .

You and the Boys gonna do Muskies after ice-out this coming year ????

David

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

That is a very nice built boat.

I think taking it apart so you and others could use it for a pattern would be cool.

Marine plywood is not cheap but it would be nice to have a boat like that new.

I think people just put fiberglass matting over the seams and then just paint the resin over the flat parts???

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

David,

If your not going to work on it, maybe we could put it up on the wall in the shop, up high, for a place to store it???

[David Lee]

David,

If your not going to work on it, maybe we could put it up on the wall in the shop, up high, for a place to store it???

Uhhhh ...... we could , but I doubt I'd get much use out of it !!

Tell ya what - If I don't get it refurbished by July , I'll donate it to the shop wall :idea:

(guess I better get off my arse and get it fixed :oops: )

David :)