DAS BOAT ......

[David Lee]

Yup .

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


Here's a couple of views ...

And .....

Sasha showing how well lil' Border-Collies fit , minus the ice chest


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 ......

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 . 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. 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!)