Alcanboats Forum

This is a work in progress,

The boat, 'SEA BREEZE' ? , was on Rice Lake, near Hastings, Ontario. Then in 1974 or 75, Jack Hearn,
purchased it and moved it to Westport.Jack belonged to all the local service clubs, and I always remember it having lots of people on board when ever we visited Westport, It was the first boat I ever saw with a telephone, then Jack installed Merts electric organ for entertainment. Jacks stories and Merts music , the entertain hub of Westport, back in the 80's !

The boat had been literally unused for 5 yrs , in 2005, when Andrew Organ let us know it was for sale.
We made the decision first day , that we would take on the rebuilding process if the price was right.
Money changed hands, 3 days of mould removal , a truck load of garbage, a good hosing down,
and it was trailer-ed from Franklins Marina near ,Caffey's locks to ,' Ludlows' Boat Works,
north of , Kempville Ontario. Arriving sept. of 2005. [first job , lets remove all the hull paint]

CLICK ON PIC TO ENLARGE

Well gees , just a little wire brushing and all this paint should be gone?

2- lrg electric grinders, with cup style wire wheels, 2 strong 'hearted' men and a lot of cases of beer,
lets get at her , boy , did we take on something we couldn't finish, 'NO' we would win, unless, it killed us !

The very bottom was badly pitted from electrolysis , the action and heat from the heavy wire wheel, blended/ restored a smooth surface, finding 1 hole , looks as if someone drove a nail thru from the inside bottom engine compartment.
No thin spots or delamination, very solid and clean .the keel is wavy / bent, but all is ready for the black Interlux / sealer
and paint. So what colour , our old boat was red , lets try a test strip around the bumper rail,
Well Ludlows was not the place to fix anything, and Phil was no help, but demanded top dollar for store-age.
Traveling out there was to far , electricity was a problem, then are 4 old merc gas cans ,some tools,
and building materials dis-appeared. Someone rummaged thru the boat taking gaffer tape ,
broom and Captain Jacks Chart Box . who knows what else . It was time to move on.

Chris Hurst and the, http://www.hurstmarina.com/ ,crew made quick work of this,
and we were at Master Carpenter Dan Smiths shop, in Manotick Station ASAP

Well we found that Phils advise was not going to work , as when we were closely following the boat on the trailer,
down the road, we could see the upper cabin moving side to side , on the hull wall by 2 to 3 inches , Holy Shit
Well we will tare out some more walls and make a decision, this fall. List's for Materials inside/ out side/ upper/ lower ,,
95% of these items were sourced from; http://www.habitatncr.com/ , Restore, Value Village, Neighborhood Services, & Salvation Army Stores.I figure we saved 60% off regular prices . Then to the, http://www.thechandleryonline.com/ ,
and spent 7 grand! Lets work out side while the weather permits!

Well Captain Jack worked for Air Canada, so it is only fitting to have a wing on his boat ???
How do we know if its going to look 'GREAT' trial and error' till we gets it right !

Now its back to the old problem the dam, 'ROTT'

Well it was not a pretty site to see all the old materials being junked, but the mould was every-where
Everything was removed in the lower area, except the marine plywood flooring and stern wall.
Now again we have to be careful not to add weight. So every thing was done minimal, and glued together
to keep water out, and add strength. The roof had fallen,as the old sill was gone/ rotted, the walls had to
raise the roof back up to old height. Then the sill was reattached to the hull wall, with the same old aluminum strip.
Wires and more wires , hydraulic lines, drive cables... you name it , we snaked it before instating the paneling.
Once in place ,we added Styrofoam insulation and spray foam to tighten things up but didn't put in a vapor barrier,
as we didn't want to trap moister. We used the best grade of paneling we could source and double sealed,and varnished both sides before installation. There sure is a lot of room with everything out. Now to try and find how we want to lay out the seating ? Using the old table and benches from our old house boat!

Getting thing the right size to fit the scale of the boat was time consuming.Change after change?
Some like it one way, others another way, lots of ideas. Decisions to be made without any reference.

Almost to the point we could sit down for a break? Our minds were made up, and things where getting screwed
into place. Sheet metal shrouds were made for venting the fridge and stove. Propane installed and the beer,
was cold and supper on the stove .Temporary step was rigged, between lower, and entrance levels,
will just one step work? Head connections made, some mirrors hung. Steps to the upper bimini
sleeping cabin finished, now we know where to cut the hole in the ceiling? where's 'Danno' ?

Driving a boat with the steering wheel vertical , for any length of time has always been a problem for me,
So lets remove the old dash board, and install some nice wood from the old house boat, to make a angled dash
with a useable driving station. Long winter of attaching hydraulic lines,and plumbing in the upper driving station.
Reinstalling the old engine/ boat controls. Rigging the radio shelf ,installing fans. Connecting wires, 120 & 12volt thru-out. Bathroom door hung, drawers finished,12 days of sanding ,some sealer / varathane satin exterior Spar varnish applied. ' BEAUTIFUL' Vanishing in the rain always works and looks like a pro did it !

A good clean up and some discus-sting BLUE paint.
Next the all important back scratching post , hooking up the lights and appliances'
Sealing and staining the 20 some door and draw panel facings, cutting and installing trim.
Ceiling trusses and 3 support beams , should hold up the roof , with all us fat people up there.
Drawers in storage places , seat top storage bulk heads for life jackets,organized storage to remove junk/clutter.
The look and feel of our old house boat are starting to come back.
PROBLEM, the windows won't open ,without, major force! Maybe we should get an air conditioner or 3 ?

With a little shimming and some new window rope , we got all the window working better than ever.
Widow locking bars installed, on All openings, the old curtains repair cleaned and fitted, improved site lines,
and made a much fuller look. Visited Ken Mason Marine,in Portland , purchased more windows from an old 3 boys ,
to install in the upper sleeping cabin, also got a 12 volt switch and furnace , plus lots of strips of aluminum trim .
Now comfort items, some out door patio-furniture cushions, carpet, old boat pics and items hung on the walls.
June 2011-TV DvD ,furnace, micro wave, dishes, some personal items, and we are ready to hit the water !
Well since we haven't made a final decisions on the interior furnishings's , A can't show you a lot of beautiful luxurious
interior photo's. We have made it comfortable, but my girl friend keeps changing her mind, not the finished product yet !

Sleeping cabin widows fitted, and final assembly glued to-gather. Some paint and the family crest.
With the sleeping cabin taking up the entire roof , the driving station must hang behind it.
So a seat built into a roll bar? To install an upper wind-shield or not . It fits to scale, but its not really needed,
and its so foggy, you can't see thru it any way. Lets knock out the front glass, and it is a prop only !
I would love to construct the upper rails from steel , but weight has made has use much more expensive aluminum.
Now more weight with the upper truss, and rope lighting . Talking about weight ,next we install the 3-air conditioners.

Out-drive, Motor Chev V-8 runs good, but needs some of Andy Organs, special TLC. He installed a stainless screw in a hole in the hydrologic ram, that lifts the engine, saved us 800bucks! Got the motor running so smooth and idling so low . Also fandangled the shifter linkage for effortless gear changes and hopefully no more broken shifter cables.
Heat from the sun and rain that came in the windows, because there age and the angle. 'Gawkers' stairing in the boat.
That made us fabricate and install canvas window shades, sewn by Brebner Canvas Repairs [Peter @ 613-729-8178]
Generator, shore power plugs and cables, up graded, rope and bumpers added. New Battery's and plastic battery boxes,
with a med size nylon / plastic gas tank and venting. Almost ready, a little lipstick on our pig / a fresh coat of red paint.
Lets get some gas and 'CRUISE' . But we don't have a BBQ yet ? and the up stairs helm, steers opposite to the lower helm!
Wind 40k gust to 70, good crew, but , we ran into every thing we could hit. Jun 2013, but we are finally back- 8yrs
We miss our old boat, sailing it for 24 years. But who would have imagined, the piece of art our new boat has become!

More time and money , and numerous works of wonder , will transform the vessel into a ,

2014- 'ALCAN TIME MACHINE'

Wow! Nice work Dave! And thanks for sharing the description and all the pictures.

David

2014 - added a 50cc' MOTOPED' http://www.motoped-choose-your-adventure.com/

a bit of work to build from down hill bicycle parts ,

but needs no plates or ins. ,

just hooks on the side of the boat

around 105lbs.

A little effect lighting

In the water early, so we needed to keep bissey with something,
the rear platform to store the motor cycle ?

2 x 370 solar panels , 2 x solar controllers , 4 x lrg. deep cycle battery's , and 2 x 3000 watt inverters [best thing we have done yet]

upgraded electrical with ground fault plugs every where

covered over front deck , and swing / trapeze , installed

new upper rope lights

raised front gunnels for heavy water travel

installed 24 ft stainless steal 3/8" wall 3 " pipe , grounding spike , c/w 40" inner retractable mud leg

pics to follow

new cruising speakers

2 x 370 watt panels

winch to raise panels to 32 deg

raised gunnels for heavy water

front deck cover frame, for shade mostly

and swing trapeze

24 ft - grounding spike and winch

c/w inner retract-able 1-1/4 in re bar 48 in long

and the old boat Dog Seairra