CUR RE NT PROJ E C T S
This spring we started the restoration of an
Alden Triangle. VEGA was built in 1924 for
William Haley Sr. and has always sported
sail #7. So far, all of her frames have been
replaced, her sheer restored, and we have
completed a new deck, coamings, and trunk
cabin. We’ll keep you up to date as progress
continues.
We just began construction of our sixth Buzzards Bay 15. This new boat will be
built over the course of the summer and launched this fall. She will be built to
Herreshoff ’s No. 674 design with a full-keel, larger cockpit, and gaff rig with no
running backstays. To see photos of the other Buzzards Bay 15s we have built,
check out the PAST PROJECTS galleries at ArtisanBoatworks.com.
It’s interesting to compare the finished products of restoration versus new
construction. Althouth we’re working to the same design, the results are often
different. When restoring original boats, we go to great lengths to preserve patina.
We prefer flat, antique shades of paint; we use canvas for the deck sheathing, and
are extremely hesitant to make changes in layout, wood species, etc. In short, our
goal is to return the boat to a condition and appearance consistent with when
she was first launched. These original boats have significant antique value, and
to alter them in any way (other than correcting known structural deficiencies)
tends to reduce their value.
On some restorations we have even gone back to cotton sails despite their
requiring greater care and their not having the performance of Dacron. But the
sensation and the sound of a big cotton sail soaring across the deck in a jibe is
something special. If you’ve experienced a large bird flying close overhead on a
quiet day, you’ll know what I mean.
When we build new boats to old designs we have a little more freedom. Small
changes such as substituting mahogany for oak, widening cockpits, eliminating
running backstays, and installing diesel engines or electric motors make the
boats more user-friendly and easier to maintain. The use of classic one-design
sailboats has changed over the past 100 years even if the aesthetic hasn’t. Most
were originally used exclusively for racing, in any weather conditions, with a crew
of two or three. Today, those designs survive because, with a few modifications,
they are equally well suited to more leisurely family daysailing and singlehanding. In some cases, we have even changed centerboard boats into full-keel
configurations. These may have a slight loss of light-wind performance, but the
added stability and space in the cockpit are worth it for many people.
The level of finish is typically much higher on a new boat. Not because it needs
to be, but because it’s what our customers tend to expect. Today, we have access
to superior paints and varnishes that allow us to obtain a level of gloss that was
unimaginable 100 years ago.
HAL F MODE L S
We have had several interesting opportunities to make half models this past year, and in
doing so have discovered a new technology that brings the quality and accuracy to a whole
new level. The first model we carved was for a customer for whom we had recently built one
of our Herreshoff 12-½ replicas. Because we had lofted the boat full size from Herreshoff ’s
original hand-written offsets, there was no appropriately scaled set of lines from which to
build a model. In an effort to produce the most accurate model possible, we transcribed
the offsets into a computer spreadsheet, and then, working with naval architect Matthew
Smith of Barrington, RI, created a digital 3D model. Remarkably, every single point from
the offsets faired perfectly, and we cut the model from a solid block of Western Red cedar
using a CNC machine. N.G. Herreshoff designed his hulls by first carving a half model,
and then carefully measuring it with a finely calibrated machine. The measurements, called
offsets, were then written in an small notebook to be plotted full-size by the loftsman. So,
like “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” we’ve come full circle in that we lofted our
computer model full-size from those offsets and then reduced them to create a wooden half
model at the same scale as his original.
After finish sanding, the model was painted to match the boat, and a dupicate model was
then cut and donated to the Herreshoff Marine Museum in Bristol. Since then, using the
same approach, we have produced half models of B.B. Crowninshield’s Dark Harbor 17
and Herreshoff ’s Buzzards Bay 18. It’s a shame to miss out on the process of hand-carving,
CNC Machining by Hewes & Co.
416 Main Street • Rockport, Maine 04856 • ArtisanBoatworks.com • 207.236.4231