Those are sweet. The problem with wooden boats (as beautiful as they are) is that the upkeep is ridiculous. It's like taking a piece of fine furniture and and putting a big engine in it and driving around out in the rain.
At first I thought it was an Offenhauser (sp?). But it has two too many spark plugs. My guess is that it is a Jag. Whatever, it is nicely detailed.
Nobody ever said being cool was going to be easy. Nice pics..I need to make it there one day. I want to hear this one run....4 V-12's...driver & mechanic sit at the back.
Those old wooden boats are a work of art. I miss the shows they used to have about them back before Speedvision became the Speed Channel.
I love these as well. I always wonder what remains of these things are sitting in the silt of the Great Lakes, the bottom of the Columbia nd other rivers. Makes one want to research, don the scuba gear and a heavy duty light. The wood would be trash, but what about the old speed equipment? Good for the gararge walls if best, huh?
any crackerbox or E-boat pics? I'll have to pull some out of the Family Choptop archives after Billetproof... anyone else have any?
Very cool, a highlight of a vacation to Okiboji years ago was to get to visit a boat resto shop, they also did woodies. 14 year old gearhead heaven.
I actually started out working on old boats and have always loved them, just love cars a little more. Cant rule out the possibility of getting one some day, maybe after the kids are gone...Great pics, thanks.......Don
Thanks for the pics... That Minett Shields thing is badass. It looks like a roadster grafted onto a boat. Way kool... Smokey
those are works of art,,,especially love the chris craft cobra,,,,,,,,,,,just out of curiousity, how much $$ do you suppose that would cost to buy?
I missed the wood boat show in NH this year so this was great seeing your beautiful photos! Thanks for posting them.
A quick web search found that Hundley Boat Company will build you a new one for 65k. I remember seeing an original 21' for sale at 120k.
Man, check out the book matching of the wood on "My Darling". Simply beautiful. Those boats are ALL killer...
That's a fine mix of form, function, looks, speed. I'd have to write an esay to describe what it means to me. I can imagine a road-going Hot Rod with wooden boat influences. Wish I could finish all the dreams on my wish list.
Madison, a movie with lots of vintage hydroplane action. http://wc05.allmovie.com/cg/avg.dll?p=avg&sql=1:263577~T0
O.K., not truely on topic to the boats being discussed here, but we did have sternwheeler drags this weekend.
Thanks for posting the photos. They bring back alot of good memories. When I was 16 I used to work for a boat yard on the Sassafras river in Maryland. Worked there for 3 summers, and learned alot about boats and upkeep. Did everything from varnishing masts on sailboats (while mask was erected) to painting the bottoms of yachts. Use to see quite a few wooden boats, from speedboats to 60' yachts. Many were similar to ones in the photos. When I was 17 I used to own a 10 foot wooden hydro with a 7 hp outboard on it. Being light it would fly across the water. They were some of the best times in my life.
There are a lot of plans on the internet to build Mohogany Runabouts. There's vintage plans from the 40's and 50's and modern plans. With modern epoxy and marine ply it's actually possible to build a really solid boat that won't leak or require as much maintenance as the old timers, and for less money. Old boats have their charm, but it's a spendy hobby. If you don't like trailer queens at car shows you'd really hate runabout shows! Actually, the boats are so beautiful that all sins of the owners are forgiven in my eyes.
The Jalopy Journal
