| Including mind-bending report from Lucas! | November, 2011 |
| Don't miss our Annual Guest Night meeting, Thursday, November 17, beginning at 5:30 p.m. This year's program will be provided by Denise Hickey, Public Relations Coordinator of the North Texas Municipal Water District. Her presentation will include current drought conditions, a water supply update, the invasive species, "zebra mussel", and raw water supply strategies. The NTMWD is responsible for both drinking water and waste water over a vast area of North Texas. The District's purpose, as found in its mission statement is, "...to meet the various needs of the member and customer cities, whether that is the need for drinking water, solid waste disposal or wastewater treatment. The District acts as a regional wholesaler of water to its Member and Customer Cities." Make your plans now to invite your spouse or guest and join us for this interesting and fun evening. |
Denise Hickey will provide our presentation Nov. 17. |
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| Hard to believe it's almost time for our Annual Holiday Party already!! Mark your calendar today for the party, to be held on Saturday, December 3 by President Jim and First Lady Rhonda Wolfe at their home at 2705 |
Running Duke, Carrollton, TX 75006. Festivities begin at 6:30 p.m., so dust off that snappy seasonal outfit and put on your party shoes! See you there! |
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As Marc Hill and Mark Wilson progress on the sides of their look-alike Chris Craft Grand Prix, it's time for a little batten bending. The battens that back up the seams behind the side planks take quite a bend at the bow, so steaming is required. Enter the club's steam generator and box, created by resident chief engineer, Seb Borrello. The device uses a water heater element housed in a joint of pipe to boil water entering from below. Steam then rises to the blue hose, then goes into the insulated box where it
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builds up heat to steam the boards inside. Above right, Marc Hill checks the steam temperature with the device's thermometer. Below left, Mark Wilson assures tight side seams with clamps. Below right, a closeup of Hill's side planks. In other news, the two marine engines Robin and Troy have been working on are running, and they've sold! The Club will receive some of the proceeds from the sale of the Gray. Thanks, guys! See the Gray Marine run here, and see the Chrysler Marine hemi run here.
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Next Meeting is November 17th at Midway Point, Don't Miss It! Join us at the Midway Point on Thursday, November 17th for the next monthly meeting of the WBA. It's our Annual Guest Night meeting, so be sure to bring your spouse, your significant other, your best friend, your main squeeze (pick one). Dinner begins at 5:30 p.m.; the meeting itself will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday, November 17th at the Midway Point at LBJ and Midway Road. We'll also be voting on our slate of officers for the coming year, so if you don't like your congressman, now's the time to throw him out! Join us for a light meal and moderate libation at 5:30 p.m. at the Midway Point prior to the meeting. The first 10 bucks of your guest's ticket will be reimbursed by the Club! Talk about a stimulus package! Shop Talk and Musings: Before I forget, while you're marking your calendars, you might as well go ahead and flip to January and put down Saturday, January 14th for the WBA Installation Banquet. Do it now while you're thinkin' about it. When shipwright and fellow WBA member Lew White and I steamed planks for Aeolus, my 1934 28' Columbia River One Design sailboat in 2007, we made a steam box out of a turkey fryer and a piece of radiator hose. It worked fine, but it sure would have been nice to have the slick little steam generator that the Club now has thanks to the very clever Seb Borrello. The unit simply plugs in, and within seconds, begins generating as much steam as you need to bend a board. It's just one of the shared tools available to WBA members at the shop. Every time I go out there, I'm amazed at the depth of work going on. From restoring boats almost from scratch to fine finish work, there's no step in wooden boat restoration beyond the collective expertise of the Club's membership. If you've been thinking about diving into a project, do it this year! Our shop stands at the ready, and you have the knowledge of an experienced group of members at your fingertips. Let's grow our fleet! And, finally: Please take a look in the shed or garage for the leftover parts or other saleable items you can donate to the club. Bring them to any WBA meeting, or contact Phil Wolff at myoldboats@gmail.com for pickup.  |
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