Including Projects in Lucas and Beyond!
December, 2015

Griffitts, Sheets Named New WBA Pres, VP!

Congratulations to Steve Griffitts (above left), who is seen here with first mate Patrice Mozelewski. Steve was elected WBA President at the November meeting. Steve will be officially installed at the WBA Banquet in January. Steve assumes his duties from Jim Wolfe, who with Rhonda, has served our Club well over the past two years (and in an earlier term!). We're still looking for a Treasurer; John Parish will continue to serve for a brief interim period while a new Treasurer is elected. Let us know if you're interested!

  

David Sheets, pictured above with his wife, Loretta, was elected as the new Vice-President of the WBA at the November 19 meeting. David succeeds Steve Griffitts in the office, and will be working on our club's meeting presentations and event planning in his new role. David will be officially installed at the January Banquet. Welcome Steve and David to your new roles!

Gay Perry will continue as our wonderful Club Secretary! Thanks to all our officers for their service!

Christmas Party This Saturday! Y'all Come!

It's time to kick off the Christmas season WBA style at the Annual Christmas Party on December 5 at the home of President and First Lady Jim and Rhonda Wolfe.

 

 

Details are in the invitation that was sent last week via email. If you haven't received your invitation (for example, if you're a brand new member) let Jim and Rhonda know!

Lew White, Bob Adair Building 12' Sailing Dinghy from Plans!

While most of us are content to restore wooden boats, Bob Adair and Lew White decided to go one step further and build one from scratch! Above, Bob and Lew pose behind the ladder back form for the boat, where the plywood bottom is awaiting fitting.

The 12' sailing dinghy is from plans from Wooden Boat Magazine, and requires carefully cut and scarfed marine plywood planks (above).

The boat's stem is laminated from strips of cedar over a form that Lew and Bob made from the boat's plans. An outer stem, made of two strips of oak, will serve as a tough cutwater and cap for the bow.

  

(Above) Lew eyes the placement of the plywood bottom on the boat's form. The form will provide key fastening points for the placement of the stem, the frame, the transom and the planks of the craft. Once the lapstrake planks are in place and properly fitted, the form will be removed.

(Above) Just one frame is required in the little dinghy, and it is laminated over a form using strips of cedar. The strips are thin and flexible enough to not require steaming.

The transom is fashioned of 11-ply mahogany marine plywood and fastened to the ladder back. The edges of the transom will be beveled to meet the planks exactly. The bevel on each facet of the transom will be different.
Lucas Projects Advance

(Above) Robin McGeorge and Troy Marshall's 1956 Yellow Jacket Catalina has received a pretty thorough sanding of all the deck and hull brightwork. The two guys are contemplating the best way to handle some soft wood in the transom.

 

 

(Above) Chuck Barber's Borum plywood-on-frame outboard has had some time to think about its new bottom. With the CPES fully cured on its frames and the sister frames in place to support the replacement plywood, the next step will be fitting the new bottom plywood sheets.

Next WBA Monthly Meeting February 18, 2016. Don't Miss It!

boatOur next meeting will be Thursday, February 18, 2016 at 7 p.m. at Two Guys from Italy at 11637 Webb Chapel Road, just south of Forest Road. WBA Treasurer and benefactor John Parish will be giving away one of his many boating and woodworking related books as a door prize.

Our meetings are a great opportunity to socialize with fellow WBA members and to talk shop on questions on everything from paint and varnish to carburetor kits. The February meeting is our annual planning meeting, so bring your best ideas for activities and projects for the club!

As always, we'll have generous helpings of fellowship and Italian food.

Join us for a light meal and moderate libation at 5:30 p.m. at Two Guys from Italy prior to the meeting. We encourage you to join us for dinner, so we'll always have the required minimum number of diners to avoid a room charge.

Shop Talk and Musings

We're in our bi-annual time of change...when new officers replace existing ones and we face the future with a newly confignured leadership group. It's a great time to look back over the past couple years and hand out some credit to those who have completed their terms. Jim and Rhonda Wolfe, serving their second term in recent years, have provided wonderful leadership to the Club in many ways. First is their leadership by example in the wonderful restoration of their Coronado, and their near-perfect record of participation in WBA events of all kinds. Next would be their loyalty and generosity toward us as leaders and hosts. Finally, their sincerity in working for the betterment of the club has been an inspiration.

John Parish is due some credit, too. Although John is quick to give credit to others for the work in building our membership to a record 118, it was largely his doing. John acquired mailing lists of classic wooden and glass boat owners from the State, he organized bulk mailing parties with Membership chair Marc Hill and David Kanally, and he kept close track of incoming dues and roster information. The treasury has a very healthy balance. If you're waiting for a chance to serve a healthy organization as its Treasurer, your wait is over! Let us know if you are willing to fill John's shoes.

And finally, please take a look in the shed or garage for leftover parts or other salable items you can donate to the club. Bring them to any WBA meeting, or contact David Kanally at david@historywithheart.com for pickup.