At the November WBA meeting, the members in attendance agreed that this beautiful 1956 Chris-Craft 20' Holiday should be made available for sale exclusively to WBA members. The motor will be running, and all mechanical and electrical systems will be operational. Robin McGeorge is spearheading the project, and so far, has done the lion's share of the work! If no WBA member is interested in this lovely boat, it will be sold on the open market.

(Above) The Holiday sports a 130 hp Chris Craft "M" flathead six engine. The engine will be run and tested before sale.

(Below) The gas tank is good as new with a fresh coat of paint on the outside and a thorough cleaning and sealing on the inside. For the full story, click here.

The chrome could use polishing, and most likely re-plating, and for the boat to compete well in shows, it could use a refresh of varnish and some work on the deck seams, but the new owner can take on these tasks after purchase. The boat is currently valued in the $17,500-20,000 range. If you are interested in acquiring this boat, contact David Kanally, 940-395-2742. Please seriously consider this opportunity to add this boat to the WBA fleet!

(Above) The gas tank has been removed so a fresh coat of bilge paint could be applied to the compartment. The tank was emptied, removed and cleaned.

(Below) The fuel pump has been removed, rebuilt with a fresh rebuild kit, and reattached. Fuel lines will be attached when the tank is put back in.

Officer Installation Banquet January 21, Register Now!

We're changing the venue for the Annual Officer Installation Banquet. This year, we'll celebrate at the Blue Mesa Grill in Plano, near the intersection of 121 and the North Tollway. Our speaker will be Chris-Craft Commander guru Paul Pletcher.

The banquet is our yearly opportunity to recognize the service of our outgoing officers and officially install our new officers. In addition, it's a great chance to see what we all look like cleaned up and nicely dressed!

Please make special note of the new venue, and don't show up where we had the banquet last year! It'll be great to gather in this new venue and enjoy each other's company. Reserve your spot soon.

Here's a map to the Blue Mesa Grill.

James Propeller Provides Power to November Meeting!

Doug Harris of James Propeller gave an informative presentation on the design, construction, maintenance and repair of propellers for inboard, outboard and stern-drive boats. Doug explained how the proper prop, pitch and diameter are determined to assure best rpm and power performance from a boat’s engine. James also does propeller repair. The staff remove damaged metal, reset

the props, weld new metal to replace damaged sections, then grind the props to original spec. Following grinding, the props are balanced and cupped, then re-balanced to assure optimum performance. Thanks, Doug! This meeting was our Guest Night, and we were very happy to welcome a number of spouses and other guests!

News on other WBA Member Projects!

(Above) Sitting pretty on the shop floor in Lucas is this fully rebuilt Chris-Craft 327 V-8 engine, just waiting for a quick refresh and test, followed by a sale to a lucky WBA member. If you're interested in this engine, contact David Kanally. This engine was donated to the Club by longtime member and WBA stalwart Guy McCollum of Fort Worth. The engine has been fully rebuilt, but has sat for a while. Why not take on the refresh work yourself and get a deal!

(Below) Lew White and Bob Adair have been making good headway on their little sailing dinghy. Lew reports that all the wood shavings on the floor are from the work on the mast (clamped to workbench in background).

(Above) Dennis Cheatham has completed his numerous spray coats of clear on the beautiful mahogany hull of his '58 Yellow Jacket, and it looks like a piece of jewelry!

Yellow Jacket began using mahogany for their molded hulls in 1957, having run into some dry rot problems with its earlier birch hulls. They not only solved the rot problem, they improved the beauty of their hulls significantly.

(Below) Lew says his smoothing plane is hot from so much work on forming the mast! All we know is, this little boat will be a real treat to own and sail, once she's complete. The WBA isn't just about power boats!

Next WBA Monthly Meeting February 16, 2017. Planning Session!

Our next meeting will be Thursday, February 16, 2017 at 7 p.m. at Two Guys from Italy at 11637 Webb Chapel Road, just south of Forest Road. We'll be continuing our door prize tradition, giving out a classic boating book from collections donated by Pat Baldwin and Bill McNally to a lucky winner.

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. February is our big planning month, when we lay out our calendar for the year and discuss plans for the Ride 'n Show and other events. Please make a special effort to be there. 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

Since it's a little brisk for boating these days, why not consider having a day at the Shop in Lucas? There's always something good going on there, like the work on the donated '56 Holiday, or Chuck Barber's boat, or engine work. In addition, the shop is in need of cleaning. Why not stop out some Saturday morning and take on the cleaning of a corner of the shop, helping us keep things in order? Access to the Lucas Shop is a benefit to our members, and this would be a good chance for you to support the shop, even if you don't have a project going on there.

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.