Well today SHADY LADY, a Cumberland River cruiser, came out early this morning and looked good. The reason for hauling was two fold, one, the shaft packing on the port engine was totally gone, and two, the hub on the starboard side was loose at the key. It was a beautiful almost perfect day to do this, not anything more than a bird chirping in the trees, and occasional cloud in the sky, and the sounds of a pair of 327Q motors coming from a vintage Chris Craft. Yes, it was a pleasure to be there!

We met at the marina at 9:00 AM and she was out of the water shortly thereafter with little fanfare. Our (Commodore Yacht Club) has a new truck with a very low gear and it will haul boats without even putting your foot on the gas. This is a great improvement over the truck we had previously, which had to be revved up, in order to snatch the load out of the water. For this reason, I rented my own yard truck last season when I hauled TRADITION. They saw how easy my rental did the job, and now they have one that does the job even better. It’s great to be at a marina (this is a private club) where the allow you to haul your own boat and work on it yourself. This is the true essence of boat ownership, and it is a vanishing thing these days.

Here is a photo of Bill French at the wheel, taken early this morning. Bill is a retired truck driver and he owns FRENCH LADY, a fast Gibson house boat. There’s nobody you would rather have giving you a hand with a dual axle 10-wheel truck like this, than Mr. French. Bill is about as avid a boater as there ever was, out day and night in one boat or another, one of the all-time great guys and a great resource to have at any yacht club. A few years ago, Bill and I personally installed 12 large hybrid Sunset Maple trees, and numerous Japanese Maple accent trees in berms, in front of each of the docks at our club. Bill ran the front end loader, I did the coordination, buying, and placement. We also added new concrete sidewalks at that time.





See more photos in the following posts.

Regards, Paul

AS Bill moved the lift around, SHADY LADY took her position in the channel, patiently waiting.


Once the lift was in the water, SHADY LADY made her move, gliding across the water with the faint burble of 460-hp barely audible in the morning sun.









When the signal was given, SHADY LADY made her way into the sling, maintained here position as directed, and shut off engines. From there, we tightened the manually operated chain hoists (which I installed at our club many years ago) and secured the boat.

From there it was up to Mr. French to motor up out of the water and onto the deck, which he did with his usual aplomb.

More photos in the next posting.........

Regards,

Paul

Once out of the water it became readily apparant that we needed to tend to the pressure washing. Bill planted the boat in a nice shady spot, and the fun began!









Well Gene, (my dad, who got me started in boating at a very early age) took to the pressure washer like a duck to water, and you couldn’t pry that wand away from him if you had to. Would you believe this guy has just celebrated his 80th birthday? THIS is what boating will do for you! J I’m hoping this runs in the family too!

Pressure washing under way. The paint actually looks good. Blisters??? You GOT to be KIDDING????????? What’s a blister? All kidding aside, there was not even the slightest hint of a blister on this hull. This boat has lead a very pampered life!

More photos in the next posting.............

regards,
Paul

Me? Well, while dad was having all the fun with the pressure washer, lol, I was relegated to pulling out a twisted off stud from a hub, and packing both shafts with new packing material. Sheesh, my life for the afternoon was a small space in the bilge where I could hardly move a leg or an arm without bumping into something. I got down into the far Port outboard side of the port motor, and could hardly crawl back out. My belt had a Gerber knife on it, and it kept hanging up on the hatch enclosure, and I’m sure it would have been a great entry into “the world’s funniest video” program.

Here is the patient before surgery.....note the twisted off stud, making it impossible to remove the hub untill this is tended to.


Here is the patient during surgery......note the so called Easy Out tapped into the drill hole with a hammer, ready for removal.


First I drilled the old stud out, all the way down to the stainless steel shaft. I then used a larger diameter drill bit to further weaken the stud and allow for a bigger “Easy Out”. Whoever came up with the term “Easy Out” was a marketing genius, but the guy probably never actually used one of these wretched devices. Not so easy, but finally effective.

We thought we would have to remove the hubs to do the packing. That was the consensus last fall when we put the boat up. It looked too tight to pack anything without removing the hub, but faced with hub removal, I can ASSURE you I looked again and very closely, indeed. Guess what, there was barely enough room to add more packing, which I did (1/4” by the way, for the 31). Packing goes into the forward casting, and when it is screwed on tight, it compresses everything back into the casting an against the shaft.

The Easy Out wasn’t so easy, and as you can see, it was tougher than the so called Heavy Duty pipe wrench from Taiwan. Fortunately, I had other tools to do this job with me.

Can you believe this? I had this piece of equipment in my tool box for years, used it last to replace a ball cub shifting device on my 1983 928, and poof...........gone in sixty seconds. It is now purged from the tool box. No more pipe wrenches from Taiwan!

more photos in the next posting..........

Regards, Paul

Here is my home for the afternoon, hugging a pair of warm 327Q motors on a relatively warm day. Well it could have been worse, I could have been at the office !!!!!!!!



I mentioned to one of the guys in the club who came over to check us out, to remember “a bad day working on the boat is still better than a good day at the office”. Everyone had a hearty laugh and agreed!

As the afternoon wore on, we continued to work inside the boat and on the hull.











Another photo in the following posting.......

Regards,

Paul

Introducing, Dr. Robert Pletcher, 31' Commander owner, and my dad!



When you see the threads "we do it for the children", there is a reason. This is the guy who got me into boating somewhere around 1958 in a 35-hp Evinrude powered Duracraft. At the time I was about 7 or 8 years old, and boating on any scale was the coolest thing in my life!

We ran that boat for many years, we all water skiied behind it on Conneaut Lake, and as a matter of fact, my dad is still running the same boat now on Tampa Bay for restaurant cruises, and for afternoon boat rides, but with a new motor!! That boat, by the way, with it's tail fins and tail lights, is a real collectors item these days!

As the boys got a little older, we both moved on to bigger boats! I was the first to move to a cruiser, with the acquisition of our beloved 1968 35' wood Sea Skiff, see the wood boat section of our MASTER INDEX FILE for a six page article on that boat, and one day my mom and dad were having such a great time aboard, they announced they were going to buy a cruiser.

I was estatic, and we searched the area for a good boat. I had already had my eye on a Commander, having seen Ronnie Pearce's 38 and was astounded at the detailing. We found SHADY LADY at Cedar Creek Yacht Club years ago, and she has been living at Commodore Yacht Club ever since. During this time, Janet and I sold our wood Sea Skiff and bought our much loved 38' Commander, TRADITION. The tradition started with my dad, and we're continuing it in the appropriate manner. Our family presently owns 140' of Chris Craft boats ! This is the guy who started the whole thing.




Regards,

Paul

It looks like a really tight place to work, broken wrench and hopefully no skinned knuckles. Were you able to get the twisted off bolt out? I had to torch heat mine and they still didn't come easily. It looks like a nice boat and it's good to be able to work with your dad. Isn't it odd how they don't know too much as you're growing up and as you get older they seem to get smarter? Hope all goes well..
Mike

Paul, the boat looks great, and it was a special day for you and your dad. Great story, and I love the photos. Thanks for taking the time to post the images and the comments. Good stuff !!

Howard
1968 38 Express

You guys look like you had a fun day. I admire anyone who will do this kind of work themselves these days, it is a vanishing thing. I think many of the people who own the vintage boats are more inclined to "do it themselves", than to turn their pride and joy over to a marina. Many people just don't have the facilities to do this and they're stuck without an option.

Part of the marine culture I love and appreciate, is the boatyard scene, where you can see people working on their boats, stop by, chat a little bit, and soak up some of the atmosphere. You are lucky your marina has such a nice facility where you can pull a boat and work on it like this.

Tom

We can't find help like that in Gulfport, just wondering it he'll travel, lol. Just kidding of course. Nice job, good looking 31. I always liked that model, and it looks like a keeper.

Roy

Paul, it's pretty evident where you got the boating bug. Really nice thread, and nice to see you and your dad spending this kind of time together. Good stuff.

James

Yesterday was cool and apparently productive at the marina. I drove down today to check on things, and I was surprised to see the bottom already painted and dad working on buffing the hull! It was so hot we both agreed it was a good idea to stop now, and resume when it was cooler.


Bow badge removed, ready for rechroming!

It's just hard to keep a boy away from his boat!

Regards,

Paul

Well things went smoothly this morning, thankfully. Bill French fired up the big 10-wheel, and gently maneuvered SHADY LADY over to the ramp. Then ever so slowly, he backed down into the water. As the boat hit the water engines were fired up and it sat idling until we were able to slack off the straps enough for it to back out.








We met at 9:00 AM, it was another beautiful morning in the heartland. Cool, a little cloud cover, and a gentle breeze. A perfect day to launch a Chris Craft Commander !

More photos in the following post…………………..

Regards,
Paul

With a touch of the gear selectors, the boat backed out without a fuss and was off. This is almost an identical activity my dad and I did almost one year ago to the day. That time it was with a 38’ Express, TRADITION. This time it was a 31’ Sedan.

The sounds of a 31 Commander with a pair of small block Chevy motors is very cool. It sounds just like a boat should sound, none of this whisper quiet stuff. Just a gentle burble, but the kind of sounds any boat or automotive enthusiast would pause a moment to enjoy. I have some videos of the launching and I’ll upload those at a later date. You’ll be able to hear those twin 327Q motors burble.

After a short run, we found the shaft packing was warm, we backed it off a bit to allow a bit more water to drip through. All is well.

Regards,
Paul

I have been looking for one of these "baby 38s" for quite some time now, and this one looks spotless. With only 158 of these gems made 36 years ago, there aren't many in this kind of condition. The chrome and gelcoat look bran new on this boat. You guys in Tennessee have it good, no salt water to deal with, huh?

Mike

You guys move fast! I am envious of your marina where you can do the work yourselves. That little 31 looks immaculate, and I'm wondering now if there are any more pristine Commanders hidden in Tennessee waters.

Howard
Huntsville, AL
1967 38 Express

These photos were taken during my second test run of my 1966 20' fiberglass Chris Craft Sea Skiff shakedown run. SHADY LADY was the photo and chase boat for the event, and it did a great job. This is one of the nicer late 31' Commander Sedans around, chrome is perfect, gelcoat and overall condition is very good, and 327Q motors run strong. It was originally owned by one of the Motlow family, heir to the Jack Daniels whiskey fortune. Rumor has it, the gent just liked to go to the boat and sit (and sip). Fortunately, he didn't sip and drive at the same time!






Regards,

Paul

I was washing TRADITION getting ready to take a boat load of office co-workers and friends out for dinner last Thursday eve, when I heard the unmistakable burble of a classic boat. I looked up and here comes SHADY LADY, my parents 31' Sedan, all shined up, dad and mom were both smiling, and then coasted up for a chat. In the meantime I was breaking a sweat on the foredeck with a scrub brush, a little bleach, some soap/wax, etc., getting ready for company to arrive in about an hour. Thus is the life of a boat owner, working and working until guests arrive, and then it looks like the life of luxury, ha.

Here are a few photos of the 31 Sedan, it's a great boat if you like the Sedan model, as my parents do. They like getting inside away from the heat, and they also like cold weather cruising too. I on the other hand prefer the Express model, but each to their own. I'd love having one of either.







Regards,

Paul

Here's a view of that back seat, through the cabin, yeah that's me in the green boat closing quickly.


Regards,

Paul

Nice....and the 928 Porsche?

Don't get me started !
Here's my '83 S 5-sp, fastest car sold in North America that year.
I may have to show you the burn on my arm, from a 928 manifold!
Not a pretty sight.
To bad it doesn't say "928", at least I could get some milage out of it.








Once you get accustomed to the rear wheel steering of the Weissach rear axle, nothing else will do!
I'm running a gutted ANSA by the way, nice!

Regards,

Paul

Nice ride, that's for sure!!!

You, sir, have expensive tastes!
Craig

You are what you drive.

Here's the last of the threesome, it's a DOHC aluminum injected 4-valve hemi, and it is as fast as the V8 928 and a blast to drive. Quality machinery now 19 years old, complex, expensive to fix, but always puts a smile on your face every time you twist the key Hey, isn't that what a boat is supposed to do for you too?




This is a massive 4-cylinder motor larger than many six cylinder motors, so big it requires two balance shafts, and guys, it will pull all the way to redline.




The white car is a S2 Cabriolet, the blue car is the same chassis but with the SOHC motor, still loads of fun.

I love driving them, but the only way I can do it is to do all my own mechanical and maintenance work, which means I have to have all the books, get immersed into the parts and repair culture, and bleed a little bit on week-ends. Oh yeah, and unfortunately a burn now and then too. Those exhaust manifolds stay hot a LONG time, not a pretty mental mememory for me. One thing about these cars, you have to dissassemble half the car to get to anything. And..............if you know anyone who has replaced a brake master cylinder on a 928, ask them about it. You'll see what I mean.....they were not meant to be worked on, just driven. Fortunately not all tasks are that difficult. They make up for it on the road. By a comparison, a 327F or a 427 Ford is a pure joy to work on simply due to the awesome industrial build quality, and the fact that they are relatively simple and much easier to get to (and work on).

Could I get accustomed to driving a 1968 Mustang fastback with a 390 FE and a 4-speed, or perhaps a Shelby derivative? You bet! I just never had one to get started, but hey, there's still time!

(I'd really rather be driving a Chris Craft).

Regards,

Paul