Greetings from Painesville (Ohio)

Click on picture to enlarge it.

Eagle eyed CMBA member, Chandler Owen spotted this old postcard on flea-bay.  As can be seen, the card greets us from Painesville, Ohio.  However, of the boats which I can identify by sail number, I'm led to believe that the venue isn't from the "buckeye state", but instead somewhere in the Charleston, South Carolina area.  Perhaps Mount Pleasant?

The boat on port tack, closest to the camera, is Randall Swan's Connecticut design Blue Moon II, Nr 1149.  I don't know if Randall is at the tiller or not but the ID of the boat is not in question.  Interestingly, this boat and several others are being sailed two up which tells us that the young skippers were too light to keep their boats flat with the available wind at their disposal.  Now that we're adults this is no longer a requirement!

Randall's father bought this particular boat from a display at the 1949 New York Boat Show, directly from her designer/builder, Skip Etchells.  At the time, Etchells operated a business called "Old Greenwich Boat Works", located in Old Greenwich, Connecticut.  Perhaps the most significant aspect of the Connecticut was the rig.  Etchells is probably better know as a Star boat builder and competitor.  As such he was largely responsible for introducing the Moth Class to "bendy" masts.  Randall once told me that the young sailors with Connecticut Moths didn't quite know what they were doing when they sheeted in hard and bent the mast, but they knew that the boats were more controllable and thus faster in a big breeze.

The boat with sail number 1202 is, I believe, Rob Johnson in Gremlin.  I'm fairly sure that this boat and Nr 1103 are Darby-built Ventnor Moths.  The old records in my possession indicate that Nr 1203 was owned by Gordon Darby.  Gordon may well be in this picture.  As is the case with many pictures, the more distant boats defy identification and so their designs and skippers remain a mystery.  A mystery which perhaps some reader can partially elucidate with a comment.

In closing, here we have another interesting old postcard featuring Moth Boats on sunny, sparkling waters to ponder over a chilly winter night--even if I remain unconvinced of the venue.  It's a pity that modern postcards so seldomly feature scenes with boats or yacht clubs or races any more.  That makes ones like this one, which I think dates to about 1952, all the more interesting to find.

Added after posting:  I just rec'd this input from Randall Swan:

You are right about the location of the race being Mt Pleasant.Photo shows Castle Pinckney to the West and the only regatta in that location would have been the Mt. pleasant regatta. I believe the dote is 1951, as that was the last year I needed a crew for ballast in most conditions.

Thanks for the photo. Those were the days!

 

Thanks Randall!  I was off a year!

I tawt I taw a Ventnor Moth.

One of the things I didn't mention in my earlier posts about this year's National Regatta is that Erky's widow, Alma, had decided to offer his vintage division Ventnor Moth Boat for sale.

John Z. decided to step up to the plate and is now the new owner of Tweety.

The boat is in overall good condition and came complete with two sails, spars and blades.

But like all boats approaching 70 years of age, this one has her share of things to correct.

But there's nothing here that John can't fix.

Although Tweety's original IMCA sail number is unknown, she does have a Ventnor Boat Works production number stamped into the expected place--the forward centerboard trunk log.

She'll rest in John's shed until he has time to move her into his workshop.  Once fettled, she'll be a welcome addition back in the vintage division racing fleet.

Moth Sailboat Fleet, Stone Harbor (1952)

Here is a facsimile  of an old post card which I bid on but failed to win from a well known on-line auction site.  This photograph, showing the up-wind leg of a race at the Stone Harbor YC, reinforces my assertion that most so-called development classes boil down to a series of very similar boats for a given era and venue.  In this picture 100% of the boats close enough to be clearly identified are those built by the old Ventnor Boat Works from roughly 1940 up to about when this exposure was made.   The only differences seen among these Moths are those of the two slightly different Ventnor designs-- early Ventnor Moths, produced prior to (and a very few during) WW II, had transom bows while post war Ventnors featured a redesigned "bull nose" bow.  A very few pre-war boats also sported canvas fore decks in an attempt to reduce weight.

If I were to substitute this picture taken in 1952 with one from 1962, most of the boats would be of the Cates Florida design. In 1972 the majority of the boats would be narrow water line designs such as the Duflos and the Mistral.  The top dogs of the fleet tend buy the latest equipment and the rest follow along in a herd mentality sort of way.   For the most part, "development" staggers along at a generational pace with occasional "break through" designs and occasional flops.  This is a good thing--no one wants their new boat to be totally obsolete within a few months.

 Checking the surviving Moth Class records from this era I found it interesting that none of the boats with sail numbers close enough to the camera to be read are from Stone Harbor YC!

Nr 742 Black Beury, sailed by Harry Beury, Margate City YC
Nr 659 Name unknown sailed by A. McGee, Margate City YC
Nr 686 Champ sailed by Bob McGurk, Margate City YC
Nr 752 Nutshell sailed by Bill Maguire Ocean City YC
Nr 642 Circe sailed by John Elfman Margate City YC
Nr 640 Black Cloud sailed by Henry Hood Ocean City YC

Perhaps the boats in the lead are Stone Harbor boats, making full use of local knowledge!

Ventnor Moth for sale

One of the more pleasant aspects of putting together a blog about Classic and Vintage era Moth Boats is the unearthing of a survivor boat.  Particularly so if the survivor is more or less intact and hasn't been subject to change from period authentic hardware.  Such is the case of the subject of today's post.  The current owner of this boat first contacted fellow blogger Tweezerman and Tweezerman, in turn, tipped me off.  After exchanging a few emails I rec'd the following ad with photos to share.  Interested parties can contact the seller directly.

Classic Ventnor Moth circa 1947

This is a post WWII Ventnor Boat Works moth.  It was bought from Ross Equipment Company in Norfolk, VA by my grandfather.  It was used sparingly by my mother for a few years.   The boat has been stored in garages for at least the last 55 years.  The boat and all the equipment are original except for the sail.  The sail appears to be an aftermarket sail from Hilton Head, SC.  The sail is the correct size and is in good shape.  The boat needs work to make it sailable.  I do not know how much.  The boat is located in Winston-Salem, NC.  I would like to find her a good new home. Sale Price:  $500.

Email: burtonkshields@gmail.com

A bow view of the boat and her equipment.

A relatively rare builder's tag.  I've seen a couple versions of this tag but many boats either didn't get one at the works or lost the tag along the way.

Russ Equipment Company was a general seller of boats, including war surplus.  From what I can gather they are no longer in business.

A view of the cockpit.  Note the broken floor board. Nice to see a natural finish inside the hull. The future owner will be spared the task of removing peeling paint from around the frames of the boat.  I've been there, done that--not fun.

A view from the stern.  The period correct barn door rudder with wishbone tiller appears in good condition.

 

The sail appears to be relatively new and is not the Egyptian cotton sail originally issued with the boat.

Sail maker details.  This tells us that the sail is no older than postal zip codes or telephone area codes.  A quick google search suggests that either the loft is out of business or has changed its name.  A quick phone call might prove me wrong, but I'll leave that up to the prospective buyer.

In sum, this appears to be a nice way for someone to enter into the world of Vintage Moth Boat sailing and racing.  I hope to see this boat on the race course soon!

Elizabeth, initial survey part II

Let's step the mast.  Like most vintage era Moths, the Ventnor has a hollow mast with an internal halyard.  The heel of the mast has a "clothespin" notch which slips over a similar one in the keelson.

The standing rigging is a simple three stay configuration.  The bow stay has retained its Ventnor Boat Works-made pelican hook.  The hook has a home made "keeper" made from a copper hog ring.  The original keeper was made from copper tubing.  Both side shrouds have lost their pelican hooks.  Someone replaced them with screen door quality turnbuckles.  The turnbuckles were missing their bottom eyes.  Fortunately those eyes are the ones with right-hand threads and so I was able to come up with enough bits and pieces to kluge the rig together for the purpose of rigging the boat in my front lawn.

The stay wire is rusty, brittle 1/4" galvanized wire that is full of "meat hooks" and has long since lost its zinc coating.  I'll replace them with 1 x 19, 3/32" stainless steel braid.  Hopefully I'll be able to source a proper sized threaded eye to replace the swagged terminal.  I have a couple of period correct pelican hooks in my hardware collection for the side stays.

At the other end of the mast, the hounds are a scant 21" from the tip!  I wonder how much this mast will bend?  The mast on Bill Boyle's Ventnor has the hounds set at 28" from the tip.  Another difference between supposedly "production" boats.

Before stepping the mast, the tail of the halyard must first be fed through the deck partner.  Note the nice "streamlined" boss that protects the deck at the partner.

How does one retrieve the tail of the halyard from the far reaches under the bow deck?  Why with a "Higgins Stick" of course!

A Higgins Stick is nothing more than a coffee cup holder screwed into a piece of dowel.  Chuck Higgins, a member of the founding generation of Moth Boaters showed me this little trick before he passed away.

The mast stepped.

The sail up for perhaps the first time in many years.  Not a bad looking sail considering it's Egyptian cotton and is as old, if not older, than I am.  Two of the sewn-in battens are broken and will need replacing.  This boat was probably purchased with day sailing in mind and was probably never raced since the sail doesn't have the Circle-M class insignia.  Boats of this era often did not have numbers on the sails.  The identifying numbers were instead painted on the bow deck.

Merv Wescoat's sister worked in the sail loft at VBW.  I wonder if she stitched together this sail?

Rigged up; port side view.

Rigged up; starboard bow.

Rigged up; stern view.

I think that handy, but heavy bronze Herreshoff bow cleat will have to go.

The trigger on that little bronze hook has a bad case of arthritis.

I'll let it "rest" for a few weeks in this penetrating oil bath and see if it loosens up.

 With cold weather closing in I'll probably work on getting that red rudder to fit and then wait for spring.  Hopefully I'll get this boat back on the race course this summer.  In the meantime, I've been supplied with contact information for an elderly previous owner and hope to learn some of the boat's history.  I've been told that the boat was named after his first wife.

Elizabeth, an initial survey.

OK, in my last post I teased you with just a look at the damaged boom from my latest acquisition.  Yesterday provided a rare warm day in January so it's time for a full reveal.  Just what's under the tarps?

A lovely Ventnor Moth ripe for restoration.

Meet Elizabeth. 

As I mentioned in the last post, some of the deck seams have opened up since I last saw this little boat a year and a half ago.

Most of the cracks and open seams appear to be in the forward portion of the deck.

However, there is this somewhat worrisome crack which extends from the starboard chain plate all the way to the bow block.  The rig feeds a lot of the load from the sail through the shroud chain plates and then throughout the hull, so a solid repair will be required.  Probably the deck will have to be removed to accomplish this.

The dagger board trunk also has a dodgy looking fiberglass repair.  The trunk will need to come out and either a new one fabricated or if possible, the original one carefully pulled apart and reassembled.

The port side of the trunk has a wooden jam cleat for the halyard.

The floor boards are a collection of original (darker wood) and replacements.

Zooming in on the center floor board.  Splits starting at a fastener hole are a common failure mode.  Note, more dodgy looking glass on top of the keel.

I poked the camera up under the bow deck for a look-see.  Cobwebs and probably part of a rat's nest first catch the eye.  Otherwise the framing and bottom ply panels look to be in good condition.  The line coming down and through the cheek block, mounted on the keelson, is for the downhaul.  Note the notch in the keelson just ahead of the cheek block.  That is the mast step.  The heel of the mast has a matching "clothes pin" shape that matches the cut out in the keelson.

Looking under the stern deck we see more cobwebs, the fasteners for the rudder bracket and one end of the traveler rod.

The dagger board is the familiar and correct Ventnor Boat Works shape.

One of the always interesting mysteries encountered when taking over a used boat is trying to figure out the purpose of odd bits of gear which convey with the boat.  I have no idea how a previous sailor of this boat used this bit of poly line with the two swivel hooks.

Ditto this bit of clothes line with a small bronze snap hook.  It's too short and too fat to be the line used to attach the foot of the sail to the boom.  The hook has a bad case of arthritis but I'll keep it anyway.

In the days before Harken and Ronstan, the best boating hardware came from the hardware store.  This "shackle" attaching the block to the traveler rod must have been sourced from the Tractor Supply Co.

But it's not all bad news in the hardware dept.  This bow chain plate is an original VBW piece.

As are the shroud chain plates,

the rudder bracket

and the traveler rod.  At some point the traveler rod got bend.  Hopefully I can cold set the rod back to more or less vertical.

However, this rudder/tiller/hiking stick are clearly home made items.  One wonders what happened to the original VBW "barndoor" rudder with its distinctive "wishbone" tiller?

Fortunately, your diarist never throws anything away.  This is an original Ventnor barn door rudder with wishbone tiller.  This was from Moth Nr 764, one of the two Ventnor Moths which I raced in the late 1950s.  Nr 764 was heavily damaged in a port/starboard incident and in those days a Ventnor Moth wasn't a collector's item, just a worn out race boat.  I stripped the hardware from the hull, sold off what I could and salted the rest away for future use.  Apparently the "future" is now.

Let's see if she fits.  The blade made it under the traveler rod, so far so good...

The top pintle fits the bracket giving the tiller the required clearance between the stern deck and the traveler,

but the lower pintle is about 1/4" too high for this bracket.  VBW must have changed their rudder bracket design at some point during production of these boats.  I have two choices; either lower the pintle or root around in my junque hardware dept. and see if I still have the rudder bracket that matches this rudder.  Maybe yes, maybe no. 
We'll see...

Originally, the main sheet was lead down from the boom to a block on the tiller, back up to the boom, down to the traveler and then to the hands of the skipper.  A common modification in the '50s was to remove the block from the rudder and mount it mid-way up the boom so that the skipper turned forward during tacks and gybes, the "modern" way rather than facing aft (and turning one's back on one's competitors) during maneuvers.  I may do that on this boat as well.

Another racer mod back in the day was to add short hiking sticks to each arm of the wishbone.  I will certainly do that.  In the next post, I'll rig the boat and hoist the sail--probably for the first time in many years.