Northwest Fishing Reports

The right deal finally happened, so I am going to take on another big project to get out on my own in the salt.



Unfinished 23 foot 1994 Clippercraft Mk 1. She was built, had the engine put in and placed on a brand new trailer that year, and has sat in two different owners hands ever since. A little sad, but she is finally in a place where she will finally get to see completion, paint, water, and a bloody deck.





Will be rigging her for hallies and salmon, with the potential to consider going out on the right day for albacore if the weather opens up the right window. Trunk cabin that will sleep two, porta-potti, with an open cockpit and potentially a floating hardtop. Its all still in the potential stages, gotta see where we end up as far as what works and what doesn't.

Always game to hear ideas on rigging and setup from those more experienced than I in the bigger fisheries.

E

The stats are like this:

23' LOA

8'6" beam (special order, this is an extra wide model)

8" side decks with STOUT backing for downriggers

18 degrees of deadrise forward

12 degrees aft

Working deck is 7'6" (the width of most production boats overall)

140hp volvo IO, will be adding a kicker bracket with probably a 9.9 2 cyl 4 stroke such as the Suzuki or Yam

The hp may seem low to you, but she is a dory. That shallow deadrise combined with a little warp from bow to stern initiates planing at an ultra-slow 9 mph. She planes slow, which equates to excellent efficiency. Even the full cabin 26 footer above her in the lineup had the 140 volvo/SX outdrive combo. Top speed on most of the researched models ran around 33-38 mph depending on load, and a comfy cruise of around 25mph. Great for an offshore chop, not too fast to fly off wave tops, not so slow that you are plowing away.

Plan so far is two downriggers on the corners (able to spin into the propwash aft, right on the edge of the transom), two outward facing rod holders, a single central rod holder (set up for the diver fisheries at B10), and I am very seriously considering putting outriggers on the hardtop to do a wider spread for salmon and maybe someday tuna. She's wide enough to put a third downrigger on, but how often are you fishing 3 lines deep on your boat?

Also, if its my boat, I can puke wherever I want to!

E

Shes a remarkable 1500lbs as she sits, and I think all-up will only creep up to around 2000 (thats my current dry target). That should put max displacement at or below 3500lbs. She will be MUCH lighter than anything that length in fiberglass or aluminum with the same cockpit depth and level of amenities. In fact, when full and loaded for hallies, she should come in about 1000 lbs lighter than my neighbor's 21' campion.

Did I mention that most of the Mk 1's like this average between 5-6 miles per gallon?

E

I prefer a lower deadrise boat for EXACTLY that reason. Less rocking, shallower rolls in a beam sea, etc etc. This is a deep boat, but not terribly tall. Beamy with lots of flare, but not too wide at the chines so she still slips through the water with a lesser amount of effort.

E

Gisteppo wrote:I prefer a lower deadrise boat for EXACTLY that reason. Less rocking, shallower rolls in a beam sea, etc etc. This is a deep boat, but not terribly tall. Beamy with lots of flare, but not too wide at the chines so she still slips through the water with a lesser amount of effort.

E

HEY GIST have ever seen a chesapeake deadrise .i had one when i was a kid drake tail and all! cool boat check it out sometime. still thinkin about that mini tug iam thinkin a 16 more room! are u gonna put a house on the current project or leave it open?

I love draketails on anything, esp a chesapeake deadrise with the short trunk cabin (the cabins that look just like they came off a catboat). Looked at building one a while back, but they are EXPENSIVE with the materials necessary.

This boat will have a trunk cabin (cuddy) forward with a V berth for 2, porta-potti with a pumpout setup, and a windshield. Im also thinking a hard cover instead of canvas on top, similar to the trophy/striper setup, and removable. I like the ability to have radar, rod holders, pots, etc out of the way.

E

It will get a single washdown pump using the water off the engine (no holes in the boat to get water, nothing extra to break or cause us to sink) so that not only do we have washdown, its WARM water so it will dissolve fish gurry faster.

Soft buckets are a necessity.

E

Beautiful classic wood boat, congrats on your find. :thumleft:

That looks awesome E! I don't know much about those boats, what kind of wood is she made with? The color almost makes it look like cedar, but I'm sure that's not what it is.

Enlighten me on drake tails and trunk cabins, I have no clue what either of those are.

Thanks Mike, there will definitely be an open seat for ya for lingers next year if shes done.

Shes 3/8" mahogany ply planking (which does have the same reddish color as cedar) over 1x2 fir stringers made of heartwood. Very rot resistant and very strong. The bottom panels are 5/8" fir MDO with 4 additional 5/8" MDO stringers, making most of the hull 1-1/4" thick and tough as nails. Everything is marine grade, but the decks and sole will be getting an additional layer of fiberglass to make it crab pot and heavy tackle proof. Its also fastened with over 3,000 stainless steel screws...

As to the Chesapeake Deadrise/Drake Tail/Trunk cabin question:



Achingly classic lines, eh?

E

Gisteppo wrote:Thanks Mike, there will definitely be an open seat for ya for lingers next year if shes done.

Shes 3/8" mahogany ply planking (which does have the same reddish color as cedar) over 1x2 fir stringers made of heartwood. Very rot resistant and very strong. The bottom panels are 5/8" fir MDO with 4 additional 5/8" MDO stringers, making most of the hull 1-1/4" thick and tough as nails. Everything is marine grade, but the decks and sole will be getting an additional layer of fiberglass to make it crab pot and heavy tackle proof. Its also fastened with over 3,000 stainless steel screws...

As to the Chesapeake Deadrise/Drake Tail/Trunk cabin question:



Achingly classic lines, eh?

E

I'm down for that invite, thanks! I have some experience in boat building. Back in 83' I built a 16 ft Hartley Trailer/Sailer (New Zealand design). Two years to build, marine plywood with epoxy resin system. Served me well for sailing and even used it as a fishing boat (without the mask) for a couple years out of the old boat house by Edmonds. Put downriggers on it and ran it over to Possession. Sure got a lot of funny looks. But it got me on the water and I caught fish. Over the years it sat in my back yard so last year I sold it to a guy that was going to rehab it and sail with his son. Figured better than letting it fall apart. Never did do an overnighter in it though.

Those little Hartleys got a ton of people on the water, and were decent little sailors for their shape. Fast enough to keep you entertained, but not overly sporty to make you worry about blowdowns in 10 kts of wind or anything.

Why don't you consider building another boat Mike? You've got the experience, you could get started on something that will take you anywhere and everywhere, salt, fresh, etc etc. Millions of designs out there that will suit your family, and better, more ideal setup and performance than production boats available.

E

Wow looks like a great project!!! It'll provide many hours of fun and frustration in the completion. What kind of house are you planning??? For anyone else on the forum I'd have so say you bought yourself a nightmare but, Gisteppo, looking at the other boats you've done, this one is just bigger and I know it will turn out great.
The boat is what it is. It's not meant for a big block, it will never go fast. It's not a planing hull, it will never be fast. It’s a cruiser, not a speedboat. It's a Dory. A big one but none the less a dory! She should be very seaworthy and very comfortable to run. Wood is great at dampening the sound and if you're careful with the insulation she'll yield a very comfy ride. When you get her done and you're ready to make a trip. Make sure you get out all the charts and the tide tables and a good calculator. You'll want to plan the trips carefully. I've done a lot of cruising in 14 knot vessels and it takes a considerable amount of time to cover any water but it's OK, that's half the fun; friends, music, food and beverages make the cruise along with great sightseeing. Here's a link to some pics with specs, this ones for sale in AK. Keep us posted on the progress. What a great project! I wish I had the time for stuff like that.

23' Clippercraft

Thanks for the words Bodo.

Time I have, money I don't, so its all about projects. She should bomb along around 20mph in most seas, as she isn't a deep V. Having been beaten to death in deeper boats at B10 and Neah, I don't see a point, for me personally, to have a huge boat with a deep V that will ride rough at 30mph and burn 6 times the gas when I can go 15-25 mph depending on conditions, be comfortable, and burn little fuel.

You can't beat a dory for seaworthiness, until you get into double ended salmon trollers...

Will be sure to get skookum on tides in the areas we fish, and will know when to say its time to head back...

E

Looking forward to a very professional build! The other boats you have posted pictures of were very nice!

Gisteppo wrote:TAs to the Chesapeake Deadrise/Drake Tail/Trunk cabin question:



Achingly classic lines, eh?

Beautiful! I also checked out the pics of the CK in the link Bodo posted and they're awesome. Boat is much bigger than it appears in photos. Will your floating trunk cabin be similar to the one in that posting or more like the one in this pic? Look forward to seeing your progress photos too!!!:bball:

What happened to Swede's comments?