I spent several nights on board Victoria when my brother sailed her into San Diego harbor the summer of ‘77. Then I helped him caulk and paint her in the yards in Long Beach. She filled my head with dreams. I sighed and cried while watching your videos, but happy that you see her for what she was, and that she will live on giving heritage and charm to Arabella. Fair winds.
We would LOVE to know more! We know very very little about Victoria and would really like to learn all that we can. Please email us a acorntoarabella@gmail.com, we would be very interested in talking with you!
Major score!! I see all that bronze and think of cold winter nights sitting near a nice fire slowly bringing those old castings back to life. Your videos remind me that the greatest thing about what you are doing is the people you meet as much as anything else.Thank you for introducing us to these special souls.
Amen! The people really have been the best part so far! We always felt that "if we build it, they will come", (just like the movie A Field of Dreams) We are total misfits in this modern world and figured if we started the build and put it out there to the world that we were doing this, the other misfits would find us and together we would get er done. So far that has completely come to fruition! We have met a lot of amazing souls, they are out there, they just typically are not in the news or on television. The kindness of strangers is truly staggering if you get out there and meet them!
I prefer “This could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship “ Casablanca. Ha! BTW, you gents are not ‘misfits’, you are ‘mavericks’. Big difference.. Carry on.
Wow, this was one of my favorite episodes. It was clear that getting Victoria was such a huge moment. I watched the whole thing unfold in awe. I'm glad Akiva got to come along and be part of it.
7/10/2022. I must have stumbled onto your channel about the time of you pouring the lead (Episode 24). Last week, you gave wood from Victoria to Bob (The Art of Boat Building) for Arabella’s tender. In typical internet fashion, I’ve subscribed to his channel and just watched S3 Ep 1. He recommended that I watch this episode to learn about Victoria. Now I’ve got to go back and watch your episodes 1-23. This has been an enjoyable trip. Thanks for the videos.
I just watched 185 episodes of the Tally Ho build. I'm looking for another boat build to start watching. I'm on episode 20 of the Acorn to Arabella build with some 300 more to go. I think I'm 7 years behind the build but I will be binge watching you two guys building a boat you guys are awesome keep up the good content
What a gold mine you got. just in the bronze fittings like winches, port holes,latches, catches, knobs and bobs. That alone will cover the price you paid. You are very wise to have laid out this investment. And just think how good all that will look once polished and shining. Beautiful.
Thanks! We are super psyched to have Victoria and all she offers. The best thing about here right now is once the weather warms a bit we will have guest housing! She sleeps 4 so if anyone wants to come lend a hand for a few days or months they can have their own quarters! =)
Great find! Too sad that no one wanted to restore her, but happy to see you guys re-using / re-purposing as much as you can. Hopefully you can also learn from how she was put together.
That's the hope! Helps she is also an Atkin double ender from a similar vintage. The construction looks almost identical and we have already leaned a ton from the short time we have had her. Victoria is a unbelievable resource for us, we are so grateful to have her!
I know you had to break her up for your purposes, but it is sad to see such a beauty destroyed. It probably isn't worth fixing up, but it's still sad. Anyway, I've just gotten into your channel and have binge-watched all the videos to this point and I'm loving it! I don't know how far along you are at this point, but I hope your Arabella is everything you want and the project comes to fruition soon!
Holy cow! She is an absolute treasure trove! The bronze alone boggles the mind. Probably will be somewhat bitter-sweet stripping her down, but I'm sure you'll manage!
It will be a sad day but we will show the old gal a good time between now and then, we will dismantle her with care and re-use everything we can. The hope is to build the tender 100% from Victoria and have Victoria continue as our tender. The mahogany and cedar should make a very beautiful tender!
What a beautiful boat! Its a shame she won't be going back in the water, but her parts are going to a good home. I'm excited to see some of that patina get shined!
A pair of plum-bobs and a tape measure would clear that disagreement up. But hey, it's water under the bridge now! Got the T-Shirts and they're fabulous!
You are finding the zen of any big project. Keep positive outlook and keep moving forward and things seem to fall into place when you need them. Great boat and the bronze is already salty looking so your new boat will have an instant classic look.
You have summed up the way to achieve anything quite well. "Keep positive outlook and keep moving forward and things seem to fall into place when you need them." We regularly get asked about hurdles that are down the road and we just say we will cross that bridge when we get there. No sense fretting over it right now. The amount of help, support, materials, tools... we have gotten very cheap or for free has been astounding. We never could have anticipated all or any those things. It seems every time we hit a wall there is someone nearby ready to lend a hand to go over, under, around or through said metaphorical wall. Just gotta keep the faith and try to cultivate a solid community, the rest will follow in time. We love the patina but all the screws and fastenings will be replaced so we will see. A patina on the port lights, cleats, binnacle.. with shiny screws might look weird. It might all get shined up once for launch day and left to patina as one. Time will tell.
Thanks! There is a ton we can use and a bunch we can use for patterns... Its staggering what Victoria has on/in her. Whoever had that boat build had some money and some good taste! Next week is a detailed tour of Victoria's treasures and the following week we harvest a big spruce we hope to use as our main mast. Hope you enjoy them!!
You did great finding a donor boat that will provide Arabella with may fittings. Like you said the hours saved and dollars saved will more that pay for her purchase and transport costs. The engine and rigging will easily save many thousands of dollars for fitting out Arabella. Plus Victoria will be reborn as a new lady of the sea. Smart move guys.
Yup! That's why we took a 2 minute tour and agreed to buy her. We saw the rudder hardware, windlass and binnacle and we said "we will take her!!" We had no clue those were just the cherries on top!
Incredible find, and as sad as it is that she's being parted, reality is, she's getting a new life in the form of Arabella. Which is better, because let's face it, whomever would've bought this, probably would've done so for parting on markets. Not everyone is as mad as Leo (Sampson Boat Co.) Would be cool if you guys took Victoria's letters and stuck them somewhere deep along with a bottle and a message inside Arabella's bones. A treasure for 100 years in to the future ;)
The plan is to carefully take her apart and build our tender 100% from Victoria and use the name Victoria and the beautiful bronze letters as well. Between the mahogany and cedar we have all the makings of a classy tender for Arabella. There will probably be a few things tucked away for a future caretaker to find in Arabella. It was really cool restoring the family's original farm house and finding things left very purposefully tucked into nooks and crannies.
Oh! Mom! Look what followed me home! Can I keep her? Huh? Can i keep her? Been binge watching your channel after discovering it a couple of days ago. You do realize that in a couple of decades you guys will be legends, just like Larry and Lin Pardey, don'tcha?
LOL The Pardey's have forgotten more about boat building and cruising than we will ever know. We may become as well known but we will never be at their level.
I just want you guys to know I watch a shit-ton of YT vids most of which are similar in subject matter that center around sailboat building or restoration the vast majority of which have Patreon accounts. I chose to become a patron for the first time to help support your efforts as I feel a great deal of admiration for you both and your desired goal. Also, I'd like to let you know, Alix, that the quality of the content you create and release does make a difference in gathering support. One of my main reasons for deciding to help is to contribute to you being able to focus more on the video creation as the financial situation hopefully improves through that gained support. I think you have a lot of potential as a videographer and documentarian. Keep up the good work and good luck to both of you! I'll be looking forward to each new video you release. :)
One last thing, I heard about your channel through the shoutout from Salt & Tar. Their's is a project I'd have considered supporting as well, but since they've already completed most of the main build you two seem like you can use the support a bit more. Anyway, I thought maybe you'd like to know.
Thanks for the lovely comments and the backing on Patreon! We are super thankful to Salt and Tar, SV Seeker, Accidental Sailor Girl and all the others that have helped spread the word of what we are doing. Finances are slowly and steadily improving as our viewership increases. Steve is going to keep working a side job 20-30 hours a week through the winter to get some funds saved away and to recover the money we spent on Victoria. Alix recently was able to go full time on the project (thanks to all the support!) which has made a HUGE difference in cranking out the video's! No more all night marathons trying to get the videos out on time. If current trends continue Steve should be able to go full time or close to it in the spring and we can really make some progress! Thanks again for the interest and support!!
We had them as well! Victoria brought us miles closer to our dream in a very short time and we are so glad that she did not get parted out all over the world, she deserves better than that.
Yay! A new Arabella video. Oh, wait, it's a Victoria video. Sad that old girl is fully decommissioned now, but her spirit shall live on through her donation to a new generation of ocean going vessel. BTW, how long is she? What a great find. So much usable rigging, instrumentation, and some good wood too. Can't wait to see the two married together into a beautiful vessel.
I can emphasize with you guys. Back in '04 I started a scratch built single place all metal aircraft. I'm lucky in that I don't have to make sheets of aluminum for my project. Hang in there it will come together.
I think you made a good call on recycling what you can from this boat. Sentiment can sometimes lead you to get tangled up in hopeless causes. I am currently refitting my second boat- a 48' LOA Colin Archer. She is not nearly as old and in much better condition, but even still, the amount of work she is taking is boggling. Hopefully you get Arabella in the water when you are still young!
Have you seen the restoration of Tally-Ho? If we gutted the interior and peeled of the 18 layers of paint Victoria would look similarly. That's why we are building new, after years of working on old houses and fixing others mistakes and neglect we only want our own mistakes and neglect to deal with =) Best of luck with your boat, 48', that's a lot of boat!
Yes, I have see the Tally-Ho restoration. I asked him about that as well, as obviously, it is more work than building an entire new boat. When he is done, very little of the original boat will remain beyond a few pieces of wood and quite a bit of the hardware. They are not so far from me, so I am going to get in touch with Leo and head up there one of these weekends. Yes, I know all about fixing other people;s poor design and upkeep...been fixing old houses for decades myself. It actually is a good background though for working on boats. If you love boats as we do, one can get sucked into stuff that takes years of your life, which at my age, I do not want to do. I have the refit of my Colin Archer under way, with the intention (yes, that dubious word) of finishing her this year- or by spring a year out. I would go insane if my sailing efforts were totally dependent on finishing my restoration. I have a 40ft steel cutter in excellent nick to keep me on the water. Do you have a goal of when you want to be on the water? I know it takes time...wood is seasoning and all, but good if you have a goal anyway.
For Leo it seems more about preserving history than restoring a boat and for us it's similar, buying a boat would make way more sense than building it but it's not about what makes sense =) The hope and goal is to be on the water around 2020 or shortly thereafter. Things are picking up in terms of RUclips revenue and Patreon support so we are hopeful to both be full time this summer which will make a HUGE difference. Also once we get past the "pigs in space" stage and are fitting wood to existing wood the pace will pick up a bit. I am new to working off of lofted plans and am going very slowly to make sure we get it right. Once it's more concrete I'll feel much more comfy and confident picking up the pace. Will probably only measure 3 times and make the cut instead of 6 and and some head scratching. LOL It's a real learning curve making sense of the lofted plans and where/how to get the right measurements.
Well, it DOES make sense, just from another perspective. Leo is preserving history and tradition, both admirable things in their own right, and you both have similar motivation. I am thinking you are familiar with the wood boat building school in Port Townsend close to Leo? I am preparing for several wood mast building projects- built wood masts. I was fortunate to be able to find some incredible Sitka Spruce and I have about 20,000 BF drying in my shed till I resaw it. I got really lucky with some of that- got a call from a tree service owner I know about having to remove a grand old growth Sitka Spruce about 6ft at the base with at least a 80ft of clear wood and much of the rest just small knot branches, Between that and some other salvage, I am building a good trove of Sitka spruce. for masts and more...love this wood! Measure 6 times and head scratching? Some of my projects are like that! lol
We hope to. The goal is to shave Victoria's main mast and boom down to become Arabella's mizzen and then to make a new main set up for Arabella. The bronze hardware from Victoria's main will get transferred to Arabella's main when the mast gets shaved down. At least that is how we hope to do it, time will tell!
Score! Lots of transferable brass and such. I would almost be tempted to not polish it before putting it in place Arabella. The brass and bronze with the patina on them looks great. But they look good when nice shiny too. Can't wait to sewer what all you can salvage from her. Might even help pay for her selling off the parts you don't use. Great find guys!
If one likes the patina you can simply lacquer the patina-ed brass then keep it waxed , which will effectively halt and preserve any patina. although unlike iron or aluminum, brass corrodes extremely slow to the point that most of that brass hardware will still last a couple more lifetimes in its current condition.
All plans for Victoria's near future! We had a bunch of friends over the day after we got her and had a wild turkey dinner and drinks in her saloon. It was a lot of fun and we are sure it will happen many more times. Doing our best to show the old gal respect and a good time! =)
Thanks! It's a Perkins 4.108m, 53hp. We hope to do a full restoration on the motor in the future. One of these coming summers when it's hot and humid we will fire up the A/C in the wood shop and spend some time tearing down the motor. Seems like a good project to tackle over a hot summer in the A/C instead of frying in the boat house. =)
There are ceremonies for Christening and Re-naming. Is there a ceremony for scraping/salvaging? If there isn't, you should make one up... Having Victoria to re-claim all that hardwood and bronze living on in Arabella, and her history of sailing days gone by is worth celebrating.
We could not agree more! We celebrated her arrival with 8 friends in her saloon sharing a (wild turkey) turkey dinner with copious drinks, stories and laughs. Doing our best to show the old gal a good time and celebrate her past and future.
Yes we do! People are constantly slowing way down when they drive by and we have had a few inquisitors waltz into the boat yard to inquire about what the heck is going on. =)
If you're going to build a tender out of Victoria's bones, build two. Truly believe there would be a market for the second and it wouldn't be all that much more work. Second one always builds faster. Just a thought.
Better yet, raffle off the second lil boat. You’ll have 100K subscribers by then, if not more. If two percent of us would be willing to buy a modest ticket (say 5 bucks) it could provide a nice shot in the arm As you do the final outfitting..Or, have Steve build one while you build the other. Always nice to see a grin on Steve’s face. Lol.
Big Score, Rock on fellas. This is really Bigg and in so many ways... Big thanks to "Salt and Tar" for the recommendation to check out this channel. I have really enjoyed every video the past few months...
You quick inspection at the source boat yard would have given you very limited views of her bones. What happens if you find that the majority of her frames are still solid? I don't see how you could reuse the frames being as they are boat specific, but good frames means that the boat may be restore-able far cheaper than building from scratch. Would you consider this as a viable option to your original plans to build from scratch?
Knowing she was close to 100 years old, had no major work, and was leaking badly from two places in the stem and two in the stern gave us a pretty good idea of her condition. Once we cleaned her out we found floor timbers that have totally rotted away, heads of bolts sticking 2" above what's left of the remaining floor timbers, forefoot, keel timber and stern post are all super soft. She would be a total re-build, more so than Sampson's Tally-Ho re-build. We would guess 75% of her lumber would have to be replaced. We also believe we can build our dingy out of the solid 25% =) Also the extra 6' Arabella will have makes a huge difference to us. Victoria will still save us a ton of time and effort though! The cabinet fronts, saloon table, doors for lockers and head are all mahogany and in close to mint condition. Those alone save months worth of work!
"keel timber and stern post are all super soft. " If you haven't got a keel timber, you haven't got a boat. "So... name the dingy Victoria!" Well, 'Vicky' perhaps.
Thanks for the suggestion! We are going to re-make it with wood and bury it. It is the time honored way of pouring a lead keel and is what we should have done from the get go. Live and learn =)
Cannibalizing an older vessel is a time honored thing, it has always happened and it is the passing of the baton to the next generation. We hopefully pass our best enduring attributes to our heirs. A sailing boat is a living thing, the sails are the lungs, the engine is the heart, but the crew (skipper) is the brain. Don't feel awkward when salvaging an old boat for it will live on if you incorporate it into yours :-)
We don't feel awkward about it at all. It's not until very recently that things became so easily thrown out and replaced. For example Once upon a time nails were so valuable they would burn old building just to collect the nails. Big timbers were easy to come by but those little nails were not. My how the times have changed! The chances of Victoria being rebuilt in the condition she is in is non-existent. Most likely she would have sank on a mooring one day because the bilge pump quit or she would be parted out and sold to the highest bidder and the bronze would scatter around the globe. Being incorporated into Arabella and everything staying together and continuing on/in another Atkin double ender is the best outcome possible for Victoria in our opinion. We are honored to be the ones chosen to get her. Bruce had a lot of offers and he chose to give her to us, we are very thankful!
The neighbors seem supportive so far, they think we are nuts but they are enjoying the spectacle. It's out of the building inspectors realm. The boat is not considered a structure and the tarp has no walls or frame so it's not a building. So long as the neighbors stay supportive we should be alright. If push came to shove we could dismantle her fairly quickly anyways.
Sorry if we were not clear. Victoria's backbone, hull and deck are pretty much shot so we bought her for the bronze, diesel motor, sails, spars and mahogany interior. We are going to use her as guest housing until we have most of a hull built then we will disassemble her and start bolting things into Arabella.
We have surveys from 2004 and 2007. She was in very good shape in 2004 and was in need of some somewhat serious work in 2007 which she never got and it was a down hill run from there. When the previous owner got her in 2010 she was probably worth repairing but after another seven years without any major work the die was cast. But we will re-use everything that we can and give it another long life!
During WW II the US Navy would impress a variety of Boats and Ships for various duties in the caribbean. A vessel such as victoria could have been used as a Picket; to spot potential Submarines. Many Menhadedn Boats were impressed as interisland haulers and even mine destroyers. those boats , many were steamers had new engines installed. Atlas Imperials. Fisherman joined up for the duration and served on boats that were familiar to them. After the war. The Boats and improvements were funneled back to the owners. Not enough has been written about this element of service.
Oh I forgot. I noticed you have placed the jack stands on the grass. I think they should be placed on 1/2 sheets of plywood. The jack stands can then be fixed to the ply. Wooden or metal pegs can then be fixed holding the ply. Why am I so cautious. I worked in a boat yard Florida. A guy was anti-fouling a boat. He was removing one jack stand at a time. So he could paint were the stand had been. There were 3 jack stands on each side so there was always 2 jack stands taking the weight. He had done it hundreds of times and many boat still do it, today. The boat fell over and crushed him to death.
We put a make shift cradle in as well as the boat stands for the winter. In the spring we will do some more milling and set aside some beams to fashion a proper cradle around her. We are actively trying not to get squished!
Hi , guys , i'm doing a showcase on a few channels that inspired me to start this one, and i was wondering if i could use 20-30 second of clips? Thanks in advance !
Sure, Psyched to hear we helped to inspire you to chase your dream! Just remember- the only thing that can stop you is you! Hope to cross wakes on the water some day. Best of luck with the build and video series! Both are a ton of work but very rewarding.
Oh man , I'm finding that out already! , so now I'm full time X3, lol. I never liked the easy way any how.. With how the rest of the world it is amazing me how awesome generous the Community is around boats , especially the builders!!!
She would need to have 70% or more of her timber replaced. We would literally have to gut the interior, pull the keel timber, stern post and bow assembly, re-frame, replace a lot of planks and the majority of the deck and deck beams. Will be faster, easier and cheaper to build a new boat and make use of what we can on Victoria. Besides that extra 6' Arabella will have will make a huge difference for us!
Is Victoria a replacement boat or a dona? I guess you wont know until you get into repairing her. Either way the boat is a gold mine. Just the deck fittings alone are worth $2000.How long is she? You go guys. Don't bow to presser of your fans. Get your arse out sailing.
You guys can't now even say you built your own.. cuz you are stripping a working vessle. And giving no credit to the 50's ford tractor. i thumbs down this one guys
I just watched 185 episodes of the Tally Ho build. I'm looking for another boat build to start watching. I'm on episode 20 of the Acorn to Arabella build with some 300 more to go. I think I'm 7 years behind the build but I will be binge watching you two guys building a boat you guys are awesome keep up the good content
I spent several nights on board Victoria when my brother sailed her into San Diego harbor the summer of ‘77. Then I helped him caulk and paint her in the yards in Long Beach. She filled my head with dreams. I sighed and cried while watching your videos, but happy that you see her for what she was, and that she will live on giving heritage and charm to Arabella. Fair winds.
We would LOVE to know more! We know very very little about Victoria and would really like to learn all that we can.
Please email us a acorntoarabella@gmail.com, we would be very interested in talking with you!
Major score!! I see all that bronze and think of cold winter nights sitting near a nice fire slowly bringing those old castings back to life. Your videos remind me that the greatest thing about what you are doing is the people you meet as much as anything else.Thank you for introducing us to these special souls.
Amen!
The people really have been the best part so far! We always felt that "if we build it, they will come", (just like the movie A Field of Dreams)
We are total misfits in this modern world and figured if we started the build and put it out there to the world that we were doing this, the other misfits would find us and together we would get er done. So far that has completely come to fruition!
We have met a lot of amazing souls, they are out there, they just typically are not in the news or on television. The kindness of strangers is truly staggering if you get out there and meet them!
I prefer “This could be the beginning of a beautiful relationship “ Casablanca. Ha! BTW, you gents are not ‘misfits’, you are ‘mavericks’. Big difference.. Carry on.
Wow, this was one of my favorite episodes. It was clear that getting Victoria was such a huge moment. I watched the whole thing unfold in awe. I'm glad Akiva got to come along and be part of it.
7/10/2022. I must have stumbled onto your channel about the time of you pouring the lead (Episode 24). Last week, you gave wood from Victoria to Bob (The Art of Boat Building) for Arabella’s tender. In typical internet fashion, I’ve subscribed to his channel and just watched S3 Ep 1. He recommended that I watch this episode to learn about Victoria. Now I’ve got to go back and watch your episodes 1-23. This has been an enjoyable trip. Thanks for the videos.
Hooray! Welcome!
I just watched 185 episodes of the Tally Ho build. I'm looking for another boat build to start watching. I'm on episode 20 of the Acorn to Arabella build with some 300 more to go. I think I'm 7 years behind the build but I will be binge watching you two guys building a boat you guys are awesome keep up the good content
What a gold mine you got. just in the bronze fittings like winches, port holes,latches, catches, knobs and bobs. That alone will cover the price you paid. You are very wise to have laid out this investment. And just think how good all that will look once polished and shining. Beautiful.
Thanks!
We are super psyched to have Victoria and all she offers. The best thing about here right now is once the weather warms a bit we will have guest housing! She sleeps 4 so if anyone wants to come lend a hand for a few days or months they can have their own quarters! =)
An inspired decision guys - well done. Not only a fast track source of materials but a treasure of ideas and history - great work. Pete in Mallorca.
Great find! Too sad that no one wanted to restore her, but happy to see you guys re-using / re-purposing as much as you can. Hopefully you can also learn from how she was put together.
That's the hope! Helps she is also an Atkin double ender from a similar vintage. The construction looks almost identical and we have already leaned a ton from the short time we have had her. Victoria is a unbelievable resource for us, we are so grateful to have her!
I know you had to break her up for your purposes, but it is sad to see such a beauty destroyed. It probably isn't worth fixing up, but it's still sad. Anyway, I've just gotten into your channel and have binge-watched all the videos to this point and I'm loving it! I don't know how far along you are at this point, but I hope your Arabella is everything you want and the project comes to fruition soon!
Love your enthusiasm. Makes me smile. Thanx
Thanks! Your kind message made us smile =) smiles tend to be contagious!
Pretty sweet trailer! Saves needing a crane to move a boat!
Holy cow! She is an absolute treasure trove! The bronze alone boggles the mind. Probably will be somewhat bitter-sweet stripping her down, but I'm sure you'll manage!
It will be a sad day but we will show the old gal a good time between now and then, we will dismantle her with care and re-use everything we can. The hope is to build the tender 100% from Victoria and have Victoria continue as our tender. The mahogany and cedar should make a very beautiful tender!
Wow, there is some great stuff in her. That will save you so much time. Fantastic!!
Yes there is!Stay tuned, this coming Friday we will take you on a detailed tour of her treasures!
Great find! And a nice gesture from the previous owner as wel. Good luck guys!
What a beautiful boat! Its a shame she won't be going back in the water, but her parts are going to a good home. I'm excited to see some of that patina get shined!
We will be looking for volunteers to do the shining if you are free =)
so glad i came along for the ride, and looking forward to the rest of the story..
It's going to be a long and windy road but we will take you all on every twist and turn! Hope you continue to enjoy them!
allways and thanks and you give us (old dudes) hope that what was old is new agin.
Now it’s Victoria to Arabella good luck and what a boost Cheers 🇦🇺⛵️⚓️
A pair of plum-bobs and a tape measure would clear that disagreement up. But hey, it's water under the bridge now! Got the T-Shirts and they're fabulous!
You are finding the zen of any big project. Keep positive outlook and keep moving forward and things seem to fall into place when you need them. Great boat and the bronze is already salty looking so your new boat will have an instant classic look.
You have summed up the way to achieve anything quite well.
"Keep positive outlook and keep moving forward and things seem to fall into place when you need them."
We regularly get asked about hurdles that are down the road and we just say we will cross that bridge when we get there. No sense fretting over it right now.
The amount of help, support, materials, tools... we have gotten very cheap or for free has been astounding. We never could have anticipated all or any those things.
It seems every time we hit a wall there is someone nearby ready to lend a hand to go over, under, around or through said metaphorical wall. Just gotta keep the faith and try to cultivate a solid community, the rest will follow in time.
We love the patina but all the screws and fastenings will be replaced so we will see. A patina on the port lights, cleats, binnacle.. with shiny screws might look weird. It might all get shined up once for launch day and left to patina as one. Time will tell.
WOW, buying Victoria has sure filled your plates now!! :)
Very nice guys....congratulations on the purchase looks as if you have a complete rig ready when Arabella can't wait for next week....
Thanks! There is a ton we can use and a bunch we can use for patterns... Its staggering what Victoria has on/in her. Whoever had that boat build had some money and some good taste!
Next week is a detailed tour of Victoria's treasures and the following week we harvest a big spruce we hope to use as our main mast. Hope you enjoy them!!
You did great finding a donor boat that will provide Arabella with may fittings. Like you said the hours saved and dollars saved will more that pay for her purchase and transport costs. The engine and rigging will easily save many thousands of dollars for fitting out Arabella. Plus Victoria will be reborn as a new lady of the sea. Smart move guys.
What a fantastic find! Definitely save a lot of work in the long run. Thanks for the video.
That she is! Glad you enjoyed it, thanks for the comment!
You guys really scored on that one!! Awesome,, looking forward to what you will be using on your build
This coming Friday we will be putting out a more detailed tour of Victoria's treasures and what we hope/intend to re-use. Stay tuned!
Victoria for you two is a treasure trove. all that hardware
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yup! That's why we took a 2 minute tour and agreed to buy her. We saw the rudder hardware, windlass and binnacle and we said "we will take her!!" We had no clue those were just the cherries on top!
Incredible find, and as sad as it is that she's being parted, reality is, she's getting a new life in the form of Arabella. Which is better, because let's face it, whomever would've bought this, probably would've done so for parting on markets. Not everyone is as mad as Leo (Sampson Boat Co.)
Would be cool if you guys took Victoria's letters and stuck them somewhere deep along with a bottle and a message inside Arabella's bones. A treasure for 100 years in to the future ;)
The plan is to carefully take her apart and build our tender 100% from Victoria and use the name Victoria and the beautiful bronze letters as well. Between the mahogany and cedar we have all the makings of a classy tender for Arabella.
There will probably be a few things tucked away for a future caretaker to find in Arabella. It was really cool restoring the family's original farm house and finding things left very purposefully tucked into nooks and crannies.
Love the dinghy plan. Very cool.
Wow...incredible find so happy for you guys!
Oh! Mom! Look what followed me home! Can I keep her? Huh? Can i keep her?
Been binge watching your channel after discovering it a couple of days ago.
You do realize that in a couple of decades you guys will be legends, just like Larry and Lin Pardey, don'tcha?
LOL
The Pardey's have forgotten more about boat building and cruising than we will ever know. We may become as well known but we will never be at their level.
What a stroke of good fortune, it was meant to be.
Well done, all those expensive fittings for a bargain price, you’ve saved thousands.
Yes we have, notice the shit eating grins on our faces? =) We are stoked beyond belief!
Such fun to watch. Cool Cool Cool.
I just want you guys to know I watch a shit-ton of YT vids most of which are similar in subject matter that center around sailboat building or restoration the vast majority of which have Patreon accounts. I chose to become a patron for the first time to help support your efforts as I feel a great deal of admiration for you both and your desired goal. Also, I'd like to let you know, Alix, that the quality of the content you create and release does make a difference in gathering support. One of my main reasons for deciding to help is to contribute to you being able to focus more on the video creation as the financial situation hopefully improves through that gained support. I think you have a lot of potential as a videographer and documentarian. Keep up the good work and good luck to both of you! I'll be looking forward to each new video you release. :)
One last thing, I heard about your channel through the shoutout from Salt & Tar. Their's is a project I'd have considered supporting as well, but since they've already completed most of the main build you two seem like you can use the support a bit more. Anyway, I thought maybe you'd like to know.
Thanks for the lovely comments and the backing on Patreon!
We are super thankful to Salt and Tar, SV Seeker, Accidental Sailor Girl and all the others that have helped spread the word of what we are doing.
Finances are slowly and steadily improving as our viewership increases.
Steve is going to keep working a side job 20-30 hours a week through the winter to get some funds saved away and to recover the money we spent on Victoria.
Alix recently was able to go full time on the project (thanks to all the support!) which has made a HUGE difference in cranking out the video's! No more all night marathons trying to get the videos out on time.
If current trends continue Steve should be able to go full time or close to it in the spring and we can really make some progress!
Thanks again for the interest and support!!
Great video. Very exciting opportunity.
Thanks and yes she is! =)
Well done guys, a great opportunity grabbed. Goodonyah from Australia.
Thanks! We owe the Wooden Boat Forum and it's members for the heads up. Never would have found her without them!
Nice score guys, next video can't come quick enough for me. Hope you find you got your money's worth.
We certainly got our moneys worth and then some! We are cranking them out as fast as we can!
What a great score!
Gave me goosebumps when you all left for home.
We had them as well! Victoria brought us miles closer to our dream in a very short time and we are so glad that she did not get parted out all over the world, she deserves better than that.
Yay! A new Arabella video. Oh, wait, it's a Victoria video. Sad that old girl is fully decommissioned now, but her spirit shall live on through her donation to a new generation of ocean going vessel. BTW, how long is she? What a great find. So much usable rigging, instrumentation, and some good wood too. Can't wait to see the two married together into a beautiful vessel.
32' on deck
11' beam
5'6" draft
Just a bit smaller than Arabella will be. The blending of the old and the new, seems to be our thing.
This was a great video.
A very, very smart acquisition!
Thanks! We think so as well!
loads of goodies, bit sad to for Victoria.
Sean from Ireland
i caught up. great stuff guys, i cant wait to see this all come together
Thanks!
It's gonna be a while!
Great find guys! Love the vids.
Thanks!
Obtaining a Donor, When your making or repairing something certainly makes life easier.
That's the hope! Also cheaper! We could never have afforded all that bronze any other way. We are very fortunate!
What a frikken treasure!!!
I can emphasize with you guys. Back in '04 I started a scratch built single place all metal aircraft. I'm lucky in that I don't have to make sheets of aluminum for my project. Hang in there it will come together.
We know it will, sounds like quite the project you have going on!
Vundurbar fellas, so happy for you two
Thanks!
I think you made a good call on recycling what you can from this boat. Sentiment can sometimes lead you to get tangled up in hopeless causes. I am currently refitting my second boat- a 48' LOA Colin Archer. She is not nearly as old and in much better condition, but even still, the amount of work she is taking is boggling. Hopefully you get Arabella in the water when you are still young!
Have you seen the restoration of Tally-Ho? If we gutted the interior and peeled of the 18 layers of paint Victoria would look similarly. That's why we are building new, after years of working on old houses and fixing others mistakes and neglect we only want our own mistakes and neglect to deal with =)
Best of luck with your boat, 48', that's a lot of boat!
Yes, I have see the Tally-Ho restoration. I asked him about that as well, as obviously, it is more work than building an entire new boat. When he is done, very little of the original boat will remain beyond a few pieces of wood and quite a bit of the hardware. They are not so far from me, so I am going to get in touch with Leo and head up there one of these weekends.
Yes, I know all about fixing other people;s poor design and upkeep...been fixing old houses for decades myself. It actually is a good background though for working on boats. If you love boats as we do, one can get sucked into stuff that takes years of your life, which at my age, I do not want to do. I have the refit of my Colin Archer under way, with the intention (yes, that dubious word) of finishing her this year- or by spring a year out.
I would go insane if my sailing efforts were totally dependent on finishing my restoration. I have a 40ft steel cutter in excellent nick to keep me on the water. Do you have a goal of when you want to be on the water? I know it takes time...wood is seasoning and all, but good if you have a goal anyway.
For Leo it seems more about preserving history than restoring a boat and for us it's similar, buying a boat would make way more sense than building it but it's not about what makes sense =)
The hope and goal is to be on the water around 2020 or shortly thereafter. Things are picking up in terms of RUclips revenue and Patreon support so we are hopeful to both be full time this summer which will make a HUGE difference.
Also once we get past the "pigs in space" stage and are fitting wood to existing wood the pace will pick up a bit. I am new to working off of lofted plans and am going very slowly to make sure we get it right. Once it's more concrete I'll feel much more comfy and confident picking up the pace. Will probably only measure 3 times and make the cut instead of 6 and and some head scratching. LOL It's a real learning curve making sense of the lofted plans and where/how to get the right measurements.
Well, it DOES make sense, just from another perspective. Leo is preserving history and tradition, both admirable things in their own right, and you both have similar motivation. I am thinking you are familiar with the wood boat building school in Port Townsend close to Leo?
I am preparing for several wood mast building projects- built wood masts. I was fortunate to be able to find some incredible Sitka Spruce and I have about 20,000 BF drying in my shed till I resaw it. I got really lucky with some of that- got a call from a tree service owner I know about having to remove a grand old growth Sitka Spruce about 6ft at the base with at least a 80ft of clear wood and much of the rest just small knot branches, Between that and some other salvage, I am building a good trove of Sitka spruce. for masts and more...love this wood!
Measure 6 times and head scratching? Some of my projects are like that! lol
Gorgeous mast and spars. Hopefully you can use them.
We hope to. The goal is to shave Victoria's main mast and boom down to become Arabella's mizzen and then to make a new main set up for Arabella. The bronze hardware from Victoria's main will get transferred to Arabella's main when the mast gets shaved down. At least that is how we hope to do it, time will tell!
Score! Lots of transferable brass and such. I would almost be tempted to not polish it before putting it in place Arabella. The brass and bronze with the patina on them looks great. But they look good when nice shiny too. Can't wait to sewer what all you can salvage from her. Might even help pay for her selling off the parts you don't use.
Great find guys!
if it were me i would leave the patina to, that takes like 20 years to get like that naturally
Patina (corrosion) on ship brass is neglect, maintenance was/is a daily chore in the adverse corrosive environment of the briny
If one likes the patina you can simply lacquer the patina-ed brass then keep it waxed , which will effectively halt and preserve any patina. although unlike iron or aluminum, brass corrodes extremely slow to the point that most of that brass hardware will still last a couple more lifetimes in its current condition.
Nice video
HI, enjoy the videos thanks. Use a 'rope stopper 'to hold the rope at the cleat while you tie it off
Well acquired
Good score.
The happiest days are the day you buy a boat and the day you sell it.
I just watched the video where you finished taking her apart. There was no saving that boat.
Wow what a possible treasure trove.
Treasure trove for sure!! Next Friday we will show you most of what Victoria has to offer us. It's staggering!
good luck boys
With all that brass that is something I could get into. I would love to come up and work on all the buffing and polishing of the brass.
Plan a trip for next summer/fall, we should be dismantling Victoria around then and starting to prep the bronze and brass to be installed in Arabella.
She looks lovely, but past her time, so a good use of her for the future. Quite a bargain too.
We agree on all accounts!
And she can double as motivational headquarters, guest accomodation, beer fridge ... endless opportunities
All plans for Victoria's near future! We had a bunch of friends over the day after we got her and had a wild turkey dinner and drinks in her saloon. It was a lot of fun and we are sure it will happen many more times. Doing our best to show the old gal respect and a good time! =)
@@AcornToArabella As much as a part of me wanted to be mad at you guys for parting this boat out, I just can't. Cheers!
This is truly awesome guys! And I heard you may be able to use the engine- that will save you 10k right there.
Thanks!
It's a Perkins 4.108m, 53hp.
We hope to do a full restoration on the motor in the future. One of these coming summers when it's hot and humid we will fire up the A/C in the wood shop and spend some time tearing down the motor. Seems like a good project to tackle over a hot summer in the A/C instead of frying in the boat house. =)
are you going to use the ballest keel for the new boat?,talk about a time and labor saver..
It's iron and a bit too light so unfortunately we won't be re-using it.
well you should get pretty good scrap value,or sell it to someone
There are ceremonies for Christening and Re-naming. Is there a ceremony for scraping/salvaging? If there isn't, you should make one up... Having Victoria to re-claim all that hardwood and bronze living on in Arabella, and her history of sailing days gone by is worth celebrating.
We could not agree more! We celebrated her arrival with 8 friends in her saloon sharing a (wild turkey) turkey dinner with copious drinks, stories and laughs. Doing our best to show the old gal a good time and celebrate her past and future.
Ah, pre-pandemic footage. hoping we get back there soon again.
That’s boat was a good find, but now that you have it in your yard, do you have more traffic or people coming past to check it out?
Yes we do!
People are constantly slowing way down when they drive by and we have had a few inquisitors waltz into the boat yard to inquire about what the heck is going on. =)
As a builder of cars I can say it is always easier when you have a donor sitting outside for parts.
Indeed! and as a reminder of how the darn thing is put together! =)
If you're going to build a tender out of Victoria's bones, build two. Truly believe there would be a market for the second and it wouldn't be all that much more work. Second one always builds faster. Just a thought.
That is a thought, we will stick that in the memory bank and see what things look like when we get there.
Thanks for the suggestion!
Better yet, raffle off the second lil boat. You’ll have 100K subscribers by then, if not more. If two percent of us would be willing to buy a modest ticket (say 5 bucks) it could provide a nice shot in the arm As you do the final outfitting..Or, have Steve build one while you build the other. Always nice to see a grin on Steve’s face. Lol.
You guys have plenty of lumber, I'd suggest to build a keel cradle under the new acquisition, I wouldn't trust those stands to keep her upright.
We did
Big Score, Rock on fellas. This is really Bigg and in so many ways... Big thanks to "Salt and Tar" for the recommendation to check out this channel. I have really enjoyed every video the past few months...
You quick inspection at the source boat yard would have given you very limited views of her bones. What happens if you find that the majority of her frames are still solid? I don't see how you could reuse the frames being as they are boat specific, but good frames means that the boat may be restore-able far cheaper than building from scratch. Would you consider this as a viable option to your original plans to build from scratch?
Knowing she was close to 100 years old, had no major work, and was leaking badly from two places in the stem and two in the stern gave us a pretty good idea of her condition.
Once we cleaned her out we found floor timbers that have totally rotted away, heads of bolts sticking 2" above what's left of the remaining floor timbers, forefoot, keel timber and stern post are all super soft. She would be a total re-build, more so than Sampson's Tally-Ho re-build. We would guess 75% of her lumber would have to be replaced. We also believe we can build our dingy out of the solid 25% =)
Also the extra 6' Arabella will have makes a huge difference to us. Victoria will still save us a ton of time and effort though! The cabinet fronts, saloon table, doors for lockers and head are all mahogany and in close to mint condition. Those alone save months worth of work!
Absolutely brilliant!
"We also believe we can build our dingy out of the solid 25%" - So... name the dingy Victoria!
"keel timber and stern post are all super soft. "
If you haven't got a keel timber, you haven't got a boat.
"So... name the dingy Victoria!"
Well, 'Vicky' perhaps.
love what you guys are doing, remake your keel form from aircerete I believe that it will act as a fire brick.
Thanks for the suggestion!
We are going to re-make it with wood and bury it. It is the time honored way of pouring a lead keel and is what we should have done from the get go. Live and learn =)
WOW !
Yup!
You summed up our feelings quite well!
Cannibalizing an older vessel is a time honored thing, it has always happened and it is the passing of the baton to the next generation. We hopefully pass our best enduring attributes to our heirs.
A sailing boat is a living thing, the sails are the lungs, the engine is the heart, but the crew (skipper) is the brain. Don't feel awkward when salvaging an old boat for it will live on if you incorporate it into yours :-)
We don't feel awkward about it at all.
It's not until very recently that things became so easily thrown out and replaced.
For example
Once upon a time nails were so valuable they would burn old building just to collect the nails. Big timbers were easy to come by but those little nails were not. My how the times have changed!
The chances of Victoria being rebuilt in the condition she is in is non-existent. Most likely she would have sank on a mooring one day because the bilge pump quit or she would be parted out and sold to the highest bidder and the bronze would scatter around the globe.
Being incorporated into Arabella and everything staying together and continuing on/in another Atkin double ender is the best outcome possible for Victoria in our opinion.
We are honored to be the ones chosen to get her. Bruce had a lot of offers and he chose to give her to us, we are very thankful!
What will the neighbors and building inspector say about the boat in the yard?
The neighbors seem supportive so far, they think we are nuts but they are enjoying the spectacle.
It's out of the building inspectors realm. The boat is not considered a structure and the tarp has no walls or frame so it's not a building.
So long as the neighbors stay supportive we should be alright. If push came to shove we could dismantle her fairly quickly anyways.
So did they opt out on building arabella and completing her. Or are they using parts from both to build one what exactly is going on?
Sorry if we were not clear.
Victoria's backbone, hull and deck are pretty much shot so we bought her for the bronze, diesel motor, sails, spars and mahogany interior. We are going to use her as guest housing until we have most of a hull built then we will disassemble her and start bolting things into Arabella.
I see what you like. What a shame that she got to the point where she can't be salvaged. Lots of nice parts get a new home at least.
We have surveys from 2004 and 2007. She was in very good shape in 2004 and was in need of some somewhat serious work in 2007 which she never got and it was a down hill run from there. When the previous owner got her in 2010 she was probably worth repairing but after another seven years without any major work the die was cast. But we will re-use everything that we can and give it another long life!
During WW II the US Navy would impress a variety of Boats and Ships for various duties in the caribbean. A vessel such as victoria could have been used as a Picket; to spot potential Submarines. Many Menhadedn Boats were impressed as interisland haulers and even mine destroyers. those boats , many were steamers had new engines installed. Atlas Imperials. Fisherman joined up for the duration and served on boats that were familiar to them. After the war. The Boats and improvements were funneled back to the owners. Not enough has been written about this element of service.
We have heard about the military doing that in both World Wars. Victoria very well might have served, we have no idea.
Oh I forgot. I noticed you have placed the jack stands on the grass. I think they should be placed on 1/2 sheets of plywood. The jack stands can then be fixed to the ply. Wooden or metal pegs can then be fixed holding the ply. Why am I so cautious. I worked in a boat yard Florida. A guy was anti-fouling a boat. He was removing one jack stand at a time. So he could paint were the stand had been. There were 3 jack stands on each side so there was always 2 jack stands taking the weight. He had done it hundreds of times and many boat still do it, today. The boat fell over and crushed him to death.
We put a make shift cradle in as well as the boat stands for the winter. In the spring we will do some more milling and set aside some beams to fashion a proper cradle around her.
We are actively trying not to get squished!
Hi , guys , i'm doing a showcase on a few channels that inspired me to start this one, and i was wondering if i could use 20-30 second of clips? Thanks in advance !
Sure,
Psyched to hear we helped to inspire you to chase your dream! Just remember- the only thing that can stop you is you! Hope to cross wakes on the water some day. Best of luck with the build and video series! Both are a ton of work but very rewarding.
Oh man , I'm finding that out already! , so now I'm full time X3, lol. I never liked the easy way any how..
With how the rest of the world it is amazing me how awesome generous the Community is around boats , especially the builders!!!
We know the feeling!
Best of luck and so far the community has been amazing.
What happened to Victoria in subsequent videos she nowhere to be seen?
She is still sitting in the front yard =)
You didn't fix Victoria... why?
She would need to have 70% or more of her timber replaced.
We would literally have to gut the interior, pull the keel timber, stern post and bow assembly, re-frame, replace a lot of planks and the majority of the deck and deck beams. Will be faster, easier and cheaper to build a new boat and make use of what we can on Victoria. Besides that extra 6' Arabella will have will make a huge difference for us!
moral of the story? Always measure the boat. )
Is Victoria a replacement boat or a dona? I guess you wont know until you get into repairing her. Either way the boat is a gold mine. Just the deck fittings alone are worth $2000.How long is she? You go guys. Don't bow to presser of your fans. Get your arse out sailing.
She is a donor boat but since we will use so much of her it's hard to tell which is the donor!
She is 32' on deck
Victoria has some great karma ........
We agree!
You guys can't now even say you built your own.. cuz you are stripping a working vessle. And giving no credit to the 50's ford tractor. i thumbs down this one guys
hahaha,
Victoria would have to float to be considered a working vessel.
I just watched 185 episodes of the Tally Ho build. I'm looking for another boat build to start watching. I'm on episode 20 of the Acorn to Arabella build with some 300 more to go. I think I'm 7 years behind the build but I will be binge watching you two guys building a boat you guys are awesome keep up the good content