Saving Old Seagulls

Not a lot to show this week more small necessary jobs that chew the time, boat 1 should be leaving the shed in a couple of weeks.

Boat 2: stern frame and transom being set up to station 11.






John

Boat two is under way bottom was put on today



Boat one



John

Cool weather has slowed us a little

Rear Seats/Bunks plenty of room for motors, fuel and spares.



Forward Bunks this will make a comfortable bed and more storage.



Furniture setup ready for glassing, Boat2 has a couple of planks fitted.



John

Time for an update boat one is so close to leaving the shed but there are still a lot of those little jobs
that you don’t see still to be done. Mark (boat 2) and Ed hamming it up this boat will have stick steering
and the Captains seat may be raised 100 - 150mm 4” - 6”, the upholsterer has measured the benches
and ordered enough material for three boats.



Boat 2 Mark’s boat has had the topsides fitted.



John

Moose sent this photo yesterday the Foredeck is on and Ed (in photo) has just finished taping the furniture in.



John

A lot of progress this week thanks to Moose and Ed.

Coming is fitted and what a difference it makes she’s turning into one very smart boat.



The Foredeck’s been trimmed and glassed now waiting for a coat of sealer.



The Transom and Stern area is almost ready for the Seagull to be dropped in.



Tomorrow with a little luck we hope to get her out of the shed and get her bottom wet. The weather
forecast is not looking good 20 degrees, rain with a storm in the afternoon; I know that would sound
like fine summer’s day for a lot of the forum viewers.

John

Coming along nice John. As for the 20 degree days with rain, Don't bother winging about to the poms about it, They just don't understand what we go threw down here

Excellent result. Perfect for a long journey. Slat type airbed and a bowtop tent and you will be sorted

Today we backed the trailer up to the shed we had planned to use a block and tackle to lift the boat then slide the trailer
underneath first we thought we would try and lift it, we did then walked my boat onto the trailer too easy. Our little
Mazda 2 towed the boat to the Clayton Bay boat ramp the only problem we had was with the wind (side on). With glasses
charged the boat was christened when Jenny poured a little Champaign over its bow and we named her “LAZY GULL”, I
then backed the trailer down the ramp then with a shove LAZY GULL slid off the trailer.

We first tried the LLS Century the motors exhaust was too low I should have set it up back at the shed but I wasn’t sure
where the waterline was as this boat is a lot lighter than originally designed. With five adults on board she got to 5.4
knots fairly quickly then the motor started to slow down and get hot, this is the same motor that gave me problems at the
nationals thought I had sorted it guess not. We then tried a 40 plus after I had reset the exhaust depth anything over half
throttle she just dug a hole I’m not a fan of cav plates (there so ugly) but I think one would have helped even at just over
half throttle she got to 4 knots which surprised me.

Very happy with the boat it’s very stable I can stand up and move around LAZY GULL will be an ideal boat to cruise in.

Boats sitting too high on the trailer we should be able to drop it another 100 – 150mm.



Putting the motor on, the little Mazda had no trouble towing the boat.



Off the trailer she slides



She’s long and narrow just over 4 feet 1220mm. at the waterline



Were off



Even loading wasn’t a chore



John

That is looking great, sits high in the water so must be light.

How heavy do you think it is?

H-A

This has to be the most exciting thread that has been on this site. Would be great to read an article about the people behind the build ie the decision, motivation, previous experience, teamwork, expertise, partners support, task allocation etc. Amazing job in under three months. What is the theoretical hull speed?

Is there a story about the original name "Damn Seagulls"? I seem to recall in ancient folklore that changing a boats name is considered to be an unforgivable slight to the sea gods.

Keep up the good work and a big thank you for keeping us informed.

Hi Guys, A real credit to everyone that has been involved in the building of these boats. They look absolutely great. I hope that the trip down the Murray is full of adventure and no mechanical problems. . . .jonmac

Thanks for the interest and replies.

HA At present the boat weighs 100-110kg we will try and weigh it when we have finished.


Hugz Read an article about us Geez mate I have trouble putting a couple of words to the photos, were a fairly laid
back group I’m lucky that one of us has a huge shed in his back yard and he says it’s not big enough.

Theoretical hull speed is just over 6 knots.

Damn Seagulls started when Jenny (my wife) found a couple of caps and I walked into the shed wearing one, should
be another word added Team Damn Seagulls. It had been put on as a joke and it did get some attention just worried
I might appear on Australia’s most wanted for abusing the little Mazda.

Jonmac Thanks mate we have to catch up when we pass through the Sunraysia Region.

John

What a project! I can't imagine the feeling of a ride with a boat made by your hands!

Welldone

Mark’s boat got turned over today and we managed to put a layer of Kevlar onto the bottom of boat 3,
these two boats will come together very quickly now as all the patterns have been made.



John