Rich404

Nitro,

I like your site, very cool! lots of good info there! [sm=thumbs_up.gif][sm=shades_smile.gif]

Best of luck....

-Rich.

mrbsltz

To Rich 404

How are you going to power your boat? I've picked up a dauntless from a decaseased friend, the hull and body are just about done, but I have no idea on how to power it? Any suggestions.

I'm acually a new boater, working on my first Boothbay Lobster boat right now. But saw your post, and I may get to mine in another year. I've looked at the MACK place or whatever they call it, they sell a full set of gear for like $300 or more.

LClark

I am certainly not the most experienced modeler here but............
I purchased my dauntless running gear from MACK Products and found it to be very high quality, well worth the price. Yesterday I ordered motors, gear reducers and speed controls from them as well. I have spoken to the same gentleman twice, he is very knowledgeable and freindly.

Rich404

mrbsltz,

I will be using (2) Astroflight 25 Marine motors with (2) Astroflight Harbor Master speed controls. I decided to get 2 speed controls because i want to run each motor independantly which will require me to use a radio with dual throttles. The motors will be direct drive.

I will also use (2) 12V high MAH rated NIMH Battery packs, (1) for each motor/speed control.

There will also be a seperate 12V electrical system with a power distribution panel for all of my lighting and accesories.

If you want, you can use 1 speed control with the 2 motors and will run together on a single throttle. Those 3 items will still cost around or slightly less than $300.00.

I really like Astroflight because they make a very reliable product with the performance i want on this yacht.

you can find their products on astroflight .com

On another note, do you have any pics of your "new" Dauntless? How much more work does it need before completion? Did the former owner ever sail her?


-Rich

dauntlessfan

Got to run my Dauntless today, great time. A few folks stopped to ask questions and take pics... great for the ego . I was sort of bummed because one stuffing tubes is letting a little bit of water into the hull now. That's never happened before. It probably needs to be 'stuffed' with grease again. Here are a few pics I was able to get as well. Enjoy!

Rich404

Dauntlessfan,

WOW!!!!!![sm=eek.gif] Those pics look fantastic! It looks like you took pics of a full sized original! Great job!

Don't let the water leak damper an otherwise great day, it's just maintenance, goes with the territory!

-Rich

Rich404

Dear Captains,

I am at it again. I decided to build a new forward cockpit for Dauntless. I did not like the original cockpit from my initial build so i took measurements and cut out a new wall and venturi from solid Mahogany. I have been soaking them in windex with ammonia since yesterday. So far, it is still unbendable. I know i have a bottle of ammonia somewhere......

-Rich

Rich404

Update,

Soaking in windex with ammonia did not do anything. i went back and soaked in pure ammonia for an additional day and a half and it did not phase this wood. Still rock solid. It looks like i will just work on the existing cockpit.

Any suggestions?

-Rich.

rickster3057

Hi Rich 404,
if the ply is marine ply you got no chance of bending it, its bonded with weather and boil proof glue to resist water and weather.
Easy option,
make a solid template of the shape you want buy 1mm ply use waterproof wood glue, and laminate it in layers cut to shape,job done
I used this method when i made ski,s for my land yauht.
hope this helps,
rickster3057

Rich404

Rickster3057,

That is a good alternative! When i built the original cockpit, i used mahogany ply provided with the dumas kit and was successful on using ammonia to soak the wood to bend. Now that i am overhauling and customizing, I am using is 1/8" solid Honduras Mahogany (much better material) using the same approach which has proven ineffective. One other method i could try is to steam bend the wood, but with the heavy wood density, it seems like it will still be a hassle. I am still wondering if there is another soaking solution that would be effective on this type of wood..

Thank you.

-Rich.

rickster3057

Hi Rich404,
Soli mahog and the honduras type, man tat stuff is really tough and hard to tool work.
Three options,
1, build a small trashcan steamer using a regular wallpaper steam stripping machine
2, using a bandsaw or router cut realyy close slots in the back to bend it
3,use a squre section piece and sand it to shape long and hard work but the grain and colour would be awesome
The problem with the second option is there is a tendancy because of the mahogany fibres to split if the curve is too tight.
Using the steamer you will have to leave it for at least 40 mins under steam and then you will only get a short time to bend it as it cools really rapidly..
rickster.

Rich404

Rickster,

Perfect, I think you may have solved the issue! I have the items available for the trashcan steamer, so I will follow your lead. It also makes sense to cut the grooves in the mahogany so that it does not split while bending. I will let you know how it goes.

Cheers!

-Rich.

rickster3057

Hi Rich.
Thats great news and i am glad i could help,can you post more pics as you progress, just somehing about the dauntless that inspires nostalgia,
Rick.

Rich404

Rickster,

Hopefully this weekend i will get around to steaming the cockpit walls. I will be sure to take pics and post. Also, stay tuned, i periodically post progress pics as i get things done. I will be posting pics throughout my entire build, therefore this site has become somewhat of an online journal for me.

Also I agree that there is something about Dauntless that inspires nostalgia. She was a very graceful & elegant power yacht with lots of charm.

-Rich.

rickster3057

Hi Rich,
cant wait to see how the steam bending comes out,any probs just ask .
damn sure i am gonna watch this thread,cant wait for more pics, you know i might even go the hog and build one myself,that will be a first, i have had boats but never built one as classy as the dauntless.
there is just something about the era that boats like the dauntless came from, beautifuly crafted hand built boats, no fibreglass plastic there,
good luck and keep us posted,
Rick.

Rich404

Rickster,

Thanks! I will keep you posted on the steam bending.

I am glad to see that you were bitten by the Dauntless bug! She was a very classy, stylish and powerful vessel. I totally agree that boats from Dauntless's era were fine quality hand made boats that were built solid. In addition, knowing the absolute prestige of the owner, one can only imagine how the very best materials of that time were used in her construction. She really pushed the envelope as far as speed and technology incorporated into a custom made power yacht. Dauntless was an intersting example of what could be achieved with the right financial backing...


-Rich

Rich404

Rickster,

Yesterday, I steamed the wood for over an hour with a wallpaper steamer. It seemed as though it might work, when all of a sudden while I was bending the wood to a curve it suddenly snapped. I have concluded that this type of wood is just too darn stubborn to try to bend. I now realize that honduras mahogany is a great wood for walls, doors, hatches, paneling, structual or fine details for this yacht as long as I do not try to bend it.

Here is what I am going to do, I have successfully built the cockpit in the past, just wanted to make one more presentable, so I will use that cockpit, add some wood planks to make it wider and then resin the heck out of it and re shape it. As much as i do not like to use epoxy more than i have to, i seemed to have developed a grudging respect for it. It shapes and does what I want it to. I will continue to use the mahogany for everything else. If i decide that my cockpit does not come out as planned, I will follow your lead from your original post and use a thinner much more forgiving wood for bending.

We will never know what works unless we try!

Thank you!

-Rich

(misspellings-edit)

Rich404

Dauntless Captains,

Here is a pic that I found on the internet while researching Commuter Yachts. This pic is of a modern day commuter yacht that was inspired by the New York commuters of yester year.

I noticed that when I place my left finger on the bridgedeck, a strong resemblence of Dauntless appears especially around the main and forward cabins. AKA: deck house & forecastle.

When I look at this yacht as a whole, I see a strong influence of both Dauntless and Aphrodite used in her design.

Enjoy!

-Rich.

Rich404

Dauntless Captains,

For those of you that are unfamiliar with Aphrodite, she is a gorgeous Commuter Yacht that would look great as a scale model.

-Rich

rickster3057

Hi Rich 404,
Sorry the wallpaper stripper steamer never worked, mahogany is a really strong wood fantastic ressitant propertys and great for furniture and picture frames and decorative framing but only slightly bendable and really hard to tool work.
Just as another option for you try making the shape out of an easier more plyable material even pine ,then if you go to a parqatree shop or craft shop you can buy thin mahogany vaneer in sheet form , its really cheap and so easy to use and when sanded and varnished you would have no clue the whole panel wasnt solid mahogany.
You sound really dissapointed settling for epoxy,DONT settle for second best go the vaneer way, you will be much happier with the end resuilt, you have spent so much time on it already.
Its just another option and not gospel.
I love the Ahprodite, what a beuatiful Yacht.

Rickster3057
"To solve all and any problems you take cant out of the equation."

Rich404

Rickster,

You have been full of great ideas the entire time! I appreciate everything that you have shared with me. I love the wallpaper steamer idea, and you have proved that it does work. Even after an hour, the mahogany did begin to bend whearas soaking it in ammonia for days did not phase that wood. My steaming ideas could not have been better! You have been correct all along that Mahogany is hard to tool with, especially in bending. I think that if i were to steam the wood longer, probably 4-5 Hours, the results would have been much better.

I have been really busy with other "stuff" so I could not do anything with the cockpit. I will follow your lead and find an easier wood to bend for the cockpit. I do not think there will be much staining in the new cockpit, therefore i am not very concerned about the wood I will be using for construction. I tried to use Mahogany because I am using it for many other phases of construction and detailing throughout this yacht which has proven to be very durable. Maybe too durable! lol..

Thanks again for all the great info!

-Rich.

Rich404

Dear Captains:

After reading an article about Commuters, I wanted to share this with you. This is not the entire article, but paints a great picture about Commuter Yachts.

The quiet of a September morning on Manhasset Bay is broken by the sudden deep roar of a large, aircraft-type marine engine, accompanied like cannon fire by a burst of smoke.... Soon a maroon-and-black V-16 Cadillac phaeton glides up to the pier where the long, low, white-hulled beauty waits, reverberating with the promise of speed. An older gentleman in a gray suit alights with ease from the running board of the car and crosses the lawn to the dock. With a slight nod to the uniformed crew, he steps aboard and surveys the hazy harbor. The lines are cast off, and the owner settles into the after cockpit, shaking out the New York Herald Tribune. A light breakfast on a silver tray is set before him. At a slight gesture, the captain comes aft, and they both confer. The long white hull moves out with a smooth increase of engine tempo.

Cruising slowly to the head of the bay and into the open water of Long Island Sound, the white boat is followed by another, this one sleek and black, her Wright Typhoon engines rumbling and the day's first sunlight flashing on her brightwork. As the two boats reach open water, their exhaust notes increase to an unharnessed roar. The race to Wall Street is on!

The New York Yacht Club had a pier at 26th Street on the East River, and on weekdays it and other landing stages around the city would be crowded with commuters. The boats varied considerably, but they shared certain attributes. They were manned and maintained by professional crews. They had cabins to protect their owners from the weather--often with wicker furniture, to save weight--but interior space was largely taken up by engines. Financier Gordon Hammersley's 70-foot Gar Wood had five V-12 Liberty aircraft engines and could hit 45 knots. Boats that big and swift could be something of a public menace. William K. Vanderbilt's 153-foot Tarantula (which had a gun on its afterdeck) drew a lawsuit over the damage caused by its wake.

Enjoy!

-Rich

rickster3057

Hi Rich404,
What a beautiful picture that short passage paints of a time gone by when you could look to the skys or the roads or the waterways and be in awe of what you saw.
nowaydays everything is so same and plastic and thrown together cheapily, even in our own hobby,its so nice to find something so retro and nostalgic.
nice one Rich.
keep it up ,
Rickster3057

LClark

Rich,

that was an awesome excerpt and inspired me to research commuter yachts....I stumbled across the article you 'quoted'. It was very interesting, we love billy joel and are excited that he has such a love for these boats.

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortu...1144/index.htm

Larry

dauntlessfan

Would it not have been the coolest if Billy Joel bought the Dauntless for his project and restored her? Anyone have his phone number handy?