News from Chris-Craft Antique Boat Club

In This Issue

Did You Know:

Club Health Report:

Quick Links

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Interesting Tidbit

The Timeless Elegance of Chris-Craft seems to pop up in the most unlikely places from time to time. Click Here to see what Leon Speakers has introduced. Let's not tell him that Thunderbird (in the photo) is a Hacker-designed, Huskins-built watercraft.

eNews

August, 2012

Greetings!

Membership in the Chris-Craft Antique Boat Club is increasing steadily these days. This is a good thing for those of us who love old Chris-Craft boats. It means that you, our members, regard this Marque Club as an important asset, not only to those of us who love the Marque but also to the hobby at large.

We are just one of over 40 Marque Clubs recognized by the Antique & Classic Boat Society, Inc. (ACBS). We are the largest because there were more Chris-Craft boats built than any other brand. We are the oldest because Bill MacKerer founded the Club in 1973 and it has been continuously serving Chris-Craft enthusiasts ever since.

So we are the Oldest and Largest Marque Club of its kind. Are we also the Best? Some may argue but I believe that we are. First, let's look back at MacKerer's reasons for organizing the Club. In 1973 Ernie Tucker, then Secretary of the infant organization, invited known Chris-Craft enthusiasts to become charter members in the CCABC. His letter included this statement:

"The club is being formed to encourage the preservation and restoration of all antique pleasure boats with particular emphasis on Chris-Craft boats, and to establish a means of communication between owners, dealers and Chris-Craft Corporation." This became the Mission Statement, with the addition of: "...promote and encourage participation in antique boat shows." The impetus of this complete statement, although worded differently, remains as the primary thrust of our present Mission Statement.

If our Club remains focused on our Mission (which we do) and we are successful at fulfilling it (which we believe that we are), then we could argue that we are indeed "The Oldest, The Largest, and The Best Marque Club."

Sincerely,

Board of Directors - Don Ayers, Paul Harrison, Don Vogt, Al Benton

Chris-Craft Antique Boat Club

Did You Know
By Al Benton

What model year did Chris-Craft begin using plywood for the inner planking material on double planked mahogany bottoms for any of their production boats?

Most of you may already know but the answer (later) may surprise some of you.

Who is credited with the first practical use of plywood?

The Egyptians, back in 3500 BC. Centuries later Chinese craftsmen began laminating thin layers of wood together to create unique features on furniture. They eventually discovered that considerable strength resulted in criss-crossing the grain as they assembled the thin strips.

The idea spread to European countries over time but was not thought of as a practical building material until early in the past century when it became mass produced. It quickly spread to almost every facet of wood construction. Chris-Craft and other boat builders used the product in cruiser interiors prior to WWII. The war itself became the proving ground for marine grade plywood. It became the material of choice to many boat builders following the war. Chris-Craft held back, hitting the market early by applying the methods used prior to interruption of normal business caused by the war.

Now, back to the question. Did you answer correctly?

Chris-Craft began building plywood kit boats in the early 50's. However, these were not double planked. In 1959 many of the boat designs and production lines were transitioned to produce double planked bottoms on newly designed bottom framing structures that easily accepted plywood inner planking before the outer solid wood planking was installed.

Well, 1959 was a year for major changes but it's not the answer either. The 1952, 17' Sportsman was completely redesigned from the bottom up. It received one-piece bottom frames developed for the plywood kit boats. Thin marine grade plywood inner planking was easily attached to the new frames. This was covered with the traditional canvas and bedding compound before the solid Philippine mahogany outer planks was installed, becoming the new 1953, 17' Sportsman.

17' Sportsman Interior

Now You Know!

The model year was 1953.

To the right is an interior view of the 1953, 17' Sportsman showing plywood inner planking on one-piece frames.

Club Health Report

Summarized by Al Benton

Financial

Although we didn't include a financial report in this summary we assure you that we keep track of each and every one of our (your) beans. Formal reports will be made available to members in the near future.

We are pleased to report that the Board of Directors has published, delivered, and fully paid for the first Brass Bell of our tenure (the Fall 2011 Brass Bell) after beginning our tenure last March with virtually no funds. This would have been difficult to accomplish without the generous support of our Club Sponsors: Chris-Craft Corporation and Hagerty Classic Boat Insurance. We'd also like to welcome our newest Club Sponsor: Katz's Marina. Their very generous support will place our Club in a more comfortable position moving forward.

Membership

A great big Welcome Aboard to all of our new members! Thanks to you, our membership continues to grow. We are seeing a restored level of confidence by members who have elected to stay with us by renewing their membership. Much of the credit for the above increase belongs to you! Thanks for your continued support.

As mentioned in our prior eNews, renewals will change to an Annual Membership next year. Since next year is less than 5 months from now, the Board of Directors is busy studying the best method to implement this change fairly and equitably to all of our members.

Communications Pony Express

All successful organizations, clubs, societies, etc. depend upon their ability to communicate between members and their leadership. We are certainly beyond the days of the Pony Express but still need to continuously improve on our ability to communicate.

We no longer have a central location or individual who can respond to phone inquiries or redirect your call to an appropriate resource for answers. Over the past few months we are finding that this is not as big a problem as some thought. These days the internet has become the "Go-To" means for instant communications with very few exceptions.

We realize that we still have a few members that have not adopted this modern technology; however, more members than ever before are "surfing the internet." Some of you (even me) can testify that this new age of Hi-Tech and the World-Wide Web isn't all that bad, once you get the hang of it. It's no longer the Future; it's the Present. And, it's going to be around for a while.

The Brass Bell

We want to assure all of you that our quarterly publication, The Brass Bell, will continue to be printed and mailed to you into the foreseeable future. In fact, the next issue of The Brass Bell is being printed now and will be mailed in September. It will also be available in digital format for viewing online via our website for those of you who prefer this method.

Our Website - chris-craft.org

Are you active on our amazing Website? Our IT team is busy researching the latest technology available, within our means, to upgrade our online presence to today's standards and beyond. And, as we move forward, our online benefits will continue to grow and be improved upon.

Most of our content can be viewed without logging in: Boat Buzz, Historic Archive, Hull Registry, Member Directory, and Trading Dock. However, only members can log in and do the following:

participate in interesting discussions on Boat Buzz
view and download Hi-Res documents from the Historic Archive
register a boat on the Hull Registry
search the Member Directory using any number of search categories

Conclusion

What better way to conclude this update than to borrow the words of Past Chairman, Jean Vincent, as summarized by Past President, James Irwin following the first official CCABC Board of Trustees meeting April 8, 1977: "This perpetuation, this history, this singular American story must not be allowed to fade away in the hands of a few, or in buried archives. It is far too precious, and needs communication to the many involved." The U.S. Supreme Court couldn't have concluded it better.