Mariners Museum Rant

[jsfinn]

So, I’m working on restoring my 1956 Chris Craft Express Cruiser 16’ which was built from a kit. I contacted Chris Craft trying to get information about the boat so I can make it as original as possible. Chris Craft told me to call the Mariners Museum in Norfolk, VA. No problem – I call the Mariners Museum and talk to a really nice guy who identified my boat very quickly with pictures. I told him I have a 1956 Chris Craft Outboard Express Cruiser 16’. He says that because I have the two port windows on the sides, It’s a Sport Cruiser Express which is a different model from what I thought and that it’s capable of 2 outboards! He said that they have the original plans, brochures, sales information, and pictures. He’ll send them all over to me – all for $85.00. No problem.. It’s worth it to me, so I give him the credit card number and he says it’ll be about 4 weeks. No problem. I’ve got lots of work I can do in the meantime.<br /><br />It’s probably been just over 2 weeks now, I get home from work and there it is! The mail man left a tube at my door from the Mariners Museum! I pop the tube open, my receipt falls out for $85.00 and I get 9 pages of blueprint type plans! Fantastic! The more I look, the more I realize, this is for 3 different boats! I’ve got no brochures! I’ve got no sales info! I’ve nothing that tells me what kind of HP this boat is rated for! I feel kind of ripped off…. I’m going to call in the morning and let them know that I either need more literature or some money back. Hopefully, it was just a mistake..maybe another package is on its way… Ugh.

 

[armillary]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Hi Josh. I suspect the Mariners Museum guy may have been mistaken. Here's why:<br />1. You've got the brochure from the original owner. The picture of the Express Cruiser shows two port windows, but the boat in the picture has one outboard and the specs back that up.<br />2. You have the only page of the plans that has survived from the original owner, and it is the description of how to cut the transom for a long shaft vs. a short shaft. No mention of cutting the transom for multiple engines.<br />3. The well (cutaway) in the transom is nowhere near wide enough to accomodate another engine. There is a single metal support plate on the inboard side of the transom that is nowhere near wide enough to support another engine.<br />4. This boat was not built by the original owner. It was a display model, already assembled, that he bought new from the dealer. I think 1956 was the last year for the kit boats so that's probably why the display model was for sale. Anyway, as a display model, I suspect the boat was actually assembled by Chris Craft. (I doubt any dealer would have been willing to do all that work.) If it was assembled by Chris Craft, then that makes it 'original' as far as I'm concerned. <br /><br />You might be able to modify the boat to fit two engines, but there's no way the boat you own was set up for two originally. I think it is exactly the boat in the brochure, except for the cuddy cabin modification, which the original owner admitted to making himself. It looks so much better now that you've removed it.<br /><br />Regards,<br />Mike

 

[petrolhead]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Hmm, I held back on ordering Chris-Craft kit boat info from the Mariners Museum for this very reason. They were very helpful when I emailed them, but were unable to tell me exactly what info they had on the boats I was interested in, and couldn't tell me until they'd done a search which I had to pay for.<br />The actual cost of the search was dependant on what they found, so I had to commit to an undisclosed fee without knowing what, if anything, I'd get at the end of it!<br />I'm sure the museum is a very worthy institution, but I doubt they'd get too many takers for this service with conditions like those! For all I know I might pay my money and get nothing more than I already have.

 

[John Carpenter]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

I think it all depends on the year and type boat you have...some years and models they will have more info on than others. My experience with them was great. Cost in 1997 was about $30 if I remember correctly and I got original sales brochures in color, quite a bit of other literature and a sheet listing many boats, including mine that gave build info such as engines & serial numbers, options installed, who the original buyer was, when shipped etc. Could not have been happier.

 

[Buttanic]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

I bought the shop drawing from the museum for a 1974 Chris Craft 22'Tournament fisherman that I am starting a restoration on. It cost me 42 dollars but now at least I know what to expect when I tear into the floor to replace it. I was plesantly surprised to see there doesn't appear to be any wooden stringers in the hul, just fiberglass and foam.

 

[BigPoppaG]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

jsfinn,<br />I live in Newport News Va and about 10 min from mariners museum. You need any local help getting this straight let me know.

 

[jsfinn]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Hey Big Poppa G - thanks for the offer! I think part of the problem is that we misidentified the boat while I was on the phone with them and also that the only thing I can figure is that there are 4 or 5 boats built off of the same frame plans. They sent me a combination of all of those boats, but no entire set for one. Maybe it's the best they've got. They did send me a couple of other drawings a few weeks after the first package came which was nice.<br /><br />As soon as it gets too cold to work on the boat, I plan on taking a trip down with my dad who had a 1920 something 3 cockpit mahogany Chris Craft. It's about 3 and a half hours from us so it'll make a nice day trip... hmm .. maybe we'll go when the tuna are biting and make a weekend out of it..

 

[petrolhead]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Any more progress on the boat?

 

[BigPoppaG]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

jsfinn - Sounds good. Offer is on the table if needed.

 

[jsfinn]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Hey Petrol! Between bad weather, lots of big projects at work, and a couple of weekend trips things have been moving SLOW!<br /><br />I'm taking off work this Friday - Wednesday so I should be able to knock out all of the rebuild work and if everything goes smooth, I'll get a coat or two of paint on her.<br /><br />The weather is really starting to change here - the weather man scared us saying we might have frost last night. We didn't..but it was still cold! I've got to get it at least painted before it gets too cold.<br /><br />Big Poppa G - that's very kind of you! Thank you for your offer. I'll post a message before we head down there. Maybe we can meet up for a beer or two.

 

[BigPoppaG]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

BEER MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM! Let me know.

 

[petrolhead]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Sounds like your weather there is pretty similar to ours right now, just this past week it's started to get too cold to work outside with epoxy (below 15°C most days now) and I've switched to polyurethane.<br />However I really need to use epoxy for the planking on the clinker skiff that I'm building, so I now have to get my new garage finished so I can work inside with heating.

 

[jsfinn]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

petrol - I know what you mean - a lot of times it seems like you have to take 5 steps backwards just to take one step forward.<br /><br />Do you have some pictures of that skiff?

 

[petrolhead]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

No pics yet, I've just started this week and I'm just making some of the smaller components, so I have a kit of parts for quick assembly.<br />It's an Iain Oughtred design, you can see a photo of a finished one HERE. The plan offers the option of building it 13' long instead of 11' 9", which I'm doing as at 6' 2" tall I need the extra leg room!

 

[jsfinn]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Cool boat!

 

[petrolhead]

Re: Mariners Museum Rant

Nice isn't it? I want it primarily for rowing, to replace my old GRP dinghy which looks and rows like a pig, but the option of a small sail is nice too.