1954 26 foot Mahogany Chris Craft Cuddy Cabin Express

[blueliner]

just wanted to know if anyone had any info on this type of boat. i think it is beautiful, but don't know if it is really equipped for the ocean or a lake. it has only been in fresh water. any comments or concerns of having this kind of boat in salt water would be greatly appreciated. love the boat, but don't want something that really isn't setup for ocean conditions. thanks

[MOP]

just wanted to know if anyone had any info on this type of boat. i think it is beautiful, but don't know if it is really equipped for the ocean or a lake. it has only been in fresh water. any comments or concerns of having this kind of boat in salt water would be greatly appreciated. love the boat, but don't want something that really isn't setup for ocean conditions. thanks

I have a very close friend that re builds classic antiques, what you may run into with a fresh water wood boat is the garboard plank and a few other things will have some rot going on. Fresh water is deadly on wood, from the water line up the boat will more than likely be pristine, check the bottom and main internal planking for softness. The surface of the planks can look very good you need to poke at them with a pick. Putting a new bottom is costly!

Phil

[Craig S]

Putting a new bottom is costly!

Phil

pretty easily be 15-20 grand on a boat that size. You need to check out a book by Don Dannenburg
http://www.addall.com/detail/0760311005.html
Wood boats were only built for a few years of service. A rebuild means taking every plank off, inspecting the frame, and re-assembling the boat - usually with new wood. It is daunting on a 19 footer, but as length increases, "size" goes up at a much greater rate. That is the reason a ski boat becomes much more valuable than a cruiser...the rebuild is so costly. I was on a 24' postwar Sportsman yesterday, and the restorer (who owns a shop in Austin, Texas) said the work was a multiple of the rebuild on his prewar 21' triple cockpit Chris.

To answer your question, if all the wood was as new, and the fastenings were new, it would be a rough water boat - for its day.

Nice looking Chris, I always thought that they had nice lines.

[gcarter]

Back in the early 60's, a highschool chum's parents had a boat similar to this. There were a jillion variations on this basic boat. While building, it was very easy for the factory to make any number of different configurations.
Anyway, the basic power (if I remember correctly) was Hercules flathead six of about 100 HP. It was a decent 20-25 MPH boat in fairly calm water.
I agree with Craig, if investing in a wood boat, invest in one with some value.
Or buy a new WEST system re-creation of a wood runabout. There's even a lot of these for sale used. It would definately be less expensive than a rebuild on the real thing.

[Craig S]

Anyway, the basic power (if I remember correctly) was Hercules flathead six of about 100 HP. It was a decent 20-25 MPH boat in fairly calm water.


Probably a K, rated at 95 horsepower. They used them up until about '60 or so. My dad's 1950 27 foot Chris Craft sedan cruiser would only pull about 27 mph with twins - but it was a larger (beam/length) boat.

[JPR]

As a fellow Vancouverite, I can tell you that I don't think that you would be thrilled with a wooden chris in this area. All the best cruising is accross the strait or up in Desolation Sound, so you have to go through some sea to get to where you want to go. The often unpredictable nature of this part of the world and the amount of wood and debris in the water make me think you want to be in a really solid boat, designed for ocean conditions. Local wooden boats like a Grenfell or Monk would be a good choice. The other option for a classic boat are the 60's and 70's fiberglass cruisers or sportfish from chris-craft, Hatteras andmy particular obsession - Bertram.

[Craig S]

andmy particular obsession - Bertram.

oooh, those Bertram 31s...
My 25 MKII v-drive just wasn't quite it

[JPR]

I had a 25 FBSF with twin 318's and it is what got me hooked. I am currently restoring a 20' Baron - lots of great advice for fast deep v's here. The 31 is an unbelievable boat but wet, wet, wet.

[Craig S]

I had a 25 FBSF with twin 318's and it is what got me hooked. I am currently restoring a 20' Baron - lots of great advice for fast deep v's here. The 31 is an unbelievable boat but wet, wet, wet.

Wonder how many they built - FBSF with V-drives? Maybe we had the same boat? I think mine still had the original 273s, but am not sure. The 31s have a beautiful transom. A work of art for a fiberglass boat. I guess that is the benefit of a two piece mould.

btw, that Baron must be real low production.

[JPR]

The FBSF with the mid mounted 318's is an amazing sea boat. There are certainly fewer of those than with the stern drive 4's and 6's.

I've heard a range of numbers for production of the Baron, I gather that 44 is the correct number out of about 1,800 20' Bertrams, so it is on the rar side