Boston Whaler Restoration

Back in 2002, I saw an ad in Yahoo for a 1968 , 13’ Boston Whaler Sport for sale. I called and said I was interested and sent the seller a deposit to hold the boat. That weekend, my Dad and I made a 350 mile round trip to Red Lion, PA on a Sunday afternoon to look at the boat. I knew if the hull was sound, nothing else mattered to me and could be restored based on what I read on the continuous wave website. I had bought a new trailer because I knew the existing trailer was not going to make it back. For $500, this is the boat we picked up that day. A 1968 13’ Boston Whaler with serial number intact. A gentleman and his two brothers helped lift the boat on to the new trailer and we towed it home behind my 1992 Honda Accord with 204,000 miles on it. The seller told me that after I called him for the boat, 5 other people called for it too. It was a great buy as the hull for this age was in very good condition. Minor fiberglass repairs were needed but overall it was great. Lots of work went into this boat as you will see in my Flickr Boston Whaler page here.

Natoma Skiff - 15' Rowboat

I also have built several boats over the years. I started around 1986, when I attended a 1 week boatbuilding course at the Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle. The class was taught by Simon Watts. We built a traditional cedar lapstrake planked rowing scull joined with copper rivets and included steam bent ribs. When I returned home, I only built glued lapstrake boats and 1 cedar strip boat. I would love to someday build an Adirondack Guideboat, but before I do, I have to start using the boat I have more to justify that. I have to admit, sometimes it is more fun to build than to use. I have more detailed pictures of the building of a Natoma Skiff at Flickr.

This 15' boat is a very fast boat at about 74 lbs. Last October, I rowed with a friend of mine who has a Steve Kaulback 15' Kevlar Adirondack Guideboat, which is also about 70 lbs., but I could not keep up with him. I think the kevlar guideboat built by Steve Kaulback is the nicest and fastest non-scull rowing craft around.
I would love to get one someday. They are about $3800 though.

Pencil Drawings

I started doing pencil drawings in early 2008 after reading books by Betty Edwards and Lee Hammond. I use the 1/2" or 1" grid method to transfer the image. This has really helped. For more of my pencil drawings, you can view my portfolio on Art Bistro.

My ArtBistro Page

My brother Gib is a professional graphic artist and his work is tremendous. To see more of his work, please visit his portfolio here:
Gib's ArtBistro Page

Basement Mural

This is my first attempt at painting a large wall mural. I used acrylic paint. I used brushes and an airbrush. I was thinking about doing this since the summer of 2008. I finally decided to do during my holiday vacation week at the end of 2008. It took me about 1 month to complete. I used the grid method to transfer the small image to a large 4' wide by 3" high image. My son James really loves Star Wars and so do I. I really liked this image of Yoda, so I thought it would look good on the basement playroom wall.

One thing I really had to overcome on this project was procrastination. I used a blank monthly calendar and worked a little each day. After I completed I would make off the calendar with a red "X". After I got started, I kept it going to not break the chain. Once I got painting, the time just went very quickly. When I start drawing or painting, it is like entering another world. I recommend art to anyone whether you can draw or not. There are so many great resources on the internet to help get you started or see what others are doing.

I made my first video for YouTube that shows the progression from bare wall to finished mural.