The New England Chapter war born at the 1976 Boston Boat Show when a group of wooden boat enthusiasts gathered in admiration around a couple of show winning woodies: Ted Larter’s “Scotty Too” Goldcup Racer and Ray Hawe’s prized possession, 18-foot Garwood “Norma Jean”. Behind the scenes of this Boston gathering were Jim Irwin and…
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The North Carolina Coastal & Piedmont Chapter of ACBS is fortunate to have a chapter member, John Olsen, who is an instructor in the boatbuilding program at Cape Fear Community College (CFCC) in Wilmington, one of six boatbuilding schools supported by ACBS scholarships*. In addition to ACBS International support, the North Carolina Coastal & Piedmont…
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Here’s a great story of a Starcraft restoration – and a bit of history of it’s predecessor, Star Tank – straight from the ACBS Rudder archives. Vintage metal boats don’t get much attention in the Rudder. I wonder if many ACBS members know there are metal boats made by Starcraft much, much older than…
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“Back to the Beginning” was the 1995 theme for the 20th Anniversary ACBS Show and meeting 30 years ago. Although the Adirondack Chapter (ADK) was the third to form a chapter under the newly incorporated ACBS, the Adirondacks are the actual ACBS birthplace. Lake George was summer home to a group of wooden boat owners…
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ACBS was inaugurated on January 25, 1975. Happy anniversary! By the spring of 1975, though newly formed, ACBS was already an active club with representation at major boat shows and new chapters forming. Read all about it in the very first ACBS publication, the Rusty Rudder!
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(Or, for Immediate Relief, Just Get Out on the Water) Whenever I want to feel better, fast, I head straight for the water. The simple act of motoring across the bay or just floating around, especially aboard a vintage boat, is the finest therapy for anything that ails you. Whether you’re aboard a vintage runabout,…
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By Anders Johnsen, ACBS Nordic Chapter (All pictures by the author) Historical background With the world’s second longest coastline it´s quite natural that boats have been a central part of our history all the way from the Vikings to modern times. As in many other countries, motorized boats used for pleasure started to appear in…
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In the early 1980s, a group of vintage boat owners living on one of Michigan’s many pristine bodies of water in the Grand Traverse region organized the Long Lake Wooden Boat Club. Gradually, they became aware of an international organization called The Antique and Classic Boat Society; from this awareness would come the Water Wonderland…
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Join the Lake Champlain Chapter for a video workshop on how to tune up a Flat Head Marine Engine. In this five-part video series, you’ll get a primer on checking engine compression, the distrubutor and water pumps for proper function and setting the timing. And, you’ll learn how to torque head bolts, about the fuel…
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It all started back in 1978 when a group of folks wanted to have a boat show. The show was to feature both Vintage and recently wooden boats that had been in continuous use, a “user” boat. The show was a great success and the Village of Alexandria Bay has opened their docks for a…
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Adventure lovers will remember Gene Porter’s story of a trip north along the veritable aquatic superhighway that is Lake Champlain and its appendages into the heart of old French Canada. Invited to judge the very first Montreal Classic Boat Festival. In 2008, inspired by to revisit the beauty of this country by waterway, Gene loaded…
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During the month of August in 2010, Gilbert Vacheret, a founding member with a French delegation of the club Société Nautique de Bordeaux, went to the U.S. to meet with the ACBS. Lou Rauh introduced Gilbert to several chapters and one in particular, the Water Wonderland chapter, offered him the opportunity to visit the…
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