Skookum Maru

[Hugh MacD]

Yeah, me too to be honest. Did you see my intro post on the MGExp Forum?

Yes, I did I'm "OldEnoughToKnowBetter" on that forum...although that's probably a lie. You'll note my real name there as well as the "HughMacD is a handle I adopted when I first signed up on the forum. A friend always said, "Never use your real name!"...so I didn't. But that is part of my SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) name

[Garret]

Happy to go check it out:
(No rust down here usually means exactly that)

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto...601099566.html

By northeast standards, that car looks like a steal.

[cstevens]

Happy to go check it out:
(No rust down here usually means exactly that)

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/cto...601099566.html

Thanks! That looks like a great car for the money but it's a 1970 model year and I am determined to buy a 1967, the last year for the original steel dash here in the US. That's one of the reasons this search has taken so long. I've been very picky. There are plenty of cars out there, but only a few that matched my desires for year, color, and condition.

Yes, I did I'm "OldEnoughToKnowBetter" on that forum...although that's probably a lie. You'll note my real name there as well as the "HughMacD is a handle I adopted when I first signed up on the forum. A friend always said, "Never use your real name!"...so I didn't. But that is part of my SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism) name

Ah! Found you. Ok. Your secret is safe with me.

By northeast standards, that car looks like a steal.

Yeah, it does from up here as well. I see a few interior issues that let it down a little but overall I think that's a fantastic price. I've looked at a couple that were not nearly that nice but were listed at twice the asking price of that one. Honestly I started to feel bad for the sellers of those cars because I think both had gone in blindly, spent too much, and were trying to sell for something close to what they paid. And they will probably get it eventually, from some other punter blinded by the shiny paint and chrome.

Classic car retail prices must be hugely inflated by naive buyers of cars that look good and drive well but have fundamental problems that are not obvious and will be expensive to fix. Before I narrowed my search down to an MGB GT I considered a silver on red 1972 Mercedes 250c coupe in Las Vegas, one very much like the car I used to own. It was listed at $17,500, which is not absolute top dollar but it's right up there. It looked really good in the photos at first glance but the more I stared at them the more little details started to stand out that were just not quite right.

The radiator support crossmember, which should be body color, was painted black for example. There were a bunch of little missing covers and things in the interior that indicated that the interior had been removed at some point and not put back correctly. And it had some missing exterior trim. I suspect it had a front end collision plus some sort of long-delayed and hastily finished restoration in its past. Which, fine. Not disqualifying, but these are are complex cars and very expensive to put right, especially in the interior. One of the missing pieces was the power window switch bezel on the console. A minor thing to look at, but that part is NLA and is over $500 if you can find one. A few details like that add up very quickly.

Just on the off chance that it might be better than I thought I had it inspected anyway but the guy who looked at waved me off with exactly the comments I expected he would have. All up I judged that it was a $9,500 car at best, or overpriced by nearly 100%. But I didn't even bother putting in an honest offer on the car. It was being sold by a big, national, classic car consignment house and they were never going to back away that far from their asking price. Although I just looked and I see that they have come down to $14,500. Still a bit steep but getting closer to reality.

The BGT I'm buying is not perfect at all. It has cosmetic issues, some deferred maintenance, and will certainly need some rust repair work at some point in the future. But it wears all of its flaws on its sleeve. No one has made any attempt to disguise any problems. They are just the things that happen with age and long use and were not inflicted on it. An honest car, in other words. And the asking price was more than fair. Less, in fact, than the Livermore car above. I had to fend the seller off from offering to pay for any of the work I'm having done on it. I would have felt terrible giving him anything less than his full ask. But he's owned it from new and he can't drive it easily any longer. He wants to find a good home for the car more than he wants to get all the money for it. He trusts me to do that and I am committed to honoring that trust.

[Garret]

Chris - completely valid points on the B. However, as a person who has lived & worked as a mechanic in the land of car rust, I'll offer a caution: rust damage is one of the most expensive things to fix properly on a car. Sure, you can get some new rocker panels (a B weak point), bolt 'em on & squirt the car. However, bad rockers can also mean frame damage in behind them, and door bottom issues. If those are bad, shock mounts will most likely be getting tired/in need of new metal, spring mounts as well, etc. etc.

If given a choice of a B with bad rockers & other possible damage and one with no rust but in need of a complete engine overhaul - I'd go for the engine overhaul in a nanosecond.

Just my opinion & worth exactly what you paid for it

[cstevens]

Chris - completely valid points on the B. However, as a person who has lived & worked as a mechanic in the land of car rust, I'll offer a caution: rust damage is one of the most expensive things to fix properly on a car. Sure, you can get some new rocker panels (a B weak point), bolt 'em on & squirt the car. However, bad rockers can also mean frame damage in behind them, and door bottom issues. If those are bad, shock mounts will most likely be getting tired/in need of new metal, spring mounts as well, etc. etc.

If given a choice of a B with bad rockers & other possible damage and one with no rust but in need of a complete engine overhaul - I'd go for the engine overhaul in a nanosecond.

Just my opinion & worth exactly what you paid for it

Wise words Garret, and I agree with every one of them. That's another reason this search has taken so long. I'm being picky about rust and have passed on a few that were decent otherwise. This car does have a little rust in the passenger side sill/castle rail but the shop that did the inspection believes that it's still early, isolated to one spot, and not an immediate need. I do think it will need sills at some point in the next few years but the rest of the car is so good, and the asking price is so low (really, I'm embarrassed to disclose how low), that if I had to spend $10k on rust repair and paint it would still be a bargain. And even if it's more expensive than that, how much better is it to save a good one from going bad than to let it go to someone without the knowledge or resources to care for it? I'm a sucker, I can't deny it.

[Garret]

OK - but please fix the rust sooner rather than later. There's a reason mechanics call it cancer...

I'll shut up now.

OK - I probably won't...

[cstevens]

OK - but please fix the rust sooner rather than later. There's a reason mechanics call it cancer...

I'll shut up now.

OK - I probably won't...

Ha! I've actually started searching for a shop to do the work already. I think I have a lead on one but I want to go there in person rather than call. Sometimes these things are all about the dance, right? You need them to want to work with you and the relationship is important, just like shipwrights and boatyards. The guy standing in front of you is easier to persuade than a voice on the phone. And I know it can take months to get a project scheduled so I'm trying to start the process ASAP.

[Canoeyawl]

I have a complete (rough) '67 MGB parts car w/bumpers - dash - engine etc. I'm going to junk it
It is missing the suspension which I used on my TD

[cstevens]

I have a complete (rough) '67 MGB parts car w/bumpers - dash - engine etc. I'm going to junk it
It is missing the suspension which I used on my TD

Hm, well on the off chance, was it an overdrive car? And is the dash uncut? The car I'm buying has had an ammeter added where the OD switch would have been. I'd like to find a solid dash to restore for it. And at some point I'd like to add overdrive. I could be interested in making a deal for the necessary parts if you have them in restorable condition.

[Canoeyawl]

No overdrive (although I haven't actually confirmed that by looking!)
Dash as far as I know is stock
Steel Bumpers and associated pieces are all there missing one overrider.
Has aluminum deck (w/luggage rack) and engine lids
SU's are unmolested and all there w/aircleaners
14" wires (rusty)

[cstevens]

No overdrive (although I haven't actually confirmed that by looking!)
Dash as far as I know is stock
Steel Bumpers and associated pieces are all there missing one overrider.
Has aluminum deck (w/luggage rack) and engine lids
SU's are unmolested and all there w/aircleaners
14" wires (rusty)

PM Sent

[cstevens]

Mark is installing the refinished trim moldings and handrails today. I can't get down the dock on my own to see the boat yet but my wife stopped by and took some photos.





Still some details to finish up and more deck and cabin refinishing to do later this summer but overall she's looking better than she ever has in our care. I am really happy with how it's turning out. (Still need to get after those handrails though, I see...)

[_QB_]

Looking very good, Chris.

I assume you are looking better every day yourself, but no need to post photographic evidence of that .

The lesson I am taking here is that for both wooden boat maintenance and heart surgery, it can be good to rely on capable professionals.

[cstevens]

Looking very good, Chris.

I assume you are looking better every day yourself, but no need to post photographic evidence of that .

The lesson I am taking here is that for both wooden boat maintenance and heart surgery, it can be good to rely on capable professionals.

Thanks Paul. Yes, I look like my old self again, just a few pounds lighter. Which isn't a bad thing. I even shaved today! Still a long way to go but I'm getting there. And yes, let's hear it for the professionals in both cases.

[wizbang 13]

Hoo boy I jus saw on Facebook you had a ting ting with your heart jusnow.
Glad to read here yer gooder.
ready to swap out pasta for beans now?( remember that?)

[cstevens]

Hoo boy I jus saw on Facebook you had a ting ting with your heart jusnow.
Glad to read here yer gooder.
ready to swap out pasta for beans now?( remember that?)

Hey Bruce - thanks! Yeah, I posted about it a few days ago here, with photos even. Read back a bit. Getting better every day but still a bit of a ways to go. Better than the alternative though. It would have been awful dark in that pine box so I'm happy to be sticking around for a bit!

[Hugh MacD]

Good thing you're doing better. You'd be driving yourself nuts figuring out the best finish for the pine....

[cstevens]

Good thing you're doing better. You'd be driving yourself nuts figuring out the best finish for the pine....

Oh, you have no idea. Since I got home and have been largely confined to a seated or horizontal position (with exceptions for walks and going to the bathroom and not much else) I have...

- Invented (in my head) that haptic manual gearbox emulator thingy for EVs
- Written a detailed voice and tone guide to writing marketing copy for Chaos Theory Studios, the business in which I am a partner
- Mapped out maintenance and restoration plans for Skookum Maru, Lucky Truck (the Studebaker) and Jack (the MGB GT) for the next two years
- Developed layout drawings to scale for renovations that we want to do to our kitchen, bathroom, and side porch
- Reached out to a contractor to provide a bid on the renovations (I should disclose that this project was nowhere on the horizon a week ago)
- Drawn up a ~20 page project plan for the renovations to share with the contractor
- Developed a complete heart-healthy meal plan in spreadsheet form with ingredients listings for nearly fifty meals pulled from recipes that we have made and enjoyed
- Redesigned the waste and recycling flow for the house

I. Am. Going. Stir. Crazy. In. Here! Although it's worse for my wife. She has to put up with me, listen to my rants, take occasional measurements of our house, and keep me fed. She is amazing and I owe her everything.

The really bad thing though is that I have created shopping lists for many of the things I am imagining. And I have a laptop and a credit card, and the energy to use them even if I can't do much else. So we have had a steady stream of boxes arriving filled with MGB parts and maintenance items, new recycling sorting bins, various "that would be handy" things I think about at three o'clock in the morning... (I really needed a storage bag for my boat dolly for when I can start rowing again, for example. Ordered.)

I need to be stopped!

[hawkeye54]

Shopping affliction remediation HAS to be done gradually, Chris. (I know a bit about these things - My lady has QVC, QVC2, Zulilly, JTV, HSN and several others programmed on the television, in apps on her tablet, and has the direct phone numbers in memory on the phone )

One step at a time will work, if you hold to the plan.


Good Luck,

Rick

[Hugh MacD]

I bow to an acknowledged master of OCD! But then I'm at least mobile, now, and can start nibbling (small bites) of the list I created while my knee was healing and I was down from the internal bleeding. Be of good cheer! Soon you will find you have all of these projects going and have little enough time to implement them. But they are keeping your mind going while you're healing and that's the most important of all! Heal Fast!

[cstevens]

Shopping affliction remediation HAS to be done gradually, Chris. (I know a bit about these things - My lady has QVC, QVC2, Zulilly, JTV, HSN and several others programmed on the television, in apps on her tablet, and has the direct phone numbers in memory on the phone )

One step at a time will work, if you hold to the plan.


Good Luck,

Rick

Thanks Rick. What I really need is something to accomplish rather than just plan but that's still a few weeks out. End of April and I can drive again but it will be nearly July before all restrictions are lifted. Sigh.

I bow to an acknowledged master of OCD! But then I'm at least mobile, now, and can start nibbling (small bites) of the list I created while my knee was healing and I was down from the internal bleeding. Be of good cheer! Soon you will find you have all of these projects going and have little enough time to implement them. But they are keeping your mind going while you're healing and that's the most important of all! Heal Fast!

Glad to hear you are up and about! I had missed your original post and went back to read it a few days ago. Pretty scary. But yes, my days are currently filled with watching back seasons of Ted Lasso, The Voice blind auditions on YouTube, and planning the million things that I will have no time to do once I can get around a bit more. Oh, and rereading old favorite books that I haven't picked up in a while. It's the longest amount of time I've ever spent away from my usual routine so I need to keep my mind busy.

[Boatsbgood]

My sympathies Chris, not fun to be so constrained. My relief started when I was cleared to stand for extended periods, I could at least get into small, bench-based (woodworking, light metalwork and engine stuff) so my hands and head could accomplish something! Then, next step was small boat stuff, rowing skiff and the like. Took a little planning to work around 'effort' ie lifting or moving too much weight, but it was something at least. Hope the time passes quickly and without too much anguish!
Brian

[cstevens]

My sympathies Chris, not fun to be so constrained. My relief started when I was cleared to stand for extended periods, I could at least get into small, bench-based (woodworking, light metalwork and engine stuff) so my hands and head could accomplish something! Then, next step was small boat stuff, rowing skiff and the like. Took a little planning to work around 'effort' ie lifting or moving too much weight, but it was something at least. Hope the time passes quickly and without too much anguish!
Brian

Thanks Brian. I am eagerly anticipating the green light to do pretty much anything at all at this point but it's a few weeks out. In the meantime I'm writing long rants about AI and the nature of creative work, along with cynical hot takes on Capitalism and the economic value of human effort. That's this morning at least. I'm sure my ungovernable brain will be off on some other tangent by this afternoon. Honestly it's a little exhausting. I don't think I ever realized before how much I use manual effort and sensory experience as a way to control my mental ADD/OCD tendencies. But at least we will be moving Skookum Maru tomorrow so I will have something else to do for a while. I can't actually pilot or handle lines, but I can sit on the settee and watch and that will have to do.

[AJZimm]

What I really need is something to accomplish rather than just plan but that's still a few weeks out.

Write more and start drawing things.

The first you are already good at, and you can measure your progress by number of words produced per unit of time invested.

The second, if it is a skill you don’t already have, you can improve by following online instructional videos – there are plenty of them. You definitely will have something tangible at the end of your time, even if it is just a sketch you want to tear up so that you can try again.

[cstevens]

Write more and start drawing things.

The first you are already good at, and you can measure your progress by number of words produced per unit of time invested.

The second, if it is a skill you don’t already have, you can improve by following online instructional videos – there are plenty of them. You definitely will have something tangible at the end of your time, even if it is just a sketch you want to tear up so that you can try again.

Thanks Alex. Good point! I'm actually somewhat decent at the drawing bit, since I trained as an artist and designer in high school and college, and worked in that field for a few years before turning to software development. The skills are a bit rusty but I did dig out my drawing tools and an old sketch book and have been dabbling a bit. That has definitely been a great outlet and one I need to tap into more.

[jpatrick]

- Reached out to a contractor to provide a bid on the renovations (I should disclose that this project was nowhere on the horizon a week ago)
- Drawn up a ~20 page project plan for the renovations to share with the contractor

Uh-oh... The contractor's bid just went up at least 20%.

Jeff

[cstevens]

Uh-oh... The contractor's bid just went up at least 20%.

Jeff

LOL, right!? Every contractor's worst nightmare. A client with ideas. Can't help it though. It's in my nature.

[cstevens]

Ok, back on topic for a moment. We brought Skookum Maru back home to Stimson marina this morning with the kind help of Mark Lerdahl and forum members Yeadon and Bobcat.



She needs a good wash down but she looks fantastic. Mark's work is excellent as always. There are a few more projects to tackle, like making a new mounting pad for the dinghy davit and new chocks for the dinghy, but the big aft cabin repair project is done.

[hawkeye54]

Certainly a great bit of progress, Chris ! ! !




Rick

[Bobcat]

Glad to help. It was nice short trip across the canal. Skookum is a beauty...but you knew that

[Garret]

Damn! Don't she purty!

[Hugh MacD]

She does that And it had to feel good to get out again, Chris. Never underestimate the therapeutic effects of messing about with boats

[cstevens]

Certainly a great bit of progress, Chris ! ! !




Rick

Glad to help. It was nice short trip across the canal. Skookum is a beauty...but you knew that

Damn! Don't she purty!

She does that And it had to feel good to get out again, Chris. Never underestimate the therapeutic effects of messing about with boats

Thanks everyone! I agree, she's looking better than ever. And yes, it was amazing to get out of the house and on the water even if it was just for a few minutes. Very therapeutic.

[gray duck]

In an effort to bring you and WBang together - You can get pasta made from beans - lentils, chickpeas etc,

And seriously consider watching Forks Over Knives if you haven't already

Best wishes for your recovery and healing.

[cstevens]

In an effort to bring you and WBang together - You can get pasta made from beans - lentils, chickpeas etc,

And seriously consider watching Forks Over Knives if you haven't already

Best wishes for your recovery and healing.

Thanks! Regarding diet... I am actually eating a lot of legumes these days. The lentil and the chickpea are good friends, along with the cannellini bean, but I have enjoyed eating them for years so that's not new. As for Forks Over Knives, while I haven't seen it I do acknowledge all of the practical and ethical benefits of a vegan and gluten free diet. But I am not quite ready to adopt it personally. Oh, I could give up meat and eggs without missing them much, but I would be very sad to never eat salmon again. And I have given up most dairy products already but I still enjoy yogurt (non-fat) and a few other things, like the 2% milk in my Americano, although it's a poor substitute for half and half.

But it is true that the daily half and half in my coffee and a taste for cream sauces and ice cream (along with some questionable genetics) nearly did me in. I had been making major dietary changes even before even before the bypass surgery so I wouldn't rule out going full vegan. But it's going to be a process. I'm still coming to terms with the idea that I might never have cassoulet again. Or eggs Benedict. Sigh.