Re: Amber

Thanks for the warm welcome.  I posted a few more photos to the Album, as requested.  To answer some of the questions:

One asked if I attended the Wooden Boat Festival at Port Townsend.  Yes, I have attended many times, although not in the last few years.  It’s a wonderful event with lots of gorgeous boats.  Certainly the premier event of that type on the West Coast.  Amber has not attended, however, never having left her home waters on Lake Whatcom, a 13-mile long lake where I live.

Amber’s propulsion system employs a 36V battery bank of 6 6-Volt batteries rated at 245 AH.  Her motor is rated at 6 hp continuous.  (For comparison purposes one must consider that an IC engine is very inefficient in converting its fuel energy into energy at the shaft—about 25% for a gas engine and 33% for diesel—while electric is about 80% efficient.)  She swings a 12X13 prop.  She does 4.3 kts when drawing 20A in flat conditions and is at hull speed before reaching 40A.  At 36V, this is roughly the equivalent of 1 hp and 2 hp, respectively.  A very “slippery”, efficient hull thanks to Mr. Bolger! I calculate her full range, at most efficient speed, to be about 63 mi., much farther than I will ever need to go.

I have shore power at my dock so I can recharge (overnight) as needed.  The cost of the charge is negligible.  One must, however, consider the cost of the batteries as part of the fuel cost.  My first 6 batteries cost $240 in 1999.  The replacements I bought a year ago were nearly $1000.  That won’t surprise anyone who’s had to buy a new car battery recently.  A bank, if well-tended, lasts around 7 years.
Beautiful boat. 

Can you give us some idea of performance, ie distance at what speed on a charge? How many batteries? How many hp? After dealing with gas motors, I'm tempted
Your boat appears to be very nicely done - more pics would let us confirm that initial impression. :-) 

Do you make it to the Port Townsend festival?

HJ

The photo came through. What an utterly beautiful boat!
>
> Your craftsmanship was equal to the design.
>
> If you've got more photos and want to create a folder with them, no one
> will object.
> On Dec 10, 2014 3:53 PM, "ltfeeney@...[bolger]" <
>bolger@yahoogroups.com> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>> Greetings from the currently-stormy (rainy and windy, but warm) Pacific
>> Northwest.
>>
>>
>> The Bolger Group, which I joined not long ago, has been pretty quiet
>> recently and I thought maybe members would enjoy seeing my own, somewhat
>> atypical, Bolger boat.
>>
>>
>> Amber is the Bolger 23' fantail launch. I built her from 1995-1999 and
>> she has been in regular use since then. She is cold-molded construction
>> (mahogany backbone with D. fir veneers), covered with Xynole and epoxy.
>> Her main difference from the design is that I decided to install an
>> electric propulsion system rather than the diesel which was specified. It
>> is a simple 36V system and has no particular bells or whistles. Not unlike
>> the kind of systems that might well have been installed in a similar
>> fantail of the 1890's, of which, of course, this is reminiscent. Phil and
>> Susanne were, themselves, running and enjoying an electric boat, named Lily
>> as I recall, at the time and it seemed like a good idea.
>>
>>
>> It was. I have been utterly happy with the installation, plenty of power
>> to operate at hull speed and it is almost entirely silent at those speeds,
>> other than the sound of the bow wake. Amber was launched in 2000 and I
>> have now enjoyed 14 seasons of virtually carefree, highly-inexpensive
>> "motor boating."
>>
>>
>> Hurrah for Phil, who could design anything he wanted!
>>
>>
>> [This is my first post the Group so I hope I've attached the photo
>> properly!]
>>
>>
>

The photo came through. What an utterly beautiful boat!

Your craftsmanship was equal to the design.

If you've got more photos and want to create a folder with them, no one will object.

On Dec 10, 2014 3:53 PM, "ltfeeney@...[bolger]" <bolger@yahoogroups.com> wrote:

Greetings from the currently-stormy (rainy and windy, but warm) Pacific Northwest.


The Bolger Group, which I joined not long ago, has been pretty quiet recently and I thought maybe members would enjoy seeing my own, somewhat atypical, Bolger boat.


Amber is the Bolger 23' fantail launch.  I built her from 1995-1999 and she has been in regular use since then.  She is cold-molded construction (mahogany backbone with D. fir veneers), covered with Xynole and epoxy.  Her main difference from the design is that I decided to install an electric propulsion system rather than the diesel which was specified.  It is a simple 36V system and has no particular bells or whistles.  Not unlike the kind of systems that might well have been installed in a similar fantail of the 1890's, of which, of course, this is reminiscent.  Phil and Susanne were, themselves, running and enjoying an electric boat, named Lily as I recall, at the time and it seemed like a good idea.


It was.  I have been utterly happy with the installation, plenty of power to operate at hull speed and it is almost entirely silent at those speeds, other than the sound of the bow wake.  Amber was launched in 2000 and I have now enjoyed 14 seasons of virtually carefree, highly-inexpensive "motor boating."


Hurrah for Phil, who could design anything he wanted!


[This is my first post the Group so I hope I've attached the photo properly!]

Greetings from the currently-stormy (rainy and windy, but warm) Pacific Northwest.


The Bolger Group, which I joined not long ago, has been pretty quiet recently and I thought maybe members would enjoy seeing my own, somewhat atypical, Bolger boat.


Amber is the Bolger 23' fantail launch.  I built her from 1995-1999 and she has been in regular use since then.  She is cold-molded construction (mahogany backbone with D. fir veneers), covered with Xynole and epoxy.  Her main difference from the design is that I decided to install an electric propulsion system rather than the diesel which was specified.  It is a simple 36V system and has no particular bells or whistles.  Not unlike the kind of systems that might well have been installed in a similar fantail of the 1890's, of which, of course, this is reminiscent.  Phil and Susanne were, themselves, running and enjoying an electric boat, named Lily as I recall, at the time and it seemed like a good idea.


It was.  I have been utterly happy with the installation, plenty of power to operate at hull speed and it is almost entirely silent at those speeds, other than the sound of the bow wake.  Amber was launched in 2000 and I have now enjoyed 14 seasons of virtually carefree, highly-inexpensive "motor boating."


Hurrah for Phil, who could design anything he wanted!


[This is my first post the Group so I hope I've attached the photo properly!]