In upstate New York, the lakes are frozen and the mountains buried in snow, but in preparation for the thaw, mahogany is being sawn as the latest creation takes shape at Reuben Smith’s Tumblehome Boatshop. Located in Gold Cup country near Lake George, Tumblehome has a reputation for thoughtful and rigorous restorations of antique raceboats and runabouts in gleaming varnish and polished brass.
"Reuben brought us in to develop a custom design to fit his client’s boathouse—a classy design to combine the feel and style of a classic raceboat but modern handling and performance. Our concept development process ran through several iterations that each considered the fusion of modern with traditional. Ultimately, the process returned to this small yacht exuding the flavor of the 20’s era wrapped around a modern bottom and power plant. Crisp classic joinerwork in varnished mahogany runs throughout and forms the cockpit, where hand-crafted leather bucket seats cradle pilot and copilot at an antique-style dashboard that is situated behind a cast-bronze and glass windshield", Robert Stephens commented.
The brief was to deliver a flexible and versatile arrangement for a family-oriented approach — a departure from the two-seater racers of the ‘20’s lies in the aft cockpit, where settees allow more folks to enjoy the ride—up to six can be accommodated for sunset cocktail cruising. Concealed beneath gull-wing hatches in the afterdeck is a boarding platform and swimming ladder for easy access to the water or dock.
Hunkered down on full-length Douglas fir stringers is a modern PleasureCraft six-liter fuel-injected V-8 --all the rumble and power of an antique engine with minimal mechanical headaches. Careful soundproofing and muffling ensures an enjoyable experience—for those on board as well as on the lakeshore!
Wide open, the V-8 will push her modern constant-deadrise hull to 60 mph; chine flats deliver lift and knock down unwanted spray, while her carefully-engineered construction of epoxy-bonded mahogany keeps her far more rigid and smooth-riding than her plank-on-frame ancestors.
Stephens Waring
+1 207-338-6636
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www.stephenswaring.com