Progress Report and Future Plans! (Patreon)

Just wanted to write a note to you all to say thanks, and let you know how things are going on the other side of the screen!

So firstly, a massive, MASSIVE thank you to each and every one of you. You guys have completely changed my life, and everyday I am both thankful and slightly incredulous that I am able to pursue this crazy dream. As you probably know, I didn’t really know how I would complete this project when I started it, but I had a strong feeling that it was the right thing to do, and that things would work out. However, I was sure that it would mean many weeks and months working for other people periodically, in-between stages of work on Tally Ho. If I had known (or perhaps admitted) the full extent of the work needed on Tally Ho when I took her on, I probably would have thought the project was completely financially impossible for me. You guys changed all that.

With your help, I have been able to spend the vast majority of my time working directly on Tally Ho, and I have also discovered a passion that I never knew I had - making videos! The first episode of this youtube series was the first video I ever made, and I had no idea what it would lead to. My previous music-editing and photography experience helped me pick up video-editing fairly quickly, but it has still been a huge learning experience for me, and I hope my videos will continue to improve over time. 

I would never be able to justify the editing time, however, if it wasn’t for the generosity of the amazing people that support the project on this website - I find producing videos very satisfying, but it can be very tedious and time-consuming too, and I know I wouldn’t have the patience to do it regularly if I wasn’t able to treat editing as a real job that I have a real commitment to. 

So - thanks again. I only wish I had more time to interact with everybody! 

..but that is something that I am going to be working on..

Having enough time and managing it well is one of the largest challenges for me, in this project. As you know, I am now back in the 

UK for a few weeks, and as well as seeing family and friends and visiting some boatyards, I hope to use this time to really think about and develop time-saving ideas and delegation skills. I am optimistic that, if successful, this will help me engage volunteers more effectively and make faster progress on the rebuild. That is the primary goal, but I also hope that it may let me improve my videos, post more content, and so on. One day, I might even get some T-shirts going! 

Generally though, things are going very well with the project. Putting new timber into the boat is immensely satisfying, and from now on Tally Ho is just going to get stronger and stronger, and (hopefully) look better and better. The rest of the timbers for the centreline (also Purpleheart, from Guyana) will be arriving shortly at Edensaw, a local specialist timber supplier in Port Townsend. I will be replacing the Bow Assembly (Stem, Forefoot, etc) and the Stern Assembly (Sternpost, Stern Knee, etc) before I can replace the frames in those areas, which is a good thing because it will break up the framing work into three equal sections. Nevertheless, I will have to think of some ways to keep the videos interesting during the framing periods - I have some great ideas already!

I am still hoping to use cast Bronze floors to attach the frames to the Keel Timber, as this is the only way to follow the original design but simultaneously avoid ferrous metals. The original Wrought Iron Floors are almost all corroded beyond repair, but more significant is the fact that the areas of the old frames that were in contact with the Iron Floors are far more damaged through Iron-Rot than the rest of the frames. This just illustrates what we already know - putting ferrous metal in a wooden boat, especially below the waterline, is a terrible idea - unless you have no choice, or are building a boat that is designed with only a limited lifespan (as many old boats were). When I return to the US I will be costing out the Bronze-work with the local foundry, to see how feasible this option is. It may be that the decision is put off until I am more sure if it can be afforded. 

I am currently weighing up options for planking timber, because it would be wise to get that ball rolling soon, too. The original planking material is Teak, and although Teak is the perfect timber for the job, unfortunately it is far too expensive to buy long lengths of good quality Teak these days. I am hoping to save a significant number of the original planks, but they will need a lot of repair work done. For the replacement planks (likely two thirds) I am considering Alaskan Yellow Cedar (relatively local) or some of the lighter tropical hardwoods (Wana, Silver Bali, etc - which would be coming from Suriname). Both options have advantages and disadvantages, and of course there are other options still on the table too. If buying wood from Suriname, I would probably take a trip to visit the sawmill in South America before ordering, to see exactly what I would be getting and ensure the timber is being sourced responsibly, which would make a very interesting video. 

Well, that’s it for now! Expect a few more videos while I am back in the UK - I am hoping to revisit a couple of projects that I saw last time I was here, and perhaps visit a few others too. I may try and release more frequent, shorter videos during these few weeks. Remember that you can limit the amount of videos that you pay for, per month. Simply go the menu icon in the top-right corner of Patreon, click “your memberships”, click “edit” next to Sampson Boat Co, and then click “I’d like to set a monthly limit”. That way, I can post as many short videos as I like, without the fear of charging you guys more than you bargained for! On a normal month, I release 2 (occasionally 3) videos.

Thanks again for all your support and encouragement - I can’t explain how much it means to me.

Leo