Well, I promised some changes... ahem.

No turning back now. 

The launch is a go, but it has evolved into something a little different.  Regardless it isn't theoretical any longer and here is the evidence.  The boat is back to where she was a few years ago.  Stripped to a bare hull and a blank canvas.  I had held off in posting pictures of the deconstruct until I had started the build back but I decided to go ahead and share the pictures and plans.  

First the pictures.  They speak for themselves. 

A sawzall and shovel did most of the work.  The fine work was accomplished with a variety of flush cut saws, multi-tool, crowbars, hammer and chisels... basically whatever worked.  The foam is itchy but easy to get out dry.  

The Plan (Updated)...

The first round of the evolution

The future plans call for a much more "themed" boat.  

This, as I stated previously, is a pure pleasure craft for sightseeing and picnicking. The "theming" has gone to a new level.  I want this to be something my grand-girls remember with layers of detail that keep you looking and exploring.  My daughter gets credit for the name and our kind of going "Disney" nuts this past year has pushed this far further into the realm of fantasy in some regards.

My ride on the Disney Motor Launch sort of started it.  While tooling across the Seven Seas Lagoon last September, I decided that this was it.  My own "Steam Launch" inspired conveyance!  I began down the classic route of candy striped awnings and varnished brightwork with the hint of Disney's Jungle Cruise boats starting to creep into the design.  This was mostly in the steam boiler becoming a workable engine well for the outboard.  I tried other arrangements for this faux boiler or uses of and it really didn't seem practical.  I looked at a possible ice chest but it seemed like I was trying too hard.  Staying with the uses on the motor launch and even the them park boat, an engine cover made sense.  

The African Queen is the original vessel from director John Huston’s classic 1951 film by the same name. Photos by Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau

One Step Further...

I then began to look hard at the original inspiration for the Jungle Cruise ride.... The African Queen.

The fact that the Original African Queen still exists is amazing enough, but what is more interesting is that the restoration has attempted to capture the look of what people hold dear from the movie and it is that detail that transports people, for a moment.  As I read more about what Walt Disney attempted in his park (and served as inspiration for Disney World after his death) I realized that it was this aspect of the build that I wanted most.  I wanted for my passengers to crawl over the boat, looking for detail and to always ask, "How old is this?"  I got a little of that in Miss Addy's state when she was wrapped before the move and I liked it.  It fooled people and I wanted to take that further.  as Walt would say, I wanted to "plus it"!

So how?
The entire boat will look as if its purpose has nothing to do with hauling people.  This is a river boat, of the Amazon or Blue Nile variety,  Something that would have steamed out of Zanzibar at the turn of the century to deliver goods and maybe a traveler or two.  She will look work with scrub planed white oak deck and gratings.  Nothing gleaming, nothing bright. 

The seating will be cargo boxes and stacked steamer trunks whose lids open to reveal usable storage space finished clean and serviceable, only an exterior illusion.  Old travel stickers and warnings will festoon this cargo.  Want a seat?  Find a crate to sit on.  Want a cold drink?  Check the steamer trunk.
I plan to use burlap coffee bean sacks as cushioned seats on the trunks. Hey, can't rough it too much and the folks down river need their coffee!

The helm is a genuine wine barrel (again cargo).  Manila rope lashes things together and down (even when they don't).  The idea is to make as complete an illusion as possible but keep it serviceable and safe.  She should look old and worn but only look that way.
I have something special planned for the canopy frame.  I want the look of a lashed bamboo frame but the durability of an aluminum frame.  I will use the same techniques used to produce faux bamboo but use welded aluminum schedule 40 pipe instead.  Welding rings as the bamboo nodes, blending the weld fillets and painting techniques should have people wondering.  The "joints" will be lashed with manila cordage. 

The ideas are still evolving but for now, I have gutted her to the frames which will remain exposed and am down to the final removal for the boiler engine well. 









I have 200 board feet of white oak piled in the garage and a new welder with spool gun ready to transform aluminum to bamboo.  Wish me luck!