AVRs were constructed in much the same fashion as the PT boats, with closely-spaced frames – about 7 inches on center – and a double-planked hull with the inner layer laid diagonally (see photo). The diagonal planks are the reason many people thought these boats were made of plywood. They were built by various yards once the war was underway, but the primary yard was the Miami Shipbuilding Corp. in Florida. The company was also responsible for the original drawings by naval architect Dair Long. Other secondary yards were Fellow and Stewart, Stephens Bros, Harbor Boatbuilding in Newport Beach and even Herroshoff, though the latter did very few.
RANDY CUNNINGHAMAVRs were built in a number of locations, but the primary yard was in Miami.
As it turned out, the other fellow's house sold and the deal went through, making my decision on that one easier. I made a number of inquiries and web searches for other AVRs but, though there were a few "˜cruisified' versions for sale, nothing close to original emerged.
I eventually ended up with a well-built, 41-foot trawler, designed by Ed Monk and built of fiberglass in Port Townsend. Great boat – just what I needed. But to me it was about as exciting as a good haircut. So I kept looking for an AVR, and sometime just after Christmas of 2005 I came across something in California's Sacramento Delta. It was on Craigslist, of all places.
RANDY CUNNINGHAMThe author's boat (above) began its journey home with a one-hour trip up the San Joaquin River, then docked with another AVR (below) prior to being loaded on a truck in preparation for the next leg of the trip.
This boat was in much closer to original layout, with little altered internally. The mid-ships cabin had been gutted and the galley had been moved to the aft cabin, which was the infirmary during her service time. The lower helm station had been removed to make a bigger chart area for teaching navigation, a requirement during her post-war years with the Sea Scouts.
But the thing was, it was a better boat than the first one I'd viewed. So if I was thinking seriously about the old "Scaler," why not this? I had turned a number of rusty hulks into show cars previously. Just take that amount of work, cube it and it's a done deal. People have taken on a lot bigger boat projects than this and managed somehow, I figured. Just let The Force be with you and all that. I still think about the guy that got the idea to chisel out Mt. Rushmore.
A tentative deal was put together, pending the sale of my trawler, as I certainly didn't have enough spare coinage to keep both. I also have a restored 1938 sailboat that we actively race, and having two wooden boats means you will always be broke. The upside is you'll never have the dough for the therapy you should be taking. Ignorance equals bliss, no?
Having two small businesses to run, time looked to be an elusive commodity for me, as did the copious funding required. But, blindly forward I journeyed. While I have had more than five dozen cars (interesting ones and otherwise) in my life, I deduced years before that they were an addiction, something curable. Having been boating since I was three weeks – so they tell me – it was an ingrained passion, never to leave. I absolutely had to act on it. Being a purveyor of hand-built racing bicycles (see link below) I haven't even tried to figure out how many bikes must go out the door, but it will all be worth it, to be sure.
Well the glass boat sold quickly – lots of smart people called the dumb guy selling – and the next step was to find a way to get this huge pile of planks from the Sacramento Delta to the Pacific Northwest in one piece, a trip of about 900 miles. While the boat was somewhat operational, making the trip by sea would not have been intelligent seamanship, so it would have to ply the high seas of Interstate 5.
RANDY CUNNINGHAMThe boat is loaded onto a truck, in preparation for a cruise up the Interstate.
The next step – and not an easy one – was to find a capable hauler. I had heard of a company that had an 80-foot Elco PT boat on a trailer displayed on their web site. These seemed to be the guys, but when I called they said they only haul boats up to 48 feet. I was informed that the PT boat was on the home page because it looked good. Excellent idea! It sure fooled me.
I continued searching and finally found only one capable hauler, which was Global Yacht Hauling in Missouri. Like all yacht haulers, they were always behind schedule, but in the end they did a fine job. Before it could be lifted, however, we had to find a yard in the area with a large enough marine lift. A plan was formed to make the one-hour trip down the San Joaquin River to another AVR owner's dock, where the vessel would stay until transfer to the yard, which was only about a quarter mile away. It was a pleasant afternoon as we headed down the river bringing out all kinds of curious boaters to check out the "˜invasion force.' I had the honor of docking the old girl in a rather smart breeze. Because of their shallow draft, these vessels can behave a bit like a styrofoam cup on a zephyred pond. Nevertheless, in spite of a stalling portside motor, we did manage a no-damage docking and made the boat secure.
RANDY CUNNINGHAMPadding was not used on the straps, which damaged the hull in several places.
While waiting for lift-out time, Scott Benedict, whose dock she was tied at, discovered that one of the fuel injection crossover tubes had a rust hole in it and had poured many gallons of diesel into the crankcase during the one-hour run, hence the aforementioned stalling. That was patched up and eventually the boat made its way to a yard on Bethel Island, but the haul out did not go well. The yard was both incompetent and less than conscientious with the vessel. Padding was not used on the straps, which damaged the hull in eight places on the chine and ripped off the starboard spray rail. They then proceeded to charge three times their original lift-out quote. The lesson here would be to oversee all such things ones self.
Nevertheless the hauler, Ed Perrin, with the generous help of a fellow military boat owner, Jim Ricketts, got the boat loaded in heat well above 100 degrees, and set off up the highway. I don't know if this was the largest boat to ever cruise Interstate 5, but it had to be near the top of the list. The heat blasting on it at highway speeds didn't do the seams much good. A few days later the boat arrived in Bellingham, Washington, where she was lifted off the trailer and put on the hard for a quick bottom freshening. The props and rudders also needed to be re-attached and the backing block for the port strut needed replacement.
