It’s a thought most of us have had at one time or another. Walking the docks, you stop to admire a stout old work boat and the salty part of your brain asks a question: what would it really take to convert one of those?

Usually, the spell is broken by images of rusting decks, grimy bilges and uncooperative machinery. But a look around any harbor shows that these dreams do come to fruition, often in the form of a retired steel tugboat or a former Navy, Coast Guard or Army Corps of Engineers vessel purchased from government surplus and patiently converted into a yacht.

I know because I have done it, and the rewards can be great. Many of these boats are seaworthy designs that offer large spaces and a bounty of extra equipment, at prices far lower than their production-line cousins. Best of all, the result when the project is finished is a vessel that can truly be called a ship, from the steel plates on the hull to the funnel belching smoke.

Photo by Captain Alan R. HugenotThe U.S.S. Wenonah is a 100-foot former Navy Yard tug purchased for about $14,000.

While custom-built steel pleasure boats are rare, I have surveyed a fair number of steel-hulled landing craft, tugboat and fireboat yacht conversions in recent years. Among them were three steel Navy tugboats, each longer than 100 feet; two Aviation Rescue Vessels, one 63 feet and one 85 feet; a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers coastal tugboat and a steel Army landing craft. These projects aren’t for everyone. But they can work well for those who want to work hard, learn their boat well and create something special while saving a few bucks.

BUYER’S MARKET

You can buy a lot of “ship” for very little money with a steel hull, often because most people are afraid of the rust. But steel is one of the best materials for a cruising yacht, and it will last for many decades when properly painted. Steel boats are strong, reliable, and can also be easily repaired almost anywhere in the world. Repairing wood, fiberglass, or aluminum takes highly-developed technology and craftsmanship, but steel can be welded by the local truck mechanic while your hull is laid up on the beach at low tide. Such easy repairs make steel boats popular in working fleets and developing countries.

With fewer interested people making competitive bids, steel hulls tend to be a buyer’s market with excellent bargains to be found, especially now as the mothballed fleet left over from the Second World War is being scrapped.

Back in the 1940s, hundreds of small non-combatant auxiliary ships were built for the Navy, Coast Guard and Army Corps of Engineers. Some history buffs will tell you that when you count these “little ships” the Army had more vessels than the Navy.