More Sande Aces
Here are some more Sande Aces.
A Sande Ace Surfaces
Hull Number: 3588 (8th Ace built in March, 1958)
Dale is only the second owner of this Sande Ace. He first had Tom at the Grapeview Point Boat Works replace some planking and epoxy the entire bottom using Dynel cloth. Dale will finish the restoration himself and will have it zipping around Mason Lake later in 2008.
The Grapeview Ace
Rumors have surfaced through the years about someone building an Ace. Tom and Susanne Regan have done it, building one at their Grapeview Point Boat Works! They stretched the original 1956 plans for a 12 footer to 13 feet 2 inches - about the length of the Sande version - and built it for Coast Guard approval.
Roy Dunn, Ned Hamlin and Don Corliss - former or current Sande Ace owners - join Tom in assessing the new Ace.
The Ace....not yet at speed....zips along with its Mark 35A.
Another Great Sande Ace
Hull Number: 3622 (2nd Ace built in March, 1962)
John Baisch bought his Ace in 1988
after spotting it in a classified ad in the sailboat category. It is shown here a few years later
with his son Greg on Whidbey Island's Useless Bay. It is shown with its classic 1959 Mark 58A Mercury motor. The boat is the spitting image of Ned's.
These photos show the second refit done in 2002. John used 4 mm Okume mahogany plywood on the deck. Epoxy anchored the floor stringers and new multipiece midsection. A new center console is also in the plans.
The extra bracing of the transom was done by the previous owner. Most rebuilds of the Sande Ace have beefed up the transom.
And now, the Ace is back in the water with a 30 HP Tohatsu. John always wanted that center console which is shown off by his grandson!
The Upside-Down Ace
Many have seen this Ace hanging upside-down near the entrance door of the Sande Boat Works in Belfair, Washington for nearly 30 years. When the Boat Works' owners, Jerry and Wendy, decided to retire, they sold the Ace at auction along with everything else.
Click here or on the photos to turn the boat right-side up.
Bob Barkhurst "won" the Ace the auction, turned it right side up, installed a Merc 650 on it and got it wet!! Here it is at the Sande Ace Gathering of 2007. More on this boat later.
Right side up and wet again!
Still in the Family
Dan's father bought the next to last Sande Ace built. It came with a Merc 400 but they upgraded about 10 years later to a 50 HP Merc. Dan skiied and raced the boat around North Bay and Case Inlet. He and his brother jumped yacht waves like the wave runners of today and took it out in very rough weather. Dan is amazed that they survived.
Dan is currently reworking the interior and other things that need attention. More later.
Diamond in the Rough
Hull Number: 6601 (1st Ace built in June, 1960)
Arlie Fagan knows he has his work cut out for him but appreciates restoring
a classic boat which is unique to Missouri. Some Aces came with a windshield
but this one, added by a previous owner, is something else! More on this boat later.
As a warmup to restoring his Ace, Arlie scaled down the orginal 1956 Ace plans and actually made a 9 foot Ace shown below!
Here is the 9 foot Ace with a 9.9 HP motor.
An Inline 6-Cylinder Merc on a Lil' Ol' Sande Ace?
You bet! Fred had a 70 HP Mark 78A but replaced it with an 85 HP Merc 850 shown in these old snapshots sent by Thom in Shelton. The first photo was taken on Lake Sammamish. The Ace is then shown just flying on the prop over Hood Canal even though the steering has been moved to the front.
Roy's Two Sande Aces
One of the Hull Numbers: 6577 (7th Ace built in June, 1957)
Roy purchased this single cockpit version of the Sande Ace several years ago after it was advertised for sale in the midwest.
It is now back in Mason County where it belongs!
Roy's second Ace is in pretty rough shape.
We will try to get pictures posted anyway.
A Three-Generation Sande Ace!
Here's a Sande Ace owned by Brian Patnode.
His grandfather bought it in the late 1950s. He is a third generation owner!
We will have more on this Ace later.
The Original Ace
EJ in Texas was the first we know to build an Ace on his own. It was built from the original 12 foot prototype plans which the Sandes also first used. The Sandes greatly improved the boat by increasing the length to 13 feet and dropped the bow line a bit to give it a bullet shape. There were many two-cockpit runabouts made in the 1950s but you can tell this is an Ace by looking at the beveled chines of the transom.
