I have so much respect for Carl, Skip and Carla, the 21 design, and Carl's amazing accomplishments with it, that it's a PRIVILEGE to be able to do anything I can to help restore that rare old girl to her former glory! It'll be the ultimate Bahama-cruising machine when finished! Just glad I was able to help!
Thankfully the ol' Dodge didn't miss a beat. The little 318 actually didn't even work that hard . . . could hold a steady 50 in OVERDRIVE at about 9-10" vacuum (Max continuous power is about 5", where you start burning exhaust valves on most engines), with the engine and tranny running a cool 195 degrees, averaging almost 13 mpg. Didn't seem to tow much harder than my Seafari . . . until I tried to stop, that is! Rush hour traffic in Ft. Lauderdale was a bear! Fortunately we were able to take back roads most of the way. We put all the camping gear from the Jeep in my truck, and Skip put a lot of lumber from the boat in his Jeep, so that helped a lot. Here's some more photos that show what a unique boat this is.
This is the view out the back window of what followed me all the way to the Keys . . the worlds BIGGEST 21 footer!
This is why Carla thought I needed a bigger truck!
Here's another side view where we raised the aft end of cap to make the cabin windows parallel to existing deck, probably a little more representative of the final look.
You Seafari guys who have made that trip around the side to front deck will appreciate this view!
This boat could qualify as a Walkaround model!
