billblack
Member
- Joined
- Feb 16, 2016
- Messages
- 8
- Location
- USA
- Vessel Name
- Sampson
- Vessel Make
- 1987 trawler by Freeport Shipbuilding, Freeport Florida
Hi folks.
I am Bill Black of Sebastian, FL. I run a little treasure diving operation here and recently acquired a 1987 steel trawler built by Freeport Shipbuilding in Freeport, FL of good Corten steel. As often happens to boats of all sizes, Sampson changed hands a couple of times over the 37 years since she was launched and ended up in a canal in Freeport, Bahamas for almost 20 years being used a floating warehouse and dock. to complete and we moved her to Fort Pierce, FL in April of this year (2024) to start her refurbishing. We sufferd a few setbacks on getting the project started but we are back on track now.
Sampson is 85' (plus a 9' swim/dive platform) 25' beam, shallow (4') draft vessel built for use in the Bahamas with a pair of 6-71NA Detroits, Twin Disc gears, 25 and 40 KW diesel gensets as well as a 10KW shaft gennie on the stbd main. Raised wheelhouse, 19' x 32' salon that will contain a head and the galley as well as something of a 'lving room' aboard, 5 cabins, engine room and cargo hold. Fuel tankage is 7000 gallons, water is 2400 gallons, there is a 1000 gpd watermaker aboard as well as a K14 Bauer scuba compressor.
The boat was built by and for the Mitchell family as a personal yacht that would accomodate running cargo and doing salvage throughout the Bahamas. Sampson did a great job for the Mitchells for 12 years when they replaced the boat with a vessel with more capacity.
Sooo....we are going to refit her as something of an expedition dive boat over the next year or two and I thought that I might document our progress here, as well as asking for ideas, discussion and advice when we run into something that we can't figure out.
Here are some 'back then' pictures to get this started.
More soon.
I am Bill Black of Sebastian, FL. I run a little treasure diving operation here and recently acquired a 1987 steel trawler built by Freeport Shipbuilding in Freeport, FL of good Corten steel. As often happens to boats of all sizes, Sampson changed hands a couple of times over the 37 years since she was launched and ended up in a canal in Freeport, Bahamas for almost 20 years being used a floating warehouse and dock. to complete and we moved her to Fort Pierce, FL in April of this year (2024) to start her refurbishing. We sufferd a few setbacks on getting the project started but we are back on track now.
Sampson is 85' (plus a 9' swim/dive platform) 25' beam, shallow (4') draft vessel built for use in the Bahamas with a pair of 6-71NA Detroits, Twin Disc gears, 25 and 40 KW diesel gensets as well as a 10KW shaft gennie on the stbd main. Raised wheelhouse, 19' x 32' salon that will contain a head and the galley as well as something of a 'lving room' aboard, 5 cabins, engine room and cargo hold. Fuel tankage is 7000 gallons, water is 2400 gallons, there is a 1000 gpd watermaker aboard as well as a K14 Bauer scuba compressor.
The boat was built by and for the Mitchell family as a personal yacht that would accomodate running cargo and doing salvage throughout the Bahamas. Sampson did a great job for the Mitchells for 12 years when they replaced the boat with a vessel with more capacity.
Sooo....we are going to refit her as something of an expedition dive boat over the next year or two and I thought that I might document our progress here, as well as asking for ideas, discussion and advice when we run into something that we can't figure out.
Here are some 'back then' pictures to get this started.
More soon.
