A New Package Arrived Yesterday

The bilge vents I won on eBay finally came in yesterday. I waited around the house on December 25th to be the highest bidder and after much aggravation they were shipped a week ago, at last.

After much thought and planning last month, I realized that with the rear fin and deck on my Batboat I would not have access to the engine if there is a problem out on water. Therefore, I plan to drastically alter the boat by removing the center fin and deck and replacing them with two fins, one on each side. Both in correct look and proportion to the original 1966 TV Batboat.

The deck has to go anyway. It is made of wood and in bad shape.

My overall idea is to transform this into a combination of the original 1966 Batboat, the 1960s comic book version (pictured on the right) and an Atomic Age craft. It will still lean heavily on looking like the1966 boat, however.

Since I am removing the deck a cool detail from the 1966 TV boat will be lost, the bilge vents. Here they are up close.

A bilge is a mechanical part that pumps water out of the boat. The vents bring in and exhaust air from the bilge pump.

The original Batboat was designed and built in 1966 by Glastron Boat Co.of Texas and they used stock vents from their own line of boats. Groups were lined up in four rows and four more were individually spaced out. More on the original boat later.

To the right is what an original Glastron vent looks like up close.

These 1960s parts are extremely hard to find and expensive. There are no suitable replacements on the market that I've seen, either.

Discouraged, I figured these eBay vents can be used for something somewhere down the road. Found them unbelievably cheap, anyway.

My new vents are big things that came from a 1978 Glastron Carlson CV-23 Jet boat and measure 18" X 4".

Last night while browsing eBay I found how I may use them. A 1974 Glastron V-179 Starflight stern drive for sale has vents on each side near the stern.

Could I place them at the rear and the other two just under the front of the fin, something like shown in the 1960s comic book version?

It is still too cold outside to take the tarp off my Batboat to see how this works out, however. Ugh!

Cool Picture Of The Week - Novi May 21, 2006

(click the image for a larger size)

This weeks Cool Picture Of The Week is a photo of my Batboat before I bought it. Its hitched to the Batmobile at the Motor City Comic Convention, held at the Rock Financial Showplace in Novi, MI, May 19-21, 2006.

This convention is a big one that still has people talking. It emphasized the 40th anniversary of the TV show.

Adam West, Burt Ward, Julie Newmar, Lee Meriwether, and Yvonne Craig were there for everyone to meet, get autographs and photos ops. A rare instance to have all of them in the same place, I understand.

Yvonne had announced her retirement and this was her last convention appearance.

Among the last things she did was autograph the rear boat fin.

I stopped reading comic books years ago and never been to one of these conventions, however, I was disappointed when I found about this event too late to make plans.

Important advise for a new Dominoed Dare Doll

The following advice was passed on to a new Bat Girl model attending an upcoming car show in muggy Florida.
"Wear underarm pads, if possible; wear a sweat band under the cowl; drink enough water, but not so much you have to run to the bathroom constantly; and turn to the breeze whenever possible. "

(from the 1966 Batman Message Board.)

Uncanny thinking from an apparently seasoned Crusader.

They tell me that Superhero cowls, the head piece, have no air circulation and get uncomfortably warm very quickly.

And I am assuming the tights don't breath well, either.

A New Steering Wheel

A package arrived this afternoon containing the new steering wheel I bought from eBay four days ago. A surprise because I didn't expect it so soon.

Got my coat on and headed out to the boat. The blue color is a perfect match.

I had been keeping an eye on these for well over a month. The price was $38.99 plus $9.95 shipping.

I never found an appropriate one at various local shops and websites. Most custom car steering wheels I saw were too expensive and a little too flashy, hot rod styled for my low-keyed Batboat.

A while ago, I asked the Glastron Boat Forum if this would work in my Batboat and they replied I would need a simple adapter kit. No problem.

The shiny blue powder coat paint and futuristic shape looks really great in person. MUCH better than in the photo and is perfect for transforming my Anti-Crime Crusier. Let's see if I can pull it off!

Size is 9-1/2 inches high x 13-1/2 wide which is really good because the original boat steering wheel is 15 inches in diameter and too big for what I need. And also badly cracked from age.

This new one is almost 100% solid welded metal and the more narrow shape is perfect because when one sits in the Batboat it is like a cramped cockpit with very little elbow room.

The width across the inside is less than 60 inches and my shoulders are 21 inches, leaving not much room to comfortably steer. Especially if I put engine throttle in between the two seats. This new wheel may make a difference.

These are actually made for go kart / barstool racing cars!

Bought it from B and M Karting's eBay store. They have a nice selection in different colors, shapes and sizes.

The frustrating part is that it is still freezing outside and I probably won't be able to do anything inside the tarped boat for at least a couple more months. Until then, the steering wheel sits on a shelf. Blah!

Cool Picture Of The Week

(click on image for larger version)

I came upon this recent image on the internet earlier today, just in time for the first Cool Picture Of The Week.

A 1958 Lone Star Meteor awaiting someone to fix it.

"The fiberglass boat that's made like a car", says an old company description.

Thanks to the folks at the Classic Glastron Owners Association Forum, I learned these wonderful 15 foot, 485 pound vessels were produced from 1956 to 59 and are highly desirable by classic boat enthusiasts.

It even has eyes! I wonder which Superhero would have used this in a transatlantic mission?

The rear edges of the fins have cleats for water skiing ropes and the craft also includes a "remote control mount."

It doesn't say where the sealed atomic batteries go, however.

Clearing Legal Ownership On An Atomic Age Vessel

The day after arriving home was the beginning of my unfortunate, but short tutorial on several important rules regarding legal boat registration and transfer.

The week before driving to Garden City to look over the boat I asked the Secretary of State's office what was needed to have a boat and trailer legally in my name.

Among them was a license plate, registration for the boat and trailer signed over to me, bill of sale, and other stuff.

The evening I bought the vessel, however, the seller assured me many times that the paper work he had was all that I needed.

Something very unexpected happened the next day. The Secretary of State clerk looked at me and explained I had nothing on paper of use but the Bill Of Sale.

The other stuff wasn't good for anything.

"Great!", I thought. "Did I actually get myself into a mess like this intentionally!?!?"

After several days of many unsuccessful attempts to contact the guy, and as many near sleepless nights, I went back to the Secretary of State clerk, explained the situation, and provided all the papers I had on the boat and, to my relief, her supervisor said it was good enough. I had proof beyond reasonable doubt that I purchased, and was the rightful owner, of this Atomic Age craft. This took all about 5 minutes.

Relieved, I gladly paid the usual taxes and fees but still had to have it and trailer weighed to get the non-expiring plate and trailer registration, which I did early the next day at Rifkin Scrap Metal in the City Of Saginaw.

For fun I decided to take the long route into the city and, although still under a tarp, the boat attracted a lot of puzzled looks and double takes.

At Rifkin they directed me to the same weigh station that's used for the scrap metal trucks. Combined, the boat and trailer was 1360 pounds.

On the way home I stopped at the Zilwaukee coin self car wash to spray off the mud covering much of the car trailer and boat.

Early the next afternoon, December 6th, I was back at the Secretary of State Office and quickly all was 100% mine and legal. Had the plate and everything now.

After four long days, what a relief!!

I now know more about boat and trailer registration than I would ever want to relearn again. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE PROPER REGISTRATION SLIP FOR BOTH TRAILER AND BOAT AND THAT THE OWNER HAS SIGNED THE BACK OF BOTH. Or else you don't really own it.

After all this the seller returned my call and said he would do everything to get the boat in my name. I replied the deed was already done and thanked him, anyway.

(Image of my Batboat, 12/06/07)

This was December in Michigan and a slushy winter so far. Drove the Batboat through the cold rain all the way from Garden City and by the time I got my trailer plate four days later, Saginaw County was lightly coated with wet snow and mud puddles.

Cold viruses are easy for me to catch in the damp air. It took several days of light rain and wet snow to finally have a chance to step outside to mount the license plate and really look everything over to plan my next move.

It was parked and not going anywhere, anyway.

An introduction to my Batboat

In the late hours of December 2, 2007 I returned from a long, over 110 mile drive back from Garden City, MI with a Batboat behind me.

It was after dark, cold and raining. I had never towed anything before in my life, not less a 14 foot Batboat.

My black 96 Chevy Lumina, to my surprise, was harder to handle than before. I was not used to any of this and nervousness began to creep into me as I pulled out of the seller’s driveway onto busy North Beecher Road.

He was glad to see it go because it took up about 1/3 of the narrow driveway of his rented home. It blocked the access to the garage and he was moving to another place in a few days where there was zero room to park a Batboat.

Nervously aware of all the cars around me, I was heading north on Beecher Road and about the only thing I could see in all of my rear view mirrors was this huge, blue tarped Batboat that seemed to lunge and push my car forward every time I tried to slow down. It bounced and yanked at the trailer hitch at all imperfections in the road.

No more than a few blocks of this stuff I was scared to death and said to myself this was the most stupid thing I have ever done and it would never happen again. Approaching the first stop light I put on the breaks but kept on moving, stopping just feet from the car ahead of me.

The Batboat seemed not to have minded at all.

In all of my years behind the wheel I have never driven so cautiously in my life. Nervous as hell and sweating, I carefully made the right turn on to 8 Mile Road and was on my way to the "safety" of highway I-75.

After a while I got used to the driving and thought how cool it was to see through the darkness the outline of a Batboat in my rear view mirrors.

How did you find out about this boat? You may be wondering. Did you see it in a yard or newspaper ad? Nope. I came upon this Anti-Crime Watercraft at the 1966 Batman Message Board, which I had just become a member of, exactly two weeks too late after it sold on September 2, 2007 on eBay for $405.

Starting price was $19.66!!

The auction description and photos;

HERE IT IS BAT-FANS!!

A REAL FULL SIZE BATBOAT REPLICA, BASED OF THE TV /MOVIE BATBOAT WITH ADAM WEST & BURT WARD!

BUILT FROM A LATE MODEL 60'S GLASTRON SPEEDBOAT,COMPLETE WITH MOTOR AND TRAILER. HAS BEEN ON THE WATER AND RUNS!!

MOTOR IS IN GREAT CONDITION,AND ACTUALLY IS MORE POWER THAN THE BOAT ACTUALLY NEEDS. THE BAT-FIN SECTION IS REMOVABLE TO ALLOW MOTOR TO BE INSTALLED AND USED ON THE WATER, AND ALLOW MORE THAN 2 PEOPLE IN THE BOAT.

THE TRAILER HAS WIRE HARNESS FOR LIGHTS AND NEW TIRES, THE BOAT HAS SINCE HAD FRONT "BAT LIGHTS" INSTALLED BEHIND MESH SCREEN UNDER THE SCOOPS. THERE IS A RADIO, NOT SURE IF THAT WORKS, NEVER TESTED THAT. RUNS GREAT,GETS ALOT
OF ATTENTION! RUNNING OUT OF ROOMS FOR THESE BIG TOYS,MY LOSS-YOUR GAIN!

BOAT HAS MADE SEVERAL APPERANCES AT LOCAL CHARITY EVENTS AND CAR SHOWS IN AND AROUND MICHIGAN AND CANADA,ALSO- WAS SIGNED BY THE ORIGINAL TV BAT-GIRL AND BATMOBILE BUILDER, GEORGE BARRIS.

ANY AND ALL QUESTIONS, PLEASE ASK BEFORE CLOSE OF AUCTION- WINNER IS RESPONSIBLE FOR PICK UP/DELIVERY SERVICE.

Feeling I had “missed the boat” I typed a 1966 Batman Forum reply that I am in the same state as the seller and “practically across the street of the Saginaw River boat docks!!!” http://www.66batman.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1188528779/14#14

“If I knew about this auction I would have bid up to $1,000.” ending with “Will this person be selling more Batboat repros?”

This had not been my year regarding Batman vehicles. In the previous year, finally feeling secure that I had a increasing and stable income, I had high hopes in getting a Batmobile to drive around in and had been actively saving up for one in late 2006.

As of October 2006, a loaded Batmobile had been $55,000 and up. However, several weeks later a replica was sold at one of the big car auctions for $100,000+ and soon after another in the $200,000 range.

This is now the going rate for an Anti-Crime Cruiser these days, $200,000 and up, so I was out of luck.

Now this.

On November 22, I logged onto the 1966 Batman Message Board and found a personal message from the Batboat owner asking me if I still was interested. The auction winner lived in Illinois and and he encountered too much red tape in transporting an atomic powered Batboat that didn't have a clear title or license plate from Michigan so he had to back out.

I jumped on it and a few correspondences later got the owner's number and driving directions. He wanted around $700 for it on the phone but at his home I got him down to $600.

(Image of the new Batboat in my driveway, 12/06/07)

That’s right. $600!!! With motor and trailer.

There are a lot of problems with it, though, but it isn’t anything I can’t handle.

I intend this blog to be a journal of the history of the 1960s Batman Batboat, feature various reproductions, showcase fun Batman stuff, give details about how I came to buy this replica, and my hopeful adventures in repairing and making it a functional Anti-Crime cruiser.