Iron Chief is for sale

The place to put an advert for thing you want to sell, buy or swap.
Post Reply
User avatar
DetroiTug
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead
Posts: 1863
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2009 5:56 pm
Boat Name: Iron Chief
Location: Northwest Detroit

Iron Chief is for sale

Post by DetroiTug » Wed Aug 14, 2019 4:38 pm

I've decided to put my tug up for sale. I figured I'd list it here first in case anyone on the forum is interested. It's in perfect running condition and is currently docked in Algonac Michigan. I don't really want to sell it, I just have some obligations in my personal life I need to fulfill. Retiring/relocating etc.

It's 22 foot long, 8 foot beam steel hull construction, sandblasted and primed with Interlux 8020 primer and painted with Industrial flat coating. The Wheelhouse and engine house is all white oak and the doors and windows are Honduras mahogany. The roofs are 1/2" marine ply sealed in west system and painted with Interlux non skid deck paint. The deck is 3/4" marine ply. It has a good serviceable firetube boiler and a very quiet 3 x 4 twin steam engine that runs flawlessly. Five individual feedpump systems, one electric for boiler fill, one Southworth steampump, one manual pump and two ram pumps for redundancy. The engine room is fitted with a sink and there are two freshwater holding tank in the bow for hot and cold running water. Hot water heater is by means of steam, ala Windemere kettle type coil.

This Tug is a collection of hard to find antique hardware, the 30" Wilcox Crittendon wheel, the brass lamps, bronze portholes etc. The two bronze bollards alone were $900. It took about 5 years of searching to come up with all the hardware.
It's very fast for it's size, we have no trouble running right along at speed with other steamers on river runs etc.

It has a really strong tandem axle trailer with with an electric bow winch and 5000 pound axles fitted with electric brakes that work perfectly. I tow this boat behind a Chevrolet 1/2 ton pickup, I've towed it to shows 800 miles away, the trailer is long and it tows very well and makes for easy launching.

I've remarked several times, a person couldn't spend a million dollars on a boat and draw more attention at shows and out on the water, it's continual thumbs up from the other boaters and onlookers. This is a very practical boat for extended river trips, it rides well, steers well, dry in the in the rain, and wood fired so it is very inexpensive and easy to operate.

I've had several people over the years try to buy it, and I've always turned them down. Here's the chance to own it.

She was considerable investment in materials and about three years labor, I'm looking to get $80k USD and that is a firm price.

Inquiry can be made here or through tugironchief@gmail.com
Attachments
21231177_10214770959853946_6275324137792053293_n.jpg
21231177_10214770959853946_6275324137792053293_n.jpg (131.04 KiB) Viewed 9661 times
DSCF1103 (Medium).JPG
User avatar
fredrosse
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead
Posts: 1906
Joined: Fri Nov 20, 2009 5:34 am
Boat Name: Margaret S.
Location: Phila PA USA
Contact:

Re: Iron Chief is for sale

Post by fredrosse » Sun Aug 25, 2019 2:51 pm

Having followed your build posts and steaming experiences for years, it is clear that your steamer is first class in every respect. Sorry you are selling, but we all have life's obligations and priorities.

I am sure all on this forum appreciate your contributions here, and hope you will stay involved with thesteamboatingforum, as your real technical knowledge & experience helps us to constantly improve the steaming community.
User avatar
DetroiTug
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead
Posts: 1863
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2009 5:56 pm
Boat Name: Iron Chief
Location: Northwest Detroit

Re: Iron Chief is for sale

Post by DetroiTug » Sun Aug 25, 2019 7:37 pm

Well thank you for that Fred. I've garnered more here than I have contributed.

Definitely not getting out of the hobby. I plan to build another steamer in the future. I enjoy building as much as using.

I should have more free time in the future, I'd like to get over that way and meet you and some of the far-easters. And west-coasters too, I need to get over there and help Mike with that economizer :)

-Ron
User avatar
Lopez Mike
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead
Posts: 1903
Joined: Wed Dec 07, 2011 6:41 am
Boat Name: S.L. Spiffy
Location: Lopez Island, Washington State, USA

Re: Iron Chief is for sale

Post by Lopez Mike » Mon Aug 26, 2019 1:13 am

I second what Fred has just said.

Probably the only drawback to watching the Chief come together was to install a deep sense of inferiority in me. "I can never build like this."
If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.
Dalai Lama
TriangleTom
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead
Posts: 134
Joined: Mon Oct 31, 2016 5:57 pm
Boat Name: No Boat Yet
Location: Yukon, OK

Re: Iron Chief is for sale

Post by TriangleTom » Mon Aug 26, 2019 1:56 am

I'll second what Mike and Fred have said, it was actually stumbling on your website showing the Chief's build that drove me in to the hobby.
User avatar
DetroiTug
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead
Posts: 1863
Joined: Fri Nov 27, 2009 5:56 pm
Boat Name: Iron Chief
Location: Northwest Detroit

Re: Iron Chief is for sale

Post by DetroiTug » Mon Aug 26, 2019 3:20 pm

Thanks Fellas, I appreciate that. It's good to know that someone is getting something out of my ramblings. It's been a long learning process for me, I think back of when I first started and laugh at some of the things I thought and misunderstood. For instance, I had planned for a dump valve in to the firebox to kill the fire for when the plant became totally out of control. Of course it's not needed, we do well to keep up steam generation with demand. If I had tried that, the only thing I would've killed is myself most likely. Between the forum here and the good fortune to have two very knowledgeable steam friends in the area, I've learned a lot.

I'm not taking full responsibility of course, When Fred and I started our projects, there was just not much going on in the way of social media for Steamboating. There was the Yahoo Steamboat group which was rarely used and this forum which was rarely used as well at that time, it would go weeks without activity. How I remember it, we started posting (around 08,09) our progress and it sort of brought Steamboaters out of the shadows and got others interested. In the US here, I would say Bart is the real pioneer in getting the steamboating hobby to the web, his pages added to my desire and inspiration to have a steamboat early on. Then there was Ken Brockway with his sidewheeler and a guy named John that built an M for his steamer.

My Locomobile project was the same way, I took a ride on one and when I looked, there was very little information on line, then I started writing magazine articles and posting progress reports in forums and through email, now there seems to be a quite a few building or gathering parts to build one, which kind of messed me up in a way as it drove all the prices up on those antique parts, that's how I seen it from my vantage point, but that may not be the case.

Ken's website is still going https://www.mysidewheeler.com/

-Ron
Post Reply