Diving in style on the Atlantis IV!

about The Atlantis IV

46 foot Carolina Sportfisherman, carrying 6 passengers comfortably

Twin Caterpillar engines, cruising speed is about 18 knots

Loaded with amenities: air conditioning/heat, microwave, roomy head,
hot/cold freshwater shower, TV/VCR, refrigerator, and comfortable bunks.

For the diver we offer a walk-through transom, large sturdy dive platform, ample room for passengers and gear,
and a hang-line system for safety stops at 15' stretching between the bow and stern. The Atlantis IV is easily the most
comfortable dive charter boat in North Carolina.

Quickly converted to a fishing configuration, the Atlantis IV sports a fighting chair, two light-tackle chairs, large fish-box
and outriggers to allow for 7 lines out at once.

Built in Marshallberg, NC by Buddy Harris, a local boat-builder.
Initially used as a fishing charter boat in Morehead City, NC.
Original name: Sea Mistress

Sold around 1990. The individual who purchased the Sea Mistress removed the enclosed bridge, replacing it with a open top. They also altered the entrance to the salon: replacing centered sliding doors with standard out-opening doors moved more toward the starboard side. New engines were put into the Sea Mistress by the second owner in 1992.

Discovered in a state of disrepair by Bobby Edwards in December 1994, After determining that the engines were sound, he purchased it and began running it as a dive charter boat.

atlantis4- 1995cockpit.JPG (93534 bytes)

Original interior furnishings consisted of PVC furniture. (Some of you remember that!)

Winter 1995-96. The entire hull was fiberglassed, front windows removed permanently to increase safety and eliminate leaking.
Winter 1996-97.

Winter 1997-98. Replaced the top, removed the leaky windows.
Winter 1998-99. Replaced the steel fuel tanks with aluminum, painted the hull, replaced dive platform. Added water heater. Intended to replace the windows.

Winter 1999-2000. Remodeled the interior salon- created a galley area. Replaced the "meat locker" air-conditioner with a thermostat-controlled model. Renovated the head, fiberglassed the floor in anticipation of an interior shower. Removed the bunks in the middle cabin, painted it and intended to add one larger bunk. Intended to replace the windows.

Chronology of Winter 2000-2001. Added back curtains to the flying bridge. Working on the mufflers. Building a wider bunk in the middle cabin, painting and insulating the bow cabin, ~~lifting up~~ taking out and working on engines, including changing the oilpans. Fiberglassing superstructure and bow. And we actually have a pattern for the salon windows: they might (not) get done this year! Extensive work in the engine room took place, and cleats replaced the sampson post on the bow.

In mid-January 2001, the Atlantis IV was taken out of the water at Core Sound Marine, in Marshallberg NC, so she could undergo some overhauls this winter.
On 2/3/00
The engines of the Atlantis IV were taken completely out of the boat and placed on a trailer nearby. They will receive new oil pans, gaskets, a thorough checkup and cleaning, paint-job and whatever else turns up along the way. The engine room will also be cleaned, the engine beds redone, the bilge cleaned up, painted, and then the engines will be put back in.
Progress on 3/18/01:
The engine room is nearly finished, but for a few touches of paint. New aluminum engine mounts have been made to replace the old steel ones, and they are ready to be drilled and mounted in place. The oilpans have been replaced, the engines primed and only need paint. We expect to have them back in the boat by mid-week.
Progress on 4/5/01:
The engines were dropped back into the boat on March 24. They fit the new engine beds& mounts perfectly, and have been bolted down with stainless 1/2" bolts. Most of the attachments have been reattached, and the mufflers will go back on next. The bow has been sanded, and is almost ready to be glassed. The re-designed pulpit will go back on, and be glassed onto the bow.
Progress on 4/13/01:
The pulpit is half glassed and will be bolted onto the bow tomorrow. The engines are hooked back up, and only need a double-check. The bottom has been sanded and will get a new coat of bottom paint, and new fish. The superstructure is slowly being sanded, touched up and sealed, and will be painted at some point.
~~The Atlantis IV will be wet by the end of the week.~~

Progress on 4/28/01:
As can be expected, we have had a few delays. They have been good delays, however, because we were able to take more time to do the "little extras." She is almost seaworthy: lacking only about a third of her bottom paint and the necessary fish, and some touch up paint on the bow. There will ALWAYS be more to do, but finally- we see the end of the tunnel for the latest round of revisions.
She's floating! 5/1/01
Back in the water, finally, the Atlantis IV is bobbing like a cork, and as expected, watertight!! We like our bilge nice and dry. The cats started up without hesitation, and she rode back to the dock in good speed.

5/20/01
The Atlantis IV is back in action, running smoothly and still catching fish. We dove the Duhamel on our first dive of the year, and so far things in the engine room look good. We did have a loose coupling on the port shaft fixed at the last minute, but that's old news now.

	Engines out, working on the engine beds. This view looks at the engine area from the rear starboard corner of the salon. There is a large hole in the aft salon floor. The generator is still in place.
	The engines, patiently waiting for service.
	Some progress made: plywood epoxied down into floor of engine room, and everything is sanded down. Aluminum for new engine mounts has arrived.
	New paint in the engine room, wires and bilge hoses straightened up. Even the bilge got new paint.
	Taking the Cats to the car wash
	The engine mounts are here...and engines will go back in mid-week.
	The engines are back in, bolted down and almost fully re-attached. They fit very well into the new engine beds.
	It's nice having that space filled back up again....
	The bottom of the boat is almost completely painted, the fish will go on next.
	The engines are on-line, the props have been modified and put back on.
	The pulpit has been bolted on and glassed, and now needs only sanding and painting.
	New lifting streaks have been added to the forward hull.
5/21/01	There are cleats where the Sampson post once was, and some painting still needs to be done on the bow and cabin. The big changes are done for the time being.

Winter 2001-2002
After the snow melted, we took the the Atlantis IV out of the water. She has been on land at Core Sound Marine in Marshallberg, NC since the last of February, 2002.
She has gotten new bumper-rails from bow to stern on both sides, a little wider than before. The bow and superstructure are being sanded, smoothed and will be painted. The engine is getting a few new gaskets.

We thought about putting a toe-rail on the bow this year, and the ever-revised windows are still in the works.

And we're getting rid of that aggravating lip in the transom door-floor that catches your fins every time you go through to the platform. It's about time, huh??

Winter 2002-2003 updated 03/15/2008
The boat survived snow again this year: we got 6" here in Carteret County, and the Outer Banks got 12"!!
What's new for summer 2003?
The walk-thru transom has a new door, there will be a shower and sink in the head, maybe even an exhaust fan!
The generator has been moved forward a few inches to enhance maneuverability in the engine room. It will be rebuilt this winter, and we expect it won't be as temperamental this summer, as it was in 2002.

There will be more to come as we progress with the winter enhancements... (don't miss the boatbuilding page!)

2003-2004
Filled in the "hook" underneath the boat, where the bottom coutour acted like trim tabs and pushed the bow down. Glassed in the icebox/storage area on the deck and finished the lids for it. Added a DVD player.

2004-2005
~~We might cut the keel down, and would like to paint the hull. Light maintenance is being done on the engines.~~
We got snow again in December 2004!

2/20/05 update:
The keel has been cut down to a uniform 6" overall length. It has been sanded and dried out (it wasn't really wet - that was a nice surprise).
New bolts are being put through the keel throughout its length. It will be glassed again, and smoothed out. We'll have to re-engineer the fish designs on the keel, since the drawing board is much much smaller than before. We expect to handle a following sea better now, and perhaps improve fuel economy.
The hull is 1/2 sanded and will be painted fresh this year. The platform, etc have been removed and we are ordering new vinyl letters for the stern.
The engines are being examined and small maintenance jobs are underway.
2005 Images:

Wrapping up Spring 2005: We should have good weather to paint by the weekend, and the keel/bottom paint will be done before she's painted.
Any guesses as to what color she will be?

Winter 2006-2007 updated 4/16/07
The boatyard on Radio Island where we hauled the boat every year has been sold and turned into condos. We have already arranged for a new location to do our winter maintenance, but it is very sad to see so many things change around here.

March 4 2007
We hauled out at Jarrett Bay this year. Very convenient to the house, but much more impersonal and noticeably more expensive.
Hoping to be finished with this year's projects within a month.

The Atlantis Family Tree
There have been 4 Atlantis vessels so far, and before that was the "African Queen"

Atlantis III : currently running dive charters in Connecticut. Captain Gary Chellis, Atlantis Dive Charters

Got any photos of the Atlantis from previous years?
Pass them on and we'll include them in this timeline!