From Lightning Strike to New Boat: The Story of the Artemis

By Elliott Stark

Resplash: Artemis, 50′ Mark Bayne
Captain: Chucky Moore
Owner: John Darby
Yard: Jarrett Bay Boatworks

Captain Chucky Moore is a veteran of the East Coast circuit. A captain who is undeniably fishy, more than that Moore loves marlin fishing and everything about it. When talking with Chucky about something to do with the boat or how he runs his tournament spread, Moore’s passion jumps through the phone. He’s also quite good at what he does… Moore was the 2018 East Coast Captain of the Year no less.

Chucky runs the Artemis owned by John Darby of Charleston. Darby’s family-centered operation is a perfect outlet for Moore’s fishing obsession. So, when lightning struck the boat in August of 2018 in the Edisto Tournament—a leg of the South Carolina Governor’s Cup, Darby and company were faced with a crossroads.

“John thought about buying a new boat, but he’s got so much history on this one… this boat won Big Rock and has caught a lot of fish. It was built by Mark Bayne out of Shem Creek in Charleston. It was finished in City Boatyard in Charleston that is owned by my boss… There’s a lot of history so we decided to fix this one.”

“We put the boat in the yard at Jarrett Bay in October 2018. It had just been hit by that hurricane so the start of work was pushed back until January 10, 2019. We just completed the sea trial yesterday (March 23, 2020). It’s like a whole new boat… you’re going to love it. It’s a fishing machine,” Moore says with the pride that comes from seeing a monumental undertaking to its completion.

As for the work order, it is comprehensive. “We did a complete engine room work over. We removed a fuel tank, Derrick and I redesigned the layout and painted everything. We repowered—Performance Diesel put in new V8 Mans. We have a new generator (Phazor 23 kw), installed a Willy Vac, a new Spot Zero System with the new water maker we installed. We added a battery charger. We installed a CHM 80 Sonar from Furuno and an AIRMAR pocket mounted transducer… all new livewell pumps.

Then there was new paint (they used Awlgrip, going so far as to farrow blast the hull before shining the old girl up nice) and all new enclosures. We installed a new LED lighting package—we used Imtra lights. We installed a FLIR, put on new Rupp riggers and installed a Seakeeper 9,” Moore says.

“For the new engines, we went with the MAN V-NUE V8, 1200 horsepower. The new MANs were really great. They are quiet and smooth… no smoke. They are compact, light, fuel efficient and very low maintenance. The oil changes are at 400 hour intervals—they are compliant too,” Moore says.

“At our first sea trial, running 5 blade veems—that were over revving a bit, we were cruising at 32/33 knots at 80 percent load. Wide open we were running 40 knots. We will ultimately box up the 5 blades and use four blade props, the boat has historically performed better with four blade wheels.”

“We redid the helm on the tower, too. We put a KVH up there and blacked out the rails. We added a Maretron to get engine data and a FLIR up there and some Garmin screens. We added command mikes and an intercom feature for the tower that is mounted through the radios downs stairs so that we can all be on the same page. I installed precision auto reels for teaser reels—they are really fast. That makes a big difference in tournaments,” Moore explains.

Perhaps the most impressive adaptation to the tower is one that most will never see. An express boat, Moore never comes down out of the tower during tournaments. Because nobody likes the sight of yellow water bottles, Moore took action. “We even installed a hidden hose that runs down the tower leg and into the trunk line and out the exhaust. We then installed a relief valve like the ones that pilots use in King Airs so I can pee down through the tower during tournaments.”

Rather than a free-falling bottle of urine, Moore can now discreetly lean into the tower helm and relieve himself—the urine flowing harmlessly out the side of the boat with the air conditioning condensation.

“We installed an FU Autopilot and did away with the steering wheel in the tower. We installed an Optimus steering system that is completely electronic. The boat used to have hydraulic steering, now it has an FU 80 autopilot joystick unit for the tower. It also steers the boat,” Moore explains.

“We wanted a removable plug in control for the sonar head. The guys at Jarrett Bay customized a teak pod and installed it as a removable cover. It is high gloss that’s varnished and sits on top of the sonar control downstairs. It’s really awesome.”

Moore and company also made upgrades the hulls and the inner workings of the boat. “We completely farrow blasted the bottom. We fared in the struts and installed new spline shafts. There are no zincs on the boat anymore. We installed an Electro-Guard system that uses an impressed current system to throw electrons into the water as dictated by the demand.”

The original name on the Artemis transom was painted by the late Robert Millfield, a man known as a master craftsman of boat names and design. “We wanted to repair the transom instead of replace it because John didn’t want to lose that. Josh Everett (of Everett Nautical) did the transom for us.  He made the name look exactly like it used to.”

For most professional captains, the engine room and its appearance are points of pride. Chucky Moore is no exception. One of the features of which Chucky is most proud is something to which the average person wouldn’t give a second thought. “For the ceiling of the engine room, we had panels mounted on the ceiling. They come out of New Zealand and can be assembled outside and snapped into place. It really looks great,” Moore explains.

With all the new systems come the miles of wire and cable and the need to organize it.

“We made a trim board with a nailer and a face that was painted to house the wire chases. It’s nothing that you would notice, but we didn’t want any of that cheap looking plastic stuff that gets brittle in heat after a couple of years,” Moore explains. When he started, the wires were a round configuration. He laid them in such a way that they were two inches deep and 14 inches wide, all of which laid up nicely under a painted housing that transverses the ceiling of the engine room.

Chucky is a complimentary of the crew from Jarrett Bay Boatworks and the many companies that subcontract in the yard as he is of the final product.

“Randy Ramsey, Tate Lawrence, the VP of Jarrett Bay… they were all great. Our job manager was Donnie Lee. My right-hand man for the project was Derek Polizzi of Atlantic Marine and Diesel Service. I would drive down Monday morning and drive home Friday night. I did that for a year—working until 9 at night lots of days. Derek was there with me the whole time.”

“The boat looks amazing. John definitely got the boat he wanted.”

SUBCONTRACTORS
Performance Diesel
Atlantic Marine and Diesel Service – Derek Polizzi
Crystal Coast Interiors
Seakeeper
Royale Yacht Finishing
Everett Nautical—Josh Everett—transom name restoration
Triton Marine Services— Matt Burhenne, Corey McMahon
The Captain’s Shop—Marvin Roberts—Enclosures
Crystal Coast Marine Service—Brian Summerall—A/C, refrigeration, Icemakers, water makers

Do you have any comments or questions for us? We’d love to hear from you.