Iceberg: Chris Craft and more

pg 138

"You mean we ignored that beautiful Chris Craft simply because it doesn't have a fathometerr?"

Chris-Craft Boats, formerly Smith and Sons Boat Company, is a defunct manufacturer of wooden boats. It was sold in 1960 to NAFI which would take the Chris-Craft name.

Chris Smith built his first wooden boat in 1874 at the age of 13. Years later, he built a duck hunting boat. His friends liked the way he built them, and they asked him to build them one. This was technically the start of the Chris Craft Boat Co. He soon began to build more boats and joined his brother Hank in 1881 to begin producing boats full time. In 1922, the brothers joined with other partners to form the Smith and Sons Boat Company. The company name was changed to Chris-Craft in 1930.
The Detroit area company became well known for their sleek racing boats in the 1910s and 1920s. Chris-Craft sold high end powerboats to wealthy patrons such as Henry Ford and William Randolph Hearst. In the late 1920s, Chris-Craft extended its market into the middle class when it became one of the first mass producers of civilian pleasure boats. The company began assembly line production at their Algonac, Michigan plant, dramatically lowering production costs. Formerly, most powerboats had been hand-built.
In 1927 the company introduced the Cadet, an affordable 22' runabout. At the time, the domain of speedboats was largely confined to the wealthy. Its innovative advertising campaign promised a piece of "the good life" to the growing American middle class. The company sold its boats on the installment plan, making them among the first powerboats available to the general population.
The Great Depression robbed many Americans of discretionary income, and Chris-Craft sales suffered. The company introduced a line of low-priced powerboats to stay solvent. By 1935, a 15.5' Utility boat sold for as little as US$406. During World War II, the company produced small patrol boats and launches for the U.S. Navy.
After the war, Chris Craft introduced a new lineup of civilian pleasure boats in time for the massive American consumer expansion of the 1950s. That decade marked the height of company prestige and the brand name Chris-Craft became virtually synonymous with pleasure boating. The company offered 159 different models and was the sales leader in many categories of small civilian powerboats.
The company sold high-end boats to famous customers such as Dean Martin, Katharine Hepburn, Frank Sinatra, and Elvis Presley. Their boats were often made from the finest mahogany and were considered to be among the best available. They were easy to operate, a must for their "weekend sailor" owners. In some circles, owning a Chris-Craft was considered de rigueur. Even their lower-priced boats were considered to be of high quality, often featuring such luxury items as a liberal use of mahogany, teak, and brass.
In 1957, Chris-Craft Corporation added a metal boat division, designated the Roamer Steel Boats Division (RSBD)—founded upon its purchase of the Roamer Boat Company, now known as Chris Craft Roamers.
The company continued to be independent until it was acquired by Shields & Company's NAFI Corporation in 1960 and merged with NAFI. They renamed the company Chris-Craft Industries, Incorporated in 1962

 A pair of Sterling 420 hp gas-fed engines gleamed in the dim twilight.

So okay - I'm sharing info about a Stirling engine - *not* a brand named Sterling which I think Cussler made up, but this info is pretty interesting so I thought I'd share.
A Stirling engine is a heat engine operating by cyclic compression and expansion of air or other gas, the working fluid, at different temperature levels such that there is a net conversion of heat energy to mechanical work.Or more specifically, a closed-cycle regenerative heat engine with a permanently gaseous working fluid, where closed-cycle is defined as a thermodynamic system in which the working fluid is permanently contained within the system, and regenerative describes the use of a specific type of internal heat exchanger and thermal store, known as the regenerator. It is the inclusion of a regenerator that differentiates the Stirling engine from other closed cycle hot air engines.
Originally conceived in 1816 as an industrial prime mover to rival the steam engine, its practical use was largely confined to low-power domestic applications for over a century.
The Stirling engine is noted for its high efficiency compared to steam engines, quiet operation, and the ease with which it can use almost any heat source. This compatibility with alternative and renewable energy sources has become increasingly significant as the price of conventional fuels rises, and also in light of concerns such as peak oil and climate change. This engine is currently exciting interest as the core component of micro combined heat and power (CHP) units, in which it is more efficient and safer than a comparable steam engine.

The boat was named The Grimsi.
Unable to find any Icelandic mythological creature called Grimsi.... Grimsi is a man's first name.