Category: Shop News

Recently purchased by a customer of ours, this cute little Lyman is here for some much needed finish work!

Keep an eye out for more photos as we make progress.

In the shop is a beautiful little sailboat, a 1939 Lightning sailboat named “Splash”. Her owner is very fond of her and brought her in for some work, both major and minor.

The original transom was beginning to rot, as were the planks on the port side right at the transom. We removed the old transom and fashioned a new one out of mahogany. We replaced two transom frames as well, as the rot had begun to creep a bit. We then moved on to cutting out the aft sections of the port side planks. They were shiplap cedar. We then scarfed in new cedar planks and buttoned up the hull. She’s ready for paint and stain next!

Stay tuned for further updates on this project.

My Fair Lady came to us after having sunk to the bottom in shallow water. We inspected the bottom and determined it had problems in many areas, it was beyond repair and needed to be replaced entirely. The boat has been in the family since shortly after it was made, and has been on Lake Winnipesaukee its entire life. The family is very attached to the boat, we decided to move forward with a new “enhanced traditional” bottom. The inner layer would be 1/4″ solid mahogany, a layer of Dynel cloth would be laid up with resin next, followed by 1/2″ mahogany planks.

After pulling the old bottom off we discovered a few areas that needed addressing. A section of the keel was beyond repair and needed replacing, two sections of chine also displayed serious rot, a few frames would be replaced and the stem needed to be rebuilt from the backrabbet line out. The customer also complained about the boat listing to port quite a bit, which required him to sit in the center of the front bench seat when riding alone. We decided to add a taper to the bottom on the port side from the rear cockpit aft to compensate for this.

A new keel section was cut, chine sections were replaced, a new stem “cap” was laminated into place, necessary frames were replaced and the final prep work was made before adding the first layer. After installing the first layer of 1/4″ mahogany we then added a layer of Dynel cloth impregnated with epoxy.  We then began adding the 1/2″ mahogany planking, starting with the garboards and working our way out, bedding the planks down with Sikaflex 1A.

Fitting a forward plank

Once the planking was completed we filled, faired, and sealed the wood with epoxy sealer,  we were ready for the primer.  We used a two-part barrier coat primer and applied four thick coats.  Finally we added three coats of Interlux Perfection Rochelle Red 2-part paint, stood back and called the bottom done!

We then turned the boat back over. Next we’ll be replacing the two forward side planks, the transom planks, some paint and varnish followed by final reassembly.

Stay tuned for further updates on this project.

In our shop currently is a great little Chris Craft Kit Boat, built in 1954. Unfortunately the old plywood transom had soaked up lots of water over the years and was completely rotten out.

We removed the old transom and proceeded to clean up the mating surfaces on the hull, making them ready for the new transom. We then made up a new transom plank from six pieces of 1/2″ mahogany, laminated in an interlocking fashion, making for a very durable laminate more than adequate for supporting the outboard engine. The piece was then faired, cut and fit, sealed with epoxy sealer and has been installed into place.

We look forward to completing this project so the customer and her family can once again enjoy this fun little boat!

In our shop is a beautiful 30′ Hacker in need of some work on the transom. This is a beautiful boat with a great layout, which no doubt makes for a great day out on the lake.

With the boat being as long as it is, the transom exposed from under the canopy to the hot sun, much on the varnish was undermined and crazed off, leaving bare wood along the waterline. This is a good example of what the sun will do to a finish if left unchecked. The damage happened over many season’s time and it was overdue for some repair. Fortunately all the wood was still in great shape.

Moving quickly to get the customer in the water as soon as possible, we stripped, sanded, stained and built up a fresh finish of 12 coats of varnish, matching the original font for the name “Serene”. We gave the boot stripe and bottom paint a good few coats, and she was back in the lake!

The ‘Wood Duck’ came to us after the 2013 boating season needing a re-finish job. We noticed that the finish on the boat looked a little odd, we didn’t know either what stain was or what type of finish what used.

As we started stripping we realized that the boat had been saturated with epoxy over which the stain was applied. No wonder the stain had taken on a mottled, splotchy appearance. The wood on the foredeck was very wavy, and the wood on the aft deck was splitting in places. This all began to make
sense, as the epoxy was not allowing the wood to move. On the foredeck the wood had buckled and split the frames as the screws were pulled up. Almost all of the frames were split where the deck was attached to them.

The bungs had also been installed with epoxy, making their removal more time consuming, requiring drilling using a bung cutting bit. Once the screws were removed we found that the deck had also actually been epoxied to the frames, also a joy to remove! When we finally did get the deck off it came off in four sheets, as the live seams holding the planks together were also epoxied together. Portions of the frames and other wood under the covering boards and splintered off as the epoxy held it fast. Once the deck was removed we were able to repair the deck frames, but the battens on the frames had partially torn with the removal of the deck. These also had to be replaced. The frames have been repaired, sealed and painted.

This is a prime example of how as restorers we don’t always know what we’re about to get into with a new project. As well as an example on the misuse of epoxy!

We stripped the sides, replaced a few bungs and refastened some screws up on the bow. Once the sides were adequately prepped we applied the stain. The sides have now been sealed and we’re moving on to varnishing them.

The engine hatch needed particular attention, it had been racked 1 1/2″ out, from port forward to starboard aft. It needed to be racked back into shape. We wet the hatch, set towels on top of it and weighed it down with cinder blocks. The hatch is now back in good shape. The planks have now been installed on the deck and hatch, and after fairing them in we proceeded to staining them. Now that we have some color, we’ll seal the boat a few days later.

“Mary Cloud” came to us needing some refinish work as well as some plank replacements on the hull sides. We began by drilling out the old planks and prepping the frames and battens for the new mahogany planks. Luckily most of the framework below the planks was in good shape and we were able to move along with the project quickly.

With new side planks in place we proceeded to stain, seal and building up fresh Epifanes varnish. We then stripped the interior sealing boards and some other pieces and gave them new stain and varnish as well.

By the time boating season came around “Mary Cloud” hit the water looking better than ever, making this customer and his family very happy!

Currently in the shop we have a very unique boat, a 1964 Cruisers Inc Navigator. We don’t see many of these beautiful boats. She is a dry boat and gives a very comfortable ride. She has a 95″ beam and 23′ length, and she’s powered by a 150 horsepower Mercruiser I/O, a very reliable engine. We have changed the color of the hull from a light blue to a dark blue, we’re also sharpening up the boot stripe.

We’ve stripped the transom and exterior mahogany on the deck, as well as the spray rails, and are refinishing it. We’ve also addressed some rot that had developed over the years.

After some much needed sprucing up, addressing rot, refinishing and a bit of engine work “True Blue” was ready to hit the big lake!

The following season “True Blue” came back into the shop.  The owner was very pleased with his first season with the boat and decided to put some additional work into making her both prettier and more reliable.  We proceeded to strip and refinish many of the interior pieces including the seat bases.  We addressed a bit of rot in the keel, made some repairs to the port side where it had been bitten by a dock post and addressed many little things that had been bothering the customer.

“True Blue” made it back into the water looking and riding better than ever!  She made an appearance at our annual Meredith boat show and was very well received.  Our customer looks forward to taking her out again in 2016 after a little bit more work.

One of our customers had been complaining about excess water in his bilge and was keen to discover the cause. We immediately suspected the lower transom plank, which on these Centurys has always been a problem. The boat still had the original plank, and upon further inspection we discovered some soft wood. We elected to remove the plank and check for further rot, eventually discovering that the rot had spread to the lower transom frame, parts of the battens, and a few of the vertical transom
frames. The second plank up also needed to be pulled in order to ensure that all rotten wood was discovered and repaired. Replacement of wood was a necessity.

We cut a new lower transom frame and installed it, then scarfed a few of the vertical frames with new mahogany. We then cut, fit and installed new planks and built up a new finish, enough to adequately protect the wood and get an eager customer in the water. He is happy to report that is boat is now dry!