Wooden Boat Renovation: New Life for Old Boats Using Modern Methods

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter One: Why Wood?

Is Fiberglass Really Easier to Maintain?

Fiberglass Boats Last Forever

Wood Rots and Fiberglass Delaminates

Wooden Boats Cost a Lot to Build

Plastic Boats Have More Space

Used Wooden Boats Cost Less

Wooden Boats Are Real Boats

Wooden Boats Are Traditional Boats

Chapter Two: Selecting the Perfect Project Boat

Attemptus Futilitus

What Kind of Boat Do We Want?

Where Can We Work?

Let's Stop Planning and Start Looking

Where Do We Look?

What to Look For

Narrowing the Field

Negotiations

The Offer to Purchase

Get a Survey

Financing Your Purchase

So Let's Buy It Already

Chapter Three: Work Schedule and Budget

Planning with a Computer

The Work Schedule

The Project Budget

Chapter Four: Something About Tools

Buy the Best--You Deserve It

Used Tools Are Good Tools

Borrow if You Can, Rent if You Must

Keep It Sharp

The Basic Tool Kit

The Tool Box

Saws

Chisels and Gouges

Planes

Measuring and Marking Tools

Power Tools

Circular Saws

Bandsaws

Planers

Jointers

The Drill Press

Power Sanders

Hand Drills

Routers

Chapter Five: Boatbuilding Woods

Grades of Lumber

Sawing and Drying Lumber

Rain-Forest Woods

Oak

Teak

Mahogany

Cedar

Cypress

Sitka Spruce

Douglas Fir

Larch

Plywood

Marine Plywood

The Affordable Alternative

Veneers

Chapter Six: Just for the Hull of It

Defining Terms

Hull Repairs

Carvel Planking

Strip Planking

Lapstrake Planking

Plywood

Cold-Molded Hulls

Chapter Seven: Hull Repairs

Epoxy

Hull Flexibility

Refastening

Frame Repairs

Laminating Bent Frames

Plank Repairs

Spiling

Carvel Planking

Lapstrake Planks

Strip Planking

Plywood

Fiberglassing Wooden Hulls

Chapter Eight: All Hands on Deck

Deck Leaks

The Fiberglass Option

Doing the Job

Wooden Decks and Other Forms of Self-Flagellation

Cabin Trunk and Deckhouse

Spars and Rigging

Chapter Nine: Internal Spaces

The Tick-Stick Trick

The Built-Up Bulkhead

Interior Cabinetry

Drawers

Louvered Doors

Sinks and Countertops

Chapter Ten: Little Boats--Big Memories

Works in Progress

Renovating Runabouts

Renovating Canvas-Covered Boats

Renovating Lapstrake Boats

Chapter Eleven: The Finishing Touch

Surface Preparation

Sandpaper

Sanding New Work

Sanding Old Work

Varnish

The Epoxy Undercoat

Brushes for Varnish

Applying Varnish

Maintaining Varnish

Polyurethane

Paint

Surface Preparation for Painting

Epoxy Base Coat

The Prime Coat

Brushes for Paint

Applying Paint

Appendix A: Suggested Reading

Appendix B: Sources of Supply

Glossary

Index

This book is about fixing up old boats made of wood. For many people, a boat isn't a boat unless it's made of wood. The psychological and philosophical reasons for needing to own a boat made from honest trees instead of the material that L. Francis Herreshoff characterized as "frozen snot" needn't concern us. But in this day and age, hard-nosed economics and the ubiquitous bottom line certainly should.

FACT: You can buy a repairable wooden boat and renovate and remodel it for a lot less money than you can buy and renovate a plastic or metal of similar size and condition.

Jim Trefethen has renovated dozens of good old wooden boats, and in this book he's sharing his collected wisdom, craftsmanship, and penury with you. It will supply you with the basic skills you'll need to successfully renovate an old wooden boat--any old wooden boat, from a 16-foot canoe to a 50-foot cruiser, and everything in between--provided the boat actually is repairable (and you'll learn how to determine that, too). After you've read Wooden Boat Renovation, we hope you come away knowing what is possible and how to accomplish it. Then we hope you actually do it.