1958 Chrisbank Holiday Cruiser

First post so thanks in advance.

After a moment of insanity I bought my first boat yesterday.  After doing quite a bit of searching I am of the mindset that it must be rare, not to be confused with valuable.  So either all the rest of them have sunk or nobody else has written about one.

Chrisbank seems to have built boats for only two years, 58-59, in Kissimmee Florida. After that there is almost zero information I can find.  So any history or direction concerning the company or other owners would be appreciated. It is the least I have ever seen on a google search on a subject.

Project ahead:  I am fortunate that the boat has been stored inside since about 1974, so the wood is pretty darn solid from what I can tell. One repaint over the original.  The bad is that 40 years of rats and time have erased fuel lines, wiring, and made one heck of a mess.  Both Johnson "Javelin" 35hp outboards spin freely after a day of WD-40 and Mystery Oil.

Repair questions:

  1. The fiberglass roof has sagged permanently over the years about 4 inches.  So how can I attempt to restore the normal shape? 

  2. The Mahogany plywood floors have many stains or at least a few almost white areas.  What is the best way to blend color and protect the flooring?  Varnish? Z-spar? After searching forums I have a good idea but extra info appreciated.

  3. Since I have removed all the flooring is there any reason not to power wash the entire boat?  I vacuumed all the big stuff out, all 50 gallons of rat crap and trash.

I have about 100 other questions but don't want to wear out my welcome quite yet.

Thanks again.

     Richard

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Permalink Reply by Lawrence E. Long on June 10, 2014 at 4:45am

Richard:  You are at the wrong place for help.  Go to - "The  Hull Truth Boating Forum"- they are lots of guys that do restorations m etc- and will give you some advice- Even  might  tell you to take it out to sea and scuttle it.

Good Luck

Permalink Reply by Richard Trzaskoma on June 10, 2014 at 6:37am

Thanks will go check it out.  Will leave my post up in hopes of finding some info on Chrisbank.  Odds may be better of finding Atlantis when I go to scuttle.

   Cheers

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on June 10, 2014 at 2:44pm

Richard, I would also like to suggest Woodenboatforum.com. They have folks from all over the globe and much knowledge about both power boats and sailing vessels. While folks here mainly build and restore drift boats there are some similarities in restoration that come to mind. The first you have done very well with, getting rid of the crap! second is to check the wood especially in places moisture might have once remained and started the little rot bacteria on their way. An ice pick or scratch awl is a handy tool to poke into those potential spots to see how rotten they may or may not be. If all the wood is a solid in all places then at least you won't have to really tear it apart and replace wood. How about the transom and it's connections to the sides and bottom of the boat?

I am doing search for a book on keeping your outboards alive. I recently saw someone post it on the woodenboatforum.com a while ago. I have found it in my local library too.

Fiberglass that has lost its shape probably means that you get to learn how to make a male mold, smooth it till it is smooth as a baby's butt and then learn how to make a female model of the shape you just created. The Gougeon brothers that developed the west system epoxy have written a large book on working with epoxy and I have to assume they have covered the topic. You may be able to use other resins than epoxy if you and your nearby neighbors can stand the smell.

I didn't find the exact book I was looking for but I did find this one:

Powerboat Care and Repair : How to Keep Your Outboard, Sterndrive, or Gas-Inboard Boat Alive and Well by Allan Berrien, Amazon has it.

You have embarked on a hopefully rewarding activity or you may have embarked on a money pit. Part of it depends on just how obsessed you become with the whole project. Like you said it may not have much value on the open market, only you can decide what level of time, money and effort it is worth. Not to say that many of us consumed and obsessed with our drift boats. I know one guy that has 800 hours in is first boat, he calls it the "Obsession." My boat took more than 400 hours, it's name is the "Challenge", because it was. It is a wonderful boat, does almost everything I want it to and it handles like a dream.

Rick Newman

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on June 10, 2014 at 2:48pm

Richard, here's a link I found: http://www.fiberglassics.com/library/File:Holidaypp60002.jpg

and here's another one: http://books.google.com/books?id=p3Q-baAAx28C&pg=PT249&lpg=...

Good luck and keep us posted;

Rick Newman

Permalink Reply by Richard Trzaskoma on June 10, 2014 at 6:39pm

Many thanks for the effort.  I am completely amazed that the only references to Chrisbank are a few articles, but will continue to dig.

I will start my education with a couple of your references. The outboards will be my first mountain to climb.  At least that way I can claim "it runs" even if I am not sure if it will float as of yet.

Once again, thanks Rick for the time. 

Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on June 10, 2014 at 9:01pm

Richard, I enjoy finding the hard to find stuff. Good luck.

Rick N

Permalink Reply by John Weston on June 13, 2014 at 8:57am

look up Northwest classic boat club forum. that group can tell ya what ya want to know. looks like a good project.

JW

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