Wooden Boat People

By McKenzieDriftBoat.com

Beginning work on my new boat - 1994 Drifter built by Stuart Williams

I am looking out the window at blowing snow (Bozeman, Montana) and thinking about where I will start on my winter project of restoring the interior of a drift boat that I bought last Friday. The boat should have been in good shape from what I see of the exterior hull, but it was left out all summer and fall in a fly shop parking lot. The sun and weather got to the brightwork on the interior and needs some TLC. My first decision is whether to reapply varnish or paint the interior with something like Interlux Brightsides or Alwgrip; any advise would be appreciated. I have looked over a number of the photos in the photo alblum of this web site and there are any number of really nice boats that have used either approach. I would also apprciate any advise as to where I might find a source of material and items for driftboats such as anchor fittings and oars. At any rate, I look forward to checking the site frequently and looking for new ideas on wooden boat maintenance and refinishing/construction. It is time to get back out into the garage and get some boat seats removed. Roger Rippy (aka Rip)

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Permalink Reply by Roger Rippy on November 20, 2011 at 2:10pm

Randy, my guess is that this is the original paint on the hull; I received an email from
Stu Williams, the builder (Missoula, MT) and he told me the paints he used for both the interior and exterior. I will probably paint them both this winter, but to what extent remains to be seen. Thanks for the feedback. I have worked with a number of fiberglass boats over the years, some fairly large, but have little experience with plywood glue and stitch. But I am going to learn on this boat! Ha! I suppose that I would need to encapsulate both the interior and exterior of the hull?

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Permalink Reply by Randy Dersham on November 20, 2011 at 4:43pm

What you do is entirely up to you. I would first sand the paint down a small amount to remove anything that might be lose and oxidized, then fair it and repaint You will be surprised at how good the boat looks and time will tell you if you need to do a bigger job.

For the bright work that has been left in the sun you will need to again sand off anything lose. Then use a wood brightener on the areas the have bleached gray and finally varnish again. For the first coat thin the varnish so it will penetrate as deep into the wood as possible.

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Permalink Reply by Roger Rippy on November 21, 2011 at 9:22am

Randy, I think that is sound advice and at this point, I will take it. My goal this winter is to get the boat back to good shape so I can do a good deal of fishing next year. The paint that Stu Williams used on the boat when he built it is a very dull dark green with a navy gray interior. The exterior also have a wide dull brown boot stripe. I prefer the look of shiny exteriors so following your advice, I will probably spot repair any marginal areas with epoxy and then paint the entire hull with something light Brightsides by Interlux. If I decide to do a bigger job as you put it, then I might repaint with a two-part Interlux paint.

I have done a fair amount of varnishing over the years on larger boats and that entailed building up multiple coats of varnish with light sanding between coats. Have you ever tried to use thinned out epoxy as a base coat?

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Permalink Reply by Josh on November 21, 2011 at 9:47am

I ordered my in-floor anchor setup (Bo's Anchor Systems) from Boulder Boatworks...seemed to be the cheapest price I could find. They state they have any/all of the Bo's components to do whatever type of anchor setup you need. Another good resource we have close by is Montana Boat Builders in Livingston....you could drop Jason an e-mail and he might be able to get you setup with what you need. You could also probably get oars from him also. My boat is usually always hiding in my garage when not in use (and it seems to have spent a fair amount of time there this season with a new baby this year). If the gunwhales are fastened with epoxy at the ends they'll be a pain to remove and would be better just left if they are in good shape.

Josh

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Permalink Reply by Roger Rippy on November 24, 2011 at 5:56am

Thanks Josh,

It is Thanksgiving Day morning and I am alternating between sanding the gunwhales and researching ideas on the Internet. I could not find prices on the Boulder Boatworks site, but I did find them on the Hyde Boat site. The stern anchor arm (either Dierks or Hyde - either side or floor release) is $89. Since my boat already has the pulleys and jam cleat in place for side release, I am tempted to stay with that, but more research is needed. I have looked at a half dozen epoxy types; in the past I have used West and Mas on one occassion. I am tempted to try System Three Clear Coat for surface repairs to fiberglass. Both the Boulder and the Hyde web sites had some great ideas for storage. I am also warming up to using rubber deck mats since the rubber floor runner material at Home Depot is inexpensive and tends to stay down and flat. Second choice might be adding non-skid material to Interlux brightside paint. I am considering replacing some of the bench wood that is plywood with either oak or maybe mahogany if I can find some wide pieces. I do have a set of oars that came with the boat along with oar sleeves and tip covers; they are wood oars. I see the hull repair and painting as my biggest challenge; I do not plan to cover the exterior hull with fiberglass this year, but will sand it down and repaint it with Interlux Brightside or the two-part Top Protection. You were right on the builders use of epoxy to glue the ends, so they are staying in place. I am considering using an initial coat of thinned out epoxy followed by multiple coats of varnish. Well time to get back to the heat gun and the scraper!

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Permalink Reply by Fly Guys (Riverdriver) on November 20, 2011 at 6:04pm

Another option for a first class marine varnish is Epifanes. It is very durable and is used by a lot of boatbuilders. You will need 4-6 coats for maximum durability, which is probably true with any good varnish. I believe the stuff is manufactured in the Netherlands but is readily available in the states. We just used it on a new drift boat and really like it. You will need to thin the first coat by 25% and we found that the last coats needed to be thined 5% to get a nice even finish without sagging. http://www.epifanes.com/

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Permalink Reply by Roger Rippy on November 21, 2011 at 9:32am

Thanks Fly Guys for the recommendation and feedback. Actually, I have used Epifanes before, but it was quite a while back and I had forgot about it. I agree it was a very good varnish; a heavy varnish with great characteristics. Some guys at the various boat yards that I know, actually chill the varnish before they use it to improve the application. As I remember it certainly was not the cheapest solution, but it was definitely primo stuff.

By the way, I certainly do compliment you on your boat. What a beautiful job! I really like the lockers that you have built into the interior. That boat must turn a lot of heads; great job. Thanks again for the recommendation on the varnish.

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Permalink Reply by Roger Rippy on November 27, 2011 at 4:11pm

Progress Update:

A. Interior benches removed

B. Starboard side gunwhales scraped and sanded

Next - Port side gunwhales and benches

Sand down bad spots on plywood surface and saturate with System Three Clear Coat

The aft seat/bench plywood is in the worst shape; I am having second thoughts about varnishing these benches. I know that I am going to varnish the gunwhales, knee braces, transom, and cross members, but not so sure about the benches. I also would like to add some storage lockers, but not sure how I might go about it. There are plenty of great ideas on this site, so I should find something that is going to work. This has been fun so far. I also think that I will repaint the hull (exterior) with a single part polyurethane paint; white I think. But I am getting ahead of myself.

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