Would you believe that between gutting, purchase and all the fitting and two coats of "installed" varnish today, there's 8 days (at 4-6 hours per day) to get to this point? Made the mistake of trying Gorilla glue on the job which stuck it to me hahaha. The stuff expanded so much that when it oozed out overnight it made a mess on all the plugs. Usually those get the glue cleaned off, then chiseled off and stained. Done. The ooze was on top of the wood and needed so much sanding that I had to go through the stain. Unsatisfactory! Went back this A.M. and heat gunned and scraped off 6 coats, sanded with 100 then 220, vacuumed cleaned and stained and varnished twice for an acceptable result. A meer 4 hours and I was outa propane. To be contiued LOL... Back to some Buick work this weekend I hope! ws
Wow, that sucks about the Gorilla Glue All that work and patience to do it, wood boats and wood trim, even in old houses is beautiful
Thanks Mark... "Usually" those plugs go in pretty tight and only need a smidge of varnish or Elmers glue to secure them after tapping them in with a mallet. Some of these were loose from having had the screw holes re-used and re-plugged several times so I figgered "what the heck" MEA CULPA!! The alternative is to go to a larger plug and rebore, of which I have neither cutters, or use epoxy (sparingly) and let it set up in place securing the plug. All my epoxy "tubs" were getting pretty old (read: crystallized) so I went the other way; that was the mistake. I looked at epoxy at menards and they didn't have the amber clear stuff any more. Just new and improved crap in a double tube (easier mixing hahaha) and it went from $10 for a quart kit to $29.95 for a six oz. premixer kit. Probably would've had to sign a disclosure that the "user understands that the enclosed product contains known carcinogens and can cause low fetal birth weight and rectal bleeding in the state of california..." Why cant stuff just be fun anymore??? Also, FWIW., theres a disclaimer on the glue bottle: "Wear gloves, product may stain skin". Thats an understatement. Im still wearing the glue 5 days later and all the fingerprints are filled with dirt. Perhaps a good time to perp a 7-11 licker job??? ws
Taking advantage of the nice 35F sunny weather (under the tarp with a propane heater going!) Im still just scraping by hahaha. Got it down to a system with a heat gun and a SANDVIK (made in SWEDEN!) scraper that takes a triangular shaped carbide lathe tool holder insert. Make the varnish hot and pull back on the scraper to bare A$$ wood. The wood was damp under the 30 year old varnish with several failures, so this is the time to let it dry before re-doing it. The worst part is figuring where to stop! Bear in mind this is BOTH sides inside the pilot house. This is the final rodeo guys. After spending 46 years and and an entire lifestyle on this guy, I just want it to last another 20 years. After that Ill be building a wheel chair ramp to get on board; that is if I can even find it.... Heres the last few days of boring pics... The last one shows the worst of the rot from a leaking window. That'll get the wet epoxy saturation system before any finishing happens. This year I plan on having fun with the H-D, the Buick and the Boat. Last summer was working everyday in the sun. The joke was on me; NO MORE! ws https://www.google.com/search?q=san...9mMKHZl6DhwQ_AUICygC&biw=1280&bih=633#imgrc=_
Some women and all wood boats are high maintenance. Both are hard to get rid of as well. But the boat will give you years of pleasure. The high maintenance women, well you all know how that goes.
Your attention to detail and craftsmanship is impressive Bill, not to mention your patience and determination! I liken that to body and paint work, machine work, anything that has to do with working with your hands, its a rare trait these days in younger people, seems all they want to do is push an easy button
Thanks Mark! Both grand dads raaised their families "comfortably" through the depression (notice I didnt say easily) and instilled that work ethic in their kids. That was passed down to my generation. I am the end of my families legacy, but have seen so many generation X'rs "get by" with that damn easy button, and now they are reproducing as well. Is this the "Z" generation??? I guess that as being a war baby, we have the privilege of coining the next name... Yer absolutely correct Jerry. Wife #2 used to spend $50 a week on her nails plus another $50 on her hair. Enough was enough... She asked one time, "Whats that boat give you that I dont?". Pleasure. I guess she'd have rather had me sit in a tavern and get DUI's or "hit the turf" and squander it away. I can say with affirmation, she was unable to be satisfied in any way shape or form. She's moved on to #6 now with a few suicides in between just to keep it exciting. I used to tell her that "you thrive on turmoil" which couldn't have been truer. Day of rest today and off to 3 doctors appointments. I have to live long enough to avenge #2 LOL... ws
My half sister had a boy 22 years ago, but she lives in Brooklyn now with her family and the kids' dad (they are married for almost 50 years now!) is from some town called Wadsworth, Ohio (!). The name still ends here. I caught a news snippet this evening. History unfolded before our very eyes! The world's last living male WHITE RHINO died from a euthanasia shot yesterday . I hope ronald mcdonald is next! That saddened me. Bill
I guess they saved some DNA when they cleaned his pipes, but as we all know, CLONING aint the same as OEM. (still sad)! One day before WE ARE ALL EXTINCT, I wanna meet UticaGeoff... another 10 years I wanna be a snowbird and need advice! ws
Love to meet you too someday. If you go east to Waterford one summer, we can catch up!! Being a snowbird is a good life. This winter we escaped many snowstorms and frigid temps. My advice is always free. Say hello to Pat for me. UticaGeoff
I always do Geoff! Even if we have a one liner here, I tell her we spoke and you send regards; maybe not the spoken word, but I know its in yer heart! Same back to you and yours! ws
I'm the last of my line too Bill. BTW: I don't mean to "one up"ya - you have probably spent more time scraping that boat then I will ever do, but about 25 years ago I decided that our house in Massachusetts had too many damn coats of paint on it. With my propane torch and a variety of scrapers, I took the cedar shingles down to the bare wood and stained it California Stain Parson gray. After I finished the job I restained one wall each year. The house looked great. When I sold it, the buyer immediately painted it baby barf green.
Aint that how it always turns out John... stay with Neutrals LOL! A few years ago OJ (step son) and I had to torch and scrape the 30 years of epoxy paint off the roof of the boat. It came off in curls that were at least 1/8+" thick, and then a ton of repairs to the gelcoat. Even fiberglass doesnt last forever. To be perfectly honest with you, I still like doing this stuff, but I tend to lean to the left(?) being more utilitarian. Had that 1963 boat since 1972 with a total frame off restoration and nothing else really since 1986. I guess that's a pretty good run eh? ws
How I spent my "spring break"... This is just stain. I got 2 coats of 50/50 thinned varnish on also but ran outa film LOL... ws
Thanks Mark! I did such a total restoration in 1986 and then always some kind of winter projects that I let a lot of the bright work go to heck, and now I am paying for it. This is the project end of the job, after this its a maintenance thing that I hafta beat myself up on to get done every year! Cant wait for summer... ws
