v. Getting Started

The first consideration is that I want to enter the Georgetown Wooden Boat Show in October. Clearly the project will not be complete but what aspects can be done for a reasonable showing?

By asking around I was able to locate a non-titled, non-working, period-correct, appropriately-sized outboard. An Evinrude Lark

As for restoration, one option would be to varnish one side of upper hull. Then the attendees can view before / after by walking around the boat. Here is a hull before:

Hull after prep:

Hull - three coats of spar varnish

Trim to be in midnight blue - one coat on on rub rail.

Meanwhile the hull is currently leaking and the most pressing concern.

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/910a30_151ceee69b3142729a77deedc6086f2c/360p/mp4/file.mp4

A previous owner had fiberglassed the bottom of the hull. But numerous cracks indicate that it was too stiff to flex with the boat.

Has to come off. The previous owner had good results with a putty knife and heat gun. BUT the boat has to be rolled to work on it effectively.

So, looks like first I’ll need to build a cradle. Then figure out how to flip the boat from the trailer onto the cradle.

Once the fiberglass has been removed I’m considering double-planking the hull with another layer of thin marine plywood using the “5200 No Soak Bottom” method favored by the Chris Craft restorers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETc_ioqgDLk

Stay tuned for future updates.