Thread: The project

I have also cut out new 6mm marine plywood for the foredeck and the after deck. These have bee trial fitted. The underside has been varnished, which is one thing that was not done previously.
New engine bearers have been made, bolted together and varnished ready to be installed.
The top plank on both sides has been replaced and of course one can't get timber long enough the correct width to make one out of a single piece. So I had to scarf it together to get the length required. These planks have been nailed and roved back in place.
The fact that there is some damage to the ribs from the fire means that I will have to replace some 14 ribs. There also a couple of cracked ribs in the bow section of the boat. Today I removed them and made new ones ready to install them. They are made of 32mm x 8mm Spotted Gum. All the materials for the ribs have been machined up for the other ribs just sitting in the rack under the boat waiting.

The decking will be covered with 6mm marine plywood, glued and nailed in place. This will be covered with strip planking of Honduras Mahogany with contrasting strips of Huon Pine.
So there we are a brief run down of what has taken 18 months to do so far.

Cheers
Peter

Peter, we need pictures!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nice to to hear that it didn't get destroyed and the running gear sold off!

James

I have plenty of photos: well a reasonable number.
I think that they may be too big so will have to learn how to shrink them and then learn how to post them!

I was hoping that the boat may be a floater by last Xmas, that didnt happen. The next date was Easter, that didnt happen. So I have decided that there is no deadline It will be finished when it happens.

Still it looks a lot less like a pile of firewood than it did. It's funny how one stands back and looks at a project like this at stages and thinks not much has hapened but when you write it all down heaps has been done and there is still seemingly heaps remaining to be done.

I can say one thing it would have been cheaper to have bought one already restored !!!!!!
Peter

Over the last couple of weeks I have been spending a lot of time in the bilges of the boat with "Coopers" paint stripper removing the remnants of paint and varnish from the planking and the ribs.

I am really impressed with this product. It almost seems to melt the paint and varnish away. The flushing fluid also gets a lot of the dirt out of the nooks and crannies as well. The brass wire bristle brush is the ideal tool for working the product in the clinker planking as opposed to the steel wool supplied in the kit.

To get rid of the remaining dirt and to get the planking really clean I am considering using a solution of Cabots deck clean on the inside of the boat. I was goingbto mix it up spray it on with a presureised garden sprayer let it soak in, scrub it with a stiff dust pan broom and then wash it all out with the Karcher. Good idea or is this stuff too strong?

Last weekend I visited the wood working show and came home with some more Huon Pine for the deck of the boat. There was some lovely timber there and some of the hand tools were not only beautifully presented but very nice to use. I am glad that I didn't take much money with me or I may have been sorely tempted.
Today in Melboure the weather is very ordinary: overcast, cols and rainy. So I am not really wanting to go outside

The complete interior of the boat is now stripped of all the old paint and varnish. I have not worried about stripping the paint off the ribs that need to be replaced. Some of the ribs that didn't need to be steamed have been screwed back into place while I waited for the longer copper nails to arrive.

Nails arrived ready for some serious nailing and roving.

Time spent cleaning the inside of the boat was not wasted. Have spent more time with Cabots deck clean (oxalic acid) and plenty of brushing and then hit the inside with the high pressure cleaner. Amazed at how clean the inside has come up. Not like it would have been when built but much better than recent history. Applied the first coat of thinned spar varnish to the bow section of the boat. It all soaked in so the ply was a little on the dry side. It may need another coat to fill the grain properly.

The new ribs really show how dark the old spotted gum ones have become over the years. There ars still some that are cracked can't make up my mind yet about replacing them or just leave them alone.

Photos required please, otherwise no proof that this project even exists!

Cheers, Cameron.

The boat does exist and when you the photos you may even ask why I started in the first place. I know it's hard to turn a "sows ear into a silk purse" but I'm giving it a good go. It would have been easier to probably build one from scratch!!!

I am not sure how to attach photos here but there are quite a few on the Classic Australian Wooden Powerboat Association bulletin board. The topic heading is our project. Go to Classic Australian Wooden Power Boat Association, wooden boats, classic boats, antique boats, restoration, nostalgia, old speed boats and old race boats then find the bulletin board and then find the restorations and advice sub section and there they are along with the progress from when we first purchased the boat.

A reasonable amount of progress has been made since the last post. All the foredeck deck beams have been glued and screwed in place. The foredeck area has had 4 coats of varnish applied and the centreline deck stringer has been glued and screwed into place.

The whole boat looks and feels tighter than when I first got it as previously nothing had been glued in the original construction and most of the nails were fairly loose.

This afternoon I may get started in putting the already prepared coaming on the starboard side and see how far I get and may be able to get the port side started as well.

Is there any instruction on the forum as to how o attach photos? I tried to follow the thing just below this page but got myself confused

Cheers
Peter

Its been a while since I've updated my posting

Work continues at a slower rate or it seems that way. The foredeck area has been finished and the first 1.8 mtr of the boat has been varnished inside. The bow deck beams and stringers have been glued and screwed in place. The coaming has been glued and screwed in place. Its starting to take shape and looking much more like a boat.
I have put all the centre cockpit sections in to the boat, cut to shape and temporarily fitted the plywood deck panels. This structure has then been dismantled and removed so that I can continue the work inside the boat now that I have a way of generating the steam for bending the ribs.

I have made a steambox and commenced fitting the ribs that needed to be replaced. So far I have made and fitted six half ribs. These will be fitted off properly and a couple of nails and roves fitted this weekend.

I have cut to length, edge chamfered another 4 ribs. Might have to bribe a mate to help me on Sunday to fit these and if there is time maybe another couple

I can't work out how to post pictures here. So words will have to suffice at present.
So it's been nearly two months since I gave an update and things have have progressed.

I have replaced a total of 18 full width ribs and 6 half ribs (both p & s side). So it's really more like 24 ribs these nearly al been nailed and roved in place. I have cut some reinforcing pads for the engine cross bearers and the fin. These have been glued in place and will be backed up with stainless steel backing plate.

Hoping to lift boat off trailer later today and maybe roll it over for bottom of hull work.
Cheers Peter

Piquet.

This link should help with the picture problem.

picture or two I hope

some more photos.

#29 is of the forepeak area of the boat showing the planking after the paint was striped off.

#26 deck beams and stringers in place. At this stage the centre section is glued and screwed together but only screwed in place. Still have the ribs to replace in the centre of the boat. Deck stringers are screwed in place but all deck beams are glued and screwed.

#25 looking along the boat showing all of the work in#26 in a bit more detail.

#58 everything taken out of boat and the damaged/burnt ribs have been removed and new ones installed. Roving not yet totally complete

The workshop/carport can be cold in winter

#001 As purchased in May 2010
#115 As at February 2012

not quite 2 years from a pile of firewood on a trailer to looking like a boat
cheers
peter