A Classic Boat Weekend…Week… Month….
All would have been fine if I only had to worry about getting Sylvia up and running for spring time. We were all set to give her here final coats from the restoration. Tune up the motor and go boating.. But noooooooo, I had to go find Betsy.. OR did she find me? Things are slogging along though. Krunch has put on the final coats on Sylvia, she is looking amazing , striping to go on this week. Betsy… well, lets just say ole Betsy found us in the nick of time. We started at the transom and worked our way forward.
Testing fasteners, and wood. The bad news is that we found some issues. The good news. They are fare better than expected. 5 planks, and not because they were rotten. But because the parts above them are. The other good news is that about 95% of the fasteners looked brand spank’n new, as do the frames and major structural elements. I spent two days cleaning the bilge, and thanks to Betsy our patron saint.. She had the bilges scrubbed back in the day and they came very clean.
Mid way through the day a fellow walked up and said, hey you Matt Smith? It was a fellow boat buzz member….what a small world. He to has a connie.. we talked rotten transoms… it’s nice to know that when you feel like a fool for doing something like save an old cruiser that you are not alone….We also had a surveyor come by and gave us a thumbs up with what our plans are. So looks like one more week and we are in the water-ish…
Congradulations.
What wood boat doesn't have issues? You have found them and fixing them. Many years of boating lay ahead.