Well, our hopes for repairing rather than replacing bottom planking was dashed as soon as we did a bit more exploration. Test extraction of several fasteners produced once-copper, now rusted ring-shank nails. And applying pressure externally while John observed from beneath the boat unearthed another problem. Much of the planking is no longer well-fastened to the ribs and/or framing.
Bottom line, we have begun releasing the most severely split planks, and will replace them. And we must refasten the bottom planking to the frame.
At the same time John began exploring the bottom transom board in hopes of determining where the Dutchmen patches must go. Well, there will be no Dutchmen patches as the wood filler also held moisture, and 90% of that transom plank is gone. Gone as well are large sections of a thin sheet of marine plywood that spanned the transom inboard of this plank.
It is not pretty, but hammer and chisel are the go-to tolls and technique for this job. John will continue excavating until he has removed this entire plank. The final result, fabricating and installing an entirely new plank will produce the correct result, but doing so is hugely time-consuming.
Description
Vintage Boat Preservation
