It is Monday, so must be seam-semi-filling day. John, RJ and I have been wrestling with how best to execute this task. The bottom of each seam must be filled completely – no voids allowed. Yet the mahogany Sikaflex 191 LOT must not intrude upon each seam’s top edges. They must remain crisp and uniformly sharp.
Our regular seaming technique, filling each seam to be even with the deck’s surface, and then removing the smallest bit to leave a uniformly curved concave surface using one of our shop-made spoons of the appropriate radius.
We tried using a reefing hook backwards, but it is quite heavy and cleaned too much Sikaflex out of the seam.
Then Vermont ingenuity kicked in, when John grabbed a paint stick and tested it in a seam. Perfect. We had our leveling-cleaning tool. But how best might we pay the material into the seam? The standard tip that comes with the 10 oz. tube is just too large, even at the very end. Enter a pair of plyers.
John squeezed the tip, which now fit down into the groove and tested an engine hatch seam. He typically needs two passes to ensure there are no voids or bubbles, but what we did not see was material pushing up and out of the seam.
Several passes with the stirring stick, making sure he was applying the lightest possible pleasure, followed by a wipe down with a cotton shop cloth and, voila, the seam is filled perfectly.
Added bonus: John did the entire engine hatch using less than an inch of the material in the 10 oz. Sikaflex 291 LOT tube!
Sure, we found a super low-rent solution to a vexing challenge, but it is quick, certain and delivers exactly the outcome we were seeking.
If you remember the challenges we faced flipping my 22’ Shepherd runabout, you will understand why a bit of tension was in the air as we approached flipping the 1946 Chris-Craft mahogany U22.
But this time we used our good friend Phil Jones’ “line and winch approach. The line is secured to one of the bilge stringers – port in this case, from which point it is passed over the port gunwale, wrapped around the hull, across the cockpit and past the port gunwale.
The bitter end is then attached to a small hand-held winch, which we secured to the base of our 27” drum sander.
Rolling her 90 degrees is accomplished by hand with relatively little effort. It is getting the starboard gunwale beyond 12 O’clock that is the challenge. The winch and line take over at this point and slowly roll the hull past vertical, while maintaining total control.
As you can watch in the clip, she slowly, almost deliberately rolls clockwise and settles 180 degrees from upright. Roll the dollies beneath her, lower onto them,, release the straps and she is ready for what comes next.
You will notice that we inadvertently placed the aft strap, well, a bit too far aft, so that it jumps off the roller just as we complete the flip. Note to self: position the straps at least a foot in from the ends in the future!
We use tall dollies when flipping large boats, which decreases the distance we must recover in lowering them. (The boat has a tendency to roll when strapped to the roller.)
However, working on the bottom with the keel 7 feet off the floor is very difficult. Tomorrow morning we will use four chain falls and the two straps to raise her slightly and then settle her on super short dollies.
Next …. Michael “gets” to strip all that blue paint off the bottom planks prior to releasing and attempting to save them.
Bleaching is in our wake. Now the real fun begins. Bleaching is easy. Apply it over and over, keeping the surface wet. Let it dry. Lightly sand it with 320 grit. Call it good.
Staining? Get ready for exhausted shoulders, arms and especially hands and fingers! We used Interlux Interstain Wood Filler Stain, 2 parts of Chris Craft Red Mahogany (0573) to 1 part of Brown Mahogany (042), thinned to the consistency of thick house paint using Interlux Brushing Liquid 333
The 22-foot Shepherd’s seemingly endless expanses of mahogany presents two challenges when staining. The thinner tends to gas off, causing the working stain to become ever more viscous. We found ourselves thinning the “soup” anew multiple times as we applied stain.
The real challenge, however, is controlling the degree to which the stain is flashing in front of us as we worked, always cross-grain, rubbing the stain into the valleys while removing it. (We use cheese cloth here.) Getting anxious and scrubbing away too soon produces a very weak, almost totally transparent outcome.
Waiting too long and the stain flashes to being nearly dry to the touch, which renders that stain virtually impossible to scrub into the grain and off the surface.
Even though we had masked off all but three boards along ta seam on the topsides, we found ourselves racing against flashing …. and losing. (It was uncomfortably hot in the shop and we had a fan running, which only compounded the rate at which we were losing the race against excessive flashing,
No amount of swearing, scrubbing or sweating made any difference. What to do? In desperation I wet a new shop towel with 333 and went at if. Voila! The stain liquefied just enough so I could scrub it into and off the surface. (My shop towel was wetted to the point of being damp, not dripping with the 333. While I have not experimented doing so yet, my gut tells me that applying too much 333 risks washing the stain away prematurely and excessively.)
In any case, after a long, long day that ran well into the evening, she is stained.
We bleach using Daly’s A & B Bleach, which is available via their Web site.
The task before us, wetting down and then keeping the wood wet for at least 16 hours is daunting to be sure. Where 3” chip brushes usually suffice, we needed heavier artillery for this job, so I turned to a 12” 2/3” nap paint roller.
Even then, and especially on the topsides and transom, I found myself circling back continuously as the mahogany soaked up the bleach and seemed to be drying. Once John and RJ were able to join the fun, we became somewhat like a train with me using my roller, which applied copious amounts of bleach to the wood, and the guys following up with their trusty chip brushes.
We always take great care to begin bleaching at the waterline and working to the gunwales, followed by the covering boards and finally the decks.
Why? Soaking the wood is the goal, and beginning at the gunwales and working down all but guarantees rivulets of bleach flowing down the side of the hull and leaving vertical whitish stripes that are hellish difficult, if not impossible to disappear.
We are experimenting with Danenberg’s sanding progression, rather than employing the 80-grit rough surface approach to prepping the bull for bleaching and staining. That progression from 60 through 80, 100, 120, 150, 180 and finally 220 grits leaves the surface silky smooth.
That we have made so many additional passes with our 18” pneumatic flatboard sanders delivered an additional benefit. The surfaces is absolutely flat and should provide an excellent foundation for the varnishing to come, which is Danenberg’s core contention.
We kept her wet for 16 hours, and then let her dry down until the moisture meter read 12%. Time to stain, yes?
Not quite. The bleach wreaks havoc on the formerly silky smooth surface. The grain is raised and sometimes bleach residue presents in unpleasant, blotchy hues. The remedy? Don Latex or Nitrile gloves and grab a role of 320-grit, sticky-backed longboard sandpaper, and, yes, sand the entire hull, but this time by hand.
Key here is using the lightest touch possible and knowing when it is time to move on. Let your fingers be your guide Even through the glove fabric you can feel when the surface is silky once again. Move on right then, or risk sanding through the approximately 1/32 – 1/16 inch of bleached wood.
We follow sanding with vacuuming and then tacking the entire surface.
A totally original, very early 1946, Chris-Craft mahogany U22, Hull # U-22-068, arrived today from Canada’s Muskoka region, specifically, Ahmic Harbour in Magnatawan, Ontario, for a comprehensive preservation. She is one of very few mahogany-planked, varnished U22 produced in Algonac, MI. She was bought new and has been in the same family, in the same boat house for three generations.
A boathouse queen she has never been, as from grandparents to the current generation, and the one coming up behind used and use her daily during the boating season.
My conversations with the family to date tell a story of a boat that has always been carefully maintained, so carefully, in fact, that she retains 100% of her original planking, ceilings, and upholstery. Save for the button cleats, her hardware, gauges, steering, etc. are also 100% original.
But she is showing her age in several ways, and Snake Mountain Boatworks has been honored to execute this special project. We are under the gun, as the family will gather for its annual escape from urban life in August, and hope, well expect that she will be waiting for them.
We shot this video as our farewell to the 1955 20’ Lyman Runabout on May 20, 2016. We and her new owners, Marjanne and Kees Hoek, were in the final stages of launching her voyage from Vermont to the Netherlands, where she would introduce American wood boats and especially what I believe is one of Lyman’s finest boats, the 20-foot, narrow-strake runabout, to Holland.
Then, as life would have it, her new owners suffered what they feared were an explosion of tragedies. Happily for Kees and Marjanne Hoek, the difficulties were mercifully less than first imagined, and were resolves as quickly as they erupted on this couple. Soon “Kingfisher” will be on her voyage to Holland and to her new owners, Marjanne and Kees Hoek.
Kees asked me to share a piece that will introduce “Kingfisher” and her new owners to fellow boat enthusiasts in North America:
To start with: I have been fond of boats all my life, anyway as long as I can remember. As you already know that’s quite a time because in fact I am 10 years older than the Lyman.
A few years ago my eye fell on a photograph of a Chris-Craft Sea Skiff in the guide to Wooden Power Boats by Benjamin Mendlowitz. When I saw this picture I was hooked at once.
So to be honest, it all started with a Chris-Craft Sea Skiff.
At that time I had a Boesch 5.80 myself. This is a runabout made in Switzerland with a big V8 block. but in fact I never got used to the looks of this boat because of the convex sheer. According to me a boat should have a concave sheer.
So I tried to find a buyer for the Boesch and at the same time started to search the web for a Sea skiff. By doing so I accidently struck the site of your colleague Tom Koroknay, and I phoned him and he convinced me that I had to look for a Lyman instead of a Chris Craft because of different reasons you know better than me.
This Tom sent me his book “Legend of the Lakes” America’s Lapstrake Classics. Since then I was looking for a lapstrake Lyman. The 18′ was too small for me and the 23″to big.
On page 96 of this book I saw a picture of the 20” but I read in the adjacent article that there were only 147 built in 1955 so that was impossible to find.
And then, in the meantime it was a few years later, I struck on your site and there it was.
A 20′ lapstrake Lyman in complete preserved condition. Nearly too beautiful to be true.
The rest of the story you know.
The Lyman is coming to Holland (The Netherlands) in spring and my wife, Marjanne, is as curious as I am myself.
The boat will be berthed at “Loosdrecht” with the Royal Watersport Society in Loosdrecht. According to Dutch ideas quite a big lake located in the centre of Holland. It will certainly be the first Lyman in Holland. I am quite sure of that. Never seen a Lyman, not even another model.
So when an American visits Holland and he spots a Lyman it must be me.
Only once I saw a Chris-Craft Sea Skiff but this one was in a very bad shape.
So Michael, you can imagine that Marjanne and I are looking forward to spring so that we can, kind of show off with the Beautiful Lyman. There it will be a real head turner and that is where it is all about.
Moreover I can tell you that it is in good hands with me and Marjanne because we are fond of beautiful things in general. My Boesch I had for 15 years and was more beautiful when I finally sold her a few weeks ago then when I bought your, now our Lyman, so no worry Americans, relax!! We will take utmost care!!
I have had boats as long as I can remember and started with a canoe. I still have a small 12″ Jol, a sailing dinghy. This boat is also lapstrake mahogany over oak ribs. Very difficult to handle but in summertime we still race in a field of approximately 20 boats. Much fun but very bad for my back.
So Michael now you have a small idea who you sold the Lyman, and I hope you will have enough info for your newsletter and of course Marjanne and I feel very honored that “our Lyman” is getting that special attention.
I will try to send you a few photos of our club in Loosdrecht but you must give me some time because as I told you before, this is not usual stuff for me. Have patience!! I will succeed.
We keep in touch, Best Kees and Marjanne Hoek.
Talk about living the dream… and that goes for all three of us, John, RJ and me!
Removing Sikaflex and caulk of all sorts from a wood deck seam is tedious process replete with downsides. We have used fences held down by two crew and a Dremel mini router, which is fine, unless and until it walks. Everything else we have tried is makes cleaning seams the task that all three of us happily hand off to the next guy.
I discovered Teak Decking Systems while searching online for some other solution. TDS distributes its products through value added resellers, Jamestown Distributors in our case. The copy on its Web site, http://www.teakdecking.com/index.php?…, made it seem way too easy, as you can read below, but I ordered both the TDS Reefing Hook sand the TDS Seam Sander.
They arrived and stayed on a shelf until yesterday. TDS calls for using a razor to free the caulk from the sides of the seams. That seemed way too much like the misery we have already “enjoyed” for way too long.
Using a waste piece of seamed decking as our lab rat, I first experimented with using a heat gun set at 1,000 F to soften the caulking, thereby rendering its removal easier. The results were excellent, but the process remained very slow, as I found myself heating and removing a layer, heating again and removing more, and on and on.
Then RJ, who was stripping the ’53 Shepherd’s decks using Circa 1850 Heavy Bodied remover, suggested laying a thick coat of stripper onto each seam and waiting half an hour. As the Millennials among us are given to exclaim, “OMG!”
RJ inserted the reefing hook and pulled. Out came a complete length of caulk. One pass cleaned 95 percent and more caulk out of the seam.
And there was a bonus. The edges of the seams were/are razor sharp. We will use the TDS Seam Sander for final clean-up, and the jury will be out until we have applied this process to many additional boats, but for now we have a new problem, “How about letting me have a turn at cleaning the seams?”
Please weigh in with your thoughts, reactions, ideas, and even your secret sauce method for getting past this nasty milestone, one that plagues every wood boat preservation project!
Teak Decking Systems Information:
TDS REEFING HOOK Available from Jamestown Distributors
Used before re-caulking, this tool is for removing caulk or other sealants from a seam. A razor knife should be used to free the caulk from the sides of the seam. Our Reefing Hook is specially designed and constructed for long service life, and ease and speed of operation. You can remove most of the caulking, leaving minimal material for final hand sanding – using the TDS Seam Sander. TDS Reefing Hook is made to be a fine quality tool with hand comfort in mind. Different sizes can be made to order.
Designed for vertical sanding of the sides of a seam, to remove old material before re-caulking, the TDS Seam Sander ensures the best possible preparation for new caulk to bond to the teak. Our Seam Sander is specially designed and constructed for long service life, and ease and speed of operation. Use it to remove final residue of caulking, leaving a totally clean surface for the new caulk to bond to.
Made of the finest quality steel and hardwood, TDS Seam Sander is manufactured with a comfortable smooth grip and has an adjustable depth sanding surface – from 5mm to 22mm (1/5″ – 7/8″). Other special sanding surfaces can be made to order.
Finally! The True 5200 project was completed with the application of one final coat, of five, of Interlux 2000E Two-Part Epoxy Barrier Coat and three coats of Pettit Hard Racing Bronze bottom paint.
Communication with, actually a trip to the woodshed with Don Danenberg convinced me that our 80-grit, coarse-surface strategy leaves too many cross-grain scratches, which either remain visible beneath the varnish or require many more coats to fill and produce a truly flat surface.
Starting with the Shepherd, we will follow the Danenberg model: cross sanding with 40 and 60, followed by sanding with the grain through 80, 100, 120, 150 and 180 grits, and finishing off with 220 grit. (I now understand why he budgets 600 hours just for sanding the hull of a typical 18’ wood boat!)
Yes, the Shepherd’s topsides and transom a very, very, very flat, but will the wood take filler stain? Yes. Remember that thorough bleaching is next. We will keep her exterior wet for 12 hours through repeated applications of bleach, and I mean really wet.
Bleaching raises grain, so once the feathers resulting therefrom have been knocked off with a quick 220 grit hand sanding, the grain will be open and stain will penetrate.
But there is a milestone, well two milestones standing in the way of bleaching. The decks, covering boards and various trim elements must be stripped to bare wood, including removing all residual stain.
The July 9 ACBS show in Gravenhurst, Ontario is racing at us. We are committed to bring Orca, my 1953 22’ Shepherd Model 110-S Sportsman. As this video portends, many a late night are in our future!
But her 331 cubic inch, dual-quad-four, V-drive Hemi is on track. Robert Henkel, Robert Henkel Inc. (chris-craft-parts.com) has engaged a comprehensive tear-down and re-build that will include porting, polishing and balancing among a long list of particulars. The purple monster is on schedule and will be back and install-ready by the first week of May.
And the hull? Well Mickey Dupuis, Custom Restoration, Holyoke, MA, has finished working his magic on the hardware.
Shauna, Kocian Instruments, Forest Lake, MN (kocianinstruments.com), reports that the instrument cluster’s preservation will also be back by early May.
Her original wheel needed a complete preservation. Once again the pros at PearlCraft, Rowville, Victoria, AU (pearlcraft.au) transformed a totally shabby wheel into jewelry.
The Marmoleum is in hand, and the upholstery is in process.
ALL that is left is finishing the hull… all..
By the end of the week we will have applied all five coats of Interlux Interprotect 2000E two-part epoxy barrier coat will have been applied. Installing the True 5200 bottom will be complete. Three coats of hard racing bronze bottom paint will follow.
Then off comes the paper and out come the longboard sanders for the final topside and transom planking, followed by staining and sealing.
After flipping her over, I “get” to strip the decks and covering boards…
Seems so straightforward… guess we will just let her romp on Lake Champlain in June… yes?
One more milestone is disappearing in the rear view mirror. My ’53 22’ Shepherd’s port-side bottom is fully planked. Beginning this afternoon, I will be filling its countersinks with 3M Premium Marine filler.
Removing the hog in the keel, combined with natural shrinking of the planks translated into the original keel planks being slightly – about 5/8” – too narrow on both port and starboard, so the original planks could not be saved. Two new planks were fabricated for the port side once the first five courses had been installed. (The starboard side will require new keel planks as well.)
Here you watch RJ apply two full tubes of 3M 5200 on 40% of the final plank. He ended up using five, with another one used to seal the seam between these two planks and the keel. The beads will be spread into what looks all the world like frosting using a putty knife.
Notice just how much 5200 squeezes out along the edges and through the pre-drilled screw holes.
Not seeing ample squeeze out tells you that yours is a shortcut, not a true 5200 bottom. By my count we exhausted 48 tubes, with the 49th tube ending up about half empty.
Cleaning, especially the countersink holes, is the critical final step here. Remove enough 5200 from the seams so that the surface is concave and not proud of the planks. Otherwise you will play hell trying to sand the bottom prior to applying five coats of Interlux InterProtect 2000E Epoxy Primer. The starboard planks are next… Please stand by.
