1955 CC Hurricane Restoration

Pete,
I knew that would get your attention.
To paint the ply is okay I suppose.
bj

SNobsessed wrote: JoeinNY wrote: You let me know when that motor is going in and I'll come out and help. Alan, how much parking do you have? You may be able to sell tickets!

800 lbs of engine and 1/2 inch clearance. I think perhaps I'll buy stock in finger splints and watch someone else complete the installation. BKH

Since the last post all the decking has been installed and screw holes filled. The initial fairing came out very nice, one more round with filler and a finish sand should put an end to the plywood portion of the deck. Also got plugs installed and sanded on the arrow portion of the bow.





Working away on the plugs for the rear deck and doors, 400,399,398....


Doors are close to being done, still need a little adjustment and final fitting. I ended up with a little twist in the frames which I didn't notice until they were planked, they don't sit exactly as I had planned but nothing a little work with a grinder and long board won't fix.

Then I started on the transom, steamed and bent planks.


Got all but the last plank installed, the final plank is double thickness and I still need to steam and bend it. Also need to modify my clamps to mount on the deck of the boat.





I've done a lot of finish sanding on the deck and coaming boards, hard to show with a picture but it's really coming together fast this year.

After finishing the doors and transom I'll be on to fairing in the sides of the boat. Looks like I won't get my compressor installed anytime soon so it will all be done by hand, commonly referred to as "sandercising". Gotta get the upper body in tune for ski season.

It's going to be a masterpiece for sure!

What a great thread, I am really enjoying it. Your craftsmanship is amazing.
If I had the skill, knowledge, patience, perseverance, tools, and two lifetimes to learn from my mistakes,I might attempt something like your restoration. Holding the buffer trigger down and squirting polishing compound on plastic is my skill set. I really hope to see it someday.

peter1234 wrote: I wonder what they used to use on tires like that before armour all .

Brake fluid!

Alan;

Looks great! I really admire your dedication and perseverance in restoring the Hurricane. I wish I had your skills.

Question....How do you sand/cut/trim all those wooden dowls flush with the surface and not inflict any damage on the hull? There must be a trick to it I am missing!?!?

DrCC wrote: A little trick for Hi-Speed Famowood-ing holes. Golf ball size in the left hand, w/ the thumb, shove into screw-hole firmly. With a thin very flexable putty knife, held flat on the wood surface, quickly push and pull under the thumb for a nice quick clean and full screw-hole. .

Thanks for the tip Al, I will give it a try tonight, I've been filling a plastic caulk tube with famowood and filling the holes that way but in order to get it to flow it has to be thinned a bit. The result of that is it shrinks down below the surface when drying and needs to be touched up. So twice as fast but double the work. LOL.


Question for you as the pros seem to have different opinions. What grade of paper do you sand down to on new planks before stain. Once source says 80 then 100 and your done. other source says 80 and all the way down to 180 before stain. What have you done in the past?

Thanks

DrCC wrote: On the final hand sand.   Generally we didn't go any finer than 80.    The guy that's doing 80, 100, 150 and 180, sounds to me like it's getting a quick pass with each grit, not really inspecting the grain to be sure all the machine marks are out. But, I will say if they are spending the time with each grit, the only savings could be maybe one coat of finish. The 180 guy probably likes a lighter stain. I've always prefered the deep rich stain.

Good info thank you. I'm going to learn towards a deep rich stain because of the wood tone variations so stopping at a course grit might be just the trick, hopefully that will help hide the different color woods. I'm going to experiment with some bleaching before I get too much farther.

I've already purchased a roll of 80 and 100 so I think I'll get through the 100 and do some testing. I'm quite all right with not going through 3 more grits if it's not needed.

How many coats of varnish would you recommend? I'm leaning towards 4 build coats, then sand, 4 more build coats, then sand and 2-4 finish coats, sound about right? Should give plenty of UV protection and plenty of thickness to wet sand and smooth any irregularities.

I haven't done any mahogany since 1999.
So, as I could imagine, like everything else. Prices go up while product quality goes down.
Varnish might be thinner than it use to be.

Recently bought some polyurethane for some canoe paddles, it was almost like applying water.

She's coming along nicely Alan...

jimsport93 wrote: Alan has been pretty quiet lately. Anybody check on him? Is he still in the garage?

I'm here Jim, Forgot my camera at work this week but really all I've been doing is sanding. After next weekend I'll get some current pics up.

22 pages of amazing work. Keep it up.

Beautiful Alan. Now I need a history lesson from Pete. I understand Alan's pencil lines and the block sanding,much like prepping a steel surface for paint. But did wood boat builders back in the day do that or was it just a quick once over and out the door she went? I suppose it depended on the "price" of the boat also.

Thats what I thought Pete.As much as Correct Craft,Chris Craft,Higgins,etc loved boats they were in business to make money and I didn't think they could take that amount of time sanding and varnishing. I enjoy Alan's thread,I think all of us are learning something,and like all the rest of you can't wait to see and hear it when he's done.