What's the best product for a plywood boat?

[jbjennings]

Guys,
I was just given a handmade 14ft. plywood "skeeter" boat if you know what that is. It's sat in a garage for probably 20yrs. and is just like it was 20yrs. ago---ready for wood finishing.
It is unfinished and has never been in water, and is made of exterior grade plywood (not marine grade as far as I can tell). I just need to add the seats and finish it on the interior and exterior. I'm thinking of fiberglassing it but wanted to know your thoughts on what was best as far as lasting and saving weight. I'm dying to post a pic of it but my camera is on the blink.
thanks,
JBJ

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

From what I've discovered in doing some research on building your own wood boat there are two schools of thought. 1.) Finish it with a quality oil-based paint, primer and top/color coat, 2.) Finish with a f-glass or resin skin, then sand, sand, sand, sand, sand and apply a marine-grade paint. Option two adds weight, but the verdict is out as far as the longevity of the finish...those who favor paint admit this option requires more frequent inspection and maintenance...those who favor glass/resin see the added weight as a favorable tradeoff for less maintenance. Guess it's a judgement/preference call in the end. If it were mine, I'd factor in climate, fresh or salt water use, and weight...cause I often boat alone...still haven't taught the Lab to drive the truck or boat when loading/unloading. Regardless which route you take, I would check that puppy real well to make sure the wood and seams are still sound. I live in a high/dry climate, so anything made of wood exposed to the elements has to be coated with something...otherwise dry rot destroys it...the climate sucks all the moisture from the wood and ruins its structural integrity. Down there in La you probably have the opposite to deal with...moist climate with wet rot. Post some pix when you get a chance...what're you thinking about for power? I know you have several options.

 

[Mark42]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

The build-it-from-scratch boat builders finish their wood boats with a layer of fiberglass and epoxy resin. Check out some wood boat building sites and see what type of glass is used on the outside. It will make the boat last far longer than paint, with much less maintenance.

This is a well respected boat building site that has the materials. Browsing this site should give you the info you need. http://boatbuildercentral.com/

 

[jbjennings]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Thanks guys!
I believe I'm going to go with fiberglass and resin, with a coat of good paint on the bottom after a good sanding. I'm pretty positive I'm going to put my newest '57 18 johnson with 125psi compression on the back and run it as a tiller steered rig. ALL the wood is PERFECT and I'm totally proud of this boat!!!! I am really dying to post a pic and will do so as soon as possible. I think you guys will like it, too. My dad says that there were lots of these wood boats like mine "back in the day" but to me, it's one-of-a-kind!!!!! I'd love to put my 30hp johnson with estart and echoke on it, but I don't think it would take that kind of power and speed. It should be fabulous with the 18. Thanks for the link---I'll use it!
Later,
JBJ​

 

[wa_ssv197]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Check out this website.
http://www.duckworksbbs.com/plans/messer/index.htm
And here is his YouTube site.
http://www.youtube.com/user/redbarnboats

This guy is local to me and does some amazing wood work on his boats.
He even builds a scale model to figure out center of gravity to balance it out correctly with seat placement.

 

[Mark42]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

If you do like the canoe builders do, you can keep a nice varnished wood look by applying a 8 oz layer of cloth. Its 98% transparent, and will give the protection you need. That and a coat of paint below the water line will give it a nice "old school" look.

Got Pics?

 

[jbjennings]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Finally got some pictures......

 

[sprintst]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Nice score. A company here in town does wood kits for canoes, kayaks that look amazing. They are glassed with epoxy then painted. Not sure on the number od coats to keep the weight down but they last forever.

 

[Downwindtracker2]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

That's not gong to be too easy to cloth that interior. System Three epoxy bought Industrial Formulators (Cold Cure) epoxy,when they did that, they picked up some really interesting products,one of them is S-1 epoxy sealer. It was designed just for those interior jobs. You can use ordinary coating epoxy and cloth on the outside,don't use polyester resin as it will delaminate from the wood when the wood gets wet. Remember,wood is very strong and light,if you can keep it dry. What neat boat.

 

[Sean-Nos]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Hi I would go with with the fiber glass on this the exterior grade plywood is more prone to delaminating than the marine.I used 6oz cloth with 3 coats of resin a good bit of sanding then two part primer and then 3 coats of interlux brightside you can also coat the inside with just the fiberglass resin and then paint or varnish for uv protection.

http://www.glen-l.com/picboards/picboard17/pic1065-7.jpg
http://www.glen-l.com/picboards/picboard17/pic1065-8.jpg
http://www.glen-l.com/picboards/picboard17/pic1065-9.jpg
http://www.glen-l.com/picboards/picboard17/pic1065-25.jpg

 

[jbjennings]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Guys,
Thanks for those tips. I need all the help I can get since I want to use this boat and keep it in good shape for a LONG time.

Sean, your glen-L is Gorgeous! Got some pics of the side view and interior?
I want to build one myself badly. If I do, I'm going to wait a few more years until my oldest boy is about 12 or so. He seems to like wood-working. I'd like to build twin squirts----one for him and one for me!!!

Thanks again,
JBJ

 

[Sean-Nos]

Re: What's the best product for a plywood boat?

Thanks for that, it was a great boat to build with only basic DIY skills.Your one will learning curb for when you decide to build.This is a link to my site in Ireland from page 5 on has a lot of photos and videos of the launch.You can see more on the build in Glen-L section on this site or glen-l customer photos FERGAL BUTLER. Thanks again I will be keeping an eye on your progress good luck.

http://www.powerboat.ie/forums/sports-boats/4822-launch-sean-nos-5.html