OK..so y'all know I've been working on fixing up this old wooden bathtub for months now; things are finally starting to come together in their semi-final stages.

This is where we started..



Started by stripping the boat down to it's bare essentials. Seats and all non-structural pieces removed, including inner and outer transoms (both bad) and the front deck.



Spent 3 months (and 2 gallons of chemical stripper) just stripping off the thick latex paint that covered everything, including the gunnell rails. In some spots that paint was an 1/8" thick.

Next, the bottom had to be "renovated", which meant removing the old 8' X 1/4" skid panel of ply, and replacing it (properly) with a full length piece of new 1/4".



Got that installed, and did a lot of detail work to fair the sides (take out all of the old dings, nicks and sand/fill any bad spots with epoxy fairing compound.)

While this was going on I also built some new seats. I know DB's are supposed to be light as a feather...but this old boy needs some comfort under his butt. Both the new rowers seat and passenger seats have 36" X 8" deep storage compartments, along with a Fish-On padded seat up front and a ClackCraft padded low-back supporting rowers seat.



Once I was satisfied that the sides and bottom were in order, it was time to seal it all up..properly. I applied a gallon of Coat-It (7 lb.), but was not pleased with the results. It was difficult to apply, and did not go on as uniform as I would have liked. So, taking a gallon of System Three epoxy and adding 30% graphite to it, I applied that several days after the Coat-It cured. I'm much happier with this resulting finish...hard as nails, slick as grease and looks good to!



Sides were primed yesterday, and the exterior paint goes on today (after fishing, of course!).

So, as to the questions of "When will it be done?"

It's getting there...

Mike

what color are ya gonna paint it? I recommend black with red flames, just think how intimidated the other guys will be when they see you floating down into there hole....

I say put a sharks mouth on it... you know, flying tigers style

man, that looks like a lot of work!! looking really good. anxious to see it all painted.

Nice job Mike,it's looking real good. I really enjoy boat projects picked up my first one a 8 ft wood pram when I was 12 years old (hate to think back that far) it had a 3ft diameter hole punched in the bottom and was half submerged in a lake. I have been looking for a east side or similar glass drift boat that needs refurbishing but have not found one yet will keep looking till I do.

looking VERY nice MIke:) love to see guys taking the time to save even a small piece of driftboating history

SilverSlayer: LOL! Nope, just a nice dark, forest green.

bustinbig: Yep, it has been, but frankly it has been a very enjoyable project. Best of all, I get to fish out of it when it's done..

stlhdfishn: Sounds like that was a neat project, as well. I think the next one will be a new boat, as fixing all the issues that come with one this old (30+ yrs.) is not as much fun as starting with new stock and being innovative with the interior design, etc.

RA3: Thanks. Still got a ways to go yet, as the interior needs to be primered, painted and then outfitted with the new seats, etc. I've still got to figure out where all the pulley's go with this 5 pulley anchor system. Also have to build new holders for the oarlocks.

Mike

Mike! The boat looks great! Here's to you

Nice Job! I think that chine will track well!

Mike,
Your wooden bath tub looks great!
Hope to march together soon this fall/winter on the Skagit.

Fun5: Right back at ya!

Kyle: Some of the folks on the Montana Boatbuilders site have commented that the chine may be too large, as it extends nearly 1 1/2" out from the side. In essence, it is only 1/4" bigger than the old chine, but it does worry me that it might catch in a cross-current. Guess there's only one way to find out.

SR: Looking forward to the "3 boat march" and the mighty "wall-of-death" this winter. Don't know how well this boat will pull plugs...I'm afraid it's going to be pretty heavy for a 13' DB. Again, won't know for sure till it's on the water.

I'm not much of a painter, and the exterior side color was/is to be a dark forest green. Got the first coat on yesterday (thin) and it looks "so-so", but a bit lighter than I wanted and not a whole lot darker than the old green (which I thought was butt-ugly).

Sadly, I've got the color coordination of a drunk duck, so I just went with what I thought would look OK. If the boat is a fish-killer, I don't care if it is .......pink..

Second coat going on today, and it should darken it up some. I'll post a pic if I can get enough light to take one.

Mike

Mike, I built a woody a few years ago and it had a similar chine. Your concern may be valid. If you think it does pull down in cross current, you could simply sheer some off with a router pretty quickly and refinish.

Yes it is alot of work but there is great satisfaction that comes with creating something of your own....particulary if it catches fish! Wonderful work! I hope you have plans to garage that boat once it's complete so that it will see rivers for many years to come.

RM
http://www.bikinibaitcompany.com

Kyle: This boat will see 99% of it's work in the Skagit, and fortunately there are not too many places where it gets nasty enough that I'm going to be really concerned. If it will pull plugs well and drift decently in this water then I'm a happy camper.

Here's a shot of it today, after the second coat of Duramax. Still 2 coats to go, as I got a few small runs in it (hard as I tried NOT to get them).



I'll be out-of-town on biz on Tues and Wed., and I might get a chance to do some more work on it on Thurs...just maybe.

Mike

Nice looking boat! You might want to add some metal on the outside of the chine, like a 1 1/8" x 1/8" piece of flatbar aluminum. It saves the wood from too much abuse. I'm still trying to miss rocks in my wood boat, but I get a nice KLUNK every now and then.

Mike,
That looks pretty dang good!!
You did very well!
Congrats!!

Mike.....dude! What were you thinking?! You painted it the same color as the river! Now, after you beach it to take a big 10-100 after a few Yukon/h20's, you won't be able to find your boat when you walk back to the river! :p

Beezer

What a project!!!.Looking good.Good luck,
STRIKE ZONE

OOPS....you might be right. Course, I hope to have you, SR, Lead Thrower or ???? there to guide me back to the rowers seat. I thought that was the purpose for multi-boat trips, in that no one gets lost on their way downriver!

As for the "rowing oil", that is always taken in limited doses, and never before tea-time. We must follow proper etiquette!


Mike

Mike what is Duramax?

"Here's a shot of it today, after the second coat of Duramax."

Great job BTW