TOPIC:

Hi, please could I seek some advice on how best to restore a wooden Alb which dates from the 60’s.

She has been dry stored for many years and is structurally sound without any rot. Previous attempts to sand her down have left her with a fair amount of bare wood.

She has a lovely converse foredeck of thin ply and a concave transom deck and side decks of the same material. All this ply is bleached to a pale greyish colour and the grain is standing up as the wood looks to be very dry and brittle and I wouldn’t trust it to take a person’s weight. Because these areas flow together in beautiful lines I want to preserve them if I can and not dispense with them though.

The hull itself is in good shape though there are some minor surface splits in the top layer of the veneer. This looks to be more cosmetic than structural but needs some form of minor surface filling and stabilisation.

Looking around at the subject of boat restoration in general it would seem the norm to treat the entire hull with several coats of epoxy resin. Not having done this before I’m wondering whether it’s really a good thing and necessary? In particular;-

1. Being so old is the cold moulded hull in danger of breaking down due to the ageing of the original adhesives and therefore intrinsically unsound?

2. If the answer to the above is yes will an epoxy treatment remedy this or am I flogging a dead horse ?!

3.If I don’t use epoxy are there preferred varnish / paint systems within the class which might help to smooth and stabilise the surface of the hull?

4.Would an epoxy treatment be the best method to reinforce the top decking and / or are there other possible treatments to restore the wood’s original colouring?

As a botched job with the wrong materials could permanently ruin her any and all advice would be gratefully received!

Many thanks,

Mike

Hi Mike if you want to give me a ring 07775 664104 have restored many Albs and other boats, cheers Graham

Have a look at the Classic and Vintage Racing Dinghy Association forum (free to join forum) where there's lots of advice and help on renovation and restoration.
I reckon varnish is better for older boats as epoxy seals in even the slightest damp, causing more rot.
When you've finished, come and join the racing - it's very friendly.

Many thanks to Graham and Pat for the responses which are very helpful. May I ask one more question?

Is there a danger of oversanding the top veneer layer in order to remove the last residues of paint and varnish, and if so is it better to apply a paint stripper or is there then a bigger danger of the solvent attacking the adhesives within the moulded ply, particulary if there are minor splits in the surface?

Ok so that was two questions but hey ho.

Many thanks

Mike

Hi Mike, best to use a hot air gun, De Walt do a good one with variable heat settings. Buy a good cabinet scraper Hamilton do one with replaceable Tungsten CArbide blade. Available from Brewers decorator merchants. (Other products and Suppliers are available )

Best scrapers by far are Bahco as they have a better working angle. If you check on line you should find a Bahco kit not sure of the ref no but it includes a straight scraper and a small one with three blade options. This is one of the best kits available.
Can recommend. The Brewers one is ok - I have one of those as well but not in quite the same league.

Good scraping
Albacore Andy

A scraper it is then.

Once again many thanks for the advice given which is gratefully received.

Mike

Hi Mike,
I have rebuilt several Albs and hot air gun is sooo easy and no messy cleaning up. If you sand the surface well it will remove the bleaching and bring it back to new wood, the veneers are generally about 2-3mm so it should allow a fair bit.
Happy Sanding
Crawfy

my Alb 651 1960 Fairey was in similar condition - with de-laminating veneer in places too - John Howard at Tewkesbury worked his magic on it - see latest Alb news for some pics -he would be well worth a call if you need any advice/help, I am sure- I can give you his number if that helps?

best of luck - it's well worth it!!
cheers
Rob

There's an early wooden Alb number 194 with starting price £200 on e-bay looking for TLC.