More on the Boat

Now that we have the Whitehall home I've been able to go over it carefully. The trailer shows its age. I've already replaced the hitch receiver and the winch. I had to cut the bolts in order to to get the old ones off. I'm probably going to have to cut the lug nuts off at some point, hopefully before I get a flat.

On the other hand, the boat itself is in really good condition. It needs a new coat of paint - the paint is coming off of the seams - but that is about it. I've been sanding it and, except for the seams and the keel, the old paint is in good condition. In fact it's a good thing that I didn't want to take it down to the bare wood. It would be tough trying to get the old paint off.

Instead I'm going to use a coat or two of primer and plain white paint. I'm going to use oil-based paint. Going through threads on Wooden Boat convinced me that I don't need expensive anti-fouling paint for a boat that will spend most of its time on a trailer. Likewise, it appears that even the high-end latex paint is questionable and I'm not sure about putting latex over oil.

I would have loved to put the mast ad sail up today but it was sprinkling all day and I'm not sure that I could get everything dried properly.

I've always been a sucker for classic varnished wood boat interiors and wine glass stem transoms. This boat has both and has the feel of a museum reproduction. Too bad it has to sit for the Winter but I probably got a big price break because it is the off-season.