Current Projects
Currently, we're working on the restoration of Rebel, Hampton One-Design #342 built in 1947. An online album is here:
http://www.shutterfly.com/view/slideshow.jsp?auto=1&aid=67b0de21b3c74e464566&js=1191529608734
Rebel was given to me by the widow of her last owner Thomas Broughton of Portsmouth Virginia in 2003. A friend towed it to Louisville, and another friend towed it from there to Salt Lake City. I picked it up there in a November snowstorm. The boat was in reasonably good shape, although the bottom was covered by fiberglass which damaged some of the planking. The resoration is in progress, and completion is anticipated by July 2007.
Building Log
September 2000: I take a trip with my dad to Portsmouth,VA to see #342. It's in a garage, covered with plastic. My dad took one look at it and said, "three years." It's in rough shape, but has been covered and kept dry. Besides, it's free. I didn't think it would take three years to restore. We went inside to meet Mr. Tom Broughton. He's in bed, immobile from ALS. He's able to make eye contact and acknowledge us. Can't speak. What a horrible disease. We go to look at the mast. It's in a basement of another house--crawlspace, really. Good shape. Dad says that the boat just doesn't look right--the stem looks too narrow. Otherwise, it looks like a Serio boat. We drive back to Richmond.
2001-2003
I accept the boat, but how to get it from Virginia to Idaho? My friend Carlisle takes the bait, I send him the trailer tags, but he falls out. Starving student—all lined up, but she backs out due to a family issue.
Finally, September 2003, my friend Steve Slade who moved from Boise to Louisville agrees to help me get the boat. He drives to Portsmouth, secures the boat and prepares it for traveling. While backing out of the driveway, he snaps the mast about 3 feet from the top. No matter how prepared you are for boat trailering, something always happens. The next 2,200 miles are uneventful. In November, his buddy Karl, on his annual trek to Salt Lake City from Vermont, “swings through” Kentucky to take up the relay. Two days later, he arrives. I drive down to Utah on a Saturday morning and meet Karl just before sundown. There is the boat, under a tarp at the Alta Ski Resort motor pool. Karl is in a hurry to get out, but I just had to take a minute to soak it all up—a worn Hampton One Design, but nevertheless beautiful. In a light snow, I truck it back to Boise, arriving at one in the morning.
December 2003
I rent a storage facility to get the boat out of the garage.
January 2004
Dad (Vincent J. Serio, Jr.) dies on the 14th. Boat restoration plans are on hold until the estate is settled. While going through years of accumulated stuff, I find a wealth of information about the Hampton One Design, including photos, plans and old records from Pappy’s boatbuilding business. I come across a card file box, with hundreds of “measurement cards”, which were filled out and signed by the Hampton Class Measurer—to make sure each boat met specifications. There are cards in there from HOD #1, and #13—all the famous ones. My grandfather had penciled in the margins on some to indicate the builder. “Hampton Roads Boat Works” is listed as the builder for #1 and #13, as well as many others. My heart beats hard with excitement when I approach the card for #342. On the back the builder is listed—Henry Lauterbach of Portsmouth, VA. My heart sinks. I don’t have a Serio boat. I don’t tell anyone for a while. A lot of work, worry and expense has gone into getting #342 to Idaho. I’ve just adopted a boat from out of the family. Lauterbach was a famous builder of many fine boats, including Hamptons. They were known as fast, light boats, but often had trouble measuring (this one apparently didn’t.) Lauterbach got so sick of the criticism his Hampton’s met that he quit building them. 342 was built in 1947.
January 2004-December 2004
After three separate trips to Virginia to settle dad’s estate, I can finally settle in and work on 342. The first step was to build a cradle on which I could roll the boat in an out of the garage. The trailer is too long and heavy, and the boat can’t be flipped over on it to work on the bottom. I build it from 2x4 lumber, laminating two boards together for strength. It is fastened with bolts so it can be broken down easily for storage later on. I arrange a flipping party. Five strong guys, and me. We decide to flip first, then drink. We remove the centerboard, having to cut a slot in the top of the centerboard trunk to get it out. This can be repaired later. We flip the boat easily without any damage, then break out the beer and the sea shanties. We make a date for another flip in the near future—but I break that date for several years.
January 2005
I start the restoration by stripping the hull. The topsides are painted and a heat gun and a paint scraper make fairly quick work of removing at least two layers of paint—a coat of white on a light blue base. As the topside planks appear, I see the unmistakable mark of a Lauterbach Hampton, as described to me by my father. Six 3” wide planks edge glued to make a tight plank joint. The topsides are in great condition after nearly 60 years.
Next, I turn to the bottom, which has been covered with a layer of fiberglass. With the heat gun and scraper, I am able to lift up an edge and rip the glass off in big sheets. Sometimes a big patch of glue with the telltale crosshatch of fiberglass weave is left behind; other times I rip up strips of the bare cedar hull. The difference between the painted topsides and the glassed bottom is now apparent. Fiberglass tends to trap water between the plank and the covering, and rot and cracks appear in the planks. I have been spared rot, but there are huge cracks down the planks. I contemplate replanking the bottom. I really don’t want to do that. Some research shows that the cracks and plank seams can be filled with a cedar “spline.” I decide to pursue that as a less painful option. Little did I know.
January 2005-January 2006
Not much gets done on the boat with all the demands of work and family. I replace three frames that are cracked. I sand the bottom. Fill screw holes. Contemplate replanking the bottom again. Strip some varnish. Research. Dream.
August 2006.
Splining begins in earnest. I pick up 14 foot sections of Western red cedar at the local lumber yard. Using a table saw with the blade set at 10 degrees, I rip long sections of the cedar about ½ wide at the top of the spline. I put a 3/8 inch straight bit in my router, and I use a batten tacked to the planks about 3 inches from the center of the plank seam or crack as a guide for my router to make a groove for the splines. It is time consuming, but I finally get all the splines in after two weeks of solid work. Epoxy thickened with silica and plastic minifibers is a fine glue. I use a hand plane to fair the bottom—hellish work in the desert heat of August. I take a big break before the next step.
December 2006
I coat the bottom with clear epoxy. I use the standard mix by System Three. The epoxy doesn’t go on too smoothly, but I’m not concerned as I follow it immediately with a mixture of epoxy and phenolic microballoons. This is a fairing compound, used to fill all the voids, screw holes and small cracks. After sanding the fairing compound, I coat twice with System Three Clear Coat Epoxy. These coats go on smoothly, and the final result is much easier to sand than the standard epoxy.
In between coats of epoxy and sanding, I strip and varnish floorboards. I use Citristrip, which is the least offensive paint stripper I’ve found. Heat gun and scraper doesn’t work so well for me. I coat the boards with stripper and then use a rag to remove most of the debris. A plastic window scraper also works well. A high quality paint scraper gets the rest of the accumulated varnish off, but there is still deep penetration into the grain. This won’t look good after new varnish. A card scraper does a good job, but is hard on the hands. I go to A to Z Used Tools and find a Stanley #61 card scraper—it looks like a spokeshave. He wants $35 for it, but a new one costs almost that much. I talk him down to $25—he’s not happy with me at all. This tool is the answer to my prayers and makes quick work of getting the floorboards down to bare cedar. I coat the freshly shaved boards with two coats of Clear Coat epoxy and then varnish them with Interlux Schooner #96 varnish. The result is magical.
March 2007
I research boat paint and color schemes. There are a lot of paints on the market. I settle on Interlux Brightside. I think the Hampton looks best with a glossy yacht racing finish. For a gloss paint, the base must be free of imperfections. More sanding. I use the paintshop feature on my computer to dial in different paint schemes. I choose Hatteras Off-White (1990) for the topsides and Bristol Beige for the deck. The interior color will come later. I have the local paint shop match the colors and I paint a few test boards to look at the contrast. I think it will look sharp. I order paint.
Paintshop version of the selected color scheme:
In keeping with the Rebel theme, I came up with this, but rejected it for numerous reasons:
April 2007
I have grand plans to launch the boat by the end of the summer. On April 18, I am t-boned my a lady in a BMW Z-20 who ran a red light on the way to a lunch date. I walk away from the accident, apparently unhurt, and then I see that my left index finger is pointing in a direction that it never has before. It quickly swells, along with the left middle finger. X-rays reveal fractures. I have to get a CT scan to further evaluate the injury. My orthopedic surgeon calls me later that day. “I’ve got some bad news for you, Vince.”
Surgery follows, and 6 months predicted physical therapy before all is OK. A hand injury is devastating for the hobby of wooden boatbuilding. Despite it, the week after surgery I am varnishing floorboards. One handed boatbuilding is slow and frustrating.
May-July 2006
Coat the hull with two thin coats of System Three Clear Coat Epoxy. Sand, then two coats of Interlux 404/414 Epoxy Koat primer. I sand between coats and get a nasty rash from the epoxy dust. In the future, I shower quickly after sanding this stuff.
November 2007
And now time for the paint. Interlux Brightside Hatteras Off White 1990--rolled and tipped. I use 4" hot dog rollers and a 4" foam brush. I vacuum the shop, spotless, but still every little dust bit finds the finish...
Interlux goes on best at 70 deg. With shop temps only in the low 60's, I'll wait until spring before any more painting operations.
Next...we flip.
Flipped--now on to the inside and the deck.
January 2008
Now that the lovely holidays are over, it's time to get down to business. The boat is flipped and ready for interior work. I start by taking a ROM sander with 60 grit paper to the planks. The aggressive grit makes fairly quick work of getting the old paint off the wood. Some corner sanding will be needed.
I also finish the centerboard trunk sanding. The hull number was routed into the side of the trunk. I used a Dremel tool to clean out the numbers, but abandoned it for a good old fashioned piece of sandpaper.
She looks good sitting in the driveway. Sanding is so much better when it's 40 degrees outside. I am covered with sawdust...
February 2008
We've had 20 inches of snow this year so far this year. Sanding outside is not fun. So I pick indoor projects. I work on some of the chrome on the boom. The formula for success is to use Nevr Dull to get most of the crud off, then follow with 0000 steel wool, then a trip to the buffing wheel with red jeweler's rouge. 60 year old fittings look good after these treatments, with most of the credit to the element chromium, which resists almost all.
Photos just don't do it justice. Above is the gooseneck and outhaul fittings.
Next cold weather project--I strike out the canvas....
March 2008
Filled the joint between the coaming and the deck with epoxy/wood flour. I use a cabinet scraper to smooth the surface and remove excess epoxy. I spline the deck cracks.
Finally, a coat of S3 Clear Coat epoxy.
May 2008
I estimate the length of line needed for mainsheet, and other sheets and lines, by rigging inside the shop:
For the deck, I try a variation on the method used to fair the bottom. First I prime with 404/414, then use fairing compound to fill the dings, cracks, etc. Using the primer first allows easily visualization of these defects, as opposed to the visual clutter present on a plain wood deck. I sand, then recoat with primer prior to the topcoat.
June 2008
I prime the interior with Kilz Exterior Primer, tinted to a light blue. It's called Kilz because if you don't have good ventilation it will "Kilz" you.
I also coat the centerboard trunk and cap with a coat of S3 Clear Coat Epoxy. Starts to look like a finished boat...
May 2009
After a long break, resume restoration in the Spring of 2009. Varnished the brightwork. Here is my recipe for a good varnish job:
Seal the wood with 3 coats of System Three Clear Coat epoxy. Use a maroon Scotch Brite pad in between coats.
Use Interlux Jet Speed Varnish for the first three coats.
I use a 1/2 cup measuring cup from the dollar store to decant the varnish--keeps drips off the can.
Pour the varnish into a plastic cup (Solo wide mouth), first filtering through pantyhose piece cut and secured around the rim with a rubber band.
Pour 1-2 capful of Interlux brushing liquid into the filtered varnish and then stir with a tongue depressor.
Use a 2 or 3" foam brush (Jen brand is the best). Dip the brush until about 1/3 is soaked, then apply the varnish as follows:
after wetting the brush, dab 3-4 times evenly down the 12-18 inches that you want to varnish, spaced out.
wet the brush again, then start varnishing. Work with the grain, then wipe at 45 degrees, then at the other 45 degree perpendicular, finishing horizontally with the grain again.
Repeat, overlapping new area into last area applied. Thin coats work best!
Resist the temptation to go back and fill in "holidays" (voids that were missed and appear as dull, unfilled areas). If you do, you will make a mess and have to sand out the imperfection (using up your own holidays in the meantime).
Use Interlux Schooner Varnish for the final 3 coats (Schooner has the UV protectors--don't rely on the Jet Speed for the final coats).
Thin about 10% with the brushing liquid.
I find that the varnish flows better with it.
Repeat steps as above.
A light scuff in between coats with the maroon pad is all you need.
Vaccum the dust, then wipe down with the brushing liquid twice. I soak a rag with it and wipe in one direction, so you do not contaminate the wiped area with dust by wiping back and forth. Flip the rag and resoak as needed. You can use a tack cloth after the final wipe, but wait for the brushing liquid to dry first.
Important: The brushing liquid smells a bit like kerosene, and is pretty volatile stuff. I wear a 3M 6200 half face mask with the organic vapor cartridges--I can't smell a thing, and I'm sure my brain is thankful to not have volatile chemistry messing with my synapses. Without it, I get a bit "swimmy-headed".
Rudder after above procedure
Centerboard trunk after above.
Rehab-ing a Winch
There's nothing worse than an wench that needs rehab. When your wench is falling down on the job, it's time for a little rehab. (OK, enough. No sailor can resist the winch to wench transmogrification).
Rebel was supplied with what I believe to be a Merriman winch used for hauling the halyards. It was missing parts, namely the pawl and spring, which is what makes a winch a winch. I looked all over the internet for parts for this thing, to no avail. There was a nice mahogany post next to the mast partner for this, and I decided just to mount the inoperable winch for aesthetics. But the tinkerer in me took over. I studied a larger winch that I had, and decided to machine a pawl for it. This image shows what I had to start with:
On the left is the winch barrel, showing the star shaped recesses where the pawl articulates. The base is on the right. The pawl sits on one of the little posts, held by a spring. When the winch is turned clockwise, the pawl disengages (spring tensioned) and the winch turns unimpeded until you stop. If you try to turn it counterclockwise, the spring goes to rest and pushes the pawl out until it contacts the edge of one of the recesses, preventing it from turning in that direction. Therein lies the usefulness of the winch: it allows you to use friction to gain purchase on your halyard, without slipping back and letting the halyard fall. Anyone who has hauled on a halyard to raise sail when the wind is blowing knows the value of such a device.
After studying the working winch, I cut out a pawl from 1/16" sheet steel with a hacksaw and finished it with a grinder and file. I cut it to the dimensions of the larger winch pawl, then scaled it down to fit my smaller winch. This was entirely trial and error:
You notice that the pawl, on the right, is slightly curved so the concave surface rests against the post on the base, so it is out of the way of the recesses during the CW motion. I fashioned a spring (above) from 0.020 music wire. I made a few before the right one was found:
Trial and error. You bend the wire around a nail clamped in the vise until you get the proper diameter and orientation. Really pretty easy.
The spring then rests on one of the little posts. As the winch turns CW, the spring is in tension, but when the winch stops turning, the spring goes to rest, forcing the pawl into a recess:
This shows the spring at rest. Unbelievably, this fix worked the first time. The comforting click-click-click of the winch has yet to stop every time I play with it. We'll see how sailing treats it.
Varnishing is almost done, so painting the interior is next...
June 2009
But first, a little brass work.
The centerboard has a pin that goes through a set of holes in the aft edge. The board can be positioned at different heights in order to provide the best lateral balance according to the point of sail. When going into the wind, the board is down in order to prevent excessive leeway. When downwind, the board goes all the way up to reduce drag on the hull. This is a picture of the pin in the board:
The pin rests against the top of the centerboard cap to hold the board in place. There is a potential chafe spot there, and the mahogany on the cap can be damaged. I looked at pictures of HOD #1, and saw that the cap has two bronze strips that prevent chafe on the wood. Bronze is pricey, and I happened to have some 3/8 brass half round. I had to machine it to look good:
These are the unfinished brass strips.
I built a jig to hold the stock while machining: a 3/8 channel routed in a piece of plywood holds it straight. I scored the metal and used a pin punch followed by a center punch before drilling:
I drill through with a 7/64 bit to accomodate a #4 brass OH screw:
Then flip and countersink the hole using a 1/2 sink:
Then I grind a bevel on each end of the strip, and polish with steel wool and a final trip to the buffing wheel dressed with jeweler's rouge:
Yeah, I know, brass tarnishes. But I use what I have and am a cheapo.
July 2009
On to the paint job. I decided to spray the interior. I masked everything carefully, then sprayed 4 coats of Ace Polyurethane porch and floor alkyd enamel. It cost me $12 a quart. The whole inside was coated with one quart, and as soon as one coat was dry, I sprayed on another--total time, 4 hours. Well worth the time for masking and cleanup of the spray gear. The finish has a slight matte appearance, despite the fact that the paint is gloss. I opted for the hardware store paint because the interior surface is less than perfect and most of it is covered with floorboards. Color is Kirby Blue, taken from the paint chip.
The deck was next. Used Interlux Brightsides Bristol Beige, rolled with a 4" foam hot dog roller, then tipped with a 3" Jen foam brush. I needed 4 coats (a little over a quart), partly because during sanding the primer, I sanded through to the top of the dark fairing compound--the Interlux paint goes on thin and is a bit translucent--I would recommend complete coverage with the primer before putting on the topcoat--3 coats of the topcoat would have sufficed, I'm sure, had I followed this procedure.
Next, install hardware and rig...
September 2009
Lots of work done since the last post. Deck painted, rub rails installed, hardware placed. Centerboard is next, then rig and launch....
Here is a sneak preview of the almost completed project (almost 5 years have passed)
Launched!!!!!
Sept 26, 2009
Lucky Peak Reservoir, Idaho, after great help from my friends John Aemmer and Tim Fox. See this link for more pictures, all taken by John Aemmer.