new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

87glastron

Cadet
Joined
Jun 4, 2012
Messages
17
So my wife and I are looking to replace a 20+ year old boat. The first and most important part of the equation is I don't want ANY wood in the construction of the boat to rot out. This is my second boat in 40 years of life and I am sick of wood rot.

I know Glastron, Larsen and Four Winns are all VEC boats, anything else out there I can look at that I can be assured of having 100% wood free construction, hull, stringers, floor, etc.? And I know I have to be in the 2004 or newer range to make sure of the VEC boats. So anything else built in the last 10 years that's safe?

Thanks for any help.
 

rallyart

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Joined
Jun 7, 2008
Messages
1,175
Re: new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

I love the wood construction in my hull. It dampens vibration and adds far more strength than hollow or foam filled. The wood, however, is much different than was used more than a decade ago. It is also not the same as all boats with wood construction. On Sanger they use a product from Affiliated Resources in Oregon called AquaTech which carries a lifetime guarantee on rot even if it is not encapsulated.
Many of the current top racing and performance boats use wood because it is such a good product.

Most manufacturers of recreation boats no longer use wood now as the manufacturing costs are higher due to additional time in construction. They use the sales pitch of 'no rot' but it is more of a construction time issue. That said, the boats that use no wood are generally very good and great to own. Almost all wake boats are made without wood in the past 10 years.
 

haulnazz15

Captain
Joined
Mar 9, 2009
Messages
3,720
Re: new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

Cobalt/Chris Craft/Formula come to mind on the composite builds. Obviously those will run a good bit more in price than a Four Winns or Glastron.

Other than cost/possibly weight, I see little reason to have wood in modern boats anymore. The only wood I want in a boat is for luxury, like cabinet work, inlays, or teak accents.
 

chambers1517

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Aug 14, 2009
Messages
185
Re: new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

2004 and up Caravelle's have no wood. I have an 05 ls207 and there is not one splinter of wood anywhere. This is a nice heavy boat.
 

tpenfield

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 18, 2011
Messages
17,620
Re: new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

Surprisingly, many boats still have wood in some areas . . . transom, bulkheads, etc. Check out the Glastrons and other VEC process boats, as I believe they are not 100% wood free. The high end builders have converted to synthetic in the larger boats, but not necessarily all of their boats.

I was looking at a Pursuit 310 at a boat show over the winter and took a look below . . . wood.

I guess you would need to do your homework to verify 100% wood free.
 

Philster

Captain
Joined
Sep 15, 2009
Messages
3,342
Re: new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

When searching, search for 'wood free' not '100% composite'. Balsa (wood) core is the number one composite.

Builders claim to be 100 percent composite construction, but that does not mean wood-free.

I think the 'wood' issue is a touchy subject. Non-wood boats are stuffed filled of foam (it's freakin' everywhere sometimes and even in bigger boats because it's needed for strength and vibration absorption, etc), still suffer from delamination and can get waterlogged, have compromised cores and aren't easily repaired.

If I were to purchase a boat that was 100% wood-free composite, I'd buy only from a builder who's mastered the technique and used the right techniques, because it could be a freakin' mess (just as a wood boat could be). So, the more expensive brands like Cobalt and some big center console builders would get my money. The list would be short.

So, yeah, maybe you can spend 10-20 grand extra to avoid a $5,000 repair someday, assuming the wood-free boat has no issues (although, there are many poor riding, water-logged 100% wood-free composite boats out there).

Find a builder that knows how to build a boat. Make sure it's a liner boat, self bailing or something that sheds waters properly. Don't assume wood-free is better. It can be, but you will pay for it and the expensive builders are more likely to have it done right.



.
 

dingbat

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Nov 20, 2001
Messages
15,414
Re: new(er) boats wood vs. composite stringers

Keep in mind that a "composite" is nothing more than a material made up of two or more materials. Particle board (wood and glue) is a composite as is plywood. There is also a lot of BS and trademarked names and processes hiding the real methods and materials used in the construction. In 10 years we’ll be talking about delamination just as much, if not more, than rotten wood.
 
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