1950's Wagemaker Wolverine wooden boat restoration ...

[Woodonglass]

If you want to stain the wood and get a natural finish, I'd stain it first with Oil based stain and then apply the OTF. You can add Stain to the mix by using a 50/50 mix of Polyurethane and Stain, but IMHO you'll get better results using full strength stain first.

 

[sphelps]

I think my son fixed the pics issue . Let’s try it . I finally took the 2 handles off the transom and did a little sanding ..
The outside layer of veneer is off in a few places and the next darker layer is showing though . What do you guys think .
‘It’s pretty rough .. I probably should have replaced it but it ain’t happening now ..
Painting might be my best option idk ...

 

[mickyryan]

yeah full stain first i tried the 50/50 mix of stain for some reason it didn't soak in so well , i don't know of the two part bleach , but id be careful because bleaches usually leave behind salts and could possibly mess with ya stain?

 

[mickyryan]

I think paint will be best option since you will never get the green out of all the old grooves and what not .

 

[sphelps]

The last pic is a crack going down the the board along side of the center rib . This didn’t show up on the outside ..
I assume epoxy and glass would be the best way to insure no problems down the road .
‘Was really tempted to start stealing hub caps but the Admiral talked me out of it ..

 

[sphelps]

Yep Micky , the bottom of the hull will definitely be getting painted .. I’m at odds with the outside of the transom though

 

[Sea18Horse]

I don't know, the tone on the transom looks pretty even to me from here for the most part. I think if it were me I'd try a darkish stain first and see how it looks. If you're not happy with it you can always sand it down, prime and paint it then. If you paint it straight off you'll never know. How does that light colored filler in the screw holes take stain. That might be a factor too.

Cheers.........................Todd

 

[mickyryan]

id stain the transom see how it takes, if nothing shows and looks uniform you are good to go if it looks like crap put some kills on it and paint it

 

[oldrem]

Make sure to use a pre-stain conditioner first. Makes a huge difference in getting a uniform stain job.

 

[sphelps]

Thanks for the opinions guys .. Good idea finishing it first to see how it looks .. Yes the tone is ok and I have a little darker filler that I am replacing the old filler with . The ugly part is where the outer layer of the plywood veneer is worn off exposing the next really darker layer .. That and where the po had those home made brackets installed and it sunk into the plywood .
Its a bit crumbly where the motor sits also ..
So as far as moving forward my plan is to finish the initial sanding up in the bow and whatever else odds and ends with the 60 grit .
Then I think I will do the epoxy on the bilge or under deck area that will be painted . Next I will try to bleach the wood to hopefully even out the blotches. Then sand to 80 and finish up to 100 grit on everything .
‘Hopefully after all that it will be suitable for however I choose to finish it ..
I do have the seat bottoms that I can experiment finishes on ...
Gotta get busy March will be here before you know it ...:faint2:

 

[Woodonglass]

+1 on the Pre Stain Conditioner. also you CAN patch the veneer if you have a scrap of ext. plywood. you can re-saw it and just get the outer layer then using an exacto knife you can create a patch and glue and clamp it in place. It can be a bit tedious but it will work.

 

[archbuilder]

I haven't thought thru this, but I wonder if you could veneer it? Maybe put one on with a thin epoxy? I suppose that would depend on what type of backing you could find on the veneer. IDK

 

[sphelps]

+1 on the Pre Stain Conditioner. also you CAN patch the veneer if you have a scrap of ext. plywood. you can re-saw it and just get the outer layer then using an exacto knife you can create a patch and glue and clamp it in place. It can be a bit tedious but it will work.

I had thought about that if you can get the glue to hold well . I have titebond III but epoxy might work better ..
after multi layers of varnish I would think a patch would hold ok ...

 

[gomopar440]

For the areas with indentions from the old brackets have you tried using steam to pop them back out? All you need is a wet towel and a clothing iron set on max heat. Put the wet towel over the depression in the wood and run the iron over it for a while. That's how we were taught to get dents out of old beat up gun stocks in gunsmithing school. It won't get it all out if it's really deep, but it should bring it back up quite a bit at least.

 

[sphelps]

For the areas with indentions from the old brackets have you tried using steam to pop them back out? All you need is a wet towel and a clothing iron set on max heat. Put the wet towel over the depression in the wood and run the iron over it for a while. That's how we were taught to get dents out of old beat up gun stocks in gunsmithing school. It won't get it all out if it's really deep, but it should bring it back up quite a bit at least.

Now that sounds interesting .. I think i will give that a shot and see what happens !

 

[nurseman]

+ 1 on using steam to get the dents out. Back in my contractor days, I removed dings and such from solid interior doors using that little trick. Like Mopar said, it won't get it all out, but you will be surprised at how much you can pull out.

 

[Woodonglass]

Sam use Weldwood Contact cement if you try and patch the veneer. Coat boat the boat and the patch material with it and wait 10 minutes then stick it. Make sure it's ligned up cuz once it's stuck. It aint NEVER coming off. Use the Solvent Based Cement NOT the water based.

 

[ssdale]

just scanned through after being gone a while. Great job hanging in there to get her stripped! Also congrats on the trailer find, I am envious. That will make the package so right. just take your time picking the finish, especially the stain, because each area will absorb a little differently. You can always go darker, but no reverse. Press on.
Dale

 

[sphelps]

Thanks ssdale ! Been wracking my brain around and around on how to do this and that .. With all the great guidance from everyone I’m sure she will turn out nice . This is all pretty new to me so every step is a learning process ..
Ok so Buck gave me a chunk of mohogany he happened to have when I picked up the trailer .. Sometimes ya just get lucky !
So should I take the time to plug all the screw holes instead of filling ?
I just glued these in so they still need to be sanded down but you can see the filler compared to the plugs in the pics ..
I would check the screws to make sure there tight and turn the grain the same direction of coarse ..

 

[archbuilder]

I would go with the pugs....but then again you know how we architects are! but it sure will look sweet!