when did boats go woodless??

[stackz]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

To an extent I don't agree. Ij live all around salt water. My landing is a couple blocks away. Bad thing in Charleston is live oaks. Not only do they destroy yards...acid and leaves...but the leaves are thin and clog bilges...even covered ones. Then rain fills it. And ppl turn off batteries during winter. Its rare but it does freeze down here causing cracks in encapsulation. Then intrusion by rain water. Its what happened with mine. I'm religious now with checking...but joe schmoe? No trust lol.

I'd still have my boat if this wasn't an issue...just repower every 15 years or so. But nope. Instead I fixed as much as possible, stated issue and sold it cheap. Now looking for one without superstructure wood. Would love to find a similair DC to my old one like this but willing to search...and buy...and love forever

 

[tpenfield]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

Of course, there are budget considerations, in addition to the detailed research to weed out the misconceptions, if you truly want a wood free boat. The issues would be having to buy new or newer in order to get wood-free or having to buy a pricier brand.

Also, there is the type of boat to consider, as that may effect what is available in purely synthetic composition. What is available in a purely synthetic construction may not be to your liking or out of budget range.

I tend to favor a boat that does not have wood in the construction, but that has not been a reality for me so far, the budget and boating style parameters have been the bigger factor.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: when did boats go woodless??

To an extent I don't agree. Ij live all around salt water. My landing is a couple blocks away. Bad thing in Charleston is live oaks. Not only do they destroy yards...acid and leaves...but the leaves are thin and clog bilges...even covered ones. Then rain fills it. And ppl turn off batteries during winter. Its rare but it does freeze down here causing cracks in encapsulation. Then intrusion by rain water. Its what happened with mine. I'm religious now with checking...but joe schmoe? No trust lol.

I'd still have my boat if this wasn't an issue...just repower every 15 years or so. But nope. Instead I fixed as much as possible, stated issue and sold it cheap. Now looking for one without superstructure wood. Would love to find a similair DC to my old one like this but willing to search...and buy...and love forever

not sure with whom you are disagreeing but keeping a bilge from catching leaves and filling with rain water is part of "keep the boat dry and drained." Protecting the surface/cosmetic wood from leaves topside is another issue. Yes topside wood requires care, but it is not a structural issue.

Where I live, and the kind of boats I own, I don't need to cover when moored but I do when on the trailer!

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

To an extent I don't agree. Ij live all around salt water. My landing is a couple blocks away. Bad thing in Charleston is live oaks. Not only do they destroy yards...acid and leaves...but the leaves are thin and clog bilges...even covered ones. Then rain fills it. And ppl turn off batteries during winter. Its rare but it does freeze down here causing cracks in encapsulation. Then intrusion by rain water. Its what happened with mine. I'm religious now with checking...but joe schmoe? No trust lol.

I'd still have my boat if this wasn't an issue...just repower every 15 years or so. But nope. Instead I fixed as much as possible, stated issue and sold it cheap. Now looking for one without superstructure wood. Would love to find a similair DC to my old one like this but willing to search...and buy...and love forever

BUT, the issue you are referring to can destroy a "composite" boat also. Water and Ice don't really care what they are destroying.

I had an older Larson, what they call Americore, before they had VEC. It was similar to a Boston Whaler or similar with a foam cored hull. Long story short....water got into the foam due to a careless previous owner and then through a few freeze/thaw cycles the entire side of the boat delaminated. This particular boat also had a lot of wood in the construction. NONE of the wood was rotten, but the boat was completely unsafe to use.

 

[roscoe]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

As Home Cookin' alluded to, the terminology used by manufacturers can be sketchy.
Woodless construction, all composite, and wood free are all terms used, but there is wood in those boats.
Plywood is a composite material by definition.
How the materials are prepped and used, seems to be more important that if any wood is used.

So, be careful interpreting the manufactures words.



On a side note, one very well known aluminum boat manufacturer is now touting the use of pressure treated plywood in the floor.
But they fail to mention if it is marine grade plywood. Marine grade pressure treated ply is a very rare item, almost impossible to locate on the retail market.
AND, it is well known that PT wood causes corrosion issues with aluminum.

??


As for finding any list, that would be accurate, I doubt it exists.

But, I did have an all aluminum boat, made by Fisher Marine, back in the '80s.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

PT marine or boat panels are the norm in boat building and have been for quite some time. The type used isn't that bad for Aluminum.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

Fair enough. I just encourage you to not rule out a boat just because it has a wood transom or a balsa cored deck. Both are very common and when done well and maintained well, the boat will out live the mechanical bits and pieces.

Balsa core is still common even in some hulls. It will remain controversial because it is NOT always done well or maintained well. A small, pin hole sized leak in the encapsulant will cause rot in a short period of time that is often difficult to fix with out replacing a large area.

I'm not a composite materials expert, but foam core will take longer to fail than balsa.

Glass mat/roving core is not always a good choice because of cost and weight.

 

[theoldwizard1]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

PT marine or boat panels are the norm in boat building and have been for quite some time. The type used isn't that bad for Aluminum.

PT plywood is NOT the best solution for marine application. True "marine" plywood is made from water/rot resistant wood with waterproof glue. There are no voids in any of the interior plys. The inherent additional strength allows thinner wood for a specific application.

Of course the stuff DOES COST AN ARM AND A LEG !

 

[ondarvr]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

Didn't say it was the best, only that it is the product used the most. Also "the best" can mean many different things depending on how you plan to use it.

 

[roscoe]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

I've cut into quite a few aluminum boats over the last 20 years. Haven't seen anything that resembled marine PT.
If it was, it shouldn't have delaminated, or rotted the way it did. IMO, far from the norm, except possibly in high end operations.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

I haven't visited a boat builder in the last 10 years that doesn't use PT ply, that is if they use wood. There are several types of this product and while you can't easily find it at your local big box store it can be purchased rather easily.

Marine plywood can be made from many different types of wood, some are more rot resistant than others, it doesn't indicate a particular species.

As for aluminum boat builders, I can't say which ones do and which ones don't, but it's not new to the pontoon boat world, the websites that sell pontoon stuff have carried it for a long time. I've had it in my aluminum jet boat for 12 years with no issues. The type of chemicals are typically not the new type used in normal lumber yard PT, they are less corrosive to aluminum

 

[eli_lilly]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

I can't remember if Key West stopped using wood in the 1900 DC in 1993 or if it was 1994. Look for a "Klegecell" sticker on the back left (port side) of the transom. If it's there then it doesn't have any wood. You should also be able to see the coring if you look up under the helm area, on mine (a 1994 Key West 1900 DC) I can see the Klegecell coring (looks like a dark brown foam wafer) on the underside of the area where the gauges are mounted.

-E

 

[bobdec]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

To OP.. From Key West web site . Key West Boats Inc. - Your Key to Performance and Quality . Looks like the '93 you are looking at is not included...

What year model did Key West Boats introduce all composite, wood freee construction?

With our introduction of the seventeen twenty in ninety two we used all composite construction for the first time. We were an innovator of this now proven technology, but it was limited to that model at that time. Over the next couple of years we were so happy with the success and improved quality that we blended it into the other models. Anything built from ninety ninety five and after, with the exception of the 2000WA, is completely wood free. This is important not only from a peace of mind perspective, but it also shows that we are not still learning how it should be done. We have a very long and successful history of wood free construction.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: when did boats go woodless??

Also, something to note . . . a fair number of boat manufacturers have switched over to 'rot resistant' plywood (pressure treated/Kiln Dried After treatment), such as the Greenwood XL plywood or the Inland 'Perma Panel'.

I noticed at the New England Boat Show, yesterday, that Formula is using the 'Perma Panel' in their structural matrix, for the Sun Sport FX, and PC product lines, while the Fastec and Super Sports have the fiberglass/foam molded grids.

I believe that Chaparral was using the Greenwood XL panels, and quite a few other builders have switched to rot resistant panels in the 2000-2010 timeframe (+/-), even though they have stayed with wood.

So, to the OP, something to consider, despite the bad experiences in the past with wood structures.