Refinishing interior

[Shaun]

I've finally started restoration of my 58 Sea Lancer. It is going good even though it is more time consuming than I thought it would be. One area I am having some trouble is in the interior. I have taken out the floor and have exposed the inside of the hull. Surprisingly it is in good condition. I have not found really any rotten spots. Most of the varnish is in fairly good shape. But there are spots that are extremely dirty and some varnish is cracked. What is the best way to handle this? Can I use a chemical stripper, and if so, what do you guys recommend? Thanks!


Shaun

[LancerBoy]

Chemical strippers are fine. I use the nastiest I can buy. Forget about the "safe" strippers, in my opinion, 'cause they just do not work. It may take several attempts.

Heat gun and a very high quality sharp scraper work but you must get adept at using the scraper or you can make a mess very quickly.

Sanding is another option.

Andreas

[Shaun]

Ok thanks. Is there a certain brand of stripper to use? I used a heat gun on the outside and that worked great! One other question I have since we are talking about the interior. What would have been the original floor for this boat? The boards look good but they had some kind of plastic glued to it. Thanks!


Shaun

[Portside]

Hey. A nasty job no matter what you use, but.. I use a variety of scrappers all sharpened, often, and really sharp! I even custom grind edges allowing me to get into those nasty tight corners. I use Red Devil 1"-1 1/2" wide. Yes, with these really sharp scrappers you can cut and gouge wood very easily! Another tool I have used are gun cleaning rods with rifle brushes. You bend them to fit but they get in between and in back of the ribs and strakes. They are great for the limber holes at the keelson. Bottle brushes for final cleaning as they are not as aggressive as the bronze rifle brushes. Sharpened, flat 1 1/2" putty knives plus everything Andreas suggested. It's a war in there!! Good luck and keep the faith!

[LancerBoy]

On a 1958 lapstrake Thompson Boat the floor was a tempered hardboard with embossed non-slip surface on the top side that was painted. "Masonite" is a brand of tempered hardboard. I do not know if Thompson used Masonite products or some other brand. I have never been able to find a replacement source.

I have used plywood to replace the floor panels which I have covered with Nautolex marine vinyl.

Andreas