Restorations

Beginning a restoration on Wianno Junior hull #9, built the first time in 1921

The scope of the restoration on the hull will be keel, bed logs, centerboard trunk, all the frames, transom and who knows what else. It is an early cypress planked, iron nail fastened hull. The fasteners are all failing and the frames are split, rotted and iron sick.

We began by heavily photographing the hull; then we stripped the interior out and removed the iron ballast. Next, we temporarily support the hull on blocks and screw stands, and look at the frame/planking symmetry. The starboard side is in pretty good shape, but the port side has some broken frames along a plank seam - typical of damage resulting in improper blocking or a poorly fit trailer. We have to pull these planks back together before we can make a series of external forms to hold the hull shape while bending in the new frames.

We start by taking a pattern from the same area on the undamaged starboard side, cutting a softwood form from the pattern and fastening it on the inside of the port side with sheet rock screws and fender washers.

Stripped out hull

The line of cracked frames...

Where the frames won't allow the planks to go back to their original position by applying pressure to the outside of the hull, the frames are cut across the plank seam.

A cardboard pattern is made from the good starboard side...

When the cardboard pattern is put into the damaged area of the port side, you can see the planks fall away from the fair line. The cardboard pattern is used to create a softwood form that will get screwed in from the outside of the hull with sheetrock screws and fender washers...

With the form installed, we have the hull pulled back into fair shape and the planks are firm enough to bend the new steam bent frames against without distorting the hull.

Because the heel ends of the frames are mortised into the keel on a Crosby Wianno (Junior and Senior), if you are going to replace the frames you have to look seriously at the keel. To further give you substance for thought, the Crosbys built the keel, the centerboard trunk, the spacer between the keel and the ballast on a Senior, and the ballast as one assembly. Most of these components are either pinned or bolted from the bottom up. It is usually impractical to replace any of the individual components without replacing everything. We have tried a few time - in the end you will save no time and the partial replacement will be unreliable.