CONTINUOUSWAVE

Hello all. I'm a long time lurker and reader of continuouswave.com and its great tutorials.

Now I will share some details about my c.1985 SPORT 15, a family island shuttle. Our family has owned the boat from c. 1999. I describe the boat as a c.1985 because the stencl number is 5A46nn--that sounds to me like later production run.



In 2007 the c.1985 SPORT 15 was re-powered with a Mercury 50-HP two-stroke-power-cycle outboard. The boat is used only in fresh water on a lake New Hampshire lake to get us from shore to our island property. It's the shuttle boat, carrying propane tanks, groceries, dogs, kids, etc.

Every few years the hull bottom gets a coat of Petit Vivid White so that it remains presentable.

With the great tutorial here on this side, all three through-hull drains on the stern were replaced to prevent water intrusion.

With the guidance from the FAQ here, last spring I replaced the rub rail with the three-piece kit from Specialty Marine; the original rub rail had suffered from many years of banging against posts and docking lessons.

In the Spring 2021 the engine cowling will get all new graphics as per original. The hull will get new graphics to replace the 15-year-old ones I installed long ago.

There is a new 20-degree-angled steering gear adapter and new Seachoice wheel wheel.

The engine's three carburetors were removed in the Winter of 2020-2021 for rebuilding. Cylinder 3 was misfirings at anything less than full throttle.

In c.2013 a new mahogany interior kit from Specialty Marine was installed.

When the c.1985 SPORT 15 is tied to the dock a custom cockpit cover that covers all the cockpit wood. As a result the wood and its varnish has held up quite well after six summers of wet dogs, claws, kids, anchor chains, mooring balls, and general abuse. The service shuttle to and from shore finally necessitated a refresh of the wood.

The front hatch cover is an epoxy laminated plywood, and it is still strong after being varnished. It has been exposed to summer sun for more than six years. The front hatch cover may not be original in color or appearance, but it takes a beating from the in-out loading this boat sees, and I don't get stressed out about it.

In Fall 2020 all the wood was pulled out of the boat prior to lay-up for winter. On April 10, 2021 I had some time to sand down and strip off the old varnish off. I've seen a lot of questions about Specialty Marine's wood kits as on he forum. I can assure anyone who is curious, it's solid wood. No laminate or plywood. I wanted to ensure I got more than six more summers before the wood needed stripping and sander. To that end, I fully sanded off all the finish and got down to bare wood, instead of just scuffing up the varnish and recoating it.





While sanding down the varnish, I thought I was stripping off both layers of clear varnish and stain from the wood.

After sanding to bare wood, I created a test spot of Interlux Perfection plus. I found the wood had a more yellower color than before sanding. Based on this, I suspect there was a layer of stain on the original wood before varnishing to help it achieve that mahogany color so well known in Boston Whaler boats.

Based on this test, I wasn't happy with the outcome. I'm exploring other options.

One option is to use AwlGrip's Awlwood MA product, with their red-tinted primer. At the risk of opening Pandora's box of wood refinishing preference, give me some advice on that Awlwood product with its prime

While this boat won't be on par with dtmackey's recent restoration, my SPORT 15 will still be a nice clean 15-footer that will continue to serve our family as needed.

--Chris

My paint booth at my shop has been busy, so I on April 10, 2021 I starting the process outside. I will apply final coats in the booth via HVLP. The goat end was build base coat layers.

The first step was to apply the AwlGrip Red Primer. I let the primer cure for six hours based on ambient air temp, and I just applied the first brushed coat of AwlGrip clear. I hope to have the second coat applied later this evening, with another two or three coats tomorrow.

In my reading, I've seen some people mention building their base coating with the AwlGrip clear, and then doing a topcoat of AwlGrip 2000. I'm undecided if this is the path I'll take.





OTHER WORK: the engine carburetors have been disassembled, flushed, cleaned, and re-sealed.

PLANS: I will uncover the boat in the coming week and reinstall the carburetors onto the engine, then run the engine with a hose adaptor.

WEATHER: On lake Winni "ice out" has been called

OTHER WORK: we will need to get out to put in the dock and the mooring balls. We will assess spring cleanup needs. The trusty Boston Whaler will be pressed into action soon.

Re the confusion over the year of manufacture: the federal HIN will clearly identify the model year and year of production.

Re the SPORT 15: the best small skiff ever made. I used to have one and loved that boat. By the way, your SPORT 15 has the seat back option. That is a nice upgrade from the plain thwart seat planks with no seat backs.

Re the wood in Fig. 3.: the sanded board does not look like mahogany wood.

Re the color of the wood in Figure 4: I like the look of the red primer.

Re the weather on lake Winni: this year sounds like a typical year for ice to leave a northern lake.

Ice out was early this year. Good for you.

After looking at the photographs I can see the wood featured is not plywood but it does not look solid. Rather it seems to have been made up from thinner planks side glued together side to side and it does not look like the same type of mahogany used on our 1981 Sport 13. Perhaps that's a characteristic of mahogany. It looks good and obviously holds up well.