By Dave Wrzesinski My son Scott and I have been building, restoring, repairing and refinishing boats for the past 40 years. I started building when I was 11 years old with my friend Jon Staudacher and his father Les Staudacher. Les built unlimited hydroplanes from the 1950s to the early 1970s. He built unlimited boats…
By Dick Werner Wait! Before you say, “Oh yeah, I learned all about that stuff back in grade school—don’t bore me with superfluous information,” give me a couple minutes of your time before you go on to the next article. It could save yours or someone else’s life. I’ll be short and to the point.…
By Dick Werner & Brent Howard. As we are all well aware, we have that highly explosive liquid on board many of our old boats call gasoline. That liquid is very capable of vaporizing and releasing fumes. These fumes are heavier than air and will settle down in the bilge. Opening the hatch cover prior…
Note: Article and photos submitted by Phil McNamara, M.B.A. – CSO The key to ensuring that your boat is in tip-top shape on launch day is to get serious about off-season boat storage. Determining where and how to store your boat can mean the difference between a pristine exterior and an engine that starts up…
Reprinted with permission from Central Valley High School, Spokane Valley, Washington. Introduction Central Valley High School in Spokane Valley, Washington’s SkillsUSA group takes on the restoration of a 1959 Chris Craft 17’ ski boat for the 2018-19 school year. According to Alan Wardsworth and Ron Beard who are SkillsUSA advisors at CVHS, “SkillsUSA is one…
by Kevin Bamerick October 22, 2018 “Do you need to hire a marine surveyor (or similar)? The universal answer would be if you are buying a boat and want to know what shape it is in, then a survey would suffice. This ACBS question was asked of D. Erik Will, AMS of Sodus Point. (I…
Note: This article written by David Kinney in June of 2017 is reprinted with permission from the Marine Division at Hagerty Insurance. Thanks for viewing our online Marine Price Guide. We’ve taken a look at literally thousands of boats in every condition to assemble this guide. Coming off of the lows that we experienced in…
Article and Photos by Joel Terbrueggen The first thing you should do is to make sure you have marked the top (or bottom) of the boot top at the 3 corners (both transom sides and the bow). An awl, ice pick, a glass cutting tool, or even a thin blade saw to leave a small…
Note: This is the third of several articles on marine engines written by Bill Hancock, a member of ACBS and the Sunnyland Chapter since 2007. The simple and often-overlooked fuse is a device meant to protect the circuit from an electrical overload. It is unique in that it is one of the few…
Note: This is the second of several articles on marine engines written by Bill Hancock, a member of ACBS and the Sunnyland Chapter since 2007. Engine Health 101-Vacuum Gauge Diagnostics In this age of electronic diagnostic devices, one of the best devices to check your engine’s health is still the trusty old vacuum gauge.…
Article and Photos by Joel Terbrueggen This article is to let you know that you should not underestimate the usage of superglue in finish repairs. I like to use both the Thin and Medium viscosity along with the Accelerator to speed up the curing process to instantaneous. Here are some instances that I have found…
Varnishing Tips and Photos by Joel Terbrueggen When it comes to varnishing there are any number of ways to accomplish it. I do not believe one way is necessarily better than another, it all comes down to whatever technique you are most comfortable with. After sealing, I use a Scotch Brite pad or 320 grit…