Heavy Refurb

[colbers]

Hello all, I am new to the site and looking for some experienced advice on refurbishing a 14ft Clinker. The vessel has been neglected by its previous owner and there are a number of areas that concern me. I am currently taking off most of the 8-10 layers of paint from the outside of the hull but will soon looking to do the same on the inside. I will be replacing a number (most) of the ribs but in order to properly attend to the wood underneath should i consider removing half of the ribs prior to sanding or is there a better way?

 

[BlueLancer]

Don't take off too many ribs at once, otherwise the boat may distort out of shape. Take off only a couple of ribs at at time, and not ones next to each other.You will be taking on a lot of hard work and doing just a couple at a time, you will at least some progress. Best of luck.

 

[Lakesailor]

If you have that many ribs to replace it may be worth measuring very carefully to determine if the boat is still symmetrical.
You could cut a template along half the boat from cardboard (Bicycle packaging, gets thrown away by bike shops) along the centreline and to the gunwhale. Then flip it over to the other side. Is it the same both sides?
I'd also consider making temporary braces across the boat to prevent flexing when the ribs are removed.
I have a 13 foot clinker with about 3 broken ribs. But I can live with that.

 

[KenMcCulloch]

If you chock the hull adequately (battens fixed to the floor you're working on and fixed to the planking, probably 4 on each side), there's no major worry about the hull loosing its shape . It's the shaping of the planks that gives a clinker hull its shape, the ribs or frames just give it a bit more stiffness. The Vikings built clinker boats with no frames at all in some cases.