1959 Skagit 16' hull question

[sunkentreasure]

Has anyone on the forum rebuilt one of the Skagit boats from the late '50's? I've already determined that my transom is due for replacement (rot and lousy repairs) but read that the early boats didn't use wood stringers. Instead they built a series of hollow or "tunnel" fiberglass stringers, which would be good news if true. My floor seems pretty solid, so I don't want to tear it up if it can be avoided as I can replace the transom wood from the inside.

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: 1959 Skagit 16' hull question

You can check for rot and water saturation by drilling holes with smallest drill bit possible and checking the shavings...wet and mushy is bad, dry and crisp is good. You should be able to feel soft spots in the floor, go lightly though, it is possible to put a foot through a boat floor that "looks" solid...dry rot is as bad as wet rot.

 

[sunkentreasure]

Re: 1959 Skagit 16' hull question

You're right.....the ends of the stringers are exposed near the transom, so that would be a good way to check!