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Davidhoy · 08-12-2016, 11:42

Over the next couple of years I want to do some remodeling of my boat's interior, thing like tearing out and rebuilding the aft cabin, building in a navy station, etc. Can anyone recommend good online resources or books that would help me with these tasks? I'd prefer to do this all myself, both to keep costs under control and to learn. But I also want to do a good job, something that will last...

Regards,
David

Delancey · 08-12-2016, 11:49

One thing you can do is to surf for sale ads for your boat on places like Yachtworld.com and look at interior photos to see what other people have done.

Davidhoy · 08-12-2016, 13:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by Delancey

One thing you can do is to surf for sale ads for your boat on places like Yachtworld.com and look at interior photos to see what other people have done.

You should see the collection of photos I've already saved ;-). Lots of great ideas, but what I need is to learn how to actually build some of that stuff...

-David

puffcard · 08-12-2016, 14:41

Find a good source for materials, some woods like teak and mahogany the cost will blow your mind.

Most of the new boats the insides look like a Ikea showroom.

Look at some quality boats, pull out somethings and look around.

Davidhoy · 08-12-2016, 17:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by puffcard

Find a good source for materials, some woods like teak and mahogany the cost will blow your mind.

Most of the new boats the insides look like a Ikea showroom.

Look at some quality boats, pull out somethings and look around.

Living in Fort Lauderdale, there are plenty of places to get the materials, and I have lots of ideas. The part I'm missing is the knowledge on how to actually do the work - that's what I'm looking for, books or online resources that will help guide me in the practical aspects of the job...

-David

Tampabayfireman · 08-12-2016, 20:29

A couple of suggestions from a person that put 8 yrs into a refit on a older Irwin. Take time to map out all the utility needed. Water, elec etc. As far as tools. Get really familiar with a trim router and kreg tool. Nearly everything can be worked with these two.

UNCIVILIZED · 08-12-2016, 21:06

Most of what you're wanting to do is carpentry, so resources that deal with things like cabinetry should be helpful. Have you even tried an online search? Or one at Amazon? As the first one that I did on Amazon turned up a number of references, half of which I have on my book shelf. For example https://www.amazon.com/Boat-Interior...r+construction

Here's the search results https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...r+construction

And there are loads more at places like Edensaw Woods, in Port Townsend, WA. Which is a big boatbuilding town www.Edensaw.com Try the Wooden Boat School there, along with the Wooden Boat Foundation. Ditto in Seattle, a slew of them in New England. Plus loads in Canada on both coasts. Let alone globally.

Also anyplace that teaches boat design, or construction. Such as the Landing School in Newport RI. And I could name a dozen others. Wooden Boat magazine, & the Wooden Boat Forums. Professional Boatbuilder magazine www.ProBoat.com, Good Old Boat magazine. www.BoatDesign.net/forums

Exercise your keyboard a tiny bit, & big surprise, there's way more information out there then you can use.

AquaGeo · 08-12-2016, 21:09

Hi,

Check out Mads 'Sail Life' Channel, it is super good and aints a great picture of how long and how much is involved.

https://www.youtube.com/user/madsdahlke

Dude is a champ and even builds his own fridge!

fishsail18 · 09-12-2016, 11:52

We are in the midst of a remodel of an 1984 Irwin 41, replacing the galley, new heads, new interior. I am doing the work myself. I have worked in boat yards most of my life and learned much from that. the rest was trial and error. lots of error. however there was no way I could afford to pay someone to do all this. here are a few before and during pics, hopefully some finished pics coming soon?

fishsail18 · 09-12-2016, 11:55

some current pics, counter tops are all cut, almost ready to install, new faucets, new heads arrived yesterday.

KiminAK · 09-12-2016, 12:02

I like the upholstery. A nod to nautical without being blue or saying "Ahoy"! But I could tell you are people of discerning taste by the fact you don't have a galley but have a wine opener and I see a bottle of Menage a Trois.

fishsail18 · 09-12-2016, 12:42

LOL you have a good eye. and Yes me wife has great taste. she decorated the Cape Dory we just sold and it came out awesome. She has picked out a beautiful interior for this boat as well.

Cheechako · 09-12-2016, 13:10

Just keep in mind that interior work is the most time consuming of all. Nothing is square for one thing. Get a small band saw and disc/belt sander to put inside the boat.
Remember, interior design is like squeezing a balloon, what you add one place reduces another location.

jimbunyard · 09-12-2016, 15:22

Kind of depends on where you're at, skill wise. If you're a complete beginner, go to the library and go through their books on basic carpentry, find a couple that are simple and you can understand. Take them home and read them and then start with some simple projects around the house, book shelves and stuff. As your confidence and skills grow, start thinking about what you want to do with your boat and take on some simple projects there.

There's lots of sources on-line, Wooden Boat sometimes has interesting informative articles on various boat related projects, and there are other on line magazines as well. Google'em.

You'll probably be doing some glass work as well, Gougeon Brothers website has a lot of information about using epoxies; a lot of the information is relevant to polyester resins, but there are differences you need to be aware of, so Google is your friend here too.

YouTube has loads of videos on everything under the sun, but you have to be careful, a lot the people producing them have strange ideas on the right way of doing things. Some are pretty damn good though...

CF has some good construction threads, too. Learn to use the 'search' function, you can sometimes narrow down the results by putting quotation marks around the relevant phrase.

Tools are important, good ones make the job fun, bad ones are a constant source of irritation and inefficiency. You can sometimes find good deals on used ones from craig's list (often at garage sales rather than in the 'tool' section). Probably the ones I use most are a cordless drill, an oscillating sabre saw, a 4 1/2" grinder, a 10" drill press, a heavy duty electric DA sander and a table saw. Brand is a bit more idiosyncratic; I like Dewalt, Milwaukie, Bosch, Rigid, Hitachi but have a host of other manufacturers tools as well.

And finally materials. First, don't throw anything you take off your boat away. If it's interior wood, you may need it as a pattern, and it's likely to be mahogany or teak, which are very expensive. You never know what you might use it for...

Also, try and stay away from 'marine' suppliers. There are plenty of woods, exotic and otherwise, that can be used on the interior of a boat, that are available from the residential and commercial flooring markets and such. Keep you eyes open, what is plenty for your needs may be just scrap for a commercial contractor...

Always like to show these pictures, got this wood from the reject pile from Home Depot for .50 per 4'x4'x1/4" sheet. Bought all ten for 5.00, used it with a 1/2" plywood core to make all the bulkheads and much of the cabinetwork for my boat. Far as I can tell I think it's called (obviously I guess) bloodwood.