Well constructed wood hulls

[Richard5]

Originally Posted by Teknav

200-300% more than fiberglass! Every so often, you'll need to dismantle/strip all the wood and put in new hardware...in addition, wood rots and harbors worms...very expensive maintenance.

Mauritz
Knows and sees all...

And you know this how? How many wood boats have you owned or been involved with the maintenance? Do you say the same thing about rag and tube aircraft or constructed of wood?

You seem especially vocal about staying away from wood structure. It is a matter of perspective.

[Teknav]

Hiya Richard! For a few years, I lived in a fishing village near Alexandria - Egypt. Fishermen there, use only wooden boats to catch fish. I used to see them tending their boats first hand...from hand made construction to refitting. Many of these boats would lose planks due to wear and tear and were about ready to sink. Deep channeled worms in the wood structure were the norm. Rotted planks were all too common. Salt water was never too kind to the hardware, which needed continuous replacement; water proofing was practically a futile effort. I have seen wooden boats being built from scratch; foundation basic ribs put together, then constructed, tested and sailed.

I am an engineer by profession. I am not here to deceive anyone. I give my opinion based upon my experiences and my learned knowledge. When I look at structures, I look at them from an engineering point of view. Take it or leave it!

Mauritz
Your opinion of me has no cash value!

[BigBonesBotta]

Originally Posted by Efraim

Sort of like asking "how long is a piece of string"?

I see. That no doubt costs an arm and leg. Still all the wood boats I,ve looked at are far more attractive and interesting that most of the fiberglass ones. Got my eyes on a bunch of other boats , most of them are wood. Fiberglass boats seem more expenive. Hmmm.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Teknav

Hiya Richard! For a few years, I lived in a fishing village near Alexandria - Egypt. Fishermen there, use only wooden boats to catch fish. I used to see them tending their boats first hand...from hand made construction to refitting. Many of these boats would lose planks due to wear and tear and were about ready to sink. Deep channeled worms in the wood structure were the norm. Rotted planks were all too common. Salt water was never too kind to the hardware, which needed continuous replacement; water proofing was practically a futile effort. I have seen wooden boats being built from scratch; foundation basic ribs put together, then constructed, tested and sailed.

I am an engineer by profession. I am not here to deceive anyone. I give my opinion based upon my experiences and my learned knowledge. When I look at structures, I look at them from an engineering point of view. Take it or leave it!

Mauritz
Your opinion of me has no cash value!

As an engineer -- one who espouses objective analysis of situations -- it is odd that you consider to be valid the comparison of timber fishing boats built and maintained in a challenged third world commercial environment with yachts built and maintained in a first world yachting environment .

The continued existence of timber yachts built decades ago says that it is possible to have and enjoy a well built boat of this genre. Yes, the maintenance is more demanding than with FRP, but it does not have to be the disaster that you keep describing. It would serve the OP well to talk to folks in his locale who actually own and maintain a timber boat about the maintenance schedules that they practice. Their inputs would perhaps be more germane than those of a non boat owning airplane chartering engineer.

Cheers,

Jim

[Travelnik]

Originally Posted by Efraim

Sort of like asking "how long is a piece of string"?

Twice as long as a half of a piece of string?

[Richard5]

Hey, Mauritz! Thank you for the comeback. I have scant knowledge of current boatbuilding practices in Egypt so will refrain from commenting on the same. I am in agreement with Jim Cate that perhaps boatbuilding in one community in one nation should hardly constitute the basis of opinion to avoid the material altogether.

As for ease of maintenance of 'glass Vs wood, I won't argue the point except to say it's fairly a race to the bottom to create a mx free material with superior structural bonding characteristics. All materials degrade. Others have written quite extensively on the subject.

You have nothing to worry about my opinion of others. Sometimes even my opinion of myself won't buy a cuppa coffee.

Your Twotter is for rent? Tell me more.

[Wrong]

Originally Posted by Teknav

Hiya Richard! For a few years, I lived in a fishing village near Alexandria - Egypt. Fishermen there, use only wooden boats to catch fish. I used to see them tending their boats first hand...from hand made construction to refitting. Many of these boats would lose planks due to wear and tear and were about ready to sink. Deep channeled worms in the wood structure were the norm. Rotted planks were all too common. Salt water was never too kind to the hardware, which needed continuous replacement; water proofing was practically a futile effort. I have seen wooden boats being built from scratch; foundation basic ribs put together, then constructed, tested and sailed.

I am an engineer by profession. I am not here to deceive anyone. I give my opinion based upon my experiences and my learned knowledge. When I look at structures, I look at them from an engineering point of view. Take it or leave it!

Mauritz
Your opinion of me has no cash value!

[foggysail]

If wooden boats could compete with fiberglass for cost, maintenance and durability our harbors would be filled with them. To get a better understanding of wood problems, ask those who own them .... and have no plans to sell. Owners who want to unload will rave about their supposed advantages. If you have your mind set on wood---go for it!

[Efraim]

Yeah wooden boats forget about it.

Look at the poor sob at the helm, worrying about all the varnishing he has to look forward to... and since the hull has no fasteners, he'll have to spend more time sailing.




Resale value?

Who would buy this POS?




Longevity?

This one was build in 1917, has all the original planking except to two planks that were recently changed - just by looking at it you call tell it's going to sink any second now.






This guy is probably too embarrassed to seen at a marina, what a wreck

[Wrong]

Point is. The boats in your photos have been maintained with the expenditure of countless man hours and significant extra expense. Do you have records of this to fairly represent what has been invested in time and materials for these boats?

[clockwork orange]

The vast majority of production fiberglass boats in the world are cored with end grain balsa, a species of wood last time I checked so I im always amused when people believe they are low maintainance, core replacement is major revenue generator for most repair yards.the reality is, both genres sometimes need extensive, expensive work, its just different work.

[tropicalescape]

Originally Posted by clockwork orange

The vast majority of production fiberglass boats in the world are cored with end grain balsa, a species of wood last time I checked so I im always amused when people believe they are low maintainance, core replacement is major revenue generator for most repair yards.the reality is, both genres sometimes need extensive, expensive work, its just different work.

wood boats rule! but I thank god I have a fiberglass one...

[SkiprJohn]

I've owned both and loved my woody. It was constant maintenance and since I lived aboard that wasn't too hard to keep up with. If I left the boat for a month there was always something to do when I got back aboard. If you don't live aboard or plan to be aboard nearly daily get a fiberglass boat.
You need to haul the woody every two years, not so with fiberglass. In the tropics there are teredo worms that love to eat wood. In the colder climates wood does better and is a better insulator.
Maintenance for the do-it-yourselfer can be of equal cost but very much different skills you can read about in any wood boat book. It's not hard to replace planks and sister frames but there is constant water in the bilge and if she sits in port at the dock too long her planks will let water in when you go sailing until the wood swells again. Seams open up if you get the rigging too tight. Just many many things that are not a worry when you have a fiberglass boat.
If you want to sail more than maintain then think about fiberglass vs wood.

[South Pacific]

It depends upon the type of wooden boat you are considering.
If it is a carvell hull then maintenance is an issue, but it was probably built a long time ago, so it will be cheap.
If it is a cold moulded or strip planked boat, then your maintenance will probably be less than a fibreglass boat. I have owned both, and you haven't really lived until you've sailed a well built wood boat, and they don't get blisters!
A wood boat is alive, and to me it give a lot more saticfaction when sailing than a glass boat, and I have done long passages on both.

[tropicalescape]

Originally Posted by South Pacific

It depends upon the type of wooden boat you are considering.
If it is a carvell hull then maintenance is an issue, but it was probably built a long time ago, so it will be cheap.
If it is a cold moulded or strip planked boat, then your maintenance will probably be less than a fibreglass boat. I have owned both, and you haven't really lived until you've sailed a well built wood boat, and they don't get blisters!
A wood boat is alive, and to me it give a lot more saticfaction when sailing than a glass boat, and I have done long passages on both.