1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Helm Station Mahogany III

Things have been less than optimal recently, but to the extent possible I’m not letting it slow me down. Gotta get this thing done. I was pre-occupied last week with some nonsense that hopefully will end soon, so I didn’t have time to post any articles. I hope to catch up on them this week.

When last I wrote about aft deck mahogany, I’d cut and fitted a big sheet of 1/8″ mahogany plywood that I’ll use as veneer on the helm bulkhead. Time to get ‘er varnished and installed.

Fitted and ready for varnish

The approach I’ve been using with new mahogany panels is to varnish first, even just one or two coats, then epoxy the backside and glue them in place. That allows me to avoid getting epoxy stains in the grain that can mess up the appearance of the wood through the varnish.

First coat of Spar varnish soaks in fast

Second coat is more uniform

One thing I don’t like about one-part spar varnish is that it doesn’t dry anywhere near as hard and fast as the two-part stuff. In retrospect, I should have just used ICA base coat here like I did in the rest of the interior. But I was under the impression it didn’t have the UV protection that exterior spar varnish has. Turns out that may not be the case.

Anyway, sanding this stuff is a real drag because it clogs up the sandpaper very quickly. Waiting a week between application and sanding for the subsequent coat seems to help, but I don’t have that kind of time to devote to waiting for resins to lock in tight. Lesson learned.

Three coats on…doesn’t look too bad!

Time to drill a hole or two.

Kidde CO2 fire extinguisher trigger hole will help clamp the panel in place

Holes are drilled and the starboard side cabinet cleats are fitted, too

The cabinet cleat will also help clamp the panel in place.

OK…it’s showtime!

Next I sanded off the old varnish on the original bulkhead

I’ll bet that was really pretty back in the day. Gotta do something about that big hole somebody cut in the bulkhead for the old autopilot.

This 19mm Okume scrap will do the trick

Friction fit is nice and tight

Next, mix up the epoxy and wet everything out

Trowel wood-flour and fumed silica-thickened epoxy on the wetted out helm bulkhead

Install the panel and clamp in place

That’s almost a wrap on the helm station bulkhead. Just have to wait for the epoxy to cure. Now that summer’s over, it’s going to take longer and longer for it to kick.

Anyway, it’s looking a lot better than when we got the boat!

Next up in our 1969 Chris Craft Roamer 46 Refit: Helm Station Mahogany III