Susquehanna Roll Boat - photos 6/13

Dave Diefenderfer

Dave Diefenderfer

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Several months ago, fellow lister Tom Wilkins, offered up several vintage hunting boats.... I jumped on the lapstrake, copper riveted, Susquehanna River Sneak boat. It slowly made it's way from Michigan, to Ohio, to Virginia, with the assistance of Jon Yenulonis. My intent is to pretty it up, restoring it as original... no stainless steel, no epoxy, no Azek! After looking it over and researching on-line, I am pretty sure it is built to be hunted as a roll over. This is a very unique method of hunting, where the bottom the hull is your hide. You roll the boat over and paddle like a canoe into the birds resting, or I suppose decoys down river, or down wind.

http://susquehanna-wcha.net/rollover/rollover.htm

http://home.comcast.net/...bottomsneakpage.html

While this boat is shorter than what is described in the links above, I still think that this is a Roll Boat.

In this photo, you see that there is 2 floors....

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My guess is that this cross board with the 2 notches are perhaps a gun rest?

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here she is rolled up... really want to get her wet and see how she feels.

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I have not decided yet how I will start the refurb..... sanding would be very slow, there is alot of thick paint, and power sanding is not an option. So either heat and a scrapper or chemical stripping?

So I will run a post when I get started on her.
 
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Dave~

Thanks for posting - never heard of the type. Sounds like you and I suffer from the same disease - never met an old duckboat we didn't love...and I regret some of the ones I've let go....

re Paint removal: I'd use a torch (Bernzomatic) and a putty knife. Much faster and neater than heat gun or stripper. You'll occasionally scorch the wood but not a problem since you'll be repainting (and not finishing with varnish or oil). Obviously, this is an "outside" job viz. the fumes. Work over a tarp so you can capture the flakes of old paint. I'll be removing 'glass from a Great South Bay Scooter with a torch later this year.

Have fun!

SJS
 
Glad I could help out!

My only regret, is that I didn't take any photos of it while I was hosting her!

I have, albeit a long time ago, a LOT of experience removing paint from old wooden surfaces. My first, real, full-time job was working at an amusement park. The park was an old family owned business that had closed down and re-located. When it re-opened in the late seventies, a lot of the old rides and displays had been constructed of wood and stored for ten to twenty years. By the time we got done with everything, it all looked brand new.

Don't use a power sander, yet. Too easy to destroy the boat if you're not very careful. Perhaps an orbital or vibrating sander later on AFTER the paint has been removed.

I would start with a good, sharp scraper set. I can't stress SHARP enough. We actually carried a stone with us to hone as we went. A sharp scraper will peel the paint off a lot better than a dull one, with a lot less damage to the wood. If you shop around, you'll find where you can buy a set with all kinds of different shapes. That's what you'll want. Then touch up with a little sandpaper.

Or maybe you can try a heat gun and putty knife, or a heat gun and scraper set. Experiment as you go. A good, hot heat gun will soften the paint fairly quickly.

I would be afraid of a torch. That's too valuable of a boat to chance burning any of it.

Looks like an awesome project. I am looking forward to seeing the progress as you go.

Thanks for the pictures!

Jon
 
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Dave, that's a really cool and unique method of sneaking up on birds. Especially liked how the experienced hunters could cut the live birds out from between the decoys.
The boat has very sweet lines, but curious, just how heavy is it? Looks pretty heffty.
Thanks for sharing.

Best - Paul

I had offered Tom a place to store his classic duck boats, I believe he had 37 at one time, and promised they would be used for their created purpose. :>)
 
Dave,

Years ago I used to do a lot of sculling on a stretch of the Ohio that passed through Ky/Indiana borders above the Markland Pool. There were two guys that came up from Louisville on a regular basis to hunt the same stretch out of a wooden sneakboat. They always referred to it as an "Ohio River Flip Boat." They would cruise the main stem (often way out in the main channel) glassing way ahead for birds on the water; then laying the boat over on one side while they floated up into range with the rear gunner using the small paddle. When ready, they would rock it back up to shoot. It was about the same hull configuration as the boat you have, but not finished the same inside. They would never use decoys while sculling, but would occasionally set decoys out and hunt off the bank.

I remember watching in disbelief the first time I had the opportunity to see them work birds, but when I finally got to meet them and talk with them, they assured me that the boat was completely stable when being put to its intended use. Considering that the sculling would always be best in the most frigid of conditions (when birds were usually forced to the River for open water), one would have to trust a craft like that to perform as intended and know exatly what they were doing. These guys were old school waterfowlers, and terrific shots as well. The way they worked together hunting from that boat is truly a lost art. Haven't seen them on the River in a long time now, but considering they were both getting up in years the last time I ran into them, that boat may be sitting in a barn somewhere, unused.

Here's the only picture I could find with their boat in the background. Taken when we both were at the ramp:

View attachment flipboat 001 (525 x 600).jpg
 
Dave - What a great find and, an amazing piece of history. If that boat could only tell it's stories...

Thanks for sharing. Pat
 
Paul, she is not light, I will have to trailer her if I want to use it by myself. My guess she is over 150lbs., maybe less when I get the paint off ;)
 
I ordered up a trial sample of Marine Peel Away paint stripper. I found a 5 gal pail on CL near by me, and have not yet bought it.... want to know how it would work before I invested so much.

I did a trial on the bow deck. After 2 applications, I can see wood!

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So now a larger area. I first dry scrapped the loose paint off the starboard deck. This is first application on this deck.

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The inside will be a real PITA, the floors will have to come out at the very least.

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Though the outside of the hull is in most need of scrapping and stripping.

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I suspect this will be a slow, messy job.
 
Dave I will be in Reston va for traing June 10-14, if it isn't too far any chance I could come take a peak at her one evening? Really neat reconstruction! Either way keep up the good work!
 
Mike, I don't think any kind of blasting would do the trick on an old wooden hull. A pressure washer would erode the wood around where the paint was a mask, so I assume the abrasive would too.

The Peel Away is working, but not sure how much I will have to invest to do the job. A guy on CL has a 5gal pail for $225. Based on how far I have gotten with the first pint, I am guessing I would need maybe 2 gallons for the hull. I will try the heat gun to see what that does before I decide.

The stripper is doing a decent job though...not something I could stain or finish bright, but to get the alligator skin off, and lay down a decent hunting boat paint job it will work. Wish there were more un interrupted surfaces!
 
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Fantastic! What an awesome find and piece of waterfowling history you're going to get really good at this! :)
 
Well, yesterday I experimented with first a heat gun, and then a torch. Both worked, but the torch was significantly faster. Just kept a can of water near by! Did nearly the entire starboard side of the hull in a couple hours. Will need to go over it again to get it real smooth.
 
Jim, the planking appears to be cedar, and the framing looks like oak. In general, it is pretty good shape. I don't want to make it look fresh built, it needs to have the 100 years of character, but be ready to hunt. I will replace some of the gunnel that is worn/soft, but I can splice in a couple small pieces with a scarph. I'll post up some pictures this weekend. My wife was commenting that it is a shame to paint over the hull again, and hide the copper rivets that look so cool without paint on them.
 
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Dave~

I'm so glad you are using the torch! Just as you sent your last pictures, I was chemically stripping an old piano bench. The top is walnut veneer to be refinished bright - so neither torch nor even scraper were suitable. What a miserable, messy task. But, those strakes of yours were just begging for a torch. It reminded me of the Old Town Whitecap (only sailboat they ever produced, I think) I stripped inside and out with a torch. It's so satisfying when it curls up in big flakes - and then, when you gather them all up, you appreciate how much weight you're taking off.

One benefit of the torch is that it can drive the oil into the wood. Not great if you'll be 'glassing or glueing but perfect if you're repainting with oils - it provides a nice base for a coat of primer and then a topcoat.

Also, I'll have to get a picture of my Dad's old blowtorch - what every painter used back in the day (with attendant burned-down houses in their wake). Long before the days of Bernzomatic, it's solid brass and I think it used white gas. Now, it'll spend its days as an ornament in my shop.

Keep it up!

SJS
 
Dave, glad to hear you are making progress....Can't wait to see it. Oh yeah, please post pics of the burning/scraping progress....love them action shots....

John
 
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