"JamesgangNC" wrote in message
. net...
40 is not old for a wood boat. But 15 is old for a wood encapsulated
fiberglass boat.

I think if you do some research on fiberglass boats you'll learn that
fiberglass turned out to be not really very water proof. Over years
continual exposure to water results in the transoms, stringers and floors
becoming water saturated. This predicament was made worse when laws
passed requiring boats under 25' to float even when filled with water.
The solution to that was to inject expanding foam under the floors. The
foam further traps the water against the floor and stringers worsening the
situation. If you drill into many older fiberglass boats you'll find most
of the wood is completely wet. And it will not dry out.

Today a number of companies have eliminated wood entirely from their
fiberglass boats.

Jamesgang...I know about fiberglass boats and do not need a lecture from you
about them. I am, however, glad to see you are an *expert* on fiberglass
and wood boat construction......I may defer to you later asking for your
expert opinion. ;-)

Just so you know, my friend with the 1966 Lyman (we were on it just tonight)
has spent over $30,000 in structural and top side repairs on his wood boat
over the past 4 years, a price far exceeding what the boat is actually
worth. Some folks, however, just love their boats and do not consider the
cost of repairs. He admitted so tonight. Yet this is a boat built for Lake
Erie and known for it's quality construction and ability to take on the
rough Lake Erie seas. The funny thing is that he always had to follow me in
my fiberglass boat when the lake got rough and we had to high tail it back
home, including an especially bad Lake during a passage from Leaminton,
Canada to Huron, OH. Imagine that. ;-)

I do not know whether or not this boat we are considering has wood
encapsulate stringers. If you can provide some information to that effect
it would be greatly appreciated. Regardless, if we consider buying this
boat after our one week *trial and water test* we will certainly have it
surveyed by one of the best surveyors in our area, and have a compression
test done on the engine.

If you can supply other specifics on the boat's construction and quality it
would really be appreciated.