ANTIQUE OR REBIRTH?
by Captain Chris Squeri
The search for a new boat went up and down the East Coast from Connecticut to Florida. After looking at about 12 boats, our broker found a vessel using the coast database. The boat was in a shed located in a small town a bit inland. Instead of finding our new boat in New York or Florida, it was a stone’s throw from Temple University. Just over the Ben Franklin Bridge from Philly and on the Delaware River in Cinnaminson, New Jersey.
When my father walked into the shed and looked up, he knew he had found her. A 35-foot Viking Convertible sat on jackstands and it was in outstanding condition. She had been stored in a shed every winter. After some negotiating, the boat was on her way to Long Island on Mother’s Day, 1994.
The boat had become a focal point in our father-son relationship. We fished, vacationed and worked on her with great pride and pleasure. We would spend many days doing our own maintenance and improvements. Over the last 14 years, the boat has provided many memorable moments, including great fishing trips, family vacations and several tournament wins.
Decision Time
About three years ago, we began to look at several different factors that affected the status of the boat. My father purchased the boat in 1994 and even though many of the projects, responsibilities and improvements were shared, it was still dad’s boat. Business and our families were changing. Do we sell the boat? Keep it? What did the boat need? We talked long and hard about what we should do and in the end we made three tough decisions. First, I would become a full partner in its ownership. Second, we put the boat up for sale at a price that we felt was appropriate. Third, we would keep the boat and we would seek improvements in addition to the ongoing maintenance and detailing.
The Start of the Rebirth
After the decision to seek improvements, we first looked at the interior, as it was not touched since 1996. It was time. We shopped around and chose to touch everything in the interior that was not teak. We first decided to address the couch. We reupholstered it with ultra suede and beefed up the backrest cushions. In addition to the couch, the dinette seats, vee berth cushions and interior panels were all reupholstered as well.
While in the interior, we also replaced the old stove and ice machine. A small modification was needed on the stove as it lay differently – something a little black formica and plywood would address. While in the galley, I had to address a bunch of dimples that found their way into the varnished teak parquet floor. Let’s just say that they didn’t happen because of big yellowfin on a canyon trip (note: NO high heels!). After some beautiful work done by carpenter Jim Murphy at Davison’s Boat Yard, the floor looked as if it came out of the factory yesterday.
Ut-Oh!
I called it the dreaded step and my father called it the soft step. I didn’t want to believe it and wished I was dreaming or still drunk from the night before. Unfortunately, I was neither. We had a soft spot in the cockpit floor. I figured a screw from the tackle center had come loose and the balsa core had gotten wet and became soft. No big deal, right? I’ll cut a 1’x1’ square, replace the core, glass it in and repaint the non-skid. I wished! Two days later, 18 square feet of coring had been taken out of our cockpit floor. The coring had been rotted due to three holes drilled out for the drains and water line under the tackle center.
When my father walked into the shed and looked up, he knew he had found her. A 35-foot Viking Convertible sat on jackstands and it was in outstanding condition. She had been stored in a shed every winter. After some negotiating, the boat was on her way to Long Island on Mother’s Day, 1994.
The boat had become a focal point in our father-son relationship. We fished, vacationed and worked on her with great pride and pleasure. We would spend many days doing our own maintenance and improvements. Over the last 14 years, the boat has provided many memorable moments, including great fishing trips, family vacations and several tournament wins.
Decision Time
About three years ago, we began to look at several different factors that affected the status of the boat. My father purchased the boat in 1994 and even though many of the projects, responsibilities and improvements were shared, it was still dad’s boat. Business and our families were changing. Do we sell the boat? Keep it? What did the boat need? We talked long and hard about what we should do and in the end we made three tough decisions. First, I would become a full partner in its ownership. Second, we put the boat up for sale at a price that we felt was appropriate. Third, we would keep the boat and we would seek improvements in addition to the ongoing maintenance and detailing.
The Start of the Rebirth
After the decision to seek improvements, we first looked at the interior, as it was not touched since 1996. It was time. We shopped around and chose to touch everything in the interior that was not teak. We first decided to address the couch. We reupholstered it with ultra suede and beefed up the backrest cushions. In addition to the couch, the dinette seats, vee berth cushions and interior panels were all reupholstered as well.
While in the interior, we also replaced the old stove and ice machine. A small modification was needed on the stove as it lay differently – something a little black formica and plywood would address. While in the galley, I had to address a bunch of dimples that found their way into the varnished teak parquet floor. Let’s just say that they didn’t happen because of big yellowfin on a canyon trip (note: NO high heels!). After some beautiful work done by carpenter Jim Murphy at Davison’s Boat Yard, the floor looked as if it came out of the factory yesterday.
Ut-Oh!
I called it the dreaded step and my father called it the soft step. I didn’t want to believe it and wished I was dreaming or still drunk from the night before. Unfortunately, I was neither. We had a soft spot in the cockpit floor. I figured a screw from the tackle center had come loose and the balsa core had gotten wet and became soft. No big deal, right? I’ll cut a 1’x1’ square, replace the core, glass it in and repaint the non-skid. I wished! Two days later, 18 square feet of coring had been taken out of our cockpit floor. The coring had been rotted due to three holes drilled out for the drains and water line under the tackle center.
