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Back in about 2003, when we enjoyed the first of several Lake Whatcom boating events (before the ban on two-strokes), a nice couple drove all the way from northern Idaho to participate with their beautiful 1960 Skagit 20-foot hardtop. It was the first (and only) time many of us have seen that particular model...until the '61 Skagit 20-foot hardtop showed up recently on CL, being offered in Newport, Oregon.
I tried hard to ignore the boat. Really, I did! But Bruce Drake and I slipped into an e-mail exchange about the hardtop; some other club members considered buying the boat, and Bruce finally made the drive south to Newport a few days ago, hauling the boat home on a recently-acquired trailer. The deal was, as Bruce suggested, that "one of us has a new boat," with Bruce getting first dibs...since he'd made the long drive south to get the thing.
After staring at the Skagit for a day or two, Bruce realized that something would have to go if he was going to keep the 20-foot hardtop--a painful decision when you already own some great old boats--so he surrendered the Skagit to me and we met today at Olympia's Swantown Marina launching ramp to transfer the boat from his trailer to mine. (Both of us drove through snow, rain, hail, sun and more snow to accomplish the handoff, so it was a weird weather day for vintage-boat moving, but I had the green-and-white hardtop in the shop by 3 p.m., ready to start the drying-out process.)
The boat was painted not long ago in Newport, and original transom plywood was replaced. Some of the new paint will need to be touched up, especially in a few thin spots, but the boat's restoration should be very easy. It'll probably need new steering (anybody interested in an old Quicksilver unit?), perhaps new mahogany dash panels to cover the copious holes drilled for crusty old gauges, maybe some fresh upholstery, and most likely a strengthening of the transom, since they stuck with the original thickness when replacing the ply...and it seems a bit thin to support the 90-hp Merc I plan to run on the boat.
I've always loved the design of this fairly rare Skagit model, and because the boat doesn't need major work it appears that we'll have a classic-glass boat in the water this Spring, in time for club events. Oh, Happy Day!
The attached photos show the boat during its brief dip in Olympia; at home and inside the shop this afternoon.
- Marty
I tried hard to ignore the boat. Really, I did! But Bruce Drake and I slipped into an e-mail exchange about the hardtop; some other club members considered buying the boat, and Bruce finally made the drive south to Newport a few days ago, hauling the boat home on a recently-acquired trailer. The deal was, as Bruce suggested, that "one of us has a new boat," with Bruce getting first dibs...since he'd made the long drive south to get the thing.
After staring at the Skagit for a day or two, Bruce realized that something would have to go if he was going to keep the 20-foot hardtop--a painful decision when you already own some great old boats--so he surrendered the Skagit to me and we met today at Olympia's Swantown Marina launching ramp to transfer the boat from his trailer to mine. (Both of us drove through snow, rain, hail, sun and more snow to accomplish the handoff, so it was a weird weather day for vintage-boat moving, but I had the green-and-white hardtop in the shop by 3 p.m., ready to start the drying-out process.)
The boat was painted not long ago in Newport, and original transom plywood was replaced. Some of the new paint will need to be touched up, especially in a few thin spots, but the boat's restoration should be very easy. It'll probably need new steering (anybody interested in an old Quicksilver unit?), perhaps new mahogany dash panels to cover the copious holes drilled for crusty old gauges, maybe some fresh upholstery, and most likely a strengthening of the transom, since they stuck with the original thickness when replacing the ply...and it seems a bit thin to support the 90-hp Merc I plan to run on the boat.
I've always loved the design of this fairly rare Skagit model, and because the boat doesn't need major work it appears that we'll have a classic-glass boat in the water this Spring, in time for club events. Oh, Happy Day!
The attached photos show the boat during its brief dip in Olympia; at home and inside the shop this afternoon.
- Marty
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