This week we finished the lovely Chris Craft Utility! It was mostly sanding and varnishing to get her back in shape and ready for summer adventures. Here's a collection of photos from our brief journey together.

The Celebrity has been been enjoying a daily routine of sanding and varnishing. Here's Brady employing step one (vacuuming) of our three part post-sanding pre-varnish routine. 

Step two of course is celebrating--it is called the Celebrity after all. 

Isaiah has spent the week giving the Grand Craft a thorough sanding. It's always a bit painful to see a beautifully varnished boat become a beautifully sanded boat, but we have to get those layers! The Grand Craft has also received her engine this week thanks to Gary and Brady.

Isaiah has also been staining some pieces for the Lyman that have been sanded to perfection. The Lyman, itself, has enjoyed a good sanding, as well. 

Nicholas has been busy with the Continental this week. He worked on the planking of the bow and stern piece, preparing them for permanent installation.

Jack has been busy with the Utility getting all the hardware in place and prepping it for the sea. He has also been polishing the Barrel Back to a nice gleam.

Thanks for reading! Next week we'll be wiring the engine for the 26' Sea Skiff, which has just been wet sanded. Stay tuned!

On the Grand Craft, we installed running gear and prepped for motor installation. It's also gotten another nice sanding and layer of varnish.

And that's it for this week. Stay tuned!

Let's start with Gary this time! He does more than stalk us around the shop and we have proof.
Gary has been wiring the Double Ender with Nicholas and applying caulk stripes to the lovely Utility. He also found eight philips head screwdrivers hidden in the bowels of the boats! 

In addition to detail work and assisting Gary with wiring for the Double Ender, Nicholas is also custom building a new tiller arm for the Celebrity.

Jack has been wet sanding and buffing the Ski Boat and the Utility. Look at that gleam!
He also installed the stainless trim and rub rails for the Ski Boat and started on fresh caulk lines.

Brady has been staining and varnishing the Celebrity. He also varnished the Grand Craft and pieces for the 18' Sea Skiff. 
He ALSO had a beer with his crew to celebrate his birthday! (After work hours of course).

This is secretly what I call the sand pit. It's been Isaiah's spot for the week while he sanded benches for the Lyman, seats for the Celebrity, and an assortment of other goodies.

If you are still reading, you'll be surprised to hear that I, your humble blogger and office manager, have joined the crew out in the shop! I've done a lot of renovation work and have an obsession with details, so I decided it was time to earn my keep. Here I am refinishing a steering wheel for the 18' Sea Skiff and check out my beautiful water line for the Barrel Back.

Thanks to an orderly shop and a finally healthy crew, we have been going full steam ahead this week! Hopefully those seasonal allergies are behind us all. And here's your update:

Isaiah has been stripping and sanding the bench seat for the Lyman. I can just imagine packing a picnic and setting off for the day, especially with this sunny weather we've been having!

Jack has been working on the Barrel Back wiring for the steering shaft, wheel, and horn. He's also been steadily buffing the Ski Boat following a good wet-sanding (see Facebook for a quick video!).

Nicholas has been working on installing the running gear for the Grand Craft with Gary. He's also been installing the hardware for the Double Ender, including the rudder. He finished sanding the Celebrity and has been touching up the stain in preparation for varnishing. 

Brady has been sanding and varnishing the 18' Sea Skiff, as well as the engine boxes for the Ski Boat and 26' Sea Skiff. The engine boxes are a good basic example of our work. They are totally custom, built from scratch, and varnished and sanded until you can see your left arm in them. It takes time, precision, and more time, because it ends up being more of a centerpiece of the boat rather than something that simply hides your engine. We are continually grateful that there are people who care enough to keep craftsmanship alive, both our customers and our crew. I'm sure you'll be seeing more of these boxes but hopefully inside their boats next time. 

​And here's a SNEAK PEEK! Have a good week everyone!