1936 Gar Wood Speedster Conversion
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"Screw Loose"

Brief History

"Screw Loose" started life as a 1936 Chris Craft 16' twin forward cockpit runabout.  Found decaying in a barn in 1993, it was purchased by Paul Hornick of Old Forge, NY and converted into a Gar Wood Speedster based on dimensions taken off of the "Miss Behave" in the Antique Boat Museum, Clayton, NY.

Paul took the boat to the Adirondack Chapter's Old Forge Show annually.  At the show in 1999, I actually raced against this boat.  Paul's son drove the speedster and I drove a friend's 1937 Chris Craft Special Race Boat (16' red, white & blue).  I won by just barely a boat length.  But I always like the speedster.  In October of 2002, Paul decided he was too old and the boat had to go.  I heard it was for sale and we made a deal.

When I picked up the boat, Paul told me he noticed the boat was leaking - it was the shaft log he thought.  I took it home and tried it out on Lake George for a day.  Indeed, it was leaking heavily.  Upon closer inspection, I found most of the bottom to be rotted.  Paul did an early West system bottom - three layers of cross cut plywood with epoxy in between.  It had failed.

I took the engine out, hardware off and rolled the boat over to remove the bottom.  With the bottom off, it was clear that the chines and keel were rotten too, as was part of the stem.  I replaced the chines, keel and stem and put a new 3M-5200 type bottom in - 1/8" marine plywood inner bottom, 1/2" mahogany plank outer bottom.

While the boat was apart, I decided to change a number of things to make it more Gar Wood-ish.

    -  The cockpit was square in the back.  Changed out 2 aft deck planks to make a curved cockpit.
    -  Changed the dash board and instrument panel to a true Gar Wood panel.
    -  Changed bilge color from red to GW gray
    -  Changed flooring from black rib rubber to battleship gray linoleum with 1 1/2" hatch trim
    -  Changed bottom color from copper bronze to red
    -  Stripped and bleached sides and deck and interior.  Changed stain from CC Brown to Red Mahogany.  13 coats of Captain's varnish
    -  Painted seams black instead of white
    -  Acquired correct Gar Wood hardware (chocks & flagpole socket were CC)
    -  Epoxied a small piece of mahogany on the edge of the covering boards from the engine hatches aft to create the notched Gar Wood transom

Finished the boat the Friday before the Lake George Show (August 28th).  She made her debut there and won the Dockmaster's Choice Award.

In September we towed her to Lake Cobosee, Maine, to visit a friend for a long weekend.  Most of the photos above are from there.  Last weekend in September we participated in the Antique Raceboat Regatta on Lake George.  First weekend in October, we took her to Peconic Bay on Long Island, NY for my Grandmother's 95th birthday.  Took Grandma and all her friends for rides.

Next season we hope to take her to the Chesapeake Show, Finger Lakes Show and possibly to Gravenhurst.

The engine is a Gray Marine Fireball 6-140 with twin updraft carbs.  We GPSed her in Maine at 45.1 mph.  Might try some engine tweaks this winter if I have time between finishing the boatshop and starting several other restorations (and real work, of course.)