We’ve been pretty lucky in not needing to carry out a complete rebuild. Classic wooden boats weren’t popular in the 1970s and 1980s, and a lot of them were badly neglected, leading to a need for complete rebuilds in the 1990s and 2000s.
So far we’ve had to replace the original pine planked deck, which had worn so thin that it was impossible to caulk between the planks any more, and it was really wet below when it rained or in heavy weather. We were very luck that the Lowestoft Boat-building Training Centre were looking for projects for their trainees, and they carried out the work very professionally. We took off the original pine decks, hatches and the covering board, and replaced it all with a plywood underskin, topped with thin teak planks, and new hatches and covering board. That was done 25 years ago, and it’s still looking very good.
The next task, about ten years ago, was to replace many of the iron (or steel) ribs. Korybant was built mainly with oak ribs, but one in three was steel. After many years in salt water the lower part of the metal had mostly rusted away, and in 2004 we had the steel ribs in the central half of the boat removed and replaced with stainless steel. That in turn meant removing the lowest 3 planks, and the keel, and dismantling most of the internal woodwork. It was a long job, running over about 18 months, but eventually she went back in the water, as good as new. We’ve hardly needed to use the bilge pump since.
The winter of 2014/2015 saw a new wooden boom, to replace a rather nasty old aluminium one. We also had a new mainsail and #1 genoa made, the old ones were 25 years old.
Winter 2015/2106 saw a completely new set of standing rigging, and a new #2 genoa.
Winter 2016/2017 brought a new #3 genoa, for heavy weather, and we replaced another two of the old steel ribs in the stern. This meant removing the outboard well, so had a new one made up to fit the smaller engine we now use. We’ve also replaced the main sheet winches with new 2-speed Lewmar ones, to make life easier for the crew, and to fit the lighter sheets we’re using now.
Winter 2017/18 was quiet, some minor repairs, nothing major.
Winter 2018/19 we’ve had all the covers cleaned and a series of minor repairs done, to make sure they keep the water out. Otherwise nothing major.
2019/20 winter there was nothing of any consequence to do, beyond the usual painting & varnishing.
2020/21 winter was simple, because Korybant hardly sailed in 2020.
2021/22 winter should also be basic maintenance only.