Traditional methods

Traditional methods
HARD TO IMPROVE UPON
O
Ian Marr works on some of the electrical wiring of a large cabin cruiser in for restoration work at Paul Brackley’s shop in Gravenhurst.
ARTICLE AND PHOTOGRAPHS BY TIM DU VERNET
ne would think that in the last become good friends along the way.
men. “The current team is the best that I have
1,000 years or so that wooden
Brackley also gained experience while ever worked with. They are all veterans,” says
boats have been built, someone working with the Butsons and other builders Brackley. Working in his shop are Mike Shuwould have invented a better way to do it.
such as Stan Hunter and Ian Marr. He was maker and Ian Marr, who have worked
But the construction and restoration of impressed with Butson’s quality and attention together for over 25 years.
wooden boats is all about the preservation of to detail.
Brackley, now an accomplished woodworka living artifact. It isn’t about making a boat
“The Butsons were fine people to work for er in his own right, says, “I have admiration
“better.” It is all about following tradition. and I learned much under their tutelage,” for old school boat builders. The speed, effiNonetheless, it just so happens that tradition- explains Brackley.
ciency and accuracy of a master boat builder
al methods have continued to be proven the
The Brackley Boat Shop in Gravenhurst is with limited use of power tools amazes me. It
best.
composed of a group of experienced crafts- is a sheer art form.”
Paul Brackley grew up in
The organic qualities of
Muskoka and has been buildwood are a timeless attraction
ing and restoring wooden
to both the wooden boat
boats for nearly 30 years. He
builder and the owner. Generfirst learned how to build
ations of builders have used a
canoes and rowboats with
variety of specialized hand
Mike Shumaker, while worktools to shape oak and
ing for Muskoka Fine Watermahogany into the various
craft.
parts of a wooden boat.
Running a boat restoration
In an age when it seems that
shop isn’t an easy task. There
computerization influences
are many parts to the job. Like
everything, the business of
any good business, the basis
building wooden boats still
for success is respecting your
relies on well tested methods
customers with honesty and
and traditions. Brackley is pasfairness. Brackley is very
sionate in his belief that tradirespected in the business for
tional methods need to be
being clear and up front with Planes and other tools are well-organized in Brackley’s efficient shop.
kept alive and are still a viable
his clients. As a result, many
option for boat construction.
Muskoka Antique & Classic Boating 2012
43
This plane is designed with a flexible base that can be adjusted to a curve, which is practical
for boatbuilding. Brackley believes traditional methods of construction need to stay alive.
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Muskoka Antique & Classic Boating 2012
“Give me an old time boat builder with a
bandsaw and a hand plane and he can still run
circles around woodworkers who rely on jigs
and routers,” he says. “I’m not against power
tools, far from it. It’s just that the right tool
has to be used at the right time.”
Most of the work Brackley does is completely custom. There are few, if any, patterns
to follow and a builder needs to rely on a good
eye to get things right. Recently, Brackley
completely transformed a 1950s utility Shepherd into a sleek triple cockpit runabout. This
project required a good sense of the styles
and proportions of wooden boats as well as
the creativity to imagine the opportunity.
Brackley managed to bring life to the
romantic dream of the boat owner, who had
a vision and depended on Brackley’s ability to
make it a reality. The Shepherd, already in desperate need of repair, was prime for the
makeover.
One of the greatest challenges in restoring
wooden boats is blending new wood while
maintaining the character of the original
builder. “When working with old wooden
boats we can usually tell in an instant what
pieces have been replaced and what work has
been done,” says Brackley. “I want our repairs
and restorations to look as if the boat has not
been touched, as original looking as possible.”
This means mimicking a builder’s particular
style and techniques. Many of these details are
lost to the layperson but an experienced master builder, who cares about authenticity, will
notice.
“Working on wooden boats is like stepping
back in time,” says Brackley. “You have to
master many disciplines including woodworking, finishing, machining, pattern making,
mechanical and sanding . . . yes sanding.”
Brackley says he separates sanding from
woodworking because it is an art form all its
own.
“The ability to feel lumps and bumps and
get a 30 ft. by 4 ft. twisting, flaring, side of a
boat completely flat is a true skill and one that
is overlooked,” he says. “It takes years to
acquire and it is one of the most satisfying
parts of boatbuilding. We still hand make
wooden patterns and sand cast hardware just
the way they did years ago.”
Over the years, Brackley has seen some rare
and distinctive boats come through his shop.
A few years ago, a Matlo runabout came in for
restoration. It was a humble boat built by a
relatively unknown Muskoka builder and very
few samples are known to have survived.
Brackley has even turned his talents to
building unique furniture based on the parts
of a wooden boat.
One his most dramatic restorations was
MAB. She is a 21-foot, 1934 Minett-Shields
sports runabout. She had been recently purchased from her previous owner of many
decades and was in need of some serious
refreshing. The result was spectacular. With
her bright yellow hull and upholstery, MAB is
racy at any speed. She won “Best Repowered
Restoration” wooden boat at a recent Gravenhurst Antique and Classic Boat Society show.
Despite the awards and obvious appreciation for the talents of his team, Brackley doesn’t focus on winning. It is more important to
Brackley to be accurate and authentic.
“I take great pains to make sure that we do
not alter history on any aspect of the boat,”
he says. “I take this focus through every
aspect of the restoration from period correct
gauges, engines, mechanical work and upholstery to the peen on the head of the rivets.”
Another Muskoka boat, the Jolly Roger was
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Rob Gerigs works in Brackley's busy boat shop in Gravenhurst (above). A steam bent section of
plank is braced into position on the boat after coming out of the steamer (below).
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Muskoka Antique & Classic Boating 2012
45
Mike Shumaker varnishes some of the window trim for the large cabin cruiser in for work.
Shumaker has 25 years experience in the boating industry.
explains Brackley. “The complexity of the
framework and the rich history of the boat
made it particularly special,” he says. “It is
extremely well documented with original letters from Bert Minett, who mentions that the
original green puttied deck seams caused a stir
among other boat owners.” This 1930s triple
cockpit Minett-Shields is striking in complete
black with chrome hardware accents.
VIC II, a striking 1930s Greavette, was
another spectacular restoration. “She is my
favourite restoration for the simple reason
that it is the prettiest boat I’ve ever worked
on,” says Brackley.
Brackley’s boat restorations and new boats
have gone all over the world, including England and throughout the United States
It was another busy winter in and out of his
shop, especially with Little Susie, a mammoth
1936, 35-foot Chris Craft Cruiser and Rambler,
a 1904, 72-foot glass cabin launch that had to
be worked on in its boathouse due to its sheer
size.
The interest in wooden boats has had its
ups and downs over the last several decades
and certainly taking on a restoration is not a
simple decision for a wooden boat owner.
Brackley believes the wooden boat restoration
and repair business will continuing on, with
peaks and valleys, for a long time yet.
Some owners see their wooden boat as too
precious to let go and others see them as
investments. “There are many less collectible
boats that deserve full restorations that are
just sitting, waiting for the values to climb,”
explains Brackley. “But once they get a little
older and are worth a little more, I think you
will see lots of utilities and smaller 20-foot
runabouts being restored. Furthermore, all
the major restorations that have been completed still need to be maintained, so I believe
there is plenty of work to come.”
Brackley likes to let his passion for restoring and building wooden boats speak for itself
in the product and reward a customer feels
with a job well done.
While he is specializes in restoring now, he
would like to be commissioned to build new
boats. There are so many ideas to bring to life.
Paul Brackley's son Jey works at one of the
benches in his father's boat restoration shop.