Boats As Art
by Susan Shinn

Pat Crusse is not politically correct. Nor he is very tactful, for that matter. But if you need a wooden boat restored, he’s the man you want. He demands and gets perfection. He and his staff produce floating works of art.

Crusse ’n Classics, his shop near Lake Norman, is a bit difficult to find. There’s no sign. He does no advertising. But a great many covered boats in the parking lot might tip you off.

“We learn every day,” Crusse says. “The quality of our work is uniquely different.”
He adds, “I’m not a purist. They’re restored to be used and enjoyed.”
He also endeavors to make the boats as safe as possible.

The two major names in wooden boats are Chris-Craft and the more affordable Century line.

Crusse’s son Ryan is working on a 16-foot 1960 Century Resorter. “If this boat has made it 50 years, it’ll make it another hundred now,” the younger Crusse says, with pride in his voice.

Such smaller boats, Crusse says, are easier to handle and easier to trailer than larger ones.

The wood of choice for these type of boats is mahogany, because it is highly rot resistant, Crusse explains.

Varnish is an old-school choice, but it’s high-maintenance. Crusse wants to keep maintenance to a minimum, so he uses urethane finishes.
The result, he says, is an original look, but which uses modern materials.

Crusse got into restoration when his older brother asked him to restore a boat. That was 18 years ago."What was old is new again,” Crusse notes.

Unlike classic cars, which were manufactured in the thousands, the number is much less for wooden boats. Crusse points out boat after boat in various stages of restoration that was going to be burned.
Crusse often begins with a “tired” boat, its varnish worn away. Other times, he has just a hull to work with, a mere skeleton.

Here’s a 12-foot 1930 Century Comet racing boat. It uses aircraft fabric on the front deck to make it lighter.

Here’s a 19-foot 1958 Chris-Craft Silver Arrow, its rear fins reminiscent of a ’57 Chevy.
“These are very rare,” he says.
Then there’s a behemoth, a 30-foot 1964 Chris-Craft Constellation Cruiser.

Many people are overwhelmed by its size, Crusse says, but there were very few built, so it’s a sought-after boat.

This boat has been in the same family since it was purchased.

Then Crusse strolls over to a 21-foot 1956 Century Coronado, on which work is almost complete.

The boat’s mahogany sides gleam in the morning sun. It’s now easy to understand why Crusse, a former art major, calls restored boats pieces of art.

And this one’s got a Hemi, too.
Just how many boats does Crusse have?
He doesn’t know.
He does know he can sell them to finance his retirement.

There’s no such thing as a typical restoration project for a wooden boat. Typically, a project takes about two years.

“We don’t work on deadlines,” Crusse says.

When any work is done on a boat, the time and type of work is noted by a staff member on a log. A copy is given to the customer. Many different logs hang on the wall on clipboards.

If he can’t find a part, Crusse makes it.
He loves the history behind each and every boat, digging into files to show off paperwork that he’s laminated to protect it.

Like we said before, he’s particular.

According to the nomenclature of the Antique and Classic Boating Society (ACBS), antique boats were made between 1919 and 1942, while classic boats were made between 1943 and 1975.  World War II represents the dividing line between the two eras.
There were a few boats made during the war, Crusse says, but not many.

While stacks and stacks of mahogany planks wait to be put into service, Crusse tries to use as much of the original materials as possible. Besides Ryan, who’s 20, and son Matt, who just turned 16, others who work in the shop are Jesse White and Lew Woolfrey. Victoria Bauer is an apprentice.

“Each of these people have special talents,” Crusse says.

“You have to want to do this,” White adds, “or you can’t do this.”

Crusse says that customers might complain that Crusse is too picky, he admits, but he says, “The boats leave here right.”

Ed Longino agrees. Longino and Crusse are members of the Blue Ridge Chapter of the Antique and Classic Boat Society, and Crusse has restored a boat for him and other club members.

“Pat has restored everything from a 12-foot runabout to a 34-foot cabin cruiser, and everything in between,” Longino says. “He doesn’t cut corners and he does it right and he does it to last.”

Longino appreciates Crusse’s plain-spoken attitude.

“You have to listen to him,” Longino says, “or you take your boat elsewhere.”

Crusse also counts restoration of antique outboards, tractors, trucks and cars as part of his repertoire.

Although boats later evolved into fiberglass models, Crusse doesn’t hold much respect for “glass.”

As one of the myriad signs in his shop reads, “If God would have wanted fiberglass boats, he would have made fiberglass trees.”

Maybe so.
Maybe Crusse fancies himself as something of a recycler as well as a restorationist.

As he likes to say, “A tree if not dead if you make something out of it.”

However much Crusse may become frustrated on a project or with a client, his work boils down to one simple fact.

“I like doing this,” he says.