Cold-molded

1. 51960sRybovich
2. 1970s
3. 1980s
4. 21990sJarrett Bay
5. 32000sJim Smith, Shearline
6. 232010sJarrett Bay, Bayliss
7. 192020sWeaver, Jarrett Bay

First on record

FriskyRybovich hull 43 · 1960

Latest on record

Mama WhoWeaver HIN WSF80053A526 · 2026

6 more with no year on record.

Cold molding bonds two or more layers of wood veneer or thin plywood into one skin over a jig. That skin carries all or a major part of the load.^1,3

Cold molding took over from hot molding after the early 1950s, when glues that needed neither heat nor pressure came onto the market. Almost all custom Carolina-style sportfishing boats are built this way.^1,3

The hull goes together upside down over plywood jigs. At Weaver Boatworks the jigs are cut by a computer-controlled router, then laminated Douglas fir engine stringers, sheer clamps and battens go in, and thin sheets of okoume plywood are bent and glued over them.²

The layers usually run double diagonal, at plus and minus 45 degrees, for cross-grained strength. The skin is encapsulated in epoxy and fiberglass. Then the hull is flipped, much of the jig comes out, and the structure and interior go in.^1,2,3

A new jig can be built for each hull, so a builder can change a design without paying for fiberglass molds that are hard to modify. The result is a strong, light hull.^1,2

One builder credits the wood with damping sound. Sealed in epoxy, it holds a relatively stable moisture content, and done properly the method keeps the potential for rot to a bare minimum.^3,4

Gougeon Brothers name the cost of a throw-away mold and the labor required as reasons cold molding is less attractive than other methods.³

Wood at or near its fiber saturation point is open to rot.³