Stripped!

Out with the hot air blower and triangular scraper, off with the paint. In 15 minute bursts, the back didn't give out, and the boat was stripped within a few days, then sanded.

The gunwales were simply pinned on and the glue had failed long before, so a blunt chisel down the gap soon had them prised off - they are certainly not going back on.

However, it turned out that the deck wasn't damaged where the gunwales were, so rather than ripping the decks off, it was out with the hot air gun again and varnish removal. A few hours sanding, and they look rather good. The cockpit was sound, so I have simply sanded that.

That still leaves me with several hundred nails to punch back down into the deck, but I shall worry about that once I've painted the bottom. Just waiting for the primer to arrive, then it will be paint, fill, sand, paint fill, sand etc till she looks smooth enough .