I replaced all of my headliner several years ago and got good results. I was prompted to undertake the project because the headliner panels had rotted due to leakage around the infamous forward companionway.

I bought "door skins" from The Home Depot, cut them to size using the old headliner panels as templates, sealed them on both sides with oil-based primer, and covered them with textured white commercial-grade vinyl wallcovering, then remounted them. The door skins are slightly thinner than the 1/8" plywood that Pearson used, so a bit of shimming is needed to close gaps where the panels fit next to bulkhead trim and around the deck hatches.

Dave Kimmel redid "Harmony's" headliner using the same method, with excellent results. These two projects are over ten years old but they both still look new. The white color really brightens the interior and the vinyl is easy to clean when required. There is a huge selection of colors and textures if white isn't your choice. Commercial-grade wallcovering is best because (1) it's heavier and more durable; and (2) it comes in widths sufficient to cover any panel in the boat without having any seams.

Pearson did the headliners two ways (at least two that I know of). One had the panels attached to Velcro strips and flush teak dividers about 3/4" thick between the panels. This configuration requires that the panels be covered on their edges and also that they be dimensionally accurate. The other configuration (the one Dave and I have) was with the panels butted together, fastened along the edges with monel staples and the joints covered by 1 1/4" wide teak battens. This method is more forgiving of dimensional error and also doesn't require covering the edges, making the job a lot faster...which is probably why Pearson changed to that method.

If you're interested in this project let me know and I'll take a photo of the results and send it along.

Dave Jones, May 2005

We just finished a two year project of replacing all of the headliners on Doris E.  Our approach was somewhat similar to Lee's and almost identical to the technique described in a recent edition of good old boat.  I found that with a reasonable amount of care, the twenty-five year old contact cement holding the vinyl to the 1/8 plywood backing could be persuaded to let go, enabling me to reuse any panels which had not been water damaged over the years.  Our decision for a new surfacing material was driven by a desire for the least  maintenance intensive solution over the long run.  Given this we settled on Formica laminate (Actually Wilsonart) in a matte texture and color called "frosty white".  The laminates are available in varying thicknesses and I would recommend using one of the thinner ones for increased flexibility.

The laminate was attached to the old vinyl-less panels using contact cement and then trimmed to the original size.  Like Lee, I was forced to use new door skins for two pieces due to the old ones being rotted.  In total we used six 4x8 sheets of laminate to finish the entire overhead except for the head.  Waste pieces are slowly finding their way into the vinyl covered under side deck spaces etc. where in most cases they can simply be slid between the deck and cabinetry and will remain in place.

Dave and Pat
Doris E.  #178