Boat Restoration in Sherman, TX — Minutes from Lake Texoma
If you own a boat on Lake Texoma, you already know the feeling: pulling up to the dock on a warm Saturday morning, the water still and glassy, and realizing your boat deserves better than what it's getting. The vinyl is cracked. The wood trim is fading. The gelcoat has seen too many summers without attention. You want it right — but where do you take it?
Marine shops in the Sherman-Denison area are few and far between. Most boat owners end up hauling their watercraft to Dallas or settling for patch jobs. At Texoma Classics, we offer a different path. Our shop at 124 Industrial Drive in Sherman sits just a short drive south of Lake Texoma on US-75, and we bring over two decades of hands-on restoration experience to every boat that comes through our doors.
The Same Craftsmanship, Applied to Your Watercraft
Here is what most people do not realize: the skills that go into restoring a 1969 Camaro are remarkably close to what it takes to restore a classic Chris-Craft or rebuild the interior of a well-loved bass boat. Fiberglass repair, gelcoat finishing, custom upholstery, wood restoration, paint and bodywork, engine maintenance — these are disciplines our team practices daily on classic cars, muscle cars, and custom builds. The materials and techniques transfer directly to marine work.
When you bring your boat to Texoma Classics for restoration, you get the precision of an automotive restoration shop applied to your watercraft. We approach boat interior restoration the same way we approach a concours-level car interior: measure twice, source quality materials, and build it to last. Whether that means re-covering seats in marine-grade vinyl, replacing rotted transom wood, repairing fiberglass damage, or restoring a teak deck to its original luster, the standard of work is the same we apply to every vehicle in our shop.
What We Handle
Boat upholstery repair and replacement. Sun, water, and years of use take a toll on seats, cushions, and interior panels. We strip, repad, and recover boat interiors using marine-grade materials rated for UV exposure and moisture. From bass boats and pontoons to classic wooden runabouts, we match or upgrade your original upholstery to stand up to North Texas summers on the lake.
Fiberglass and gelcoat restoration. Spider cracks, oxidation, blisters, and impact damage are all part of life on the water. We repair structural fiberglass damage and restore gelcoat to a smooth, glossy finish that protects the hull and looks the way it should.
Woodwork restoration. Vintage boats often feature mahogany, teak, or oak that has weathered over the decades. We strip, repair, and refinish wood trim, decking, dashboards, and transoms — preserving the character of classic watercraft while reinforcing structural integrity.
Custom boat interiors. Want to upgrade beyond factory? We design and build custom interiors — new dash layouts, storage solutions, flooring, and trim work tailored to how you actually use your boat.
Engine maintenance and mechanical work. Our mechanical team handles inboard and outboard engine maintenance, from seasonal tune-ups to more involved rebuilds. If it runs on gasoline and needs a wrench, we are comfortable with it.
Boat floor replacement. Soft spots, water damage, and delamination are common on older boats. We remove damaged flooring, replace the substructure, and install new decking — whether you want classic marine plywood or a modern composite alternative.
Built for Lake Texoma Boaters
Living and working in Sherman means we understand the Lake Texoma boating calendar. We know that spring is when the urgency hits — when you pull the cover off after winter and see everything that needs attention before the water warms up. We also know that fall is when smart owners bring their boats in for off-season restoration, getting ahead of the rush so they are first on the water the following year.
If you are a boat owner in Pottsboro, Denison, Whitesboro, or anywhere in the Grayson County area, our shop is an easy drive. And if you are coming from further out in North Texas, we are right off US-75 — the same corridor that takes DFW traffic straight to Lake Texoma.
Preserving What Matters
Some boats are tools. Some boats are heirlooms. We have worked with owners who inherited a wooden ski boat from their grandfather and owners who just want their pontoon looking sharp for the Fourth of July. The scope of the project does not change our approach: understand what the owner wants, communicate clearly throughout the process, and deliver work that holds up season after season.
Classic boat restoration shares something fundamental with classic car restoration — it is about preserving something that was built to last, and making sure it does. A well-restored boat is not just functional. It is a statement that you care about what you own and how you spend your time on the water.
Seasonal Tips from Our Shop
A few things we tell every Lake Texoma boat owner:
- Before spring launch: Inspect your upholstery for mildew and cracking. Check the bilge, battery connections, and fuel lines. Look for soft spots in the floor.
- Mid-season: Rinse your boat after every outing. Lake Texoma water is hard on gelcoat and metal fittings. A quick freshwater rinse extends the life of every surface.
- End of season: Do not just throw a cover on it. Drain all water, fog the engine, stabilize the fuel, and address any damage now — it only gets worse over winter.
If any of those checks reveal something that needs professional attention, that is what we are here for.
Ready to Get Your Boat Back on the Water?
Whether you need boat upholstery repair, fiberglass work, a full interior overhaul, or seasonal engine maintenance, our team in Sherman is ready to talk through your project. We have restored everything from vintage wooden runabouts to modern fishing boats — and we bring the same care and craftsmanship to every one.
Tell us about your boat and what it needs. Fill out the form below, and we will get back to you to discuss the scope, timeline, and next steps.
Upholstery and Soft Tops
Our upholstery team works on boats the same way it works on cars. Seats rebuilt from the frame up, interior panels and trim renewed, worn foam replaced and materials chosen to survive sun and water rather than just look right on delivery day. The same hands do convertible top repair and replacement, so stitched work with a frame behind it is familiar territory.
We are a restoration shop that does excellent upholstery rather than a marine canvas specialist. Seats, interiors and soft tops are work we do well. For a bimini or a full cockpit enclosure built to pattern, a dedicated canvas shop is usually the better call — but ask us anyway. Between our fabricators and our upholstery team there is not a great deal we cannot find a way to do.
Boat Restoration Questions
Partly, and it is worth being precise about which parts. Our in-house upholstery team rebuilds boat seating and interior trim, and repairs and replaces soft tops — the same craft as the convertible tops we do on cars.
Fabricating marine canvas from scratch — biminis, cockpit enclosures, covers built to pattern — is a canvas specialist’s trade, and for that we will usually point you to one. Ask us either way: we would rather tell you honestly which of the two you need than take the job and learn on your boat.
Whatever you want it to involve. There is no fixed package — some owners bring us one defined problem, some want the boat gone through completely, and plenty start with one job and add to it later.
We will look at the boat, tell you honestly what it needs rather than what would cost the most, and put the agreed scope in writing before anything is touched. If you want to add to it later, that is a conversation and a new work order, not starting over.
Both. Wood and fiberglass fail in different ways and want different repairs — rot and fastener corrosion on one, delamination, blistering and stress cracks on the other — and a shop that treats them the same gets both wrong.
What we are not chasing is large craft. We are set up for the boats people actually keep on Lake Texoma, not yachts.
We will not give you a finish date at the start, and you should be wary of any shop that does. The honest answer is that it depends on three things: what we find once we open it up, whether any part has to leave our shop for a specialist, and the pace you choose to fund the work.
What we will do is tell you what is happening as it happens, and keep the record where you can read it.