Eyeballin' a B.N.Morris

[ken mueller]

I've got my eye on an 18 ft, in need of some work. I don't know much about these canoes, other than what I've read in Dragonfly's description. The question I have is about the very long decks. Were they made of a thick slab of wood, or a thin (less than 1/4 inch) piece that was bent to follow the curve of the gunwales? This is one of those great stories a person hears about. The lady selling this canoe thought it was an old town. When I went to look at the stem for the s/n, lo and behold, a splayed stem! A pretty nice surprise! Any info on the construction of this canoe is very much appreciated. Ken.

[Zach]

Hey Ken - where abouts in canton are you located? I live a stones throw away from sklyand pines.

-zach

[Paul Scheuer]

Ken: The decks are bent. Check to see if the're book matched pieces. If you have to replace them, the compound curve isn't as impossible as it looks, since the compound part is actually very narrow.

I understand that some of the Morrises that were left after the fire were completed by Old Town.

[ken mueller]

Hey Ken - where abouts in canton are you located? I live a stones throw away from sklyand pines.

-zach
Zach, I'm actually a little north of Canton, in Hartville

[ken mueller]

Ken: The decks are bent. Check to see if the're book matched pieces. If you have to replace them, the compound curve isn't as impossible as it looks, since the compound part is actually very narrow.

I understand that some of the Morrises that were left after the fire were completed by Old Town.
Thanks, Paul. I couldn't get a real good look at the canoe because it was hanging in a garage. The decks and gunwales appeared to not be original, the wood looked newer than the rest of the hull. I looked closer at the decks because the one had split grainwise and that didn't look right. The entire deck is a very thin sheet of wood.

[Paul Scheuer]

The deck that you see is decorative (deckorative ?), and probably less than 1/4 in. thick. It is attached with nails to a fairly substantial frame. There is a normal breasthook type structural deck at the peak. That part is shaped from a solid piece.

edit to attach pic.

[ken mueller]

The deck that you see is decorative (deckorative ?), and probably less than 1/4 in. thick. It is attached with nails to a fairly substantial frame. There is a normal breasthook type structural deck at the peak. That part is shaped from a solid piece.
I liked that (deckorative)! Thanks