New member, and looking for first beginner's resto project?

JimT

Enthusiastic about Wooden Canoes
Hi,
Have been lurking for a while, interested in finding a manageable first boat to fix up. Looking at a couple of Old Town rowboats and also a Penn Yan 14', each canvas and wood. Would love advice about those candidates or others folks might want to suggest. Eager to learn.
Jim T.
Trumansburg NY
 
Well....that depends. You say boat so presumably a boat not a square stern canoe?
What do you plan to use it for? Will you row or put a motor on it? Do you want to try a sail on it?
Where do you plan to use it? Cayuga is a pretty big piece of water and you are on the side that gets the prevailing wind...there is no where to hide with a small craft.
Square sterns and wooden boats with transoms can be a bit more of a challenge to fix than a canoe so picking one that is fairly solid would be in your best interests. That said, I have a small Thompson with a motor on it. I use it on the lakes around here when the water is kind and stay home when it's not. I can fish from it, I have hunted with it and we put up and down the Erie Canal in it (it's small enough that we can duck under the lift bridges). If you want to use it on some of the smaller Finger Lakes take note of the motor size restrictions.
Thompson and Penn Yan are locally made if that matters to you. I've owned a few Old Towns and they were fine boats....you can't really go wrong with any of them....condition and price. Save some money for a reliable motor.
 
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Well....that depends. You say boat so presumably a boat not a square stern canoe?
What do you plan to use it for? Will you row or put a motor on it? Do you want to try a sail on it?
Where do you plan to use it? Cayuga is a pretty big piece of water and you are on the side that gets the prevailing wind...there is no where to hide with a small craft.
Square sterns and wooden boats with transoms can be a bit more of a challenge to fix than a canoe so picking one that is fairly solid would be in your best interests. That said, I have a small Thompson with a motor on it. I use it on the lakes around here when the water is kind and stay home when it's not. I can fish from it, I have hunted with it and we put up and down the Erie Canal in it (it's small enough that we can duck under the lift bridges. If you want to use it on some of the smaller Finger Lakes take not of the motor size restrictions.
Thompson and Penn Yan are locally made if that matters to you. I've owned a few Old Towns and they were fine boats....you can't really go wrong with any of them....condition and price. Save some money for a reliable motor.

this is helpful to hear. I am thinking more of a boat to put an outboard on. We have a camp in the ADKs as well as the lakes and ponds around here. I also duck hunt and have dogs so the stability of the boat is important. We've got a portabote with a 6hp that we hang from the side of the camper when traveling, which is fine but has some limitations. Primarily though I'm looking for a way to get started in the hobby, have basic tools but don't have the confidence to do any major rebuilding. Also no rush, I'm learning a lot right now by looking and asking questions.
 
This won't be helpful....I had planned to used mine for waterfowling and I did use it a few times...but it's such a pretty little boat that it was basically killing me to muck it up. You know the drill...in and out with the deeks and waders (muck) the dogs out on a retrieve (more muck), a couple birds on the bottom of the boat...you know, then out to collect the deeks and more muck. That nice little boat is a mess by the time you are done. So, the Thompson was replaced by a fiberglass double hull dinghy and then I went back to using a canoe. At this point I tend to either pull the canoe up and hide it in the weeds and hunt from a swamp seat or I'll lay back in it in the cattails. I use my Royalex Old Town and it never gets washed. The Thompson is now used for fishing.
The Penn Yan with it nice caned seats, too nice. My Thompson with all of the mahogany and the redwood seats, also too nice. The one I wish I still had is an Old Town. They were made for this kind of stuff. Heavy duty seats and transom, add 5 coats of good varnish on the inside and hose it off when you are done.
Just watch out for a really bad transom....that can be a bit of a trick to repair.
6HP is OK on Canadice and Hemlock (under 10 rqmnt)
 
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This won't be helpful....I had planned to used mine for waterfowling and I did use it a few times...but it's such a pretty little boat that it was basically killing me to muck it up. You know the drill...in and out with the deeks and waders (muck) the dogs out on a retrieve (more muck), a couple birds on the bottom of the boat...you know, then out to collect the deeks and more muck. That nice little boat is a mess by the time you are done. So, the Thompson was replaced by a fiberglass double hull dinghy and then I went back to using a canoe. At this point I tend to either pull the canoe up and hide it in the weeds and hunt from a swamp seat or I'll lay back in it in the cattails. I use my Royalex Old Town and it never gets washed. The Thompson is now used for fishing.
The Penn Yan with it nice caned seats, too nice. My Thompson with all of the mahogany and the redwood seats, also too nice. The one I wish I still had is an Old Town. They were made for this kind of stuff. Heavy duty seats and transom, add 5 coats of good varnish on the inside and hose it off when you are done.
Just watch out for a really bad transom....that can be a bit of a trick to repair.
6HP is OK on Canadice and Hemlock (under 10 rqmnt)

good to hear your thoughts comparing these boats. at this point duck hunting is lower on the list than just plain poking around on some of the Adirondacks ponds. But nice to hear what you're saying about the Old Town and duck hunting.
 
not technically a canoe but I would be curious to hear any thoughts on this boat that's for sale near me. Seems solid enough, hull has been fiberglassed though. thoughts?

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