Ray Kepler
Curious about Wooden Canoes
Hi all,
I recently bought an 1985 Old Town Guide, "Natural," it's my first restoration project and I'm very excited but almost wondering if I'm in over my head. It's pretty beat up. The deck plates, keel, and gunwales are rotted. The hull also has me confused. I can't tell if the canvas has been sanded off completely or just kinda. When wet, it looks nice, but the surface looks striated, not wood-like.
I need to know what kind of wood the keel, outer gunwales, inner gunwales, and deck plate are made of. I think I can fabricate and install these parts but have never done any steaming, assuming this needs to be done.
I also need to know if I need to re-canvass the canoe or not. It seems to be water-tight; there are places that seem to be translucent/very thin. Not sure if this is OK or not.
For what it's worth, I'm in the southwest part of Connecticut.
I recently bought an 1985 Old Town Guide, "Natural," it's my first restoration project and I'm very excited but almost wondering if I'm in over my head. It's pretty beat up. The deck plates, keel, and gunwales are rotted. The hull also has me confused. I can't tell if the canvas has been sanded off completely or just kinda. When wet, it looks nice, but the surface looks striated, not wood-like.
I need to know what kind of wood the keel, outer gunwales, inner gunwales, and deck plate are made of. I think I can fabricate and install these parts but have never done any steaming, assuming this needs to be done.
I also need to know if I need to re-canvass the canoe or not. It seems to be water-tight; there are places that seem to be translucent/very thin. Not sure if this is OK or not.
For what it's worth, I'm in the southwest part of Connecticut.