1936 Old Town OTCA

[D.Mac]

Hello all, new member here. My name is Doug and I live near the Eel River, a few miles from it's mouth, which is south of Humboldt Bay in northern California.
I recently purchased a 1936 OT Otca canoe, and thanks to Benson I have a copy of the build sheet, but I have some questions regarding some of the "features"on this canoe. The P.O. said his father had this canoe restored in the 1980's "by a guy who was supposed to be knowledgeable",but that was about all he knew about it. It was re-canvased at the time and the canvas job looks good, some ribs had short pieces scarfed on, apparently to repair rot as a few other ribs are a bit rough at the top and could have been re-done at the same time. So, now to the questions: the keel looks nice front and back, was probably replaced, it has no brass stem bands- would it have had them originally? Next issue- mahogany caps were installed on decks, front and back, although I don't see any damage below, I assume the decks suffered the same fate as the top of the ribs. I'm sure this thing didn't ship this way, but I think I'll leave them alone for now. One thing that I would like to do is install hooks and rings for painters front and back, I don't see them on many of these older canoes, but I don't suppose they would be any worse than the "caps"already there. Is there a good source for some period correct hardware? Also, any comments on the seat frames mounted to the ribs? I think this done when it was re-canvased, but I can't see any evidence of mounting holes(on the gunnels). I'm attaching a few pics.
Thanks, Doug

 

[Michael Grace]

Hi Doug,

Your canoe has had considerable work done to it in the past. The deck tip caps are not original and they are likely covering up some damage (probably rot, which is very common at the tips). And yes, your canoe would have had a brass stem band on each end. The seats would not normally be mounted on cleats in an Old Town canoe, but anything is possible. If you don't have mounting holes in the inwales, then either the inwales have been replaced or seats were never mounted below the inwales. It is possible that your canoe never had seats at all or that they were mounted like this, but most Old Towns had seats mounted by bolts inserted through the inwales. One from 1936 would have had diamond-headed bolts, and their imprint pattern would be unmistakeable in the inwales. The deck plate is also an addition - a decal would have been used in 1936.

As for painter rings, attached here is a photo of the style most often seen on Old Town canoes. These were provided at the factory. Today they are available from Island Falls Canoe Co. (https://www.islandfallscanoe.com/old-town-parts-and-materials.aspx). Diamond-headed bolts and brass stem bands are available there too, or you can get them from Northwoods Canoe Co. (https://www.wooden-canoes.com/canoes/materials/hardware/). Period-correct deck decals are available through the WCHA store (https://www.woodencanoe.org/shop).

I hope this helps,
Michael

 

[D.Mac]

Hello Michael,
Thanks for your reply, and the helpful information. The thwarts and yoke are attached with their diamond head bolts, the inwales look original, and have some old holes plugged, but not in the location or pattern for the seat mounts. Further inspection of the the cleats seems to show as much "patina" as the ribs and planking, and the seat frames, which also show some age, would have to move towards the center as they are too wide to hang in the present location. I don't think I'll worry too much about the seats for now.
I wondered if original style decals were available, it will look much better than the plate. I already peeled off the hideous white vinyl "OLD TOWN" stick on decals that had been stuck on the sides.
Doug.

 

[Michael Grace]

You're welcome, Doug. I meant to mention that Old Town canoes were sometimes built without seats, or with thwarts in place of seats (often for Boy Scouts camps). And note that the screws holding your seats to the cleats are Phillips - Old Town would have used slotted screws.