70’s Paisley camo colored 16’ canoe

[Pat C]

Hello all, I'm new here, I’m trying to get some details on my canoe I’ve owned for close to 35 years believe it or not but I digress. I’m trying to run my serial # to get some info on it. I’ve enclosed a few pictures of my canoe. Thanks on advance any help would be much appreciated. Pat

 

[Benson Gray]

Welcome and congratulations, the Old Town canoe with serial number 182762 is a 16 foot long FG (fiberglass) model that weighed 83 pounds. It was built in April, 1969. The original exterior gelcoat colors were white on the deck with a breakout design on the hull. It shipped on May 1st, 1969 to Lavallette, New Jersey. A scan of this build record can be found below.

This scan and several hundred thousand more were created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others. A description of the project to preserve these records is available at http://www.wcha.org/catalogs/old-town/records/ if you want more details. I hope that you will donate, join or renew your membership to the WCHA so that services like this can continue. See https://www.woodencanoe.org/about to learn more about the WCHA and https://www.woodencanoe.org/shop to donate or join.

It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match. This design was was featured on the catalog cover as shown at https://www.wcha.org/catalogs/old-town/covers/large-69.gif in 1969. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.

Benson

 

[Pat C]

Thanks so much I appreciate it! It does ned to be restored at this point are there any resources or tips to repair it without hiding the original color scheme?

 

[Benson Gray]

Many fiberglass repairs can be done on the inside but this depends on the type of issue to be fixed. The exterior colors have faded from exposure to bright sunlight. Those can't easily be restored, unfortunately. Good luck with the project,

Benson

 

[Pat C]

I figured that, when I purchased it the guy brought the boat up the street dragging it behind his 10 speed bike! Ugh worse case I could try and see how it comes out worse case I give it a new color besides the gel coat and resin the boat doesn’t have any structural issues and still has life in it. Thanks

 

[Worth Gretter]

Pat, you have nothing to lose by trying a little test on the outside of that unique pattern. I had good luck filling gel coat scratches on fiberglass canoes with epoxy fairing compound. Some gentle sanding of the fairing compound, followed by a coat of clear epoxy, might brighten up the bottom enough that you would want to keep it.

 

[Pat C]

Where would I find the epoxy fairing compound? I bet it would come up pretty good any other ideas would be appreciated. I am moving soon from nj to TN. The lakes and water ways have a lot of rocks but I think it would do ok. Or at least I’d like to se it go to someone who’d appreciate it like I have in the past.

 

[Worth Gretter]

Pat, other people on this site have recommended Total Boat products from Jamestown Distributors, a very big marine supply place. I have had great service from Jamestown but have not used their fairing compound (but would not hesitate to try it). Instead, I have made my own using what I had on hand, which was System 3 epoxy and phenolic micro-balloons. Micro-balloons come in phenolic and glass but I haven't tried glass. Micro-balloons are tiny and fragile, and you mix in as many as possible without thickening the epoxy too much. The result is a filler that is strong (but not strong enough for gluing) and also easy to sand (because the microballoons break). You need a coat of epoxy after sanding to fill the broken micro-balloons. The System 3 site has lots more info, as does the Gougeon site (make of West Marine epoxy).
Hope this helps!
-Worth

 

[MGC]

Pat,
It's not clear what sort of "restoration" your canoe needs. Does it have cracks, crazing or scratches you are trying to sort out? Or, are you simply trying to restore the paisley pattern to a more shiny appearance.
The paisley pattern (if you plan to keep it) suggests a slightly different approach should be used to fill voids/cracks etc. It suggests that you should be filling those defects with something that sets clear.
If this were my boat, I would first give it a very through cleaning, and then experiment on a very small area to see what can be done to pull the color back up and improve the shine. I'd be tempted to try a buffing compound in a few spots followed by a good quality marine wax. Again, do this in a very small area just to see what the outcome will be. If you like the result (do not expect it to look like new again) then return to the restoration of the damage, whatever that might be. I would use West Systems thickened G-Flex in each of the cracks or gouges. I would apply it in tiny amounts exactly where it needs to be using syringes. What is nice about G-Flex is that it will stay put and fill without the need for opaque fillers. It can be trimmed, sanded, leveled etc. and it cures both hard and flexible. Once it is set, you can wet sand/polish wherever you applied it. It will look a bit shinier than the adjacent areas, but once you buff out the rest of the hull and wax it, these repairs should not be as obvious.
Or......you can sand the entire hull and recoat it with epoxy, paint, whatever... Some folks apply clear varnish to "restore" the appearance. I prefer not to do that since the effort required to bring a good finish to one of these old beasts is rarely worthwhile. It's nearly 55 years old. It deserves to look like it's been around the block a time or two.

Edit: Upon further thought, I neglected to mention a few things. In your cleanup process, do not use any products with silicon in them. Silicon is the enemy when you are working on hull repairs and finishes. Also, be sure to clean any local that you will repair with a product that will both clean and dissipate. I once maintained a fleet of these OT glass canoes. They were used hard and repaired frequently. I went through gallons of acetone doing the repairs.
Finally, if there are breaks that require real repair, post some images so that we can walk through the options.

 

[Todd Bradshaw]

I could be wrong, because it's been a long time, but if I remember correctly this

"Breakout" pattern and also their "Burma Teak" faux woodgrain pattern were achieved be laminating a printed piece of paper or very light cloth under an outer layer of clear gelcoat. Then the fiberglass and bottom balsa floor inside were added. The fading is happening to the printed piece buried inside the layup and there is no good way to restore the color, other than to repaint it on the outside. What you can do is to polish the glossy outer clear layer, but the muted colors will remain that way with kind of a camo look, which isn't all that bad.

catalog photo from around 1970

 

[Pat C]

Yes that’s exactly it ! Breakout pattern I found an ad on Google some year's ago that shows it on top of a Nissan 280 Z I believe, and a guy in 70’s gym shorts getting ready for adventure at a lake.

 

[Pat C]

I will definitely take the advice you guys are giving me, I do have some experience re-doing fiberglass I had a 14’ 1964 speed boat with a 40 hp Johnson if the same year on it. And I’m familiar with testing products in small areas I do stone and tile work for a living and that’s something I find myself doing often.
I will say that there aren’t any terrible cracks or structural issues with the boat. But definitely larger pieces of clear coat chipped off the keel, where the knuckle head I got it from it on pavement behind a bicycle (ugh) it seems the gelcoat is thin or oxidized away (if that’s a thing) even way back when I would go out in it, and the hill would “sweat” beads of water through the bottom. It never took on enough water to be an issue except for a wet deck. If I can get the color up a little that’s fine, it definitely doesn’t have to be perfect , worse case I repair it and give it a new color. I will put some more detailed pictures of what I’m looking to fix as soon as the storm passes here.
Thanks again for your guys advice I appreciate it.
Pat C

 

[Pat C]

I could be wrong, because it's been a long time, but if I remember correctly thisView attachment 54885 "Breakout" pattern and also their "Burma Teak" faux woodgrain pattern were achieved be laminating a printed piece of paper or very light cloth under an outer layer of clear gelcoat. Then the fiberglass and bottom balsa floor inside were added. The fading is happening to the printed piece buried inside the layup and there is no good way to restore the color, other than to repaint it on the outside. What you can do is to polish the glossy outer clear layer, but the muted colors will remain that way with kind of a camo look, which isn't all that bad.

catalog photo from around 1970

It definitely didn’t start out this color scheme but the pattern is spot on.

 

[Nick Dennis]

Am I reading the build weight correctly at 83 lbs?

 

[Pat C]

Am I reading the build weight correctly at 83 lbs?

Let me take a look at the sheet

 

[Pat C]

Am I reading the build weight correctly at 83 lbs?

That’s what it says it could be 83 I know I can carry it over my head fairly easily when I had to portage it.

 

[Pat C]

Pat,
It's not clear what sort of "restoration" your canoe needs. Does it have cracks, crazing or scratches you are trying to sort out? Or, are you simply trying to restore the paisley pattern to a more shiny appearance.
The paisley pattern (if you plan to keep it) suggests a slightly different approach should be used to fill voids/cracks etc. It suggests that you should be filling those defects with something that sets clear.
If this were my boat, I would first give it a very through cleaning, and then experiment on a very small area to see what can be done to pull the color back up and improve the shine. I'd be tempted to try a buffing compound in a few spots followed by a good quality marine wax. Again, do this in a very small area just to see what the outcome will be. If you like the result (do not expect it to look like new again) then return to the restoration of the damage, whatever that might be. I would use West Systems thickened G-Flex in each of the cracks or gouges. I would apply it in tiny amounts exactly where it needs to be using syringes. What is nice about G-Flex is that it will stay put and fill without the need for opaque fillers. It can be trimmed, sanded, leveled etc. and it cures both hard and flexible. Once it is set, you can wet sand/polish wherever you applied it. It will look a bit shinier than the adjacent areas, but once you buff out the rest of the hull and wax it, these repairs should not be as obvious.
Or......you can sand the entire hull and recoat it with epoxy, paint, whatever... Some folks apply clear varnish to "restore" the appearance. I prefer not to do that since the effort required to bring a good finish to one of these old beasts is rarely worthwhile. It's nearly 55 years old. It deserves to look like it's been around the block a time or two.

Edit: Upon further thought, I neglected to mention a few things. In your cleanup process, do not use any products with silicon in them. Silicon is the enemy when you are working on hull repairs and finishes. Also, be sure to clean any local that you will repair with a product that will both clean and dissipate. I once maintained a fleet of these OT glass canoes. They were used hard and repaired frequently. I went through gallons of acetone doing the repairs.
Finally, if there are breaks that require real repair, post some images so that we can walk through the options.

Yeah, no major structural issues with it just typical thin cracks from age on the seats but not horrible most of the repairs are going yo be to the Hull filling what needs to be filled and coating it with whatever is best after that. I will get better pictures of what needs to be done. Soon. Thanks

 

[Benson Gray]

Am I reading the build weight correctly at 83 lbs?

The 1969 catalog page below listed this model at 82 pounds so this is not far over. I have one that is 89 pounds as shown in the build record below.

Benson