Brodbeck Planking pattern

[Michael Grace]

I love early AA-grade Old Towns, particularly up through the mid-teens. Double gunwales are very nice, as are the open gunwales (and nothing wrong with closed gunwales). Wonderful canoes. My AA-grade double gunwale is a canoe I cherish, but even it (compared to canoes from some other makers) has a bit of a bathtub feel. That's not meant to incite anger and I hate to say it about a canoe I love, but it just doesn't have the elegance - to me - of some other canoes. I think the lines of my 1916 AA Otcas are much prettier, but still not as elegant as some others. These 1916 Otcas have some very nice details including chamfered gunwales, and open gunwales that transition at the ends to double gunwales. This attention to detail took forethought and skill. And I have a 15' AA-grade torpedo-stemmed Old Town - very unusual and very interesting... but not as elegant as... So I do appreciate Old Towns, very much.

But for sheer beauty and pleasure on the water, Morris canoes are fantastic. The shapes of the stems, sheer, and hull overall are gorgeous to this person's eye, and the attention to detail is exceptional. I've got a variety of Morris canoes that are all-original and in extraordinary condition, every one. Not one of them has a failed gunwale or a failed stem. One Morris I got literally as a collection of pieces and put it all back together. After traveling all around the country as bits and pieces strapped together, the restored canoe is all original with no damage to gunwales or stems. On paper the rib pocketing may not seem like such a good idea in hindsight, but in one person's personal experience it has proven itself robust over more than 100 years, at least 6 or 8 times over (one or two are open gunwales canoes). No rot and no weaknesses apparent, and no lumps or bumps apparent - just smooth gunwale lines full length on both sides of every canoe.

As for Brodbeck, it's much the same - just exquisite fit and finish, and lines that are pure elegance. But of course all of this is simply personal preference and opinion, and I happily accept this.

 

[chris pearson]

As to Mikes comment, the one thing that does stand out is this, when you think about the huge number of canoes put out by Old Town, I would very well expect to see more variation than you do. Over the many years, tons of lumber, and many different hands touching them, they still represent quality. I worked in the skill trades my whole life and see variation in many things, Old Town is not one of them. Think about this for a moment, how the hell did those guys achieve such high standards across the lifespan of production? Okay, jigs, fixtures, etc but you are still working with natural products that are flawed and also hand made. Just wow. Who was in charge of quality control? Boy would I ever have loved to have been on the inside of that operation.
I see the art in Morris canoes without a doubt, Brodbecks too, but much less volume equals ability to run a tighter ship….

 

[chris pearson]

Oh, I almost forgot, art is in the eye of the beholder and what really gets my heart pumping are the lines of the grass roots super early ones, can you say Gerrish?

 

[MGC]

When I bought my first canoes, I was not thinking about anything except function. The centerboard Old Town, I thought it would be fun to sail (it was). My first Indian Girl, I knew what it was and wanted to paddle it but the first canoe I spent a lot of time paddling was an OT Ideal. I did somewhat appreciate the aesthetic, but function came first for me back then. I paddled that canoe from Greenville to Fort Kent twice, never swamped....
Since then and after owning so many different canoes from so many builders I kind of settled into loving my Morris for paddling on easy short (3 or 4 day) trips, my White for longer ones (5 plus days) and the Traveler for just about everything once I had access to one.
Once I got my Indian Girl restored, my wife and I decided that it is a much better paddling canoe than the Morris, albeit a bit more tender, but I think that is part of what we like about it. It scares less experienced paddlers, just as my Chestnut Fox scared its first owners. Mess up and you are wet. The older Old Towns, ones like my 07 DG, those canoes are of that same ilk. They "feel" like a canoe for someone who is not put off by a quick hull. In the teens hulls gradually got mushy, wider, safer and less tender. To my style they are not canoes I want to own... My Gerrish has that older more tender "feel" and as such, it is also a canoe I love paddling.
I guess living here in New York, we see the worst of what poor weather and careless ownership will do to a canoe...consequently, many Morris I have dealt with have had rotted out inside rails. The one I have now, the Veazie I gave to Howie, several others that I "flipped", all rotten.
I think your comments about Old Town are spot on and I totally agree about Gerrish. And as I noted, we loved paddling our Morris until we decided the Indian Girl is better.
Whatever the case, there is always room for differing opinions. It's wonderful that so many builders made all of these old canoes for us to acquire and fuss with.

 

[JClearwater]

This thread certainly has drifted. I originally started this thread to show the planking pattern on the older Brodbeck I picked up for those among us who are interested in planking patterns as a way to help identify unmarked canoes. It has gone sideways since then.

Jim

 

[Michael Grace]

Your original intent is much appreciated, Jim. Please add more information as you find it.

 

[chris pearson]

This thread certainly has drifted. I originally started this thread to show the planking pattern on the older Brodbeck I picked up for those among us who are interested in planking patterns as a way to help identify unmarked canoes. It has gone sideways since then.

Jim

Apologies Jim.

 

[MGC]

My apologies as well Jim. It seems like you tapped into some pent up Brodbeck fervor. What could be useful is for others to add related images to yours to round out the discussion about Brodbeck patterns and the build quality discussion these generated.

 

[dtdcanoes]

Well, I love this particular drift and I suspect it confirms what many of us feel about the canoe as an art object. Thanks Jim for bringing the canoe out and for the experience it provoked. I think even the roughest builder responded to the canoe as an art object without knowing it. Just sayin', in another small drift. Pics and more pics, please.
Dave