Murat V
LOVES Wooden Canoes
Hi all. Relatively new member here hoping some of the experienced WCHAers out there can help me with some basic id. I'm negotiating a trade for this cedar canvas. Owner claims it is a Chestnut but cannot verify. I understand that chestnut serial numbers are pretty much useless anyway to ascertain age.
Canoe's stats are: 15ft long with a 33" width. Ash gunnels are starting to get some typical blackening. Original cane seats were torn and replaced with simple wooden boards.
What caught my attention with this model are the narrow 1 1/2 wide ribs with what looks to be narrow cedar planking. When I built a 14footer with Pam Wedd 2 summers ago, we used 3-1/2" to 4" wide planking for the bulk of the hull.
A cursory bit of research found that the length, width, and rib sizes are consistent with a Chestnut Chum or Doe. Of course I'm probably wrong but I'm wondering how common the narrow planking is in Chestnut boats and whether this feature is useful for ascertaining builders or age?
Also, a restoration attempt by a previous owner involved a spliced gunnels near the bow deck. Having never done a repair like this, I'm wondering if the angle of the scarf joint in the attached pic of the deck is too steep? Many scarf joints repairs I've seen involve a much more shallow angle and longer joint face. Does anyone think the scarf on this repair would compromise the canoe in some way? Sorry if this is a dumb question.
Many thanks to anyone who can offer some feedback.
Canoe's stats are: 15ft long with a 33" width. Ash gunnels are starting to get some typical blackening. Original cane seats were torn and replaced with simple wooden boards.
What caught my attention with this model are the narrow 1 1/2 wide ribs with what looks to be narrow cedar planking. When I built a 14footer with Pam Wedd 2 summers ago, we used 3-1/2" to 4" wide planking for the bulk of the hull.
A cursory bit of research found that the length, width, and rib sizes are consistent with a Chestnut Chum or Doe. Of course I'm probably wrong but I'm wondering how common the narrow planking is in Chestnut boats and whether this feature is useful for ascertaining builders or age?
Also, a restoration attempt by a previous owner involved a spliced gunnels near the bow deck. Having never done a repair like this, I'm wondering if the angle of the scarf joint in the attached pic of the deck is too steep? Many scarf joints repairs I've seen involve a much more shallow angle and longer joint face. Does anyone think the scarf on this repair would compromise the canoe in some way? Sorry if this is a dumb question.
Many thanks to anyone who can offer some feedback.