Identification

[Rollin Thurlow]

Can you ID this guide boat. The paint job looks original. There is a number stamped on the face of flat, brass stem bands about 3" from the top of the each stem. "1945". I don't know if that is a date or a serial number. The inside rail appears to be added after it was built but again I could be mistaken. the inside rail, seats and floor rack are held down with steel screw but just about all the other fastenings are brass or bronze. Overall the boat is in very good shape except for the planking laps on both garboards are separated and torn apart. The quality and workmanship of the planking and ribs are excellent.

 

[Michael Grace]

Hi Rollin. This looks like a Rushton Saranac Laker to me. The strip-built decks, the king plank, the decorative support underneath the decks, the stem band's end profile, the coamings... All of this looks like what's found in later Saranac Lakers.

 

[MGC]

I agree with Michael's identification. It has all of the expected "tells". It's even painted up for a good night out on the lake "poaching".
It could be nailed down with a deck length measurement (around 27 one would expect), an overall length and a width.

 

[Rollin Thurlow]

The seats could be replacements and the inside rail an addition but the number on the brass stem band kind of confused me. There is no indication of a decal or a Rushton stamp. There is no indication of having the support for a carrying yoke and the boat just doesn't look that old. Its been used so it hasn't spent all its life in storage. I was wondering if this one could be identified as being built by a latter builder as indicated by the 1945 number stamped in the stem band.

 

[Andre Cloutier]

Dont know much if anything about guide boats, but unless the camera is distorting things would Rushton have let that under deck support leave his shop? Symmetry looks way off. I'll retreat back into the shadows now...

 

[MGC]

Seats are often replacements. Even within a boathouse seats get shuffled between similar boats.
A modern build is not out of the question but the decks really do suggest a Rushton influence. Those oar brackets are also identical to ones I have seen on boats that were positively attributed.
When Rushton commercialized these boats, he added trim and ornamentation that was not common practice among the other 20 plus builders who were producing these. Those decks are one such "feature". No guide in his right mind would want those.
You may find some evidence of a stamp on either king plank. Again, I would measure that deck. If it comes in around 27 inches, that would suggest Saranac.
What are the planks fastened with?
And yes Andre, that does look kind of crude. You need to tilt your head a bit for it to come in to proper focus.

 

[Andre Cloutier]

No problem Mike, I'll engage the safety squint. Was using it last nite when i couldnt find my glasses using the skilsaw.

 

[MGC]

That safety squint can come in real handy. I use it when I trim my nails and also when I'm using the Red Rider...

 

[Andre Cloutier]

Nope, still looks cocked up.

 

[Rollin Thurlow]

If I held my head just right I could make out a J.H stamped on the kingplank. And if I squinted just right I could convince myself there was a TON on the other side of the kingplank. So that enough for me to call it a Rushton. Is the 1945 a serial number?

 

[MGC]

If I held my head just right I could make out a J.H stamped on the kingplank. And if I squinted just right I could convince myself there was a TON on the other side of the kingplank. So that enough for me to call it a Rushton. Is the 1945 a serial number?

As expected. Rushton's stamps are pretty identifiable. The font was very specific and kind of jumps out once you've seen a bunch of them.
JH Ton sounds like a winner to me. You might be able to improve it as you work on restoring the finish, but there's an equal chance that you have found all there is. Sanding the identification off happens quite often . People simply are not careful enough.
I'm thinking that you might get lucky with this one. If you strip the paint, the original shellac and varnish under the paint may have protected letters. These were originally finished with varnish, but many of them were painted by the owners to make them less visible.
WRT the numbers, yes, that would be a serial number. What it means is beyond my paygrade.
You can roughly date the boat by its style. It's a later boat, one that strays from the style of construction that was used by the true guideboat builders of that period. This has the appearance of one of his pleasure boats. These were camp boats that generally lived in boathouses.