Hello, I am looking for information on a canoe that our family has had stored for several decades, but which I have just recently begun to paddle and really enjoyed. This is an aluminum canoe, not wood, but I have had trouble finding information on it and thought I would approach this forum for help. Serial number is listed in the thread title (LWNY8861M81H-18•6MAR). The label affixed to the canoe identifies it as produced by Beaver Canoes in Taneyville, MO. My father says it is a Marathon model. Any other information, history, or direction to further information is much appreciated. Thank you!
Lwny8861m81h-18•6mar
- Thread starter bbc37
- Start date
The LWN at the beginning indicates that you may have a canoe from Lowe Industries as described at http://uscgboating.org/content/manufacturers-identification-detail2.php?id=7613 that shipped in March of 1981. It appears that they went out of business in 1993 so there might not be much more information available. There is a similarly named company at https://www.loweboats.com/ but their web site doesn't list any canoes. See http://www.boatsafe.com/nauticalknowhow/hin.htm for more details about decoding hull identification numbers like this. A similar canoe is described at http://www.rivermiles.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1445962266/0 and identified as a "a lowe line beaver canoe." Good luck,
Benson
Benson
Todd Bradshaw
Sailmaker
I was actually a Beaver canoe dealer for a short period (late 1970s or so). They had the idea of making a really fast aluminum canoe similar in design to a USCA cruiser marathon racing boat. They were long, low, and drastically more streamlined than the typical Grumman, Alumacraft, Smoker Craft, Ouachita, etc. aluminum canoes that were available. Since marathon races often had a separate aluminum canoe class, the Beavers were a very obvious choice if you wanted to win. I'm not sure how sophisticated their molding equipment was, compared to the big companies, but the fact that marathon-style hulls tend to have straight lines, no hollows and plumb stems probably helped reduce the need for expensive manufacturing equipment.
As far as I know, they went out of business after a rather short run and the rumor was that it had to do with somebody in the company getting a divorce, but I know nothing about the details or accuracy of all that.
As far as I know, they went out of business after a rather short run and the rumor was that it had to do with somebody in the company getting a divorce, but I know nothing about the details or accuracy of all that.
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Hi, thank you for the informative replies! Fascinating to learn some history associated with our Beaver canoe. Todd, it looks just like the one in your photo (with different seats). Our forward seat is on adjustable rails, which I think was so the forward paddler could adjust their fore/aft position in the canoe in order to balance weight with the rear paddler to maximize efficiency in the water.
We plan to enjoy paddling our Beaver for many years to come, but out of curiosity -- given the short manufacturing timeline and superior speed of aluminum Beaver racers, would a good-condition one be of any value on the re-sale or collector market? We're mostly curious whether it's worth insuring the canoe.
We plan to enjoy paddling our Beaver for many years to come, but out of curiosity -- given the short manufacturing timeline and superior speed of aluminum Beaver racers, would a good-condition one be of any value on the re-sale or collector market? We're mostly curious whether it's worth insuring the canoe.
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pklonowski
Unrepentant Canoeist
This discussion: http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?57-How-much-is-my-old-wooden-canoe-worth might help place value on the canoe. It's focused on wooden canoes, of course, but many of the same concepts apply.
