measuring a canoe

[Robertl]

dose anyone know what type of canoe this is? it was manufactured by chestnut canoe co. I'm not sure as to how to measure the length, is it from tip to tip or water line and depth is that from the top of the gunnels to the top of the rib or the planks. I'm trying to find out if this is a prospector or cruiser, fort or garry or what. It is about 17'X 15" deep X 35" wide stem is about 22" deep serial no. 47360
thanks

 

[Benson Gray]

Identifying a canoe model by dimensions alone can be difficult. Dimensions are usually measured in a straight line between the extreme points on the outside the canoe. Can you post some pictures? The information at http://www.dragonflycanoe.com/id/ in the Wood Canoe Identification Guide may help. It may also interest you that Old Town assigned serial number 47360 to a 17 foot long HW model.

Benson

 

[Robertl]

Thanks Benson, I thought I sent pictures, I don't know where they go when I push upload. I'll try again after I do some reading

 

[Robertl]

measuring canoe

this boat has a chestnut decal on it and serial no 47660 what I'm trying to determine is the type, cruiser, prospecter, bob, fort etc. it's 17ft X 35in wide X15in deep. 3 thwarts.
I'm not sure of the year it was built, I guess it's a 74.
the picture file I have tried to send was 812 KB and it's JPG but no luck must be server speed to slow

 

[Fitz]

Prospector

Robertl.

I have a 1970's vintage Chestnut 17 foot canoe that I'm just finishing up on. I call it a "Prospector". As far as I know the "Garry" etc. names were telegraph codes not really "models". The telegraph code "Garry" corresponded to a 17 foot Prospector canoe.

There are many subtle variations in dimensions in Chestnuts. Some of the Canadian pros on here can probably elaborate.

I've attached a photo of my canoe before restoration. It is now a Red "Prospector" . I haven't had a chance to shoot some updated pictures. This one gets re-christened this week.

The length on this canoe is 17 feet, the beam (outside outwale to outwale)closer to 36in. Depth in the bow is about 20 in. It has 3 thwarts, slat seats, depth is about 14.5 to 15.

PS. The serial no. on this canoe is 47084.

Try shrinking your photo size to less than 100kb and try reposting. That works for me sometimes.

Cheers!

 

[Robertl]

Yes that's it . Your's is in better shape. I have five broken ribs forward of centre two back of centre in mine. I'm scratching my head over how to repare it. I've put battens on the outside to try and hold it in shape but it does'nt look good but I'll think up something.
I'll try and figure out how to shrink pictures next and then I'll see if I can get some input.
Thanks so much for info. & pic
Bob

 

[Benson Gray]

the picture file I have tried to send was 812 KB and it's JPG but no luck must be server speed to slow

I suspect that it is the uncompressed image size is the problem here and not the server's speed. The information at http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?t=469 may help.

Benson

 

[Robertl]

well here goes lets see if we get pictures

 

[sandpiper]

Good evening guys, tell me do you normally use soft wood battens or hard wood battens and what lenght in comparison to the extend of the damages to repair. Best regards Sandpiper

 

[Todd Bradshaw]

In case it will help (and if I didn't screw up the pics) these are scans from the back of an old Chestnut catalog from the 1970's showing measurements and options - though I don't see anything which exactly matches the posted measurements.

 

[Fitz]

Here's the finished Prospector Project

Now I gotta go pack for a trip .

Fitz

 

[Robertl]

Thanks Todd, Yes your right I can't find it there either, it does look a lot like Fitz's though

 

[Robertl]

Very NICE Frtz!! I'll trade if you insist.

 

[Fitz]

Corrected.

Todd corrected me too. The older list I looked at for your boat referred to the telegraph names. I guess by the 70's they did become "models". I couldn't find an exact match for mine either, but I bought it from the original owner and he indicated it was a Chestnut Prospector "Garry".

There was quite a Prospector discussion on this board, but I think it was before the big Crash.

Good luck with your project.

 

[Robertl]

So now I need to know how I duplicate the ribs that are broken, there are five in a row that are broken, and two on the other end of centre (see pic) I took the two 5's out and made one rib out of them now I have to steam something to replace the other no. 5 and 1,2,3,4 of same end. this is going to be a problem, even the bats on the outside quite distorted

 

[Robertl]

Todd corrected me too. The older list I looked at for your boat referred to the telegraph names. I guess by the 70's they did become "models". I couldn't find an exact match for mine either, but I bought it from the original owner and he indicated it was a Chestnut Prospector "Garry".

There was quite a Prospector discussion on this board, but I think it was before the big Crash.

Good luck with your project.

With your pics and a bunch of info from here and there I think thats what I've got

 

[Dan Miller]

Chestnut Model Names

The use of telegraph codes was widespread among most, if not all canoe builders of the times. Never having used a telegraph myself, I can only speculate that the reason was to a) prevent miscommunication when referring to similar models, and b) to keep the actual time keying and receiving an order to a minimum. Old Town used telepgraph codes beginning in 1915 and continuing right through 1965.

It might help to think of Chestnut model names as similar to Genus and species. The Prospector Model clearly refers to a group of boats that are essentially the same, although the differ in overall dimensions. Yet, they are completely different from the groups of canoes refered to as Cruiser Models or Pleasure Models. Of course, when you refer to a canoe as a 16' Prospector, you pretty much know exactly what you are getting. Likewise, if you see it referred to as a Prospector Fort, you also know what you are seeing, although you might have to look up which length the Fort designation refers to. Similarly, the code "Fawn" also refers to a 16' Prospector, albeit with the vee stern. There's no real reason to get hung up on it, and you can always look up the names on the ID guide: http://www.dragonflycanoe.com/id/index.html