Need identification help, Old Town??

[irondragon79]

I just rescued an older wood canoe with hopes of being able to repair and use it again. Its a 16fter, wood rib/planking covered in fiberglass. It has the diamond shape bolts so I'm suspecting its an Old Town?? The gunwales, decks, and seats need repair/replacement, but the ribs appear to be sound. It also has several cracks in the fiberglass, but those are easy to repair.

Anybody have any idea on the maker, model, and possible age? Also would the fiberglass have been original, or a replacement for canvas? I've looked for a serial number on both stems but haven't found anything.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Jon

 

[Dave Osborn]

It IS an Old Town....newer than 1920...
The glass should be removed, especially if you want to do proper repairs.
There should be serial numbers on both the bow and stern stem. If you post that number on this forum you will be able to get the factory build record to find out your canoe's birthday and more!

 

[irondragon79]

I've looked at both stems with no luck. Anybody have a sample pic of what i should be looking for?

 

[Michael Grace]

I've looked at both stems with no luck. Anybody have a sample pic of what i should be looking for?

Hi Jon,

I agree that your canoe looks like an Old Town, and it may be a Guide model in CS grade (spruce and ash or oak trim), from the late teens or early 20s. The date estimate is from the shape of the deck cutout (rectangle in photo 2 below) which is an early style, along with the presence of diamond-head bolts. Your serial number, if it wasn't sanded off at some point, would be on the upper face of each stem in the region of the ovals in the two photos below. It's possible that varnish is obscuring it; if so, apply some stripper to those areas and see if you can uncover anything. A number of the good folks here can probably provide you with a copy of the original build record if you can find the serial number.

Your canoe is very restorable. At a glance, it appears to need mostly repairs rather than parts replacement. Just my opinion, but I agree with Dave - if it were mine, I'd remove the 'glass and go back to canvas.

Well, for some reason I can't seem to post photos now but the serial numbers should be on the upper face of each stem, over the last foot or so before the stem ends in the floor of the canoe. The digits can be very faint sometimes. You might try a strong light at a low angle. Yours should have 5 digits followed by a space, and then a "16" for the length.

Michael

 

[irondragon79]

The gunwales are spruce I'm pretty sure, I'll check again for the serial number in daylight, thanks a bunch nice to know I made a good find. Found this canoe dumped out on state forest land and left to rot, had been there a while.

 

[Kathryn Klos]

Video showing serial numbers on an Old Town: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plUn6oHDHyQ

 

[irondragon79]

Looks like the numbers are pretty worn off, one set looks to be missing all together, and was only able to make out a 7 on the other. Going to try an clean off a little varnish (thinking toothbrush and laquer thinner??) Any other suggestions?

 

[Kathryn Klos]

Taking a picture with a digital camera (or phone) and posting here can help, as a digital picture is often better than the human eye and many eyes looking at the results may come up with a serial number.

 

[irondragon79]

Did a little scrubbing with warm water and a toothbrush on the stern stem. It only looks like a partial, but maybe it would be a start. I see a 1 and a 3, the large capital I, and possibly a faint 2 just left of the I... I could also be just seeing things