Need Some Restoration Advice

norm vandal

New Member
Hello all,

This is my first post and thereby my first WCHA questions. To begin, I am restoring an Alden Kingsbury torpedo canoe with short decks. The canoe is in pretty fine shape overall, with just a couple planks to replace. However, a few issues prompt me to reach out for a little advice.

- The stems are really sound but are full of tack and outside stem screw holes. Is there any substance I can use to fill all these hole so my new tacks will grab more and so the stem might be further strengthened? I know I could use a thickened epoxy filler but it would be too hard and brittle for the new tacks. Anyone out there with suggestions?

- The canoe has closed gunwales and the planks come right up to the tops of the ribs. The planks are really thinned down here, almost to feather out. They contact the inwale. Here and there they cracked from tacks and are pulled away, so I thought I would use a little TiteBond III to glue them tightly in place. That way I would be sure they wouldn't crack off with the canvas tacks and I could level off the top of the gunwale. Okay idea?

- I was thinking of plugging the tack holes with pins made from wooden matches so the tacks would grab more. Okay idea? Or, is there any other material that suits this purpose.

- The original canvas tacks were steel, likely since the tacks go into the hardwood gunwale (ash). Should I use steel again?

Thank you kindly for your help.
Norm Vandal
Roxbury, VT
 
Norm,

These two products work like magic for the badly perforated wood of a stem that may have been re canvassed several times. I keep them both on my bench and find lots of uses for them. Shelf life is indefinite. The cured material is light weight and behaves like wood. Cure times can be a bit long. Warming with heat gun or lights is effective.

SculpWood Putty is a 2-component, solvent free, kneadable epoxy. It is moldable, carvable, lightweight, strong, and exhibits excellent adhesion to a variety of substrates. It is easily sanded and will accept paint, screws and nails.

Sculpwood Paste is a 2-component, spreadable, waterproof paste for filling cracks and defects in rot-damaged wood. It spreads easily; won't sag, drag or pull. An excellent companion for Sculpwood Putty where filling cracks is needed.

Here are a couple photos of a recent application of the putty on a 100+ year old stem. The tacks felt firmly set upon driving each one. Several days of curing time preceded doing any tacking. It sands easily.
 

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Thanks much,
This seems like just what I need. I ordered some on Amazon. It's all a learning process made less painful through the help of others.
Norm Vandal
Roxbury, VT
 
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