Old Town, 1913, Charles River 17 - Stem Profile

[chipfitzgerald]

Well the holidays are over and the garage is cleaned out and I'm ready to start working on this canoe. My first task is to replace the missing upper sections of the stems.

Does anyone how the profile/shape of the upper half of the stems for a Old Town 17 ft, 1913 Charles River should look? Is there anyplace where I can get this information?

 

[Treewater]

I don't have what you need but having just done this repair I can tell you that you need find someone with a similar canoe and ask them to mail you a traced, or cut out pattern of the stem. You will use it often to get the right profile. Good luck.

 

[Benson Gray]

The pictures and information at http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?3823-Double-gunwales&p=19415#post19415 show a 16 foot long Charles River model from 1907. This one has double mahogany gunwales but the shape of the stem should be the same. The catalog page at http://forums.wcha.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=23445&d=1351110795 from 1909 may also help. Let us know if this doesn't answer your question.

Benson

 

[woodcanoenut]

1913/14 Charles River 17' Stem view.

John Kimpel
Attached are some photes of a 1913/14 Charles River Canoe that I am in the process of repairing the stems. Hopefully they may give you an idea of what the stem looks like. I have the original outer stem bands that will match up and blend with the original outer gunnels. My canoe is Old Town Serial number #28689. Half ribs must have been added after the fact, because I noticed that they had brass tacks and the regular tibs had copper tacks. Anyway, hope this is of some help.
John

 

[chipfitzgerald]

Thank you, this will be helpful!!

Chip

 

[chipfitzgerald]

Thank you, John, this excellent information. What material did you use for the new stems? Also, its not clear to me how the new stems mate to the gunnels. Do they mate below the point where the gunnels come together or gunnels come together and mate behind the stems?

Chip

 

[Fitz]

The inwales mate ahead of the tip of the deck and the stem end butts under the ends of the inwales. Two steel nails were driven through the sides of the inwales into the end of the stem. Typical stem material is ash or maybe oak.

 

[Larry Meyer]

Goo to the Knowledge base, where Treewater has just finished posting an item on repairing rotten OT tips. The path is well blazed

 

[Larry Meyer]

See repairing stem tips in knowledge base for complete guide to the job

 

[David Satter]

1923 AA if it helps. Dave Satter

 

[Treewater]

Ref, Kimpel, Nice looking stem repair.