Hi - the build record for my current project - 1922 OT HW 16 footer - has the color as brown, but also states "Japan oil". Was this an additive to make a harder finish, or did it make a certain color? Thanks.
The "Japan oil" on your build record was probably a drying agent to accelerate the curing of the paint. The article at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_drying_agent has more details. It was commonly used by Old Town during that period but was discontinued due to the other problems that it created.