Old Town canoe evaluation

[lesstern]

Hello,
My wife's father bought her an Old Town Canoe back in the '50s. It is green, canvas(?) covered and almost pristine, with some superficial scuffs on the surface of the canvas in a few places. The wooden interior is intact, complete with webbing on the seats and original paddles. It is #:184363 16.

Can anyone help us put a price on it? I can furnish pictures.

Thanks.

 

[MGC]

Sounds like a nice canoe.

Here is a link to a page on this site that tries to address the question of value.

http://forums.wcha.org/showthread.php?57-How-much-is-my-old-wooden-canoe-worth

Most of us will answer that question by saying: "Well, it depends" and it does.
It depends on the maker, model, condition, how much we want it etc.
You will sometimes see folks pay absurd prices for"hangers" and then watch historically significance canoes get sold for almost nothing.

In your case, there are a rules of thumb in this link that might be useful to you.
Generally if you really want to sell, price it on the lower end of the range. Otherwise you might need to be patient until the right buyer comes along for you.

Good Luck..

 

[Dave Osborn]

Check the serial number again. Numbers from the 50's are much lower in sequence than 184XXX. I suspect you have misread the 8.

 

[normsims]

Right. Number 184363 was a 16-foot canoe built in 1969-70 and shipped to St. Paul in 1972.

Norm

 

[lesstern]

Norm,

Thanks for the correction - and you are, of course, right. I was only approximating what I thought my wife had told me about the purchase date. So, given that it's a 1972 in extremely nice condition, do you think $2995 would be a good price? We're in no hurry.

Thanks.

Les

 

[lesstern]

Thanks - canoe is a 1972, per Norm Sims.

 

[cwfrench]

Photos and what part of (I assume) North America you are from might help.

 

[Kathryn Klos]

I'll give you the link to a "guide" I wrote for eBay-selling of old canoes. You're already *here* so you can speed-read that part.

http://reviews.ebay.com/Canoes-Antique-Wood-Canvas-Selling-Guide_W0QQugidZ10000000007165036

I hope that's helpful.
Kathy

 

[ken.kelly]

is $2995 a good price

Les,
smart of you to inquire and learn from the forum community here. As MGC accurately reported, $2995 may be a good price, but 'it depends'...show us some photos and someone from our group should post your build record.
1970 Old Towns are not particularly collectable...it is too new. However, depending on the canoe model, trim, paint, what accessories (paddles, seat back rests, sailing stuff, etc) go with it... $2995 may be attainable.
Right now my experience is the market is slow. I have had success selling a $400 canoe that needs total restoration, but not a $1300 canoe that is relatively rare and ready to go to the water...a better buy for most, but larger spend reduces the number of buyers.
I'd recommend you list the canoe with photos on craigslist as travel expenses are an issue for most buyers now, you will most likely find a local buyer through those ads. eBay is another good way to get maximum exposure for your sale and more likely find the right buyer.
I've also had sales success showing canoes at local wooden boat shows. This might be more effort than you want to put in, but they usually have a display area for small craft, usually on shore, so you don't have to put it in the water. Put a For Sale sign in it and you'll talk to many potential buyers during the course of the show. If you are not familiar with any local wooden boat shows check with local wood boat restoration service providers, local marina, or boat supply store like Boaters World - since most show people will get a notice to those types of places.
Good luck.

 

[normsims]

Les,

Just for your records, here is the build record for Old Town Canoe #184363.

The scan of this record is attached below-- click on it to get a larger image. This scan and several hundred thousand others were created with substantial grants from the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association (WCHA) and others. A description of the project to preserve these records is available at http://www.wcha.org/ot_records/ if you want more details. I hope that you and anyone else reading this will join or renew membership in the WCHA so that services like this can continue. See http://www.wcha.org/wcha/ to learn more about the WCHA and http://www.wcha.org/join.php to renew.

If you are selling your canoe and plan to use this build record information as part of an ad, please consider giving the WCHA credit for this information on eBay or craigslist or wherever your canoe is listed.

Norm