Old Town Molitor Hull #173995
- Thread starter Aurele-F
- Start date
Kathryn Klos
squirrel whisperer
Old Town 173995 is a 17 foot Molitor model canoe built on the Otca form and finished June-July of 1964. It has half ribs, outside stems, a keel, narrow 2 3/4" planking, lightweight ribs, dacron covering instead of canvas, a rudder, mast seat and step, and two painter rings. Oddly, the starboard side of the canoe was given design #4 and the port side was finished with design #46. The canoe was shipped to Kents Hill, ME, on June 1, 1965 and returned to the factory June 16, 1965. No notations are made on the back of the build record which would indicate why the canoe went back to the factory. It certainly seems to be a special order. Maybe it went back to have both sides turned into #4 or #46. How does it look today?
A copy 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 will join or renew your membership to 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 join.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match your canoe. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.
A copy 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 will join or renew your membership to 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 join.
It is also possible that you could have another number or manufacturer if this description doesn't match your canoe. Feel free to reply here if you have any other questions.
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Thank you for the info I purchased this cacone new back in 1966 an have had it sense I am in the process of refinishing it again the design is now #46 the dacron may have to be replaced because of small pinholes from sand between planking & cover when I purchased it I was told that it was used for the 1965 catalog picture that was the reasion for the two diffrent colors AGAIN THANK YOU Frank LeBlanc
Kathryn Klos
squirrel whisperer
Great history! I figured the canoe was probably used for display in some way. The attached image is the cover of the 1965 catalog... very cool, Frank! If you need any advice regarding the restoration of your canoe, there are many here with a lot of knowledge. The Molitor model itself has an interesting history, and yours has great personal history. Thanks for sharing it.
Kathy
P.S. For those who don't know, the catalog cover shows the canoe with #4 design, and the other image is #46. Images courtesy "The Complete Old Town Canoe Company Catalog Collection, 1901- 1993", available on CD from http://www.wcha.org/catalog/ and http://www.dragonflycanoe.com/cdrom.htm on the web.
Kathy
P.S. For those who don't know, the catalog cover shows the canoe with #4 design, and the other image is #46. Images courtesy "The Complete Old Town Canoe Company Catalog Collection, 1901- 1993", available on CD from http://www.wcha.org/catalog/ and http://www.dragonflycanoe.com/cdrom.htm on the web.
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I could Use any help I can get working with the Dacron Thank You Frank L
Bruce Nett was a photographer so this canoe allowed him to select the design to match the scene that he wanted to photograph. The postcard attached below shows the other side of this canoe. Dacron can be difficult to work with but I can't offer any specific tips. Good luck,
Benson
Benson
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Last summer was very busy so I'm sorry to be getting back to you so late about this. The Old Town Featherweight model with Dacron covering was listed in the catalogs from 1966 to 1974. It would take a detailed search of many thousands of records to determine how many Molitor models were made with Dacron but I suspect that only a few were. The decals from the early 1960s have not been reproduced. I have one original if anyone wants to get some made. Please reply here if this doesn't answer your question and I will try to respond more quickly. Thanks,
Benson
