Red brass stem bands

[chris pearson]

Hi guys. Does anyone have a pair of red brass stem bands I can purchase from them? I’m restoring the 1922 OT Charles River and don’t wanna put new brass ones on it I can help it! One coat of stain is on!!!

 

[Rollin Thurlow]

Chris, do you mean copper stem bands?

 

[chris pearson]

Old school Old Town, yes?

 

[chris pearson]

Rollin, I thought they were red brass because they are harder than copper?

 

[Maxtoon]

Red brass contains more than 80% copper, 8-10% tin, 2-4% zinc and small quantities of lead. Yellow brass, on the other hand, contains 60-70% copper and 30-40% zinc, tin and lead. When casting reproduction boat hardware for pre-1930's boats red brass was predominate. I believe it was more corrosion resistant

 

[MGC]

My 06 had it's original stem bands on it and they were indeed a reddish color. It's subtle but a detail that the trained eye could pick out.

 

[Andre Cloutier]

Chris I will buy all the overflow you get lol. have a couple boats but cant even silver solder them, pieces are missing. cheers and good luck. PS you suck.

 

[Michael Grace]

Unfortunately I don't have any to spare, Chris, but lately I've restored a number of Old Towns with red brass stembands. To my eye, the difference between these and yellow brass is striking. I love the red brass. It tarnishes faster and takes more effort to keep polished, but it's worth it. Here's the latest one, a 1938 Yankee (it's floor rack has red brass turn buttons as well, though not visible here):

 

[dtdcanoes]

Very clean and very nice, Michael, with a bit of gloss as well.
Dave

 

[sarahwood]

Check with Old Town Canoe restoration specialists or classic boat forums. Red brass stem bands from the 1920s era are getting harder to find. You might want to try specialty vintage boat hardware dealers or collector networks. Good luck with the restoration!