Sailing manual for 1966 Old Town Canoe

[Daniel Patterson]

Hi there,

I have a new (to me) 1966 Old Town Canoe that has a full sailing rig in nearly mint condition (the sail is still in the original bag, though the plastic is a bit worn, ditto with the leeboards in original box, etc). I'm wondering if someone has either the original manual for this era, or some equivalent instructions -- in particular, the leeboard attachment is a little baffling (springs, hooks, lines, etc), but I'd really like to sail it!

Thanks!

 

[Benson Gray]

Welcome, the pictures and information at http://www.wcha.org/forums/index.php?threads/10672/ should get you started. The book at https://www.woodencanoe.org/product-page/canoe-rig-the-essence-and-the-art has even more detail although you may need to get a used copy on borrow one from a library since the WCHA store may to be out of stock. Post some pictures of what you have if this still doesn't make sense. Good luck,

Benson

 

[Daniel Patterson]

Thanks! That’s super helpful. Second question, which I forgot to post originally:

It seems that either the mast step or the mast has changed in size in the intervening years, so it doesn’t quite fit. I could either take a little wood off the butt of the mast or widen the step a little — any preference? Probably changing the mast is easier, but either is possible.

 

[Benson Gray]

It seems that either the mast step or the mast has changed in size in the intervening years

The base of the mast is probably square so try rotating it 90 degrees a few times to see if that helps. I would encourage you to just sand off some of the mast which is too big if rotating it doesn't resolve the issue. I agree that it would be much more difficult to enlarge the step.

Benson