Touch-ups and Winterizing

[jeremiah703]

I am a new Old Town wood/canvass owner and want to address a couple of issues before winter. First, I need to revarnish gunnels and decks. Any recommendations? Second, I have a couple of places (see photo) that need attention. The canvas and filler (?) seem ok, but need to be sealed and painted. What do I need to do to cover the places shown with paint and/or varnish?

 

[MGC]

Jeremiah. Congratulations on your canoe.
I agree with your decision to put some fresh varnish on your boat. It's considered to be "routine" maintenance. It may also be time to varnish the interior. Without pictures, it's hard to know, but I usually do the whole canoe at once. Make sure that you lightly sand and tack cloth before applying a good quality marine spar varnish. Do not use polyurethane.
I'm a bit concerned that someone calked the seam between the gunwales/rails and canvas. That's not normally done.

WRT your canvas and filler, your picture shows that the filler is not "filling" in some places. I circled where filler is showing. The arrow points to unfilled canvas. Sometimes people struggle to properly fill these parts of the canvas as may be the case here. These are not parts of the hull that see any "action" so you can probably get away with simply painting that, but you definitely need to inspect the rest of the hull to see if the filler is not properly filling the weave.
The paint/filler is also flaking to the left and below where the arrow is pointing.

 

[ALCEDO ATTHIS]

I'm a bit concerned that someone calked the seam between the gunwales/rails and canvas. That's not normally done.

Jeremiah. Congratulations on your canoe.
I agree with your decision to put some fresh varnish on your boat. It's considered to be "routine" maintenance. It may also be time to varnish the interior. Without pictures, it's hard to know, but I usually do the whole canoe at once. Make sure that you lightly sand and tack cloth before applying a good quality marine spar varnish. Do not use polyurethane.
I'm a bit concerned that someone calked the seam between the gunwales/rails and canvas. That's not normally done.

WRT your canvas and filler, your picture shows that the filler is not "filling" in some places. I circled where filler is showing. The arrow points to unfilled canvas. Sometimes people struggle to properly fill these parts of the canvas as may be the case here. These are not parts of the hull that see any "action" so you can probably get away with simply painting that, but you definitely need to inspect the rest of the hull to see if the filler is not properly filling the weave.
The paint/filler is also flaking to the left and below where the arrow is pointing.
View attachment 63045

 

[ALCEDO ATTHIS]

sorry , for that , I am allways a neebie

I think it do because of calked seam , when you return canoe up side down , the water can't be evacuated
we can see horizontality in your pictures , so it can be that

 

[jeremiah703]

Thanks for the tips. I will definitely invest in some sandpaper and tack cloth. Any recommendations on varnish? I see Old Masters on some woodworking sites and it’s expensive. Does that mean it’s good? Also, what exactly is the filler. Some kind of putty, like linseed or glazing compound? Where can you find it?

 

[MGC]

Search "Filler Recipes" on this site. You should be able to learn all you need to know about it.
Filler is applied before the canvas is painted. It cannot be applied later or in your case, where it is either not well applied or failing.
You need to assess if this is a localized issue or if it is happening in other places on the hull before you decide on how to proceed. If it is only in the few spots you shared, I would not be too concerned and I might simply paint over it. If it is failing like that in other places on the hull, then you might eventually need to re-canvas if it is leaking.

 

[Dan Miller]

For varnish, use a good marine spar varnish. Many of us use Epifanes or Z-Spar.

 

[Dave Osborn]

For the spot of exposed canvas that you show…., I would not mess around with filler. It’s not really for touch ups.
If this were in my shop, I would use an epoxy fairing compound to fill and level it up.
Jamestown Distributors sells Total Fair, or Quik Fair. Both are the same in my opinion. I suspect one is brand name and the other is house brand for Jamestown.
Anyway, mix and apply per directions, sand, repaint. No need to use traditional filler here.

 

[MGC]

For the spot of exposed canvas that you show…., I would not mess around with filler. It’s not really for touch ups.
If this were in my shop, I would use an epoxy fairing compound to fill and level it up.

Exactly.