• Happy "Killer Rabbit" Attacks President Carter in His Paddle Boat (1979)! 🚣🏼‍♂️🐇

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  1. Fitz

    ID help

    Most likely a Morris. Kennebec used a flared stem too, but the rest of the boat looks like a Morris. Looks to be in good shape. Although, Morris liked outside stems to protect the soft cedar inner stems. The brass stem bands were then riveted on. The stem bands on this canoe look riveted, but I...
  2. Fitz

    Cedar gunwales?

    A lot of old Maine guide canoes used white spruce for both gunwales. Thousands of Old Town CS grade wood and canvas canoes had spruce gunwales. It works well. I have used Sitka as well.
  3. Fitz

    Wood canvas canoe

    Likely a Thompson Canoe. They did the half ribs in the floor that way. Post at the WCHA for more info.
  4. Fitz

    Canoe for kids?

    This is a 1957 Peterborough "Shorty" Trapper (12 ft) wood and canvas. It is a very tender canoe, but my son essentially learned to paddle solo and kneeling in it. He was about 11 years old in the photo. He might be too big for it now :-).
  5. Fitz

    New from RI

    I typically replace wood with the same species, although on this canoe I opted to use the cherry for decks instead of the ash. I had a piece the right size laying around and I could book match it so I went with it. You should probably use a hardwood. I can't recall, but I bet the keel on this...
  6. Fitz

    New from RI

    I replaced the trim on a Stowe Mansfield once. It was kind of a pain since the outwales and inwales were secured with ring nails and the screws holding the keel on were imbedded in the fiberglass in the floor of the canoe. I used a forstners bit to unearth the heads, installed a new keel, and...
  7. Fitz

    Epoxy on canvas experiment

    Talc warrants a dust mask too. It is a mineral that is not good for your lungs. Let us know how you make out.
  8. Fitz

    Epoxy on canvas experiment

    As I mentioned before, we used talc for a filler for sand-ability. We applied the thickened epoxy with a squeegee, trying to avoid leaving ridges. The talc allows you to sand the cured epoxy smooth. Silica will be much more difficult to sand. For UV protection, you will need to paint it...
  9. Fitz

    Wood Canvas Opportunity

    It wouldn't be a deal killer, but there looks to be a big hole in the hull ahead of the quarter thwart. Reminiscent of a tree limb falling through it!
  10. Fitz

    Carbon Copy Kite

    Thanks stripperguy. I guess my question is this: Wouldn't it be easier to see if the carbon is thoroughly wetted out if you wetted only one layer at a time? Obviously, this would take more time and more mixing, and doing two layers at once seems to work fine. Just curious. Fitz
  11. Fitz

    Carbon Copy Kite

    I am joining the discussion late, but you carbon guys have piqued my interest. It looks like you wetted out both layers of carbon at the same time. Is there a reason for this? I was thinking it might be advantageous to do one layer at a time. Also is there a rule of thumb for the curing time...
  12. Fitz

    1913 Old Town in Des Moines

    The "Ideal" Model, was a fancy grade Old Town made to compete in the Charles River (Boston) market. It has old Honduran ("genuine") mahogany trim (seats, rails, thwarts and decks), western red cedar planking, and northern white cedar ribs. This is one of the few Old Town models with...
  13. Fitz

    PC Y-Stern

    Talc is a mineral with a hardness on the Moh's Scale of 1. Silica is likely 7, though colloidal silica will be less. I haven't bought it lately, but I bet you can find in at places that sell epoxy. It would be powdered talc. It is a fairly common filler. You might have to experiment with a piece...
  14. Fitz

    PC Y-Stern

    The last Y-stern I did, the Y-stern fell off due to the rot from the glass trapping moisture. The other problem with glass is it is pretty much a one time deal, especially epoxy filled glass. Canvas on the other hand is infinitely replaceable. One technique I have tried is filling the canvas...
  15. Fitz

    Repair a hole in the hull

    I once repaired a softball size hole in a Royalex hull made by a falling white pine limb. Most of the pieces of Royalex making up the hole were still attached. I pushed them into place and filled any remaining gaps with G-flex epoxy. It was a while ago, but I believe I let that cure, and then...
  16. Fitz

    Favorite piece of discontinued gear?

    A "Maine Roll-On". It was a roller that mounted onto a Thule or Yakima rack. You would put the end of the canoe on the roller and roll the canoe right up onto the SUV. It was an awesome device. I routinely took all of my big 18 and even 20 foot wood and canvas canoes solo and had no problem...
  17. Fitz

    Steam Bending with Bag

    "Sadly I only have one more gunwale to do and then no more steaming, I kind of like doing this!" Time to build wood canvas! Cheers, Fitz
  18. Fitz

    ​Tripping with young kids suggestions?

    My son was traveling with us to the Maine Woods by the age of 3. He initially would get bored in the canoe, but a small fishing rod and a small paddle quickly relieved that problem. Find a shallow beach camp site. He would play in the shallow water with a pfd on for hours and find all sorts of...
  19. Fitz

    Three days, two nights, 3-4 hours from Boston

    If you stretch it a little, you could do the Moose River/Bow Trip. It is 5 or so hours to Jackman, but it is a nice 3 night trip. Mid-week you would likely have it all to yourself. One long carry and a few short ones around rips - especially this year. Foliage is likely past prime now.
  20. Fitz

    Free 17' canoe

    Those old AA grade OTCAs clean up real nice.
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