Canoe reskin

Coming along nicely!

Coming along nicely drew. When do you have to have it ready to use for this season?

BTW i think you can find 5/16 solid brass screws about 3 inch long at the your Canadian tire or home hardware if you have one near you.

You need to look in the area where they have the special little plastic draws with all sorts of small qty hardware they carry. I know our home hardware has them and I am pretty sure Canadian tire too. Would be a great contrast to the wood color. They should have countersunk as well as dome head.

I know a place where you can get stainless steel threaded rod if need be but its in TO. They do sell online and ship across the country. But i would think you should be able to get this local with all the boating around your way.

All the best on the balance of the finishing.

Hi Drew

Just went back and caught up on the older posts. I like the abs clamp idea seen it somewhere before but forgot all about it.

In the picture where you show them, the second pic with the cherry pieces clamped to the oak, i see you a piece of cherry clamped on both sides. Is one of those temp just support the strip or how does it fit to the canoe.

I presume you have a strip of oak with cherry "spacers" for both the inside edge as well as the outside edge of the canoe. Correct? So its a sandwhich.

Really glad you doing all this its great learning for me with this project high on my to do list.

Makes all the difference seeing pics when you can ask the guy doing it a few questions and it helps when you know he has been through it all before.

You sure revived the hull nicely. Great finish

Rob what looks like the second piece of cherry is actually for the scarf Joint where the two long lengths will join. If it is all done in one piece and not messed up like I did it would have a 7 inch scarf joint and no need for the second cherry piece. I only went with the cherry for a different look and no the outside gunwale is a solid 3/4 x 7/8 piece of oak.

I could have done it with cherry in it but I did not have any long lengths around the shop. The season is coming to a quick close only a month and a half left to get it out into the water. I used the 1/4 inch round over router bit on the outside and cut the 1/8 angle off the bottom of the gunwale ( this allows the water to run off and not bead up on the gunwale when it is turned over on top of the Vehical). If that makes any sence. I will get some pics tomorrow and post them. It seems that i forgot my # 8 couter bore bit at work so I will do that tomorrow as well as the sanding.

The inside needs to be re glassed too but that will just have to wait.

I did look at the brass bolts at canadian tire but the seats will need at least 6 inch bolts. I was planning to get a rod from LV and then just get some brass nuts solder them to the rod and then grind them round and to shape.

Was able to get the pics tonight. I screwed (stainless steel screws as brass are too soft for the torque driver) and sanded the gunwales and shaped the ends, now I have to sand the tops of the gunwales in place to get the entire lot smooth. Oh and this is not something that you want to try with out hearing protection as the canoe acts as a resonance chamber and it is loud. There are ways to deaden the sound a bit with pacing it with insulation or if doing it on the ground outside you can fill it with some water. Me I just like to tick off the entire neghborhood until 9. One of the pics is of the old deck with the laminations of mahogany and oak that make up the ends of the canoe for added strength. it is staring to take shape again thoughthere is still lots of work to do. I have to make up plugs for the holes and then the gunwales will get oiled, I did oil the side against the hull before screwing it on. I just used a watco natural oil for that at this time. oils will be recoated a few times as it is easier to fix than spar varnish.

It is looking really good Drew!

Thanks Stu. It is still a ways to go as I still have to wet sand (with 600 grit) the entire outside down again before the sealer coat goes on. It sure has darkened over the years. It is actually made of yellow cedar but looks more like red cedar now, of course it has been 16 yrs since I originally built it. I am just itching to get it back into the water.

Drew thanks for those pictures it makes it much clearer. BTW i really have to thank you for the picture of the deck. Of all the info i have assembled off so many sites and pictures this is the one that is missing.

This is the first time i have seen how the front tip comes together with the deck. It has eluded me continuosly. Now it makes sense how the whole thing ties togther. Been the missing link.

You going to use a bunch of 600 paper on that size surface.

BTW did you say you can get threaded brass bar from your Lee Valley store??? I spent a while checking their online cat and no such thing. Do they call it something else?

Rob Keeble said:

Drew thanks for those pictures it makes it much clearer. BTW i really have to thank you for the picture of the deck. Of all the info i have assembled off so many sites and pictures this is the one that is missing.

This is the first time i have seen how the front tip comes together with the deck. It has eluded me continuosly. Now it makes sense how the whole thing ties togther. Been the missing link.

You going to use a bunch of 600 paper on that size surface.

BTW did you say you can get threaded brass bar from your Lee Valley store??? I spent a while checking their online cat and no such thing. Do they call it something else?

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Glad that the pics can be of help Rob. If you don't have a copy of Canoecraft by Ted Moores & Merilyn Mohr. I would suggest getting one as it is by far the best step by step book on the market for cedar strip canoe building. The 600 wet and dry will be just a buffing coat to rough up the finish before the clear coat goes on nothing too agressive. Yes it is going to take a few sheets but it is worth it in the end. Oh and the brass rod is not availible at LV. It turned out to be a black rod so i will be going to a marine supply store on the weekend and get some there. Up till now i have used carriage bolts ( stainless) but they have never felt right or looked right on the canoe so since i am re doing it might as well get what I want or at least hope for.

Yeah i got the book Drew have studied back to front a few times but their pictures in this area are sketches and then when they show the deck its done in a way that covers the front so i guess they cut the stems down and hid them under the deck. Really great book. One of the first things i bought when i set foot in Canada. See his picture on page 166, centre right shows the stems. Then you look on page 169 and they gone or at least are tiny. Could never quiet work out the magic here until i saw your pictures. Poor authors they cant please everyone.
I am about as ready as i will ever be to get this done. Just need to make some more money to buy materials and get started. Life long dream to make one of these.

Page 166 Rob? What edition do you have? My entire book only goes up to pg 145. The pictures I have are on page 90 under under the heading" laminating the stems". I had thought about doing what you are talking about and i think i did at first but after cutting down the sides a good 3 inches over the years ( modifications to the hull and refinishing ugly gunwales) It is not easy to cut them out and i came to realize why bother. Thereare lots of different variations on decks and like the gunwals this is where you get to put "you" into the craft. You can also lok at laminating some different strips into the hull to add character and make your distinctive. Looking forward to seeing the progression of yours.

Well I finally finished off the seats and the thwart and the canoe is in the final phase of the re-finish. Just the final sand on the outside and the clear coat goes on in the morning then the seat covers get washed and re strung. Just in time for the end of the season . Oh well better late than never. Now I have to start on the kayaks.

To purty to use!

I know how you feel. I'm trying to get my sail boat ready to use that we haven't touched in several years. It'll be ready to go just about the same time the snow starts flyin...

Brent Dowell said:

To purty to use!

I know how you feel. I'm trying to get my sail boat ready to use that we haven't touched in several years. It'll be ready to go just about the same time the snow starts flyin...

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Never too purdy to use Brent. You should see some of the white water I have had this baby in. Yea it is late getting this done but when I started it I was not working then work got in the way of finishing it. Darn work