Canvas weight

ticonderoga

"Just one more"
I'm unclear on the weight of the canvas to put on my 50#er, it came with #8 from the factory. What is heavier #8 or #10?
 
#8 is heavier than #10. Personally, for a 15' canoe, I would use #12 canvas - lighter weight still, but at the expense of telegraphing hull defects a bit more. If you plan to do heavy tripping, go with the #10.
 
I'm unclear on the weight of the canvas to put on my 50#er, it came with #8 from the factory. What is heavier #8 or #10?

Canvas numbering is one of those oddball conventions that seems like it was designed to keep you guessing.
Canvas weight decreases as the number increases. So, number 2 is heavier than 8 and 8 is heavier than 10.....
I don't know what was on your 50 but it was likely 10.
 
thanks for the info, I think I'll go with #12 like I have on my other canoes.( #8 on a "50#er" seems to add weight to a lightweight boat and defeat the weight saved by thinner ribs, planking etc.) Joe
 
Have 12 on mine Joe. Works just fine, and I think they came that way to keep the weight down.

Matt
 
I'm unclear on the weight of the canvas to put on my 50#er, it came with #8 from the factory.

The Old Town catalog page at http://www.wcha.org/catalogs/old-town/specific.gif indicates that your Fifty Pound model is likely to have originally had number ten canvas. Number eight was used on most canoes except for the Fifty Pound model and the Guide models that had number six. Number twelve will probably be fine.

Benson
 
The build sheet for my 50#er, serial # 129868 has a note at the bottom that specifies #8 canvas as a special order by the customer. The original owner was a guide and taxidermist from Saranac Lake NY who took the canoe to Alaska twice in the early fifties. I have pictures of the owner portaging the canoe on one of these trips that the owners grandson gave me. This canoe was used hard and often! The numerous repairs and patches attest to the mind set of " do what it takes to keep going". I am restoring it to original condition while leaving many "memories" still visible! If only the canoe could share the things it has seen! Joe
 
The build record below shows that it was built for hard use with outside stems in addition to the number eight canvas. I agree that this does sound like an interesting article.

Benson
 

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