I am giving an old canoe a new life. Living in an area of shallow water I would like to recloth in glass and epoxy. I need some suggestions about removing the 60 year old linseed oil from the hull so I can attain a proper bond between the epoxy and the cedar.
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By fibreglassing your canoe you aren't giving it new life but rather a death sentence - especially if you succeed in getting a good bond to the wood. The linseed oil in the wood is one of the old canoe's assets.If you could remove it - which I don't think is possible - you would be removing one of the wood's defences against decay. I suggest that you recanvass the canoe.
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I agree; you should not fiberglass the outside of the canoe if it was a wood/canvas craft or if it was an all-wood construction before. The cedar wood in the original construction protected it from decay. Old ones dry out and the oil should be replaced. The interior should be varnished to protect the surfaces. An old dirty hull can be stripped fairly easily, lightened with deck cleaners or bleaches, oiled and recanvassed, and you will have a craft that should last you another 30 to 50 years. For more reasons, phone me at 773-777-1489. Check our web site, chicagolandcanoebase.com
Ralph C. Frese
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