Clik here to view.
A Restorers’ Guide to Tremblay Wood-Canvas Canoes
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Of the lesser known canoe manufacturers in Canada, Tremblay Canoes Limited (Les Canots Tremblay Limitée) from St. Félicien, Québec stood...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Does a Wood-Canvas Canoe Need a Keel?
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca If there is an area of controversy in the world of wood-canvas canoes, the question of the keel would be it. Historically, canoes (and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Store Your Wood-Canvas Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Proper storage of your wood-canvas canoe is essential to its long, rot-free life. The basic principles of proper storage revolve around...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Weave the Peterborough Pattern in Wood-Canvas Canoe Seats
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca In my book, This Old Canoe: How To Restore Your Wood-Canvas Canoe, I describe how to weave natural cane (rattan) in Chestnut canoe...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Assemble a Wood-Canvas Canoe Repair Kit
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca As I was completing the restoration of an 18′ Chestnut Prospector Vee-Stern canoe for a client, he asked me to create a wood-canvas...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Rebuild Long, Solid-Wood Decks in a Fancy Antique Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Many “fancy” antique wooden canoes have beautiful up-swept sheer-lines at the ends. The curved end profile in many canoes built by canoe...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Weave a Standard Pattern for Caned Seats in a Fancy Antique Canoe (Old...
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca In my book, This Old Canoe: How To Restore Your Wood-Canvas Canoe, I describe how to weave natural cane (rattan) in Chestnut canoe...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Cane the Trapezoidal Stern Seat in a Rushton Indian Girl Wood-Canvas...
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca While restoring a 1905 J.H. Rushton Indian Girl canoe, I made new seat frames and wove natural cane (rattan) in a standard 6-stage...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Remove Fiberglass from Your Wood-Canvas Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca For those of you new to this blog and have not heard me on this topic before, let me be as clear as I can be: To anyone thinking about...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Restorer’s Guide to a Chestnut Bob Special Wood-Canvas Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca The blogs I do on the specifications of canoe components for various types of canvas-covered canoes seem to be quite popular....
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Repair a Wide-Board Raised-Batten Canoe — Part 1
by Sam Browning edited by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Note: In 2016, I put out a call for someone with a wide-board raised-batten canoe to bring it to my shop in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Repair a Wide-Board Raised-Batten Canoe — Part 2
by Sam Browning edited by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Note: In 2016, I put out a call for someone with a wide-board raised-batten canoe to bring it to my shop in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Repair a Long-Framed Veneer Deck in an Antique Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Note: If you happen to be a master cabinet-maker who repairs Chippendale furniture for fun, this project will be pretty straightforward....
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Make and Install Half-Ribs in a Wood-Canvas Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca photo from “Tales from Misery Ridge: One Man’s Adventures in the Great Outdoors” by Paul J. Fournier. (Island Port Press, 2011) About...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Bill Greenwood and his Wood-Canvas Canoes
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Unless you live in British Columbia, you have probably never heard of Bill Greenwood or Greenwood canoes. And if you want to start a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Repair Rotted Rib-tops in Wood-Canvas Canoes
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca While repairing your wood-canvas canoe, you may come across some ribs that are perfectly good except for a small portion attached to the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Strip Old Varnish from Antique Wood Canoes
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca Without a doubt, the most horrible job in the restoration of a wood-canvas canoe (or an antique all-wood canoe) is stripping the varnish...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Restorers’ Guide to the 16′ Chestnut Pal Wood-Canvas Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca If you are preparing to restore your wood-canvas canoe – especially in Canada – you are often looking at a canoe built by the Chestnut...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How To Weave Rawhide (Babiche) Seats for “Huron” Wood-Canvas Canoes
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca If the seats in your canoe are laced with rawhide similar to that in old snowshoes, chances are you own a “Huron” canoe – the generic...
View ArticleClik here to view.
How to Make Shaped Outwales for a Fancy Antique Canoe
by Mike Elliott, Kettle River Canoes email: artisan@canoeshop.ca The outwales found in early versions of production canoes (both all-wood and canvas-covered canoes) built in the late 1800’s and early...
View Article