Thanks Jack Simmons from Vancouver, Washington. He has built numerous beautiful boat models including several of our canoes. There’s a post I did on Jacks other kits further below. Nice work Jack.

Bob from Sheridan, WY did an outstanding job on the kayak, adding his own touches to the plaster seat. I asked him about the finish and he replied: Ray, Finish is 7 coats (sanding between every 2) of  Behr oil based spar urethane. Used it on my boats for years, works good, just needs time to sand and build coats. Did not epoxy hull. I did put deck on top of sheer clamp. That way it could hang over to be trimmed and shaped later. I also put extra decking panels (the wide ones) under the seat area to clean it up.

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I made this canoe for Ross of New Jersey . He requested the dark stained hull with all pine toe rails, seats and thwarts. This is a winner. I honestly suggest potential builders and buyers to look at this nice combination.

Chad Tompkin’s from Farfax, Virginia did a great job of building the 42″ Strip Kayak. He also made a short video of assembling the kayak, which should be helpful for anyone starting to build one. Chad commented:

Thanks, Ray.  It was a lot of fun and helped me get through the lock-down in our area.  I’m picking up some precut cedar strips on Monday for a bigger project.  I hope to take on a full-size kayak after that.  Thanks for making this product.  Take care, Chad

I built this one for a market store in NH. Paulownia wood but stained on the inside. Square lights.

Just built another 96″ canoe light with the big 7″ LED lights. Stained the dark color, it looks old and like it belongs. I also put in the narrow light deck, which personally, I like better than the full width version. You’re able to see the ribbing and inside of the canoe, especially after I put so much work into the ribbing. This one is going to a mountain home in Minnesota. Narrow deck showing off more of the ribbing and inside of the canoe. I build these and hate to see them go. More and more customers are asking for this stain. Early American #230 by Min wax.

I have loved building the canoes but one day I noticed that the classic Maine lobster boats had similiar lines. Turns out you can build the lobster boat just like the canoes, upside down. The forms are designed to be left in place and cut off . Works great, very easy. All the other parts of the boat are simply made with odds and ends, paint and some imagination. Loads of fun, and I would not say that there’s anything super difficult to do. I have a couple of trial kits being built. Anyone interested in the boat, let me know. I am making the kit available. The next project is to motorize it which appears to be less expensive than thought.

Jack Simmon’s from Vancouver , Washington has built a 36″ & 54″ canoe along with a 42″ strip kayak. Proudly displaying them on his wall. Now Jack is tackling the new Lobster boat kit. Can’t wait to see that! Great job Jack!

I finally made up my new water slide decal for the bow deck caps for all the canoes. It looks like the original Old Town decal from the 30’s. Pretty cool. Be sure to request the decal if you would like one.

I get a lot of satisfaction from working on all my canoes, and more so when it is ice cold out and I am inside my workshop with the small wood stove going, and the same is true for a hot summer day, being in my cool workshop out of the hot sun, having fun, making something really cool!