can anyone give me a website where I could purchase aluminum gunwhales, I’m having a hard time finding a place. NorthWest offers one but not what I’m looking for. Thanks
I’ve heard you can get them from Bell
or Old Town. Try to get them sent to a dealer nearby along with canoes from the same factory. This reduces shipping cost considerably.
Were you on the recent thread where it was pointed out that most aluminum gunwales can’t be just forced on and riveted, but must be pre-bent using a jig appropriate for the contour of the canoe in question? You don’t want to get into a gunwale replacement project if you can’t complete it with the means at hand.
Aluminum gunwhales
I’ve bought them from Wenonah on several occasions. They come straight but you just start in the middle and work toward the ends with drill and rivet gun. It’s very easy actually.
My $0.02.
Steve
Wenonah canoes have relatively
gentle changes in the slope of the top edge of the hull. I can sort of believe that most of their boats might be re-gunwaled without prebending the aluminum. The boat I have to do has a much more marked change in slope about four feet from the ends, and I don’t think the aluminum could be forced on without prebending. The original builder used split T-6061 tubing forced over pegs in the edge of the hull by three burly men working as a team. Split T-6061 will accept that kind of slope change without prebending.
thanks
No I wasnt on the thread but thank you so much, matter o fact that was my first post ever.
thanks
thank you everyone, sooo helpful.