I am looking at buying a 1996 Wenonah Adirondack Tuff- Weave. The boat is in great shape and has wood trim and gunwales. Although the hull is in great condition for its age, the wood looks old and faded. The boat seems very sturdy. Should I be worried about the wood trim and gunwales over time? Has anyone re-finished the wood on a Wenonah? Is the price reasonable at 500? Thanks.
It’s not brain surgery.
Gray trim is not a problem, per se, if there’s no rot.
Try pushing a thumbnail into the rails to tell if it is soft and/or punky. Pay special attention to the ends and undersides of both the inwales and outwales. Worst case, the boat can always be re-railed for +/-a few hundred bucks by a competent craftsman… if you can find one.
Fair price varies by quality, region, rarity, desirability, motivation and savvy of buyer/seller.
thanks
Thanks for the input. I have read some reviews about the canoe and think it would suit my needs pretty well for doing tandem day and overnight trips. Does anyone know how the tuff-weave used in the 1990’s compares to now? Thanks again.
good deal
$500 sounds like a good deal to me if the only issues are cosmetic.
for $500 it compares great
I don’t think there would be any
important changes in the Tufweave layup. It’s possible that the one you are looking at might have rib reinforcement rather than a foam core bottom. Some might actually prefer the earlier stiffening method.
You could ask the seller about how the bottom is reinforced. But at that price, I would buy it if you don’t. My “kids” in New Orleans need a tandem for swamping.
"Good deal realization"
Right, it takes time to realize whether you really got a good deal. You need to use the canoe for a year to see if it fits into your purpose and expectations.
Many folks get caught up in the “good deal”, and do not get the better suited craft to meet their needs.
Good luck!
good point
– Last Updated: Jun-25-12 9:51 AM EST –
The wrong boat at a bargain price will still be the wrong boat.
But with a good deal on a used boat, you'll probably be able to resell it at little or no loss if it doesn't work out for you. And you can't really know how a boat is going to work unless you spend some time in it.
I just bought a Vagabond that popped up on my local Craigslist. It's not my "dream" boat, but I figure I can resell it with no loss if I don't beat it up. In the meantime I've got a new boat to learn and enjoy while I wait for the elusive "great deal" on a Hemlock Kestrel...
Sold my Royalex Adirondack
Scuffed the stems down to the core, so I put on skid plates and sold it for $350 to a coworker. They still love it and get it wet often.
weight
You might want to make sure the weight is acceptable to you. The earlier crossrib tufweave layups were noticeably heavier than they are now. I recently sold the same model & layup boat you are looking at and I was surprised at how many people did not realize that ealier layups aren’t as light as they are now.
However, at $500 it’s significantly less expensive than a lot of boats that aren’t nearly as good. I think that if the woodwork is sound, it’s a very good deal.
As far as boat performance is concerned, it is an excellent general purpose boat. I enjoyed paddling mine both solo and tandem.
Answers to OP
No.
Yes - it’s easy and cheap.
Yes, definitely.
Nice Boat
My first boat was a used red Adirondack in Tuffweave. I loved that boat. I only sold it because my wife said she had carried it for the LAST time. We sold it to friends and I still get to see it all the time … and I still like paddling the boat. As a point of interest, his wife is now balking at carrying it.
$500 sounds like a great price, if its in reasonably good shape.