Need help with someone getting me the beam at the rear thwart off their boat, mine was missing and since it is asymmetric I'd be guessing...want it to be right

Been on here looking....I'm hoping it's just a paintjob.....but under where the feet go you can see fabric, but it is smooth as glass....that just needs paint right?

And what is the opinion of a keel in a 45 year old boat to back it up structurally....good idea or not worth it....and if so, what would be the pros and cons, i have some experience with fiberglass....i can make a fillet and lay tape at any rate.....i read that it doesn't work to well on Kevlar boats, but understand goldenglass is basically fiberglass layup with Kevlar reinforcement........

Help much appreciated

These boats came with a rear foot brace, an aluminum rod (like the thwarts) attached to two small lengths of wood glassed into the hull. I'm guessing this is the anomaly where you can see the glass. Paint or a bit of epoxy is good over the exposed glass.

A keel would simply add unnecessary drag to a great hull shape and I can't imagine it contributing anything other than weight to the strength of the boat. I'd skip it. If the hull was kept out of the sun it should be fine. If more strength is needed due to age and brittleness I'd work from the inside of the hull rather than outside.

As far as beam I would just pull in the hull ever so slightly when you install the new thwart, the loss of the thwart should not significantly change the beam of the hull.

Thanks ...I was hoping a little paint would do her...
Only got to paddle it 5 times last fall, and yeah, definitely does Not need a keel, tracks like a train......I meant inside, just nervous about 45 year old thin glass, even with the kevlar reinforcement, and have no idea how it was stored......

Cool - your answer about pulling the wales >in< confused me, but I now know about fish-form and Swede- form asymetric hulls. I hate computers but love the net....thanks

Lebo, there is also a boat builder forum available here. Lots of help there. Banksiana probably has friends there. :)

Leebobaugh: "Need help with someone getting me the beam at the rear thwart off their boat, mine was missing and since it is asymmetric I'd be guessing...want it to be right

Been on here looking....I'm hoping it's just a paintjob.....but under where the feet go you can see fabric, but it is smooth as glass....that just needs paint right?

And what is the opinion of a keel in a 45 year old boat to back it up structurally....good idea or not worth it....and if so, what would be the pros and cons, i have some experience with fiberglass....i can make a fillet and lay tape at any rate.....i read that it doesn't work to well on Kevlar boats, but understand goldenglass is basically fiberglass layup with Kevlar reinforcement........

Help much appreciated "

To answer your first question regarding the rear thwart; I measured my 1985 Sawyer Cruiser, (pictured below), at the rear thwart and it measures 28.5", but that's from gunnel to gunnel at the top of the thwart. If your 1973 Cruiser did have a rear thwart at one time, there should be residual rivet holes where the thwart once was. (I've also included a photo of my 1983 Expedition Kevlar Cruiser being portaged to feature a bottom view of the Cruiser's hull.)

As far as the area by the feet, it's likely the bilge paint was worn off by the previous owner's heels. If in fact the glass is smooth as you indicated, then you could probably just apply some bilge paint that can be acquired from a boat shop or supply house. Unless there's worn fabric, there shouldn't be a need to apply any fiberglass fabric. Those old Sawyer canoes of the 70's were heavy enough, so I would avoid adding any additional material to the hull unless absolutely necessary.

I'm not sure why you want to install a keel. As Banksiana indicated, it would only add weight and is totally unnecessary with a well designed hull like the Sawyer Cruiser. The Cruiser tracks exceptionally well in my opinion. Furthermore, keels on canoes are more for stiffening the hull and/or protecting the seams of an aluminum canoe, not as a tracking aid. A well designed composite canoe does not need a keel!

If the old hull is "oil canning", or is not as stiff as you'd prefer, you could always glass in a PVC center-rib from bow to stern, which at one time was a lay-up option on many Wenonah hulls prior to the introduction of the Flex-Core lay-ups. I've included a picture below that shows the Kevlar center-rib lay-up on my old Wenonah Jensen 18. As you can see, the center-rib construction is purely internal.

BTW, the "Goldenglass" moniker was a company buzzword created by Harry Roberts in the 80's when he was Vice-President of marketing for Sawyer Canoe of Oscoda, Michigan. Although the older Sawyers weren't really marketed as "Goldenglass", there are probably some Kevlar reinforcements in the stems and/or other high impact areas of the hull.

Hans Solo

As Banksiana suggested I pulled the gunn'l in with a clamp until I got a fair curve....and it was 28 1/2" on the dot...

A center rib is what I meant, this boat needs no keel, took me a bit to figure out how to turn her solo the first day......my only canoe experience was 6 months paddling a 16 foot no name aluminum job......this Sawyer is a different animal................

I have an older (84) all golden glass (no foam core or center rib) 222, your canoe's big brother. It's been heavily used and occasionally abused on lakes and some fairly big whitewater. Still holding up well. I wouldn't add the center foam unless your hull shows signs of weakness. Not sure how many layers Sawyer used on the bottom of the hull but the strength of this layup is impressive. It's a fast, sweet hull. Paddle and skip the center rib unless you sense that it is seriously fatigued.