Restoring an Old Town Pathfinder, royalex canoe

[@gfurstnsu]

I purchased an Old Town Tripper back in 1987. I went to the factory and was able to purchase a second for around $750. It was a second because the plastic stuck to the mold when the canoe was released from it at the factory. Prior to this I had a Grumman aluminum canoe that my grandmother had purchased bask in 1947. This tripper canoe is really great and does not stick to the rocks like the Grumman canoe did. Because it is heel less, it is much better in rapids than the prior canoe. Every year we go out onto the rivers and lakes here. The river trips are really great as we can travel for days, with enough gear and food for the whole period. The usual trip is a three day trip of 180 km and the river challenges are the rapids, the damns and the place to sleep for the night. Of course everything is tied in, but so far we have it turned over. I love this canoe and stand b😊 it as the best I have ever owned. All of the trips are here in South Korea where there are four major rivers. When the river goes out to the sea, I must register with the Korean Coast Guard, even if I we are not going as far as the connection of the river with the ocean. I guess they worry of the North Korean commandos coming up the river. We moved here in 2003 and that means we have gone on allot of canoe trips. The bottom of the canoe is testament to all the scrapes and bumps, but is holding out very well. I did fiber glass the bow and stern as these locations hit the rocks hard. I used the fiberglass kit provided by Old Town and it is very strong and has never failed to protect the canoe! I love the Old Town Royalex canoe. It is light and tough and bounces off the rocks! Could not ask for more!

[@themaineadventure9473]

My parents had a Tripper while I was growing up, they are fantastic canoes! Sounds like you are getting a lot of use out of yours, thanks for watching!

[@pigseye2]

Looks great! Thanks!

[@themaineadventure9473]

Thank you!

[@davehumpleby3440]

Greetings from across the pond in the UK. Lovely job you did there. If you ignore the inside patch, it almost looks brand new. I have a Nova Craft Prospector 15 Royalex. Its in great condituon at present but it's good to know it can easily be repaired should the need arise. Thanks for the video and happy paddling.

[@themaineadventure9473]

They are great canoes, thanks for watching!

[@mikehunt206]

Esquif canoes out of Quebec patented a royalex replacement after royalex was bought out and mothballed, it's called T-formax. Wenonah canoes use T-formax from Esquif aswell. I have heard there's still a few old town discovery's made of T-formax for sale around too. P.S. for those of you wandering like myself, "esquif" is french for "skiff". Lol

[@bubbles17866]

I would like to see how to do the skid plates and may also a simple sailing rig.

[@JamesGunderson-e5z]

When i did my seats i replaced the standoffs they were rotting and splitting I just used dowels and drilled them out on a bench top drill press then used polyuerethane to finish them and used all new fasteners

[@foundry_media]

What kind of paint did you use?

[@themaineadventure9473]

I meant to mention that in the video but I forgot. I used Krylon Fusion, that is what Old Town recommended when I asked them. Mine was the Hunter Green color. Thanks for watching!

[@mr68camero1]

Was the paint semi gloss or matte? Thanks

[@saraalthauser7862]

What kind of paint did you use?

[@themaineadventure9473]

I meant to mention that in the video but I forgot. I used Krylon Fusion, that is what Old Town recommended when I asked them. Mine was the Hunter Green color. Thanks for watching!