Looking For Advice; Damaged Wenonah Minnesota II

[gonediesel]

I have a kevlar Wenonah Minnesota II we took out for a day trip that had a short river stretch between lakes. While on the river portion we hit a downed tree and it was a first time trip with two younger kids. Needless to say we went for a swim and the canoe was pinned against the tree by the river current. A little over 18ft of canoe had a surprising amount of force which took a bit to dig ourselves out of the situation. Anyway we got on our way and had a great day on the water. Unfortunately as I was cleaning up the canoe for storage I see there is actually more damage than I realized. One of the ribs was flexed in so much that a the kevlar layer above it broke and there are two cracks hopefully that can be seen in the photos. So on to my questions, is this repairable and if so any idea about the cost? The reason I ask is I was planning on selling the canoe as we are moving from WI to TN in a couple of months. Any idea what the canoe is worth as is? I was planning to sell it for $1500-1800 before we decided to take it out but now is it even worth $500? Thanks for your comments and suggestions

 

[Alan Gage]

Cost to repair depends on if you want to do it yourself or pay someone else to do it. It will also depend on how good you want the repairs to look.

It looks like the gunwale was bent as well. I think I'd probably want to remove that before repairs (a bent aluminum gunwale can pull the boat out of shape) and it might need to be replaced.

It's certainly repairable. It doesn't look too complicated but it will take some work.

Alan

 

[scoutergriz]

the rib is actually fairly simple- slice it open down both sides and across the top to form a pocket, slide some white poly foam trimmed to fit in as a backer (black will show), and glass it over with a couple of layers of S glass or kevlar, running the patches up under the gunwales and "fairing" them into the lower hull if it goes right through glass inside the pocket before adding the foam, and Vee out the crack on the outside with thickened epoxy. That keeps it from looking ugly cosmetically while stiffening the cracked rib. But yeah, those gunwales are done, it's almost impossible to reform them without them kinking in a home shop, maybe time to drill them out and replace with wood (they have to come off anyway to repair the hull), then you can call it an upgrade if done well.
Name brand boats here, even with properly repaired damage can easily go for 3/4's of full retail...

 

[PortageW/Cerberus]

I was just working with some fiberglass on my MN3 project canoe yesterday. You need at least one new gunwale.

I think those ribs need a few layers of glass mat and vinylester or polyester resin. Not epoxy.

You would need to remove the seat bracket to get at that one rib; you drill out the rivets with a 5/32 inch bit (but do not go too deep. Ask me how I know this is bad. I really really wish I did not know). I've been drilling a bunch of those out myself lately. I learned that those rivets go into a metal plate; if you look carefully, you can see a raised rectangle behind that bracket, and there is one of those on almost all the ribs of the canoe. Those are metal plates, specifically there to hold rivets.

The rivets are 3/16 inch by the way. Not sure if they are 1/4 or 3/8 length - I used 1/2" for the brackets and they worked fine. I would go shorter on gunwales.

The gunwale is more challenging - you have to source it (transportation is the big problem) and replace. All doable but fiddly - several hours of work at least. I am about to remove the gunwales on my MN3 and am dreading it.

I am on the WI/MN border close to Hudson if you are nearby; happy to consult.

 

[Alan Gage]

I think those ribs need a few layers of glass mat and vinylester or polyester resin. Not epoxy

The hull was not built with epoxy but epoxy will stick to other resins and is generally easier to work with so that's what most of us use for repairs.

I've never used glass mat for repairs, always woven cloth. Not saying it won't work but most use woven 6 oz. cloth. Either fiberglass or kevlar should work. The fiberglass will easier to work with and you can sand the edges smooth if not using peel ply. It should be strong enough for the application.

Alan

 

[gonediesel]

I was just working with some fiberglass on my MN3 project canoe yesterday. You need at least one new gunwale.

I think those ribs need a few layers of glass mat and vinylester or polyester resin. Not epoxy.

You would need to remove the seat bracket to get at that one rib; you drill out the rivets with a 5/32 inch bit (but do not go too deep. Ask me how I know this is bad. I really really wish I did not know). I've been drilling a bunch of those out myself lately. I learned that those rivets go into a metal plate; if you look carefully, you can see a raised rectangle behind that bracket, and there is one of those on almost all the ribs of the canoe. Those are metal plates, specifically there to hold rivets.

The rivets are 3/16 inch by the way. Not sure if they are 1/4 or 3/8 length - I used 1/2" for the brackets and they worked fine. I would go shorter on gunwales.

The gunwale is more challenging - you have to source it (transportation is the big problem) and replace. All doable but fiddly - several hours of work at least. I am about to remove the gunwales on my MN3 and am dreading it.

I am on the WI/MN border close to Hudson if you are nearby; happy to consult.

Thanks to all replies. I am on the WI/MN border, 15 min from Taylor Falls/St Croix Falls. I unfortunately am in the middle of a move and don't have the time to do this. I will be in a temporary spot with no storage until I find a permanant place to live. It seems like a fun project though. If your up for a fixer upper, shoot me a offer via PM.

 

[ppine]

Glad your group is okay. Strainers and downed trees are really dangerous.
The amount of force from moving water definitely wrecks a lot of canoes.
Wenonah's are lightly built. I did some damage to an Odyssey once in a simple little riffle.

I was amazed by the damage having swamped other canoes with no damage.
I wrote Wenonah a letter and Mike C sent me a decent response and some repair materials.

You have desirable model, but it definitely will need some help. $500 is about right. I would even take less from a gung ho young person.