As I've said... I've alerted the appropriate parties about this and any/all other concers.
I don't make excuses for problems... I find solutions for problems.
Esquif as long as I've known them keeps making constant production improvements based upon realistic concerns every year... every model improves... and every model gets better because of it. Just because an "official representative" doesn't reply online... I hope people realize that Esquif and others are watching, listening and learning.
It's easy to sit on the sidelines to not innovate, to not take chances, and to not progress... Esquif isn't willing to do that... so are a few other companies.
Fret not... our future as canoeists get's brighter every day... the pipeline isn't dry and the headphones aren't unplugged. We aren't even close to being done yet... not by a longshot.
(sorry... but I've had a few)
Last edited by Craig Smerda on Wed Mar 09, 2011 5:27 am, edited 2 times in total.
One coat of Formbys tung oil on a piece of ash gives it a finishing sheen... a couple of coats of Watco Danish oil and the wood can still look like nothing has been applied. Not all finishes look the same, so don't guess too much without contacting the manufacturer first.
That being said, multiple coats of tung oil before installing is the only way to go IMO, unless you really wanna go the extra mile applying spar varnish... fine for a woodstripper, maybe even a composite boat, but we're also talking a PE CREEKBOAT- which brings me to my next point.
I'm assuming the gunwales are ash, ash is tough stuff. In spite of it being listed as relatively low decay resistance, if you are using a L'edge for anything like its intended purpose the gunwales could easily outlast the boat with only the original coat of oil, if the boat is stored off the ground and covered.
I would have taken it up with Esquif if I was concerned enough about the issue that I wanted it rectified. I am not.
I am pretty sure there was nothing on the gunnels. I could run my hands over them and come up with saw dust.
That said, no one builds a perfect product, and I am sure that Esquif would have handled the situation well if I had given them the chance. That is one of the reasons I bought from them.
I took the boat to the pool tonight and couldn't be happier with how it paddled. That's all I really care about.
I do try to remove the wood gunwales from my boats every few years and reoil the interiors. It always looks as if they were never oiled.
It probably isn't as big a problem for poly canoes, but for Royalex boats, it isn't a bad idea to slightly enlarge the screw holes passing through the hull so that they are a bit larger than the gunwale screws.
It reduces the likelihood of "cold cracks" occurring if you don't back out the screws in the winter.
