C-Forum

I'm replacing the wood on a friend's Ocoee, and was wondering if Dagger steam bent the original gunwales?

I don't know, but I'd suggest you do it. No springback to deform the hull and much easier to install.
Bill

When taking off the old wood I was a bit surprised to find that Dagger used some type of adhesive to bond the outwales to the hull. The adhesive had completely failed, so removing the wood wasn't a problem. They also edge glued the decks to the inwales. That still had a little bond to it, but it was easily separated with a utility knife.

Just a thought-- for furniture and wooden boat parts in general, useful steam bending requires air-dried wood, not kiln dried. Of course 99% of wood you buy is gonna be kiln dried. Dagger might have been buying large-ish lots of green ash, milling it down to an inch or so, selecting the straight grain and then putting it into production--steam bending as soon the moisture content stabilized enough that you wouldn't lose significant length in the final drying. But maybe that's what it takes for all canoe gunnels?

Kaz, Esquif, Silverbirch and others could certainly chime in with what they have found in working gunnels and maybe enlighten us on what works (?)

Just a thought-- for furniture and wooden boat parts in general, useful steam bending requires air-dried wood, not kiln dried. Of course 99% of wood you buy is gonna be kiln dried. Dagger might have been buying large-ish lots of green ash, milling it down to an inch or so, selecting the straight grain and then putting it into production--steam bending as soon the moisture content stabilized enough that you wouldn't lose significant length in the final drying. But maybe that's what it takes for all canoe gunnels?

Kaz, Esquif, Silverbirch and others could certainly chime in with what they have found in working gunnels and maybe enlighten us on what works (?)

Steam what? No, never in 31 years have I steam bent gunwales into shape.

I've done 2 Ocoee's in ash that I'm pretty sure was kiln dried. No problem w/o steam, as Kaz said. Also... I milled them to 5/8 x 3/4 w/ alternating fasteners every 5.5". Milled 1 x 1 thwarts w/ a 1/2" roundover (thus making them round where not in contact w/ the gunwales) and am happy with the strength and feel of this combination.