Refinishing a Canvas Covered Canoe

Marine enamels color plastics and canvas covered canoes. Urethane varnish brightens plastic covered hulls. Begin with a clean, dry canoe. If the surface is not badly checked or broken, a coat of Old Town Varnish will restore the gloss and condition the hull for another season.

Using No. 60 sandpaper, smooth and clean all exposed wood and canvas surfaces inside and out sanding with the grain. Wipe all sand dust away with a dry cloth. Use Old Town Varnish, coating the inside first then turn the canoe onto a pair of horses and finish the exterior surface.

If the finish is checked and in poor condition, sand with No. 40 paper until a smooth hard surface is attained. Varnish inside first, then with canoe’s gunwales resting on horses apply one coat of Old Town enamel to the outside. To brighten the surface of wooden canoes with a clear plastic exterior, use urethane varnish.

When surface is badly checked and sandpaper is not effective, a blowtorch or liquid paint remover, available from your local paint store, may be used to soften the old coating. Use a dull edged scraper such as a putty knife to remove the softened paint down to the base coat. Allow a few days for the surface to reharden and proceed as outlined above with finish coat.