Could you all give me a little knowledge and advice on an Old Town Discovery 16. I am looking for a good canoe for local lakes, and more likely rocky bottom rivers in southern Missouri. This wouldn't necessarily be my canoe of choice for the BW. The canoe I am looking at has been stored outside for a couple years, but it looks to be in good condition other than the sun fading on the bottom. What do you think is a fair price for this canoe?

I don't think I really worded this question the way I wanted to. What do you know about these canoes? What type of material is this made of. The guy selling it said he thought it was fiberglass, but I don't think old town does fiberglass, but I'm not sure. Thanks for the help!!!

its polylink 3 (polyethylene). heavy but really tough.

It makes me nervous when it's been stored outside and has sun fading. Examine the bottom very closely for cracks. If there are cracks in the vinyl outer layer that mean the inner layer foam is exposed. That foam is very susceptible to UV rays and will deteriorate quickly. Also check that layer for brittleness, which means it will probably crack, especially if using it on rocky rivers. If it has cracks, pass on it.

If there are no cracks, and it doesn't seem brittle, then you're going to want to recondition it with some 303 Protectant . This will recondition it and protect it.

As kanoes said, the material is polyethylene. It is not only tough and heavy it is inexpensive. So don't make a price comparison with a canoe made of royalex, which is much more expensive.

Retail is about $900 for this canoe. With Old Town Canoes, no one pays retail. Dealers have lots of sales on Old Towns. Furthermore, Old Town sells some factory seconds. Sometimes you can't tell they are a second by looking at it, so try to find out. I think you can call Old Town with the HIN (hull identification number) and they'll tell you.

Once you figure out what it may have sold for new, a fair price would be about 50%. A canoe in excellent shape may fetch up to 80%, but this canoe is not in excellent shape, in fact it is damaged as evidenced by the faded bottom (the most important part).

So the short of it is, if there are no cracks, and it is not a second, offer maybe $400.

I think what others have suggested is right on. However, here's another thought, why not try it out for a couple on the water, maybe even paddle a few miles of river? I have purchased several used cars from other people and I always insisted on driving them around for an hour first to see what condition the enigine is in. I would never buy a car without driving it first, I think the same approach to buying a canoe would serve you well. Dave

In Indiana, boats like this in the described condition would sell $300-$400 assuming no obvious problems. The comments about sun exposure are valid, though sun is not totally fatal. These boats are made to stable, durable, and inexpensive. I have owned three poly Old Town boats and have a 158 right now. I feel they are a good value. 303 is a must for a sun damaged boat, look for those obvious cracks before buying.

hummm...