Alcanboats Forum

Hi,

First post, don't own an Alcan boat. Considering it. My knowledge about them so far can fit on the head of a pin: Houseboats generally; aluminum; Canadian-made; about 350 produced total; no longer in production, etc.

Probably like most, my main interest in Alcan boats is their aluminum construction.

If you don't mind, please answer as many of the following questions as you can:

1. In terms of price, generally speaking, are Alcan boats considered a collector's item (high end) or a bit of an oddity with little market value (low end)? I'm not asking about quality and don't equate any of that to "good" or "bad". Just market.

2. Typically, were all major parts of these boats, such as hull and superstructure, made from aluminum, or only the hulls?

3. How unusual is it to find a more or less empty Alcan hull for sale, largely sound, suitable for a renovation / custom superstructure, etc.

4. Considering the age of these boats, at this point in time, what can be expected of the hulls in terms of strength, longevity, major maintenance, etc?

5. While a good meeting place for Alcan enthusiasts, this seems to be a rarely used forum. Is that pretty accurate?

Thanks for your time.

Welcome aboard. That is a bunch of great questions. I will take a crack at it and let others chime in.

1 - Market Value
I would say that Alcan boats are not collectors items as I have yet to see anyone restoring one to showroom original condition as a way of increasing its value as they might with a classic wood boat. However, they seem to maintain their value better than fiberglass boats of the same vintage as the aluminum is the longer lasting material plus it has a fairly high commodity value. Prices seem to be based on the age and condition of the equipment (engines, electronics, etc) and the freshness of the interior (paneling, upholstery, flooring, etc).

2 - Aluminum construction
The early boats were all aluminum (even the hanging locker interior). The later boats were aluminum hulls with wood superstructures that were either fiberglassed or aluminum clad.
1969 Alcan 370 - All aluminum
1970-74 Alwest 370 - Aluminum hull, wood superstructure with aluminum cladding
1970+ Alloy - Aluminum hull, fiberglass over wood superstructure
The list isn't comprehensive and there are a few one-offs and oddities, so you need to look closely.

3 - Empty hulls
I have seen a few empty hulls from the later boats with wooden superstructures where the wood has rotted out. I have never seen an all-aluminum boat in that condition. Interestingly, once you clean the rotted wood away, you will usually find a strong, shiny, aluminum foundation to build something on.

4 - Age/longevity
The boats are now 40 to 45 years old. Absolutely everything has broken and been repaired at least once. The hulls themselves could last for hundreds of years in fresh water, but you will need rebuild/replace the engines every 15 to 25 years depending on use and different parts fail with different frequency.

5 - The Alcanboats forum
The forum use runs hot and cold. I think a fairly high percentage of Alcan boat owner are registered, but it is still a small number of people. I tell people that it is the world's largest site dedicated to Alcan boats.

Cheers
David