Are Old, Vintage Snowshoes still usable?

[Dave]

As above, any have any experience of buying and using an old pair of snowshoes, that have been in storage of fifty years, made of rawhide and ash?

Are they just as useable as they were when they were made? Or is the rawhide more brittle?

 

[Stevie777]

The wood might be ok. The rawhide might be past it's best. Depends how they were stored. only one way to find out. find snow and go for a walk.

Did you find them somewhere. ?

 

[Dave]

No Stevie. I bought some 'new ones' But unused, or used very lightly according seller.

I was thinking of buying the kit, with the 50lb mono, and doing it myself, but the price worked out better this way. If you type vintage snowshoes into ebay.com there are some beautiful looking ones which come up.


These are a pair of 'Maine Guide snowshoes by LL Bean' which Ive just bought. They were sold as new[other] but i can see some obvious wear on the back tips of the ash frame, but on the places where snowshoes do acquire wear, on the rawhide, there is not much, I can see.

Size is 14x48

 

[richardhomer]

Sorry don't know anything about snow shoes. But they do look ace. I fancy some now to hang on the wall. But I think my wife would have something to say about that. And I don't think it would be kind!

Are you going to be ushering them often of just a one off ?

 

[Dave]

Id expect them,with maintenance to out last me! They wll be users of course.