Jack what was the empty weight on these? Was it 64 lbs? When were the last ones produced? Do you have a picture of what the aluminum oars looked like so I can keep an eye out for them?
Empty weight 67 lbs., less than a standard Grumman canoe. The last original LD (Lifetime Ducker) produced, #2784, left the AlumaCraft factory in 1959. Economy Duckers #3001-3453 were built from 1967 to 1969 but never became successful.
The original oars were formed from two aluminum halves, joined around the edges by heliarc welds. Oar handles were ashwood. Oarlocks were pinned to the shafts. Only picture I have is the oar mounted on the boat in this link -
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b8df28b3127cceb326a8b03c5800000025100EaNm7RsycMT - which I can't seem to bring up here.
The very first AlumaCraft Ducker I ever saw was in the gun room at Von Lengerke & Antoine in Chicago in 1954. VL&A had some kind of business connection with Abercrombie & Fitch, so it's likely that the old A&F sold them, too. I would think the Ducker would have been too pricey for L.L.Bean.
