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PostPosted: August 26th, 2019, 7:58 pm 
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Hey all new member, I'm looking to the hive mind for suggestions on canoes that fit a somewhat specific criteria.

So long story short I'm tall and top heavy and not particularly gifted in the balance department. I also expect to spend most of my time on flat water in mostly open lakes and calm rivers.

I want:

Relativity good tracking, basically I don't want to have to J-stroke all day long. I'd rather be able to get a good rythmn and speed.

Symetric Hull, being big is a trial and opportunity. If I solo and sit in the rear seat the bow lifts and I lose control. However my long armspan means I can sit backwards in the front seat giving me more stability and better weight distribution. However this means there cannot be a thwart immediately behind the front seat.

Lastly I want stability. Of the three this matters the least but any gains here will generally make my paddles know enjoyable. Stability is one of the key reasons I hate kayaks.

Notes:

I tend to prefer the front seat for its better weight balance, keep in mind I have long legs to fit into the bow. This doesn't seem to be an issue on modern canoes I think but I've had cramping issues with older aluminum models I've used.

My budget is $2-3k CAD, lower is always better, I like $2400 as a number.

Ideally I want a royalex style material, durability and weight, while not too pricy.

Thanks in advance.


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PostPosted: August 26th, 2019, 8:20 pm 
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Location: Toronto, Ontario Canada
Comment.
Quote:
I also expect to spend most of my time on flat water in mostly open lakes and calm rivers.

Ideally I want a royalex style material, durability and weight, while not too pricy.


If you are mostly paddling flat water why do you want "royalex style material"? that would limit you to two choices, an insanely heavy poly boat or the replacement for Royalex, T-Formex, which will limit your options dramatically.

A composite boat will be lighter, track better and be plenty durable for flat water use plus your options expand to many more manufacturers and boat designs. Your budget is high enough to get a great boat although maybe not an ultra-light or expedition grade layup.

Is this for solo paddling mostly or a mix of solo/tandem?

Don't get hung up on the thwart thing too much, if you find the 'perfect" boat thwarts can be moved (or even ordered moved by the factory), thwart location is much less critical for a flat water boat.

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PostPosted: August 26th, 2019, 9:23 pm 
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Really I don't want fibreglass and am too cheap for carbon. I'm looking for that happy medium out doesn't have to be Tformex.

I'm looking for both solo and tandem.


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PostPosted: August 26th, 2019, 11:47 pm 
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Find yourself a beat up (or not so beat up) Mad River Royalex Explorer (the older the better....90's?), I paddled it as a solo for a few years, it's a very stable boat as well. Works fine as a tandem with a modest load. You might pick one up for $500+.

I can't comment on specific boats especially new ones as I have no experience with that type of boat for many years. Depending on your location the used market is an option, in Southern Ontario there are plenty of quality boats available.

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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 5:17 am 
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I'm in Winnipeg so smaller used market.


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 5:59 am 
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I'd look at a Prospector 16 design with a keel for better tracking, and as per recped if you are doing flatwater not sure why you want Royalex. Look at Blue Steel or Tuff Stuff or one of the other basalt innegra layups.

The only problem with a keel is that most people here will mock you for it but it does work :-)


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 6:16 am 
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You know what I'd recommend to be very specific is a canoe from Beach Marine in Hamilton, if you can get them out there. I know they have a distributor now here in the Ottawa area now. They are a damned tough kevlar boat with a keel, at an extremely good price. Maybe Jonathan will chime in if he sees this to see how well it meets your other criteria but he pounds the piss out of his in his videos and it keeps on going.


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 7:12 am 
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Location: Toronto Beach(es)
post retracted. No longer interested in participating in this thread.


Last edited by open_side_up on August 27th, 2019, 10:47 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 9:00 am 
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Hi Canuck, and welcome!

This guy is just over the border near Kenora/Red Lake with some options, looks like an outfitter. No keels, but nice boats to choose from and he says he'd deliver...

https://www.kijiji.ca/o-profile/1006279418/listings/1

Good luck with the search!


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 12:19 pm 
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You should pop in to Wilderness Supply, look at some boats and ask some questions. Maybe they sell off rentals?

There hasn't been much on Kijiji lately, but if it watch there can be good boats. The good ones tend to sell pretty quickly though, so you do have to watch daily if you're serious.

P.

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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 1:59 pm 
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Prospector16 wrote:
I'd look at a Prospector 16 design with a keel for better tracking, and as per recped if you are doing flatwater not sure why you want Royalex. Look at Blue Steel or Tuff Stuff or one of the other basalt innegra layups.

The only problem with a keel is that most people here will mock you for it but it does work :-)


Ok I said "royalex style material" by this I simply mean plastic, durable, and fairly light, for a middling price. It doesn't actually have to be royalex(Tformex) but just similar performance.

Frankly I want to find every web designer for ever canoe website and yell at them until they cry and seek therapy, because canoe maker websites are universally useless.

I'm here because their websites are garbage.

I don't know anything about the different materials other than I want as light as possible this side of carbon fiber, I want durable because I want a thing that costs $2-3K to actually last a long time, I don't want fibreglass, aluminum, or wood. Other than that I'm very open to material choices.

I always hear not to get a keel, I'm willing to follow that if it's good advice, though I'm also willing to murder anyone who says "just perfect your J-stroke" so keep that in mind. I find well tracking canoes to be the most enjoyable.


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 2:02 pm 
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yarnellboat wrote:
You should pop in to Wilderness Supply, look at some boats and ask some questions. Maybe they sell off rentals?

There hasn't been much on Kijiji lately, but if it watch there can be good boats. The good ones tend to sell pretty quickly though, so you do have to watch daily if you're serious.

P.


Oh I've been too wilderness supply, they have people with a clue and people without a clue, just like anywhere. If you could tell me which staff has the core this world be helpful, because the last guy didn't.


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 2:04 pm 
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Corbeau wrote:
Hi Canuck, and welcome!

This guy is just over the border near Kenora/Red Lake with some options, looks like an outfitter. No keels, but nice boats to choose from and he says he'd deliver...

https://www.kijiji.ca/o-profile/1006279418/listings/1

Good luck with the search!


Thanks for the tip, I wouldn't need delivery driving to Kenora is nothing, heck my company does so much work there I may even give a way to get paid to drive there.


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 2:52 pm 
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open_side_up wrote:
Portaging won't be a factor?

Is this one still available?

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-canoe-kayak-pad ... nFlag=true




I have no idea, looks like the guy love right by my grandfather, but I first messaged him on Aug 13, he doesn't return any messages.

You can't tell from the ad what exactly it is, the hull is pretty hidden in the grass but heck I'd take carbon fibre for $1k even if it isn't ideal for my criteria.

Yes Portage is a factor.


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PostPosted: August 27th, 2019, 3:05 pm 
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No wood, aluminium or fibreglass really limits the options. Down to two I think -- Innegra which is basalt fibre and is marketed as Tuffstuff among others, and polyethylene. Silverbirch makes a tandem boat in poly which retails for about $1200 in the US, which would be about $1800 in Canadad. PE is very durable, but also heavy. The lightest version of the Silverbirch boat is 65 lbs.

Regarding tracking, the keel/no keel thing is, to me, a red herring. What you are really looking for is little or no rocker. With low rocker, the bow digs in and the boat goes straight -- but is also hard to turn. Boats with keels generally don't have much rocker.

I don't think you should eliminate glass boats. They will last for 20-30 years and are easily repairable.


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