This is why I build my own (in wood)

[hairymick]

G'day guys,

I would like to share with you a little piccie sequence that Miss Robin was kind enough to take for me today.

Let me say at the outset, that I am middle aged, only of average strength but relatively fit and this is in no way intended to sound like I am boasting of my prowess. I know that I am only average - at best.

It is merely to illustrate a point that timber boats can be built stronger, lighter, and prettier than either fibreglass or plastic. i would go so far as to say they can be built to compete with the multi - thousand dollar, kevlar jobs at a fraction of the cost.

This boat was built using 4mm gaboon (okuome?) ply, about 7 ounce cloth outside and 3.23 oz cloth inside and West Systems Resin. No particular effort was made to make her light. Emphasis on this one was strength. I built her to run isolated rivers and bounce over rock and gravel bars. Not real sure of the total weight now. I have added a permanent seat. Best guesstimate is around 45 pounds. I am confident that this boat could be built sub 40 without too much fuss.

Up!

away

Up!

Easy!!

I bloody LOVE this boat

So does Mis Robin. I didn't think she was going to bring it back. :lol:

8)

 

[Ozark]

Ever use a tump line for those portages Mick?

 

[hairymick]

G'day Paul,

What's a Tump line? :shock: I don't portage any further than I have to

 

[bearridge]

Friend Mick,

That iz a nice lookin' boat. It got me ta thinkin'. [Hey....ya'll, come back.] I struggle a bit liftin' my Royalex Caption which iz 55 pounds plus the seat, foot braces, thigh straps, D rings, lacin', patches 'n long strap. I figger it really weighs 60 pounds. Plastic really aint the word fer Royalex 'n Kevlar boats. They aint all the same. Royalex iz tuff. Kevlar aint az tuff. The $2000 utlralite canoes iz some kinda composite....'er graphite.

Look at this 16'6" Prism. 29 pounds!
http://wapurl.co.uk/?EYD3DTF

I know how tuff Royalex iz, but it iz heavy. I called a heap a folks bout the 29 pound Prism. Nobody had any in stock. Nobody had ever sold one. Nobody knew fer sho how they held up. I know what the Wennonah folks tell us, but I wanted ta hear it frum someone who bought one 'n used it hard. [Not drivin' it inta the carport, but droppin', draggin' on concrete, scrapin' rocks, etc.] That iz jest too dang much dough ta spend on a boat without knowin' how tuff it iz.

With all due respect, I doubt ya will be makin' a wood boat tuff az Royalex....'er the Kevlar weave, but then ya wont have $1000 in yer boat either. :wink:

It aint yer father's plastic no more. :wink:

respectfully
bearridge

ps When it comes ta purty, yer wood boat beats kevlar, graphite, Royalex 'n aluminiumum.....long az ya dont paint 'em. :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

Between a balanced republic and a democracy, the difference is like that between order and chaos. John Marshall

 

[oldsparkey]

Look at this 16'6" Prism. 29 pounds!
http://wapurl.co.uk/?EYD3DTF

With all due respect, I doubt ya will be makin' a wood boat tuff az Royalex....'er the Kevlar weave, but then ya wont have $1000 in yer boat either. :wink:

Bear the 29 pound is the Graphite Ultra-light: 29 lbs (13.05 kg) w/ Standard Equipment $2649.00

Two kevlar boats the less in cost it the Kevlar® Flex-core: 44 lbs (19.8 kg) w/ Standard Equipment $1899.00

The Tuf-weave® Flex-core: 53 lbs (23.85 kg) w/ Standard Equipment $1329.00 ........ Is the just over a grand , fiberglass canoe.

Judging from there prices I would place Micks Canoe in the $2,000.00 to $2,500.00 price range if you purchased it from a manfacture and none of there's are wood.
Just for wood trim there is an extra $255.00 for wood gunnels or the all wood trim $250.00 extra. That would make the 29 pound Graphite canoe $2,899.00 without taxes and shipping.

Chuck.

 

[bearridge]

Friend Chuck,

I am jest politely disagreein' with Mick bout buildin' a wood boat az lite 'n az tough az the "plastic 'n kevlar" boats. Aint no disagreement over beauty. I hope he proves me wrong on lite 'n tuff. However, it dont really matter if he kin build one az lite if it aint az tuff. I'd like ta see him pull it off cuz then he mite fly up here in hiz own jet airplane 'n go paddlin' with us. :wink:

regards
bearridge

ps When it comes ta the tuff test. I wanna see pichurs of Mick's wood boat after he drives it inta the carport. :mrgreen: :mrgreen:

One of the first duties of the physician is to educate the masses not to take medicine. Sir William Osler

 

[oldsparkey]

Bear ... Unlike some folks ...... name withheld to protect the guilty...... Bear . .....when Mick drives into the carport or garage he takes the boat off his vehicle. This is something you don't mind doing when the boat is such a light weight one or if you are thinking. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Ozark]

Here ya go Mick

http://members.porchlight.ca/aferg/home_htpac.html

 

[bearridge]

when Mick drives into the carport or garage he takes the boat off his vehicle.

Not if he aims ta compare hiz tuff wood boat ta mine.

 

[oldsparkey]

when Mick drives into the carport or garage he takes the boat off his vehicle.

Not if he aims ta compare hiz tuff wood boat ta mine.

Bear ... No boat could or would ever hold up to yours , It is indestructible and you have proved that numerous times both on the water and off. Yours is a Bear Proof Boat...... No questions about it.

It is a one of a kind that forgives all sorts of misgivings. I'm sure they stopped production of them since they will last a 1,000 years no matter what the person does to them , even a "A" Bomb would not hurt it much less a white water paddling Attorney.

For the life of me , I can't see you paddling anything but that plastic boat ... the memory of you on rivers paddling it is with me along with all the good times , it is as much of you as you are of it. It is your signature on and off the river sort of like Siamese twins..... Bear and the Big Red SOB he likes to paddle or so he affectionately calls the canoe.

Chuck.

 

[bearridge]

Mister High Sheriff,

Ya got yer sobs all mixed up. :wink: The big red sob iz my Blue Hole OCA which iz settin' out behind Dano's house in the Ozarks. I paddled it one time on slow movin' flatwater....my first paddle on the St. Mary. Keepin' up with ya'll (cept Swampy) had me plum tuckered out. After that I jest paddled my Dagger Caption on flatwater. The OCA is near bout 16' long and weighs 70 pounds....eazy ta stand up in. The Caption is 14', weighs 55 pounds 'n iz hard ta stand up in, but on slow movin' flatwater it iz the little sob.

Both canoes iz Royalex 'n dont track worth a dang. I hit a heap a boulders head on in my OCA, blowed out on the Nantahala 'n turnt my youngest daughter over on Chuck's Ledge on the Buffalo. I hit one rock so hard it made the inside look "funny"...kinda "wrinkled". I have gouged some mitey deep cuts inta both of 'em, but it wuz the Caption I used ta try ta raize the carport a few inches. [That put some wrinkles along the inside of both sides.]

I dont figger no kinda wood will ever match Royalex when it comes ta tuff. No Royalex, Kevlar 'er composite canoe will ever look half az purty az yer unpainted, homemade, wood boats. I figger the less a wood boat weighs, the quicker it will crush when ya use it ta raize yer carport. 8) 8) :lol:

regards
bearridge
the other sob

Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses. Confucius

 

[oldsparkey]

Bear......

St Marys River.... Dec 17th , 05.

March 21 ,04 St Marys......

Buffalo River , Arp 18th , 05.

Ocklawaha in a borrowed RED Canoe .....

Lost Mines , May 25 , 06 ... Guess who brought the red canoe laying there while he is putting a new canoe rack on his truck. He is the one in the truck giving us the best picture of his RED Shorts. :lol:

I would of had a lot more pictures but some of the places the guys have used , the pictures are gone. :twisted:
No matter all I see is a Big Red sob in all of them with a smiling gray beard paddling .......I know the 2nd picture is a different canoe but it is RED , Just like Mac's , Ya sure the two of you are not related since both of ya like red canoes. :lol:

Mac ...Ocklawaha River .. Dec 11 , 07

As the honorable Bear would say in any court of Law ... Gentlemen I Rest My Case. :lol: 8)

Chuck.

 

[Kayak Jack]

Mick,

Go back to pictures# 1 & 2. Next time, instead of reaching across the boat, try this. Squat a bit with your knees next to the gunnel. First, grasp the near gunnel and drag the bottom of the boat up onto your thighs.

THEN reach across to the far gunnel, and rotate the boat up onto our shoulders. It's already part way up and partly turned over that way.

Saves the sacroiliac, the lower back, and the rimpuckaroo.


A tump line is a strap that goes from your upper forehead, back over both shoulders to the load. The load could be a pack, firewood, a box, or a canoe.

Take a large bandanna laid out corner ways, then rolled. Tie a 3'-4' line onto each end of the bandanna. The bandanna goes across the upper part of your forehead, and the lines go back over your shoulders.

Tie a large, soft rope across about an inch forward of the balance point. It becomes a carrying thwart. This should rest high across your shoulder blades, not on top of your shoulders. To balance properly, tie the tump lines to the boat a bit aft of the rope carrying thwart.

With the weight of the boat laying across your shoulder blades resting on the thwart, and the weight on your forehead, you can carry farther easier than a standard wooden, carrying thwart.

 

[bearridge]

Mister High Sheriff,

Go back one St. Mary's trip......that iz the one with the big red sob....the one I stood in part of the trip. All them pichurs ya posted iz the little red sob....the carport raizin' sob. Both iz red. They dont make plastic boats in stylish colors. :wink:

regards
bearridge

There is no kind of dishonesty into which otherwise good people more easily and frequently fall than that of defrauding the government. Benjamin Franklin

 

[hairymick]

Friend Bear,

Mate, I didn’t mean to sound like I was bagging the plastic er royalex boats. There is no doubt in my mind that they are tougher than either fibreglass or timber. I have owned three Canadian style canoes in my life in including Sasquatch. The other two were of fibreglass construction. I have had the pleasure of paddling a Coleman (royalex?) 15 footer with a mate down the Mary river a few years ago and it took a lot of hits on rocks and such and stood up very well to it.

We were paddling with about 8 other fibreglass jobs and where the coleman hurt us was in the long flat water sections. We really struggled to keep pace with them. Also in the carrying of the boat up the banks at the end of each day was an ordeal for two fit blokes. It was easily the heaviest boat in the fleet.

I know how tuff Royalex iz, but it iz heavy. I called a heap a folks bout the 29 pound Prism. Nobody had any in stock. Nobody had ever sold one. Nobody knew fer sho how they held up. I know what the Wennonah folks tell us, but I wanted ta hear it frum someone who bought one 'n used it hard. [Not drivin' it inta the carport, but droppin', draggin' on concrete, scrapin' rocks, etc.] That iz jest too dang much dough ta spend on a boat without knowin' how tuff it iz.

With all due respect, I doubt ya will be makin' a wood boat tuff az Royalex....'er the Kevlar weave, but then ya wont have $1000 in yer boat either.

Probably not as tough mate but my Sasquatch cost me about AUD$450, to make, is about half the weight of royalex and way faster to paddle. Boat speed is probably not as important in fast running water but it is very important to me for those long flat, stillwater stretches

It aint yer father's plastic no more

True enough

Mate, I don’t plan on running into carports, or dropping mine or dragging it over concrete. Part of the beauty of a light boat is that they are easier to carry and there is no need to drag them at all. Will probably bump a few rocks from time to time but I am confident this boat is up to that.

Sorry if I stirred up a hornets nest here guys, I was just trying to explain why I like my timber boats so much.

Bear, I love the lines of your royalex canoes and if we had white water here big enough to justify buying one, be sure that there would allready be such a boat in my shed

 

[bearridge]

Friend Mick,

No hornet nest. I jest dont want nobody ta think they kin build a lite wood boat that will be tuff like Royalex 'er Kevlar. Ya'll kin build a boat that looks better 'n weighs near bout the same (with mitey thin wood), but not az tuff. That iz why our spacemen dont fly rocketships made of wood. :wink: We all need a goal 'n we oughta set 'em high. If ya aim ta make a wood boat that iz tuff az Royalex, ya wont ever run outta goals. :mrgreen:

regards
bearridge

ps I jest seen the High Sheriff posted one pichur of my BIG red sob. It haz the Stars 'n Bars on the back end. Looks like Honest Abe Lincoln paddlin' it. :lol:

Μολῲν λαβέ King Leonidas I of Sparta

 

[hairymick]

Oh yeah, Thanks paul and Jack re the tump line thingamees.

Truth is I hope not to ever have to carry my boat any further than from the car to the water. But some very good tips there - thank you.

Bear mate, I didn't mean my original post to sound like I was claiming I could build a wood boat as tough as royalex at half the weight. What I guess I was trying to say is that is possible to build a very good touring canoe that is tough enough for most purposes at half the weight and for less than a quarter of the cost.

I would love to have a crack at building a dedicated white water canoe very similar to your small SOB and will be talking to Matt about something in due course.

Re the kevlar - in boat building, I own a kevlar tandem sea kayak and I am not convinced it is sufficiently better than standard fibreglass to justify the extrea expense.

It might work well in space shuttles and flack jackets etc.

 

[buckisland1950]

Mick:

Great looking boat. Which one is that? Is that graphite on the bottom or just black paint? Still looking for my first build but definitely want to do a canoe. Thanks for sharing the pictures.

 

[john the pom]

Re: tump lines... Ok so you guys tie your boats to your heads. Is that so you don't forget/lose them or something? (Them is either yer heads or yer boats)
Um if'n ya trip over?

 

[hairymick]

G'day Franke,

Thanks mate,

Boat is a Sasquatch 16.5

http://www.jemwatercraft.com/proddetail ... d=Sas16-33

It is easily the best Canadian style canoe I have ever paddled. Fast, stable and maneuverable Matt has developped a set of drawings for a 14 foot version of the same boat. I have ordered these plans as well for a nice little canoe for Robin. (maybe one for me too )

I just don't have enough good words about this boat. She will turn heads in any company, is fast and effecient to paddle with glide that just goes on and on and on. So much so, she would break the hearts of paddlers in less superb craft who want to cover miles.

I have absolutely no doubt, that who ever bulds this boat will love theirs as much as Robin and I love ours. In fact, Robin who is a confirmed kayak paddler, and has previously shown very little inclination or desire to go canoeing is making plans right now about where we can go in this boat and future trips in it.

Mate, if you are thinking of building a canoe, I think you would have to go a very long way to find a better boat than this one. That is, if such a boat exists.