Two of the first three are damaged
only the last one seems to be the most OK. One has been folded. Alu thwarts do not fold that easily. One is hogged. You dont want that either.
The Osag is a winner!
I’ve paddled one a few times, and it is a good aluminum canoe with a strong build. Will last and last.
Number 2
Number 2 is an old lightweight Grumman. The rear thwart is bent down, but the gunwales are clean; no kinks, a smooth radius from front to back on both sides. Can’t believe this canoe was wrapped or broached. Ribs are hard to see in the photo, but no shadows of a broken one. Not many showing, which indicates its a lightweight. The bent thwart could be from someone stepping on it or a drop in storage. Easy to replace. The oval serial number plate on the front deck and just barely visible Grumman decal on the bow date the canoe. I could not make out the stamped “G” on the end tanks, which would confirm to me that it was a genuine Grumman.
Good deal at price, good starter canoe which later becomes your ‘loaner’ canoe. Grummans are the canoe that you can survive loaning to your relatives and keep your good Kevlar Wenonah safe at home. And when the stream is low and you still want to paddle you take the Grumman.
More first descents of wilderness rivers were made after WWII in Grumman aluminum canoes than any other type of canoe. There are better canoes now for almost any purpose, but good aluminum canoes still can get the job done.
Bill
Lots of drawbacks…
to aluminum canoes on Ozark streams. For one thing, it can’t be stressed enough that aluminum grabs rocks, and even gravel and logs. You won’t slide over anything you’ll find on an Ozark stream very well in an aluminum canoe. And unless you confine yourself to the Niangua below Bennett Spring and the lower Gasconade, you WILL be scraping over shallow riffles a lot. Of course, aluminum is also extremely durable…you can scrape over a lot of miles of shallow riffles without a lot of damage, while doing the same with any kind of plastic boat will have you putting on skid plates pretty quickly. But on the other other hand, all that scraping bottom is NOISY in aluminum.
One other drawback to aluminum that always bothered me when I owned one, and I used aluminum canoes exclusively for 15 years or so…the gunwales and other exposed aluminum parts get HOT in summer sunshine. Hot enough to burn bare legs sometimes. And if you do any cold season paddling, aluminum also gets very cold. You’ll stick to it in freezing weather!
But…your aluminum canoe will be serviceable, and get you on the water reasonably cheaply, and it’ll last a LONG time.
My experience
I have tripped hundreds of miles in alumunum canoes as a scout leader. Here’s my experience;all brands of aluminum canoes are not equal-some perform more poorly in the water and some have less tough,weaker softer metal. Also the performance difference between 15’ and 17’ seems greater than other canoes. Avoud ones with a promenant keel. Grumans are among the best in toughness and performance,but the liteweight Grummans are fragile-I have been on 2 trips where they were holed,never a standard weight other than a previously bent thwart that broke. Once bent or dented,they are never the same after being bent back in shape,always a weak spot there so i would avoid one with old damage. Aluminum canoes have a lot of virtues,but personally,other than to sit in the sun for years next to my pond,not for me.
Turtle
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
A few guys
Did fairly well with an aluminum canoe a few years ago. There was a movie about it…Deliver- something or other.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
Al canoes
Any boat is way ahead of not owning a canoe. They were the rage in after WWII. The serious drawbacks are that they can’t be formed into complex shapes, they are heavy and definitely stick to rocks.
On the otherhand you can leave one outside in a snow bank with little effect. They are durable, used ones are cheap, and it takes a good wrap to ruin one. Find a Grumman with some length, at least 16 feet so it won’t be so slow, and join the ranks of canoeists instead of wishing you were one. Later use it as a loaner and for rocky low flows. Good luck.
I probably wouldn’t get aluminum
– Last Updated: Oct-25-12 11:21 AM EST –
Like many others here, I started out in aluminum canoes and have a soft spot in my heart for them. And if you want a completely maintenance-free boat that is durable and can be sold for scrap metal (instead of taken to the landfill) when it reaches end of life, aluminum is unmatched.
But unless you are buying a boat that is going to sit out exposed to the elements all year, I think you would be happier looking around for a good deal on a used Royalex or composite boat. And if you aren't concerned about the weight, I would still prefer a polyethylene boat to aluminum. Even a slightly hogged or oil-canned Old Town Discovery will paddle at least as well, and probably better than a pristine aluminum hull.
For me, the disadvantages of aluminum just outweigh the virtues. Most have been chronicled here: heavy, very limited selection of hull shapes (none very efficient), hot as hades in summer, cold as a pump handle in winter, noisy as all get out, sticks like glue to rocks.
One disadvantage that hasn't been mentioned is the keel that all aluminum boats have. Nearly all aluminum canoes have a T keel with a fin that sticks down into the water. These are very undesirable in boats intended for river use. The T keel makes it even more likely that the boat will stick on rocks and ledges, makes lift overs more difficult, and resist turning the boat when you need to.
If you plan to paddle rivers, especially headwaters where you are likely to encounter deadfall, and you really want aluminum, I would look for a boat with a rounded "shoe keel" that is a little less onerous, but good luck finding one.
ok
Ya gotta start somewhere.
Cheap is good. sounds like it serves your purpose.
Drawback?
Noisy as hell
Cold as hell…metal absorbs the cold.
Heavy as hell.
The perfect hell boat!!!
Aluminum weight varies greatly.
I have a 17’ Grumman and a 17’ Alumicraft and the Alumicraft feels much lighter and I can get both boats up to my shoulders by myself.
I don’t think they’re any heavier than many royalex boats of similar dimensions and certainly not heavier than the Mad River and Old Town triple layer boats and lighter than some fiberglass canoes of similar dimensions that I’ve encountered.
A positive trait is that they’re very stiff and responsive to body movement and paddle input.
Design matters - my two tandems by different manufacturers vary in handling characteristics.
My Grumman G-129 Solo Handles very nicely, very crisp & maneuverable, but a little deep and wide at the gunwales for my best fit. At 44 lbs, it’s nearly as heavy as my royalex Bell Wildfire/Yellowstone Solo, which I don’t use much because of it’s 49 lb weight.
The main drawbacks for aluminum for me are:
- The keel that grabs rocks on non whitewater shoe keeled boats.
- Cold when it’s cold.
- Hot when it’s hot.
- Glare in bright sun if not painted in strategic locations.
- Much noisier than royalex or plastic and somewhat noisier than composites. Some composites I’ve had have been pretty noisy when scraping over rocks or gravel or when setting a paddle down in them.
- Once the keel or gunwales are bent, they can be a beast to straighten out to near original lines.
The ability to store them outdoors without concern for related deterioration can not be ignored.
There are still several aluminum canoes that get used in our local group river trips and the people in them have just as much fun as the people in non-aluminum boats.
If you find a great deal on an aluminum boat, try it. If you’re not happy with it after a few outings, sell it and try a different model of canoe. This approach applies for canoes of any material.
Have fun searching.