Swift solos?

 Swift has 2 15 foot solos - the Osprey and Keewayden  15.  The measurements for these canoes are similar but there must be a difference.<br />

What are the differences between these 2 models and what are each be suited for?

Osprey
I’m not familiar with the Keewaydin but my old Expedition Kevlar Osprey is IMO the best river tripper ever made.

I’ve paddled it on everything from Class II+,(III-) to lakes.

Hauls my 200 lbs plus 80 lbs of gear like nothing.

Dry and steady in big waves.

Quite manuverable.

Eats flatwater miles like peanuts.



For big lake tripping I prefer my Bell Magic. Otherwise I take the Osprey.



But you should buy the Keewaydin so that you can tell us how that hull compares :wink:

+1
Ditto what Tommy said on the Osprey. Great boat. No idea how it compares to the other 15’ solo.

Only paddled the Kee once
seems not to be as Swedeform as the Osprey .



Its quite a user friendly boat for the sitting paddler who needs a touring boat Nice stability both primary and secondary.



Perhaps not as performance oriented as the Osprey but no slouch either.



I think its aimed at a slightly different user.



CEW would know the most about the Kee…I believe it was one he had use of that I paddled.



I have paddled the Osprey a couple of times. Unfortunately that test could not include the Kee as it was not in production yet.

Quite different
The boats are quite different and from two different designers. The Osprey is a John Winters design and the Keewaydin is a DY design. The Keewaydin is an updated and tweaked version of the Bell Merlin II.

Tweaked Merlin II in what ways?
I’ll be checking out a Merlin II tomorrow.

You’ll have to ask
Charlie or Bill Swift or DY to get the true answer, but I believe they increased the tumblehome and possibly made some adjustments to the rocker.

Kee 15 and Osprey
Swift’s Kee 15 is the twelfth hull in David Yost’s solo tripper series. The original concept was on of a fast, seaworthy tripping boat that tracked well. Over the years they’ve become slightly Swede form, tumblehomed and have grown differential rocker. W?L ratios have held around 6.5



Kee has more tumblehome than the immediate next design, Bell’s Merlin II but has bubble sides rather than shouldered tumblehome and, due to those bubble sides, is a little wider at waterline. The bow rocker is not carried out as in Merlin II but is quite pronounced over the front 30" or so.



Osprey is a John Winters design that is wider yet and has more bow rocker than Kee 15. Both feature 4" of tumblehome. While also having L/W near 6.5 I’ve always felt Osprey was the better river tripper due to increased bow rocker while Kee 15 is a little faster because of the narrower waterline. ALternatively, Kee is deeper.



The main difference is fit.



While I lock into K15s pretty well, I am loose in Osprey and need to move a knee to cross heel the boat. My legs aren’t long enough to fit into the chines even from Swift’s relatively low sliding seat.



So you need try both; one will likely speak to you more lovingly than the other.