I’m on the hunt for an ultralight and am going to try out a slipstream sportduo 13 and a Sacandaga 14 in the next couple weeks. Weight is amazing, prices are reasonable and Stan seems like a good dude.
Any concerns that people have heard about which I should be aware of?
I have a petite friend here in Michigan that has one and is happy with it for what she bought it for. That is trips requiring portages as she is generally a kayaker. You likely already know this but they are delicate. Enter & exit with the hull fully floating & don’t be running over logs & stuff.
I’m far from petite, but think that their 13 or 14 footer will work well for me as a solo as well as something to take my kids with me in.
This will be my first ultralight, so the care needed will take some getting used to, for sure.
As I recall, hers is the Wee Lassie @ 14 lbs so much smaller that those you are looking at. They have good info on their “Avoiding Damage & Repairs” page.
Enjoy
The wee lassie is probably too small for me (6’5") but it’s probably perfect for my wife (5’4"). They can make it as light as 8lbs…crazy.
Talked to Stan this week, he expects that he can start doing carbon/Kevlar gunwales on the boats I am considering over the winter, which is very appealing to me.
Well, you got me looking at their Wee Lassie in carbon, and I’m about to order one.
I’m on my way out there in a couple hours.
If the wee lassie handles my size, I might be ordering one. Especially if they can do carbon gunwales…
I was just composing an email for Stan, but since you’re going, would you mind?
Wee Lassie in carbon, with the bridle bungee airbags, cherry gunwales, standard butt pad and back band, standard foot braces—how much will it weigh when delivered? In other words, is the 9 lb weight just the hull as it comes out of the mold?
Are deck plates standard, or optional? If optional, how much weight do they add?
I can’t wait to hear your impression of the Wee Lassie. Think hard about the carbon gunwales. I have one canoe with them, and they’re ugly and noisy. For the first time, I put yak pads on my paddles just so when I lay the paddle across the gunwales to take a picture, it doesn’t scare off the wildlife.
Per Stan, that would be around 12lbs. If you want a sub 10lb boat, he can do it, but you should talk to him.
Deck plates are standard. It is the customizing that costs money
They do Infused hulls now also. That would be my preference. Still light but stronger. Unfortunately I think I would destroy pretty much anything under 20 pounds as I have a tendency explore and stick my bow in small streams and marshes where one has gone before.
For me hull design is first, utility is second and weight is just the third consideration.
Thank you. Must do some more thinking about this.
But what did you think of the Wee Lassie? And did you order a boat, or bring one home?
A lentth of PEX tubing slit on one side and put over the gunwales would solve the noise.
He had literally not a single boat in stock for sale, just demo boats.
We ordered two, a wee lassie in teal carbon Kevlar with cherry gunwales and a sacandaga in blue weave carbon Kevlar with cherry gunwales. He talked me out of carbon for the gunwales. The sacandaga will have blue tinted Kevlar, so I’ll be able to see the weave clearly.
My wife took about 5 strokes in the wee lassie and she was in love. I paddled it as well and really enjoyed it after some significant seat adjustments. The sacandaga will be an awesome family boat
Stan is a great guy and he makes very nice boats. We are very excited to get ours, just a little sad that we may not be able to paddle them this year
The Yak Pads solved it too, and with my canoes that aren’t carbon gunwales, it muffles the sound even more, so a good solution for me 
Congratulations on your choices! I know how it feels to finally make up your mind and want it yesterday. Even harder right now.
I’ve heard nothing but nice things about Stan, and I’ve enjoyed his email responses. I’ve met Joe Moore (Placid Boatworks), had dealings with Pete Hornbeck, and corresponded with Dave Curtis (Hemlock) and I’m here to tell you, they are all really nice folks, too. Something about building quality canoes, I guess.
I think I’m still going to order but I’d like to see some more photos of the less-than-9-lb one that he made, in carbon.
Thanks!
Going that light makes the boat very fragile. It is for open, deep water only. He has to thin it out everywhere possible and use very soft wood for the gunwales.
Referencing your thread that was closed, do you have round Yakima bars? I have some load stops that I used for years with Yakima round bars. They won’t fit on the newer cross bars, though, which is why I switched to Keel Overs.
You’re the first person I’ve seen/heard comment that carbon gunwales are ugly (and noisy). I tend to agree, especially on the ugly part compared to wood.
As mentioned if you buy some clear vinyl plumbing tubing at your hardware store (usually sold by the foot) and slit the edge (be careful with the utility knife) you have nice gunwale protectors that also help your boat stick to the roof rack plus you have a grippy and quiet place to rest your paddle. Even with wood gunwales the clear tubing makes it noticeably quieter when you set your paddle down.
Yeah, round bars. I have a set of Keel overs that I like a lot and wanted to get a second. I ended up ordering some similar mounts from Malone last night.
My backup was going to be load stops, but I prefer the rubber pad that is on the keel over, keeping the gunwales at least slightly padded and on a grippy surface
Thanks for the suggestion. The gunnels on the carbon canoe are one piece with the hull and wider; next time it’s on my car I’ll swing by the hardware store and see if they have vinyl tubing that will fit.
@kayamedic is that the same as PEX tubing?
