I wrapped mine in Chase.
Thankfully not too badly. We were able to jump on it and reduce the hogging considerably.
But it found every frigging rock…Our other canoe was Royalex and absolutely no good as a lead boat. Where the Royalex went the aluminum dared not go sometimes.
As in low water on the Allagash.
Tragic, isn’t it?
One thing you can do to an …
– Last Updated: Dec-01-08 10:42 PM EST –
..... aluminum canoe is line the bottom with a thin marine carpet ... glue it down . Let it run up the sides at least 8" if you do .
This will dampen (deaden) the drum noise and give the immpression of a much softer ride .
Even though the fibers themselves are water proof and do not suck up water , the tight weave will still trap some water . The canoe will be heavier to take out and load when finished paddling , depending on how much water you allow inside during your outing ... it will evaporate sooner or later and get lighter again ... a good rain will give you some free ballast , lol ... not that bad really .
Makes a fine non-slip for the floor as well .
It's easy enough to pad the seats and any other interior part ... all this quiets it down greatly .
It's done to plain jane Jon boats all the time .
Aluminum canoes paddle nice , also , good and stiff (solid) ... they do grab rocks though , but not every place to paddle must have rodks , mostly only boney mountain river sections are of any concern .
Like others , aluminum canoes were the ones I mosty used when I first started paddling and fishing ... and you guessed it , going down "mountain" rivers ... they dent pretty good , even the old heavy Grummans .
I mean really , so many people take their nice light Royalex or fiberglass canoes and customize them (read that as , "add" a gazzilion pounds of non-factory "stuff" weight to them), what's a little carpet in an aluminum canoe mean ??
Gruman
They have some good canoes.
They are lighter than my Old town Discovery in the same class but they are noisy, dirty, stick to rocks, temperature exasperating.
The ones I have paddled handled beautifully.
They are not to be confused with a 30 lbs mad river Kevlar super boat.
For boy scouts or a family with three bouncy kids the Old Town buss (Explorer 169) or Gruman are great.
I can’t see me being too pleased with my kids dragging a Kevlar prospector over rocks to the side of the campfire.
What do you want your boat to do? What is the budget? Where will you store it? Who will be using it and for what?
OT and grummen are fine for me.
VK1NF always has good information.
He has some skills on the water.
I thought it was me , but …
… nope , it’s “Grumman” .
i used to not remember if it had two m’s or one , but somewhere along the line I must have resolved that … but I still went and checked it out again to make sure , lol .
mm
Me too. Almost every time I post about my Grumman, I have to go look it up. Welcome to the club.
Every time I climb in mine …
I feel like a bit of a fighter jock…
must be the rivets and ancient battle scars or
just it’s pedigree…
http://www.globalaircraft.org/photos/planephotos/f4f_1.jpg
Alas she is sitting in my father-in-laws barn yard now, likely with with two or three cats living under her, waiting for the snow to pile up this winter.
mine still has a 1973 BWCA
snowmobile license on it. They didn’t quite have their boat license supply in for the year then.
What a thought…a Grumman on tracks and skis.
This man, who lived alone in Alaska for years used a guess what?
http://www.dickproenneke.com/DickProenneke.html
quite appropriate …
– Last Updated: Dec-02-08 2:05 AM EST –
...... some barnyard cats sitting under it ,
sorta goes along with the "Wildcat" theme pic. ,
think Pearl Harbor , F4F-3 . By Mid-Way most Wildcats were F4F-4 , one difference being the 3's carried two 50's each wing , and the 4's three each wing ... same amount of total rounds onboard , the problem being the later 4's used them up alot faster .
It's kinda difficult to see in that pic. , but I think I can make out two gun ports on the closest planes wing ... probably the Twin Wasp engine also .
Twice
Two different spellinks Both wrong.
It should read Grumman not gruman or grummen.
Sorry…
Ok , now that’s funny , lol …
– Last Updated: Dec-02-08 11:23 AM EST –
..... guess we've all been members of the same spelling club .
The "I'm not sure , better check that first club" , or the "don't feel like checking it right now , so I offer two versions club , one has to be correct" , lol ... sometimes luck goes hiding though .
I am such a terrible speller that I embarrass myself ... so for the longest time I put most all my trust in a Dictionary . Encarta since the web .
I must visit several times for everything I write , and still mis-spell often enough ... I blame it on hookie ... and hookie says "paybacks are hell" .
I thought your aluminum canoe was …
… a Smokercraft. Anyway, it’s funny how just about everyone says that the best aluminum canoes have always been made by Grumman. No doubt, applying similar riveting techniques on their canoes as they used when making aircraft is a reason for that. They sure don’t try to cut corners by using fewer rivets, and it’s pretty hard to make a Grumman start leaking at the seams.
Trivia. Once Consumers Reports did
a canoe comparison test, and as I recall, the Grumman 17 came out on top. They liked the stability and the full bow and stern. I think they got so much criticism that they didn’t try testing canoes again.
Best Canoe
The very best canoe is the one you are paddling and enjoying.
lol
Yeah. I get what you’re sayin.
I guess it’s a matter of personal taste 
In reality, I am not a big fan of Consumer Reports. A lot of the time their opinion is uninformed and overgeneralized so that the gen pop can digest it.
But I put it out there cause, JS (just sayin).
-Kanoo (currently sipping a McD’s latte)
Inexpensive & Lightweight
I bought the Pelican Navigator for my kids and actually really like using it myself. Weights about 50lbs and the price was right - under $600 delivered. You can see all the specs here http://sportboatsdirect.com/Canoes
Owned about 40 canoes. 84 years old Paddling since 12 years.old. Lived in the Ontario bush on and off for 60 years. No other canoe can take the place of my 13 foot Grumman lightweight ( 44 lbs ) or my Grumman 18 foot lightweight ( 67 lbs ). Maybe fancy dancy sweet smelling cherrywood trim shellow arch design composite canoes are alright for the boundary Waters make believe northern wilderness. But for the real Canadian bush nothing beats a Grumman. Tommy Two Beavers has spoken
@CEWilson said:
I think it’s safe to say
– Last Updated: Nov-30-08 9:53 AM EST –Aluminum canoes are way to heavy. They do not respond to advanced technique. The seats, in a word, suck/burn, depending on weather. They are cheap, but so is McDonald’s coffee. Same result; can’t use it.
Another analysis is position in the price range. Pelican has a tandem for $370, Swift has an infused, integral, CobraSox, railed tandem for $3700. Grummans, the best Alu bottoms, run ~$1,100. Why would anyone want a significantly below average, $2035, boat? Maybe for bait-fishing, or other sport where the hull is a platform for some other activity, but to paddle? Paddling is a skill intensive, athletic endeavor. Bad gear compromises the experience.
Aluminum is probably best used as a container for beer. Unfortunately, it is only the second best medium for that use, and so used to surround mediocre quality brew.
One can acquire an rather fragile Grumman superlite @ 66lbs, but most weigh 75-80. GRE, Swift and Wenonah all provide tandems at just over 30 lbs, and they all paddle superbly. Which would you rather load?
If aluminum canoes were the sole option, I wouldn’t paddle. It wouldn’t be fun.
I like McDonald’s coffee with an Egg McMuffin but nothing else they sell.
I’ve paddled aluminum, old abs, royalex, twintex, poly, kevlar, glass, and inflatables with pvc, urethane, and hypalon. The best boat is the one I’m in on any given day. I’m good with about any cup of coffe so long as I don’t have to strain the grounds with my teeth.
It’s a 9 year old thread. :s