I have a Bell Northwind that is about 3 years old, has been used mostly for fishing and exercise on a class I stream, and stored in a shed when not in use. Approx one year ago it began to get spiderweb cracks in the outer vinyl layer. These have now spread all over the wetted area of the hull and extend into the ABS layers, in some cases to the foam core. It is now literally disintegrating before my eyes. Despite the help of my local dealer, Bell Canoes has been UTTERLY non-responsive despite their stated lifetime warranty. I have been around Royalex boats since their inception–have seen them used, abused and mis-handled in every way you can imagine (and some ways that you can’t imagine) and have never seen anything like this, nor have I ever seen this kind of non-response from a canoe maker. Has anyone out there had a similar experience with Bell. I am seriously thinking about putting a lawyer on point.
WOW
I have several 20-30 year old royalex hulls. Always stored outside, no 303 etc. No spider cracks.
It’s the acid rain!