Bell Northwind flotation tanks

They look to be on the small side, compared to what is on some other models. Anybody ever have the opportunity to try them out?

Nope
I haven’t, but I wonder if the foam cores in such canoes would make up for the smaller end tanks. The tanks in a Grumman, for instance, have to float 75lbs of very dense material, while in a light kevlar boat, the material is less dense, the canoe lighter, and the stiffening, whether ribs or a core, would provide some increased displacement.

The tanks on our Bluewater are small.
They’re intended to keep the boat at the surface. If you need more, you could lace foam panels along the sides. Or you could put in some float bags where they won’t compromise your gear storage.


Yes, I understand the Grumman situation. But look at a magic. Much larger tanks.

Foot room?
In a solo canoe, the tanks wouldn’t interfere with foot room for the bow paddler. I hadn’t noticed though - now this is more interesting. I doubt there is any particular industry standard, other than the craft not sinking.

foot room
Tanks the size of those in a magic would not appreciably affect the foot room in a northwind (unless the bow paddler is about 7.5 ft tall).

The Northwoods too…
I have a Northwoods, maybe an '05 model, and I too thought they were pretty tiny. I noticed some older Northies had larger tanks.

I asked the Bell people at Canoecopia '10 about it, and they said they had started making them smaller in later years and that they were more than adaquate.

I stopped thinking about it after a while.

Not my Magic!
It has vestigial float tanks that need the bouyancy of the ash trim to keep the hull afloat. Coinkadentially, mine is an '05 hull as well.



I too have stopped thinking about it.



Jim

'99 magic
My magic is a 99 model. The tanks are 3 times the size of my '05 northwind.

The object is to have the boat

– Last Updated: Jun-08-11 9:09 AM EST –

float on the surface upside down and not four inches below the surface of the water upside down.

The only way to tell is to flip it and see what happens.

Its not going to hurt the boat or you. I have various size float tanks on all seventeen canoes and none float below the water upside down. Yes all have been inverted.

Friends who have a Northwind and flip it while learning FreeStyle have no problem with the boat vanishing.

.
I’ve been wet before and so have my boats, and probably will be again.