ok, so i was able to land a 17’ coleman ram-x canoe on craigslist for free. It had a crack in it but i was able to buy a plastic welder from harbor freight, and i melted wire mesh into the the canoe about an inch all the way around the crack then melted more plastic all over the wire mesh. I did it to the outside and inside and it turned out really good. I can’t wait to try it out. we have a popup camper and i figured this would be a great addition for a lot of state park lakes. One of my questions is how do i add more seating or what do you guys use for additional seating?
Pads
We had the same boat in 1979. As I remember it was $248 and came with two paddles and an electric trolling motor. We still use the paddles. For additional seating we used closed cell foam pads that were sold by the local home and garden center for kneeling on when gardening. It kept the kids and the whole center of gravity low in the boat.
David
Drop-in/Snap-in seat
Old Town, Carlisle, Spring Creek and Wenonah offer removable drop-in seats. Ed’s canoe and Essex Industries offer traditional cane and web canoe seats that you may be able to permanently install with seat hangers and four bolts. Some passengers just sit on a cushion, pad or sack placed in the bottom of the canoe.
Free is good.
Don’t get a lot of investment tied up in that Coleman. Keep in mind that it is not a fair approximation of what a good canoe is like.
Go to the nearest boating supply and get a couple of flotation cushions. Lay those on the floor for kids to sit on. Keep the cushions when you upgrade to a better canoe. Don’t expect to have more than one extra adult in that boat, seated on the floor, for very long.