You may have been their when my
younger sister was attending. But the U of I is so huge, even after the shakedown in the first couple of years, that you probably never laid eyes on her.
zactly
what’s that combo,light, cheap, strong, pick any two.
SOME OD THE NEWER “HARDSHELL” PLASTICS
are pretty darn tough. Sally’s Hurricane Tracer, a thermo-formed boat made in two pieces like a glass or other composite boat, is made of the Hurricane version called Trylon, and is really tough stuff, pretty abrasion-resistant -but NOT abrasion-proof, of course -and manages to keep it’s glass-like shine pretty well over the years while being stored outside down here.
And while it’s not as light as some of the carbon-Kevlar exotics, it’s still pretty substantially lighter than the equivalent roto boats.
Consider that, as well, as you think about boats you may want to get to
PADDLE ON!
-Frank in Miami
Carbonlite
Also look into Eddyline and their Carbonlite material. It’s low maintenance and mine seems very durable and is better finished than the Hurricane although more expensive. I could have bought a glass boat but opted for the design and reputation of the Nighthawk 16. I really love this boat.
I would not voluntarily buy a gelcoat
boat. Get a boat with S-glass outside, and enjoy its terrific resistance to scratching. Two of my older boats came with gelcoat exterior, and it did literally NOTHING to prolong the life of either boat. It was just something to be scraped and sanded off if I had to do a repair.
Completely agree with G2D
Non-structural, heavy, brittle if thick, why do kayakers love Gel-Coat? For the 4-6 lbs why not add another structural layer?
S Glass, E Glass, Vinylester?
How does one know? My thoughts are, I only spend a few minutes lifting and carrying my kayak. Often with a little help. It gets paddled the rest of the day. My old Legend is built like a tank, weighs slightly less, and seems to take all the hard knocks , surf landings, and yes, a little dragging, with ease. I would like to know how to pick a good, well made boat. I don’t recall seeing constuction details like g2d mentions. Ken…
I had no need for the last three canoes
I’ve acquired except that, at the age of 65, I not only do not want to lift heavy boats, I SHOULD NOT routinely horse heavy boats around. And, when I’m thinking of paddling where I have to carry over a trail to the water, or even am thinking of paddling on a day with doubtful weather, having a light boat is just enough to get me off my backside and to the river.
In my youth, I deadlifted over 300, and half squatted up to 500, but that was in my youth. And even then, an 80 pound tandem felt nasty on a portage trail.
My standard for “light” is under 50 pounds for tandems, and under 30 for decked whitewater boats.