Kayak Information

I have just traded in my old canoe for a fiberglass kayak. I have been unable to find any information on the kayak and was hoping someone on here could help. The kayak is around 10ft long and is a sit inside. The guy I got it from said he got it in Europe years ago. The only markings on the kayak are Ancoradouro which appears to be the name brand and Victory and Aquaterra stickers on the side. I know both Victory and Aquaterra are both kayak brands, but I have not been able to find anything on either of these brands that lead me to believe that this kayak is one of theirs. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

portugese language
I just googled the word, Ancoradouro-looks like it is Portugese, might be a place, might mean something about the water. I couldn’t find a link to a kayak manufacturer, but it may be the name of a place in Brazil and/or Portugal.

http://fotos.sapo.pt/POQkUIywWjV17Z5bsic1?a=2



maybe BrazilBrazil can help.

Ancoradouro = Anchorage (Portuguese)

– Last Updated: Feb-21-10 6:19 PM EST –

If the original owner claims to have acquired the boat in Europe, I'd venture a guess that we're looking for something from Portugal rather than from Brasil. A quick Google search did come up with at least two contemporary kayak manufacturers in Portugal, but so far, no reference to any model or brand name "Ancoradouro".

Melissa

More specific information?
Glass and 10 feet isn’t very much to go on. Is it a WW boat? A surf boat? Something else, perhaps? Can you post a picture?



Can the person who acquired it in Europe offer any more information?



Melissa

Picture
I suspect it is a general purpose/basic WW boat of old vintage. Some of them were made in garages from molds here - could have been the same over there.

But in any case, a picture would be helpful.

Kayak Photos
Here are a few photos of the kayak. Thanks



http://s991.photobucket.com/albums/af33/williamsent/Kayak%20Photos/


Sure looks like plastic.

Hull Numbers
Does it have a hull number?

Fiberglass General Purpose boat
Looks like a fiberglass “general purpose” boat. Looks to be in good shape for its apparent age.

hull id
There are no hull numbers anywhere. There is a sticker inside the boat with the Aquaterra signature at the bottom. The rest of the sticker is not in english however. I would bet that it is some sort of safety info. I saw somewhere that Perception had a line up kayaks that used the Aquaterra name. Not sure if this may have been a company that Perception purchased or something. The kayak is a tight fit for me. Probably a perfect fit if I were riding waves or something. Not great for the creek where I live. The kids have been using it and I hate for them to ruin a good kayak running into trees and our concrete bulkhead. I will probably list it on craigs list and buy another rec or small touring kayak. Was hoping to try and find out some info so I can determine an asking price.

Google
Google turned up these sites http://produto.mercadolivre.com.br/MLB-130863730-caiaque-fechado-de-fibra-aquaterra-mistral-mod-victory-_JM and http://www.mundonautico.com.br/caiaques.html so probably Brazilian. The upswept bow and square stern point toward surf use, does it have a flat bottom?

Use for this boat
I didn’t see a clear shot of the bottom - but if it has a lot of curvature for its length it may be a very good boat for creeks as long as the material can stand hitting rocks AND you don’t mind having to work a bit to learn to paddle it straight. Any boat that is highly maneuverable will be more of a challenge that way, but then again it’ll be a lot easier to spin around tight turns if you are really in the twisty shallow stuff. (and usually more out of the wind there)



As to the kids dinging it into concrete - plastic would be easier on the nerves for that.

Bottom Photo

– Last Updated: Feb-23-10 8:36 PM EST –

I have added a photo of the bottom of the kayak. The white kayak is the one I am asking about. The kayak next to it is an Old Town Otter for reference. Thanks for all the comments.

http://s991.photobucket.com/albums/af33/williamsent/Kayak%20Photos/

It’s a molded boat, not laid-up

– Last Updated: Feb-23-10 9:41 PM EST –

fiberglass. Look at that deck! Those waves aren't just for styling, they're for stiffening. Laid up fiberglass is inherently stiff, and does not need those scallops. No builder of laid-up FG would set themselves the task of having to lay up those scallops. I'm sure the recessed cuts on the bottom are for stiffening also. The back of the cockpit looks like it is designed to give support to a molded plastic hull.

A FG boat will show cloth pattern on the inside of the hull. All this should be good news for you, because if yours is a "plastic" boat, the kids won't break it, and you probably won't either.

Usually "plastic" boats are rotomolded, with the deck and hull of one piece. Yours appears to be molded differently, and then seamed by glueing or heat or something. Fiberglass boats are seamed inside and out by FG cloth tape wet out with resin and rolled over the seam. Doesn't look like that applies to yours.

I can't tell what the boat was designed for, but it looks like a tolerable boat for river use, easy rapids, maybe light surfing. I thought I spied a skeg on your shot of the bottom.

If you find evidence of fiberglass cloth pattern inside the boat, let me know. But I doubt it.

Looks like fiberglass cloth to me.
I have attached a few more photos of the inside of the boat. Yes there is a skeg on the bottom.



http://s991.photobucket.com/albums/af33/williamsent/Kayak%20Photos/

Maybe Thermoformed?
Pelican makes some boats that have the hull and deck different colors like this and they tend to be pretty lightweight.



If that’s FG, I’ll eat my paddle.



jim

What those two photos show is not
woven cloth, which would have a pattern like woven cloth in clothes.



It looks like chopper gun fiberglass. In that technique, during construction, fiberglass fibers and liquid resin are mixed and then sprayed on the mold, leaving a rather random fiber orientation.



Where did you take the photos? Were they just of the seat, or were you able to photograph the inside of the deck or hull? My guess is, if the boat is fiberglass, the deck will be chopper gun, possibly reinforced with cloth in places, because no one in his right mind would try to series-produce boats by trying to lay up FG CLOTH over those wavey scallops on the deck. I hope they mixed FG cloth and chopper gun FG on the hull, because pure chopper gun laminate is not all that strong.



Based on the possibility that this is a chopper gun FG boat, I would say don’t use it in whitewater or for rocky coast landings. Otherwise, just use it and don’t worry about it. At least fiberglass is repairable.

The entire seating area is enclosed
so you are unable to see the underside of the hull except right in front of the seat where the underside of the upper deck is visible. I assume that the cockpit area is enclosed so the entire kayak does not fill up with water. Similar to bulkheads I assume. When I sit in the kayak and put my feet on the molded foot rest I really snug in the kayak. The seat is formed as part of the kayak.

Phone number
There is what appears to be a phone number on the ancoradouro sticker.



Call it.



I agree that it looks like a chopper gun job.

Sorry - I am confused

– Last Updated: Feb-25-10 5:27 PM EST –

Are you saying that there is a solid, waterproof wall along the interior of the boat so that there is a hollow spot between the bow and where you rest your feet? If so, that would be a bulk head.

Aside from what it's made of, the design looks to me like it was designed for use in creeks, or minor moving water or surf. Just very old style. It might be a fun rolling boat...