I am trying to identify that my canoe is in fact the Kevlar Malecite model I think it is - Serial number is mad612601075. I’ve heard the first 6 means Malecite and 75 is the year - can anyone fill in the rest?
Thanks
75 is early for Kevlar, but possible.
HIN
The format for HINs has changed over the years and at times multiple different formats have been used concurrently.
The first three characters “MAD” are the manufacturer’s identification code and in this case stands for Mad River Canoe, of course. The next 5 characters could be used by the maker anyway they wished. Many makers used 1 or 2 of the characters as a model identification code. A recent thread indicated that one Kevlar Malecite had “6X” as a model code. In your case either the “6” alone or the “61” may be the model code. The other three characters would be the serial number. Some makers numbered all hulls sequentially regardless of model. I don’t know what Mad River did at that time.
Since Mad River only got started in 1971, I doubt if they had produced 1260 Malecites by 1975.
The last 4 characters are the month and year of production, in this case October 1975.
I know that Mad River appended a “-K” to the end of the HIN on many or most of their Kevlar models but I don’t know when they started doing this. Mad River first made a Kevlar boat in 1974.
According to this chronology from the Mad River site it would appear that Mad River only produced fiberglass Malecites until 1993:
http://www.madrivercanoe.com/content/madrivercanoe.com/assets/page/archived_catalogs/Mad%20River%20Boat%20History.pdf
However an archived 1975 Mad River Canoe catalog clearly mentions a Kevlar Malecite offering:
http://www.madrivercanoe.com/content/madrivercanoe.com/assets/page/archived_catalogs/MRC%201975.pdf
The Malecite is a tandem canoe (that sometimes has an optional center seat) with a shallow V hull that is just under 16 1/2 feet in overall length. The only other hulls that MRC produced in 1975 that were even roughly the same length were the Endurall, which was a Royalex boat (and might have been one of the original “Warsaw Rockets”), the Screamer which was a solo, and the tandem Explorer.
It should be pretty easy to differentiate a Malecite from an Explorer. Weigh your boat, A fiberglass Malecite will weigh 62-65lbs or so. A Kevlar one will weigh 47-50 lbs.
Unless the numbering system has changed
– Last Updated: Oct-01-14 12:14 PM EST –
...since then, I don't see any kevlar designation....
My 97 and 98 both have "6X" - one glass and one kevlar. So the "x" or lack of it isn't a distinction there. The Kevlar boat has "-K" after the hull number.
Has the canoe been re-painted? What color is the inside of the hull? As evidenced by my two Malecites, what I have read is that the glass boats were painted inside to match the gel-coat, and the kev hulls were left natural (a honey color) except for a gray diamond shape painted over the floor.
edit: Heh - not a diamond shape. More like an elongated football.
Any Kevlar HIN’s
I have seen have a K in them, most I’ve seen is at the end of the ID. My guess is that if it doesn’t have that then it is Fiberglass. That is from my experience.
dougd
Mad River Serial Number
The hull has not been repainted and the interior is black. The gel-coat has a chip in it and I can see woven fibers, but it doesn’t look like fiberglass I am used to, but I think I will weigh it to see.
Malecite
You do have a Malecite. Most likely fiberglass as Mad River painted the interior of fiberglass canoes, but left Kevlar layups un painted on the interior.
Hi, all. I’ve got an old Mad River Solo canoe in Royalex with an HIN MADCX537D686. I’m assuming it’s a Courier, but I don’t really know. (It’s from April, '86 as far as I can tell.) I’m just wondering if there’s an archive somewhere that has all the different codes (the CX). Partially for this boat, and partially out of interest. Anyone know?
Call Confluence Water Sports. Mad River now belongs to them.