I picked up a used Pelican Explorer 15.5, the Keelson or Keel Support was missing from the Canoe. Does anyone know the correct length and diameter of the keelson that came on the canoe?
Why would we know that?
Get a 3" slab of minicell foam, carve to fit the space, and stuff it between the thwart and the bottom of the boat.
I was thinking of the Colemans
– Last Updated: Jan-29-15 9:38 AM EST –
which I saw (wrapped, bent and twisted at my local cl. 3
) and their metal tube that ran down the center, but just looked up the Pelican, and maybe there is no tube anymore??
If you're not referring to the tube, but have a oil-canning hull, what EZagua said...
http://www.pelicansport.com/sites/default/files/users_manual_canoes.pdf
Foam + Keelson
– Last Updated: Jan-29-15 1:43 PM EST –
I don't know if your boat originally had a keelson. I know the old Colemans did (the predecessor to this canoe was made by Coleman). I think perhaps the early Pelican models did, but the new ones do not.
You could stiffen the hull by both methods. Use a block of minicell stuffed beneath the center seat as recommended by EZ (stuff it under the center thwart if there's no seat, but all the pictures I see show a center seat). Also, you can extend the area of "downward push" with a keelson. You don't need someone to tell you the diameter. Just use the largest diameter metal tubing that will fit in that groove in the bottom of the hull. Electrical conduit would be a fairly good choice, especially since its readily available. The zinc coating won't be perfect and it might eventually rust a little bit, but if it gets too rusty you can just replace it (or not).
As to length, I'd start with the keelson being somewhere between 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the boat (but centered between the two ends of the boat), and change that length if it looked like a good idea (see last paragraph).
Just using a block of minicell to push the hull down at the center is bound to leave you with a "lump" on the bottom of the hull (on a stiffer hull this lump would be minor, but even creating a lump should be better than leaving the hull caved-in in the other direction). Adding the keelson should smooth-out that "lumping" effect, though at the expense of a couple extra pounds of weight.
You could custom tailor this to your boat too. If you want a little more rocker, increase the "push" by using a taller block of mini-cell and a shorter keelson. Use less "push" and a longer keelson for less rocker. The keelson should naturally curve a little on its own in either case.
Thanks for help
Thanks for the help. I appreciate the input.