Lightweight open canoe

[R-Bowskill]

The lightweight open canoe I've designed and built is ready for testing, although I'm not sure if I am but I'll probably feel less nervous once I get it to the water.

The design is simplicity, a basic three plank design scaled to be made from a single sheet of plywood stiched and taped topgether then given an all over coating of epoxy and a layer of green paint on the outside of the hull.

My requirements were:
1) It should be able to carry me and some lightweight camping gear ie basha, sleeping bag and a cooking set etc.
2) It needed to be light enough to be carried a mile as I havn't got a car.
3) It needs to be simple and cheap, and relatively quick to make.
4) It needs to be able to get into out of the way places that hire cruisers can't get so I can escape the main tourist traps.
5) It has to be both safe and fun.

I think that the design I've come up with meets those requirements and also is moderately aesthetically pleasing and sufficently 'boat like' to not cause me any embarrassment while I'm using it.

OK it's not a coracle but the way it was built is a direct development of the use of roots and resin to stitch together a birch bark canoe.

 

[g4ghb]

Sounds great! - any chance of some piccies, and perhaps even your plans


I hope you will give us a full report after it (and hopefully not you) has got wet!!!

 

[Roving Rich]

Maybe it looks a bit like this one then ?
http://www.simplycanoes.co.uk/buildingthekits_001.htm

I still think you might struggle to carry it a mile tho. A portage trolley is a godsend for such a journey. My plywood canoe is very light, but even 500 yards to the river, AND BACK after a paddle is quite an undertaking. Especially after a long paddle.

For lightweight construction I would go for something like this Aerolite design.

http://gaboats.com/

I honestly don't think you could make em much lighter, and am going to give one a go after my Wedding, doing the house up, getting the garden in order, rebuilding the MG.....

Cheers
Rich

 

[led]

These are rather impressively light at 9 Kilos for a full-sized canoe. I'm not sure how secure I'd feel in the middle of a large lake though? A large roll of gaffer tape would be a must!

 

[bothyman]

Maybe it looks a bit like this one then ?
http://www.simplycanoes.co.uk/buildingthekits_001.htm

This is a copy of these checkout some of the links

>>
http://www.alaska.net/~fritzf/Boats/DuckSkiff/Pirogue.htm

Or you could try something like this

>> http://www.floatingbear.ca/Mouse.htm

MickT :Wow:

 

[R-Bowskill]

It's similar to the designs shown but shorter as it's made from one sheet of plywood.

the main influences that I used while working out the design were the Phil Green 'micro', cajun pirouges, and the norwegean 3 plank canoe shown in the victorian book 'the art of travel'.

I think that the hardest bit was checking the maths to work out if it would be big enough to carry me. Going from the imperial measurements I used to metric to calculate the volume to get the displacement in Kgs and then converting it to stone to know it against my weight.

As for carrying, with it being short, 7'8" from bow to stern, by tying the painter line between the thwarts a couple of times I create a shoulder strap to make it easier. I might make a carrying yoke for it as well.

If anyone wants plans I can scan them in and email them to you if you pm me with an email address. I'm now having mad ideas about a basha and some long willow wands but that will definately have to wait till the water warms up a bit again next spring.

 

[R-Bowskill]

Well it floats!! , and it floats with me in it so I guess that makes it a viable boat design. Also it took me 20 minutes to carry it to the river so it wasn't much less than my normal walking speed of 3 1/2 miles an hour.

I think it's more suited to paddling with a double bladed paddle, Kayak style and I found a couple of small leaks that I'm sealing up at the moment.