canoe advice please

  • Hey Guest, Early bird pricing on the Summer Moot (29th July - 10th August) available until April 6th, we'd love you to come. PLEASE CLICK HERE to early bird price and get more information.

persistent king

Settler
May 23, 2010
569
0
wigan
I got a seadoo inflatable canoe last year and me and my son enjoy canoeing that much i thought its time to take the next step and buy a proper one

A bloke i know is selling a mad river explorer 17ft canoe that is in good condition.

it has wood thwarts seats kneeling thwarts wood plastic gunwales but ones with clip things on and move to tie things in and a drink box that slides into them , if any of that makes sence lol. a paddle and barrel all for £650

what do you think ??? any advice appreatiated thanks
 

ex-member Raikey

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Sep 4, 2010
2,971
3
Bri,...

Rich is yer man mate,...(Shewie)

drop him a PM he knows all the good places,.....

have you been on Song of the Paddle?
 

The Cumbrian

Full Member
Nov 10, 2007
2,078
32
52
The Rainy Side of the Lakes.
If it's in good condition I'd buy it if I was you, and if out turns out that it's not the canoe for you, you should be able to sell it for what you paid for it.

Do you know what it's made of?

Cheers, Michael.
 

chris667

Member
Jan 4, 2012
48
0
Derbyshire, UK
It's a nice canoe, my mate has one.

£650 is ok or a lot depending on the kit that comes with it. If it's homemade kit, it's a lot.

Unless it's a Royalex one, in which case you should take his arm off.

I'm also assuming it's a 16' as opposed to 17' or 14'. Personally, I wouldn't want a 14' for tandem use. 14' is not ideal for solo or tandem, TBH. Fine if your boy is still young, but if he's adult sized too much.
 
Last edited:

persistent king

Settler
May 23, 2010
569
0
wigan
Well picked my new canoe up today , it came with a alarm , a wooden paddle, and a truck to push it on and a barrel to store stuff im well happy with it , thanks shewie for the advice mate.
I was gonna try barter with him but for £650 i think i have done well
IMG00918-20120120-1632.jpg
 

Shewie

Mod
Mod
Dec 15, 2005
24,259
24
48
Yorkshire
Good stuff mate, hard to tell from that pic but it looks in good order.

Maybe see you in the Lakes or Scotland one weekend for a proper look.
 

Prawnster

Full Member
Jun 24, 2008
806
0
St. Helens
Congrats on your first canoe mate, it looks a beauty. You got a cracking deal there too, well done!


Sent from my iToaster using Tapatalk
 

Maxip

Forager
Dec 2, 2011
107
0
Cumbria, UK
Agree - cracking bargain getting a Royalex MR for that. But, would really advise song of the paddle for advice - getting it 'outfitted' with buoyancy bags / tie lines is a PITA so read everything you can beforehand.

I've just bought a MR 16 TT Explorer but having paddled before, I kinda knew what I wanted.
 

Nonsuch

Life Member
Sep 19, 2008
1,862
1
Scotland, looking at mountains
That looks a great boat and fine as it is for now. The stickers would seem to indicate it's done some interesting stuff in its time. The gunwales are probably aluminium covered in plastic, which is the best long-term solution (wooden gunwales tend to rot or discolour).

For paddling with your boy, to start with, I suggest you reverse the boat and sit on the bow seat (the one furthest from the end) facing the other way, and stick him in the middle somewhere. If you sit on the stern seat and he on the bow the boat will be very stern heavy and tippy and impossible to turn or paddle into the wind. I still have this problem with my 14 year old son!
 

persistent king

Settler
May 23, 2010
569
0
wigan
well had my first outing in it today to try it out etc.......
Lesson 1 learned very quickley, its very hard canoeing in the wind:banghead:
it is a lot harder than the inflatable one but you glide better in a fixed one.
Ill get the hang of it as its my first go and im sure anything i need to know some of you guys will point me in the right direction​
 

PaulSanderson

Settler
May 9, 2010
731
1
North Norfolk, GB
Quality purchase Bri!! Post pics of your days out on the rivers mate :)

PS - did you try and call me the other day?? Phone said I had a missed call but no voicemail...I was offshore pal.
 

persistent king

Settler
May 23, 2010
569
0
wigan
will do mate , sorry paul it was in my pocket and the lock wasnt on, i noticed id dailed your number , so there was no voice mail of me singing at work then lol ?
 

BCUK Shop

We have a a number of knives, T-Shirts and other items for sale.

SHOP HERE