Canoelover P.S. I am still looking for the following boats: Curtis Dragonfly – This one is a top priority. I really want one of these. Twitchy little dude, and there are probably quite a few in garages, purchased by hydrophobes who didn’t test-paddle first. Curtis Ladybug – for Wife 1.2. Curtis Nomad – I know it’s similar to the Bell Merlin II. But that’s not the point.
Lotus Dandy (I and II) – I have a Dandy but it wasn’t built by Mike Galt. Plus he had two iterations. Lotus BJX – Nice but not a must-have. Lotus Egret – Coulda bought one for $300crap.Blackhawk Zephyr – owned serial number 001. What was I thinking?
Blackhawk Starship – I sold mine two years ago dumb. Blackhawk Covenant – I gave mine to a friend. Not sure if he paddles it much.
Maybe I should buy it back? Also, if you know of any other duplicates of the ones I already have, let me know; I have friends who paddle my boats and then really want one too. Darren, I appreciated this glimpse into the golden age of solo canoeing.
You said, “A number of small companies were run by devoted paddlers who, like all devoted canoeists, love paddling solo. A number of great designers produced some of the prettiest and sweetest paddling solo canoes, but as the market turned its head to the emergence of recreational kayaks, the solo canoe took a series of grievous hits.” With the demise of Bell, I guess we are seeing the loss of two or three more beautiful solo designs. Good for you for collecting them and preserving the unique beauty of an age. I’m wondering if the popularity of kayaks will continue to overshadow the solo canoe. I believe about 1/2 of the appeal of the kayak is the solo aspect,which the solo canoe does as well or better.
There is of course the efficiency of the low seating and double blade and ease of use for beginners tough advantages to compete with Your post evoked sadness but also encouragement. If folks like you continue to preserve, show, and inspire others, maybe we can hold on to what remains and even expand the market to folks who are looking for a beautiful and subtly more nuanced paddling experience.
Do you think there will be a renascence? Richard, I sure hope so, but I am sure it will never return to where it was. The reason they all went bust, from my perspective, is that the boats were a little overpriced and heavy, but gorgeous (Curtis), had quality issues (Sawyer), were not run in at least something of a businesslike manner (too many to name).
I don’t think Bell is dead. It’s definitely in an induced coma, on life support, but when the parent company comes to grips with the real value of the company it’ll sell. There are folks producing boats that work. Curtis rose from the ashes in Hemlock. They’re sweet, but again, quite expensive and distribution is challenging so they’re hard to demo.
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If I could find the molds for Mike Galt’s designs (they’re locked in a storage unit in Florida), I’d probably pay someone like Wenonah to build them for me. Not all of them, but there are some gems there. Anywaypicked up another boat since the block post. A old Blackhawk that I ended up giving to a friend.
We’ll see what else I can find this year. Hi there I stumbled upon this as I was trying to find out more about a solo canoe I bought this past summer. A guy here locally was selling a Blackhawk solo canoe. I wanted one because I love paddling but never owned one myself. He had it stored indoors for years and finally decided to sell it just as I was looking. I haven’t had an opportunity to paddle it and am now finally getting around to wanting to learn more about it. Can you help?
I’ll happily snap a picture for you if it would be helpful. In all honesty, I’m considering selling it also. Two solos here.
Winona Advantage for me, Rob Roy for my wife. Have paddled the Advantage on lazy rivers, moderate whitewater, and loaded for a ten day BWCA trip. Really need to pack light with that canoe, but can portage in one trip and even trot down the trail. It was a choice between the Advantage and the Prism at Rutabaga in Madison WI.
We took both boats to the water. I got in the Advantage, paddled about six strokes, turned around and said “sold!
It’s a very fast and nimble little beast. A big recommend. I have both a Curtis Nomad and a Colden DragonFly.
There were only 85 Curtis DragonFlies made. From what I see they are centered in western PA. At our Solo Canoe Rendezvous each June there are a number of them that show up. Colden Canoes continues to make the DragonFly from the Curtis mold.it had a kind of convoluted journey but now is available again. Colden also makes the WildFire, StarFire and FlasshFire previously available from Bell and Placid. There are quite a few of those boats around. Tom is still building in SC.I will be off to see him and my Galt Dandy.but its not mine anymore.
I do have his Aria, Nakoma and Duet I also have a Swift Heron, a direct descendant of the Curtis Nomad. But its rounder bottom and seems to be faster.Limited sales. I suspect sitting customers were left in the water at the dock. The DragonFly OTOH.being a river boat probably attracted more kneelers from the get go. The bottom shapes are similar.that was before DY flattened his ellipses.
I have a couple Loons and all I know is the 85 refers to the year, based on the serial numbers of mine. Mine are both Kevlar and have a sticker on the rear deck indicating it. The Kevlar models are in the high 40-mid 50's range in weight. The glass models I've seen are much heavier. There are also Oscoda Loons that may even be chop-gun fiberglass and weigh up to 70 pounds. My 85 kevlar loon has a gold kevlar color on the inside.
But to confuse things there are 'goldenglass' Loons out there. A couple of the fiberglass ones I've seen have been painted a gray color on the inside. My 98 kevlar loon is more of a grayish and gold weave cloth showing on the inside. For what it is worth Joe. Hey, whose green Loon is that? Looks like my 'before' pic of my 1985 Green kevlar Loon. Here is a picture of the boat taken by the seller.
48 pounds after my mods. Note the sliding seat assembly: Here is a picture of a 1987 chop gun fiberglass Loon, weighing in at 69 pounds. It has a non-sliding height adjustable seat with portage pads.
Note the interior is different color/texture: Another picture of the Oscoda Loon: I installed a Superior expedition seat in the Kevlar Loon. Padded and with a backrest, very comfortable for long sits: Finally, on my 85 Kevlar Loon I removed the broken down vinyl seam tape, filled in the voids with filler, and painted a gel coat stripe on instead. It was supposed to be black but mixing black pigment with white gel coat makes gray, not black! Here it is next to a Monarch and a Sea Wind for comparison: I'm a Krugerhead. Or a Loonatic. Posting these pics helps keep my mind off the fact that it is 13 degrees out here in Missouri when I'm NOT doing the EC! Thanks for sharing the pics.
I like seeing what other folks have in the way of these vintage (and new) boats. Here is a 1998 Kevlar Loon, my latest pride and joy. The interior color is a bit different.it is wet in this photo explaining the discoloration.
Oh, the 1985 Loon doesn't have the Kevlar sticker like the 98 shown here: Not sure if I'm going to 'Krugerize' my 1998 with the expedition/portage seat and Kruger style rudder, it is still equipped with the OEM feathercraft kayak rudder. JoeWildlife: Hey, whose green Loon is that? Looks like my 'before' pic of my 1985 Green kevlar Loon. Here is a picture of the boat taken by the seller. 48 pounds after my mods.
Note the sliding seat assembly: Here is a picture of a 1987 chop gun fiberglass Loon, weighing in at 69 pounds. It has a non-sliding height adjustable seat with portage pads. Note the interior is different color/texture: Another picture of the Oscoda Loon: I installed a Superior expedition seat in the Kevlar Loon.
Padded and with a backrest, very comfortable for long sits: Finally, on my 85 Kevlar Loon I removed the broken down vinyl seam tape, filled in the voids with filler, and painted a gel coat stripe on instead. It was supposed to be black but mixing black pigment with white gel coat makes gray, not black! Here it is next to a Monarch and a Sea Wind for comparison: I'm a Krugerhead. Or a Loonatic.
Posting these pics helps keep my mind off the fact that it is 13 degrees out here in Missouri when I'm NOT doing the EC! Joe Hey Joe, What difference do you find between the Monarch and the Sea Wind when paddling. I have a Monarch but have never paddled a Sea Wind. I see them in the Everglades during the EC. Pete, I think there is very little difference between a Monarch and Sea Wind when paddling. I can tell you the Sea Wind has a slightly more swept back bow. Also, the bottom on a Sea Wind is more rounded/has less of a flat spot, I guess it must because the Sea Wind has a bit more 'flare' to it.
I'm thinking that the Sea Wind is a bit less affected by waves from the beam as a result. But really, the differences are really minor and I don't know that I'm a discerning enough paddler to know the difference from the seat. I catamaran my Sea Wind and Monarch together when paddling and fishing with my daughter, it works well. The only issue you might have with a Monarch is that the rudder sucks in comparison to the Sea Wind. It just doesn't turn the boat as well.
Pete, Mark P. Of Kruger Canoes will sell you a rudder, if you can wait for it. He told me he is taking the summer off. He will also sell you a Kruger kevlar seat, which is a bit lighter. But back to the rudder.I built my own rudder for my Monarch and one of my Loons. Same design as the Kruger rudder but with a different hinge setup. My Loon had a 'split stern'.
I basically used a door hinge, one side on the rudder assembly with the other side inserted into the slot and bolted in. On my Monarch I bought a pair of grudgeons from Duxworks and the 'pin' is a stainless bolt. To build your own, Kruger style, you need the stiff aluminum for the rudder blade, as well as a different kind that can be bent for the 'wings'. I found some of each at a scrapyard.
OR you can just leave it the way it is.on flat water you don't really need 'more rudder'. When I bought my Monarch, I thought it was fine. But when I tried out a Kruger, I started to think the Monarch turned like the Titanic. It looks like Lizardskin's Loon has a rudder much like the one that was on my green/white Loon when I got it. I think it is the 'split stern' style.
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The hinge is inserted into the slot and bolted in. Either way, the Kruger design rudders work well (and I would call LS's Loon a Kruger style rudder), as compared to a typical kayak foil rudder. On one old Loon I had, the foil would vibrate and hum at speed. I can't tell you exactly what my 'issue' is with the Monarch rudder, maybe a combination of flex in the cable attachment 'arms', maybe the blade isn't as big as a Kruger rudder, or maybe it doesn't pivot as much.
Again, not something that would would ever recognize as a problem unless you have paddled a Sea Wind and experienced the difference. I'm not sure I've ever seen two Loons with identical rudders:) Joe.
Best designed tandem 17 ft. Canoe available for general tripping. A trustworthy canoe that will keep your kids and partners safe in challenging situations. Final stability is excellent - with experience you can recover to an upright position after dipping the gunwale under water. Speed and maneuverability are excellent. Keeping this canoe on course will be a problem for people accustomed to paddling the faddish no-rocker fast canoes, and the gentle flare makes it a little squirrelly at first, but once you become familiar with this canoe it will be your benchmark for judging all other tandems.
Old lightweight (57lbs. I was told & that seems reasonble) 17' fiberglass Sawyer just spoiled the heck out of me. Think I bought it abt. Covered a lot of river miles, tandom and solo, fast water or slow, deep, shallow (I liked the way it would skim over rocky shallows), rocky rapids and boulder gardens. Don't think it was really designed for whitewater, but it got me through some pretty fun stuff anyway, and fiberglass is easy to patch. All but effortless to paddle-fast, easy tracking and yet easy to turn. Seemed to roll pretty easily-not the most stable thing on the water, and I learned to avoid wide windy places, esp.
Turn it on a dime, but so cld. A heavy crosswind if I didn't have a bowman to help out. I'm in the market for a new canoe and it's hard to find anything that handles so nicely.
Best designed tandem 17 ft. Canoe available for general tripping. A trustworthy canoe that will keep your kids and partners safe in challenging situations. Final stability is excellent - with experience you can recover to an upright position after dipping the gunwale under water. Speed and maneuverability are excellent.
Keeping this canoe on course will be a problem for people accustomed to paddling the faddish no-rocker fast canoes, and the gentle flare makes it a little squirrelly at first, but once you become familiar with this canoe it will be your benchmark for judging all other tandems. Old lightweight (57lbs. I was told & that seems reasonble) 17' fiberglass Sawyer just spoiled the heck out of me. Think I bought it abt. Covered a lot of river miles, tandom and solo, fast water or slow, deep, shallow (I liked the way it would skim over rocky shallows), rocky rapids and boulder gardens.
Don't think it was really designed for whitewater, but it got me through some pretty fun stuff anyway, and fiberglass is easy to patch. All but effortless to paddle-fast, easy tracking and yet easy to turn. Seemed to roll pretty easily-not the most stable thing on the water, and I learned to avoid wide windy places, esp. Turn it on a dime, but so cld. A heavy crosswind if I didn't have a bowman to help out. I'm in the market for a new canoe and it's hard to find anything that handles so nicely.
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