When choosing a used canoe to purchase
some of the more important considerations you will have to make are
the uses you expect out of your canoe. When you have that in tow,
you can then look at the following to make sure you get your money’s
worth when seeking a canoe to purchase.
1. What Use Will Your Canoe Be For – The
type of canoe you snag off the used market has to meet a certain
need. Canoes vary greatly from one another. If you really want a
canoe you should have considered where you will use it.
There are different canoes for different occasions. Canoeing with
the family through gentle waters and white water canoeing are two
vastly different uses needing vastly different types of canoes.
When you have decided upon the use, you can then browse for the
canoe that meets your need. For example if you plant to go white
water then you will need a canoe that can take the punishment of
the violent rapids.
For this type of canoeing you will need short and sturdy canoes.
They should be able to withstand hitting against rocks at an amazing
speed while remaining maneuverable. If you plan to race you will
need narrow canoes that are both light and long. Racing canoes have
to be streamlined and fast that’s why you will need such.
Long canoes are faster and are great for straight line maneuvering.
They also track through the water better. They however are harder
to maneuver – which makes them the worst pick for white water
rapids. They can also be hard to store and transport.
Camping canoes are wide and pretty long, not to mention pretty
heavy. But as they always say, to each his own. So just make sure
that your canoe fits your needs.
2. Pick a hull shape – Rounded and V-shaped
hulls are great performers in the water and they always do better
than flat hulled canoes. While flat-bottomed canoes initially feel
more stable, as the canoe tracks on, you will see that initial stability
is relatively unimportant to overall stability and maneuverability.
Also when buying a canoe look closely if they have keels. Keels
are fin-like structures that run the bottom of the canoe. They are
built there to help with the steering of a craft. However, in the
case of canoes, they actually hinder steering instead. So try to
avoid keels if possible.
3. Watch the Tumblehome - . Tumblehomes are the
curves at the sides of the canoe that give extra strength to the
canoe, especially when you consider the rather insipid strength
of usual canoe building materials. Tumblehomes make paddling easier
since it gives you good position to paddle. However, too much tumblehome
can cause the canoe to capsize.
If you plan to go to deep waters avoid too much tumblehome. It
may make your canoe hard to stabilize.
Also, you will want to consider the depth of your canoe. While
a good foot of space will do for most situations, those that brave
wild waters will want a few inches added so that the canoe does
not readily take in water.
4. Where to Search? – The internet is a
great place to look for used canoes, and so are classified ads.
Canoe enthusiasts may also have spare canoes they may want to part
with. Just make sure you by now know what to look for in a canoe.
Conclusion
Good canoes can last a long, long time. This makes getting a good
canoe early on very important. Happy hunting!
If you want more information on Used Canoes and Canoes vist our
site at www.canoescentral.com
