The Best Canoe $100 can Buy

varmint · 07-19-2015, 11:38 AM

guy down the road sold me a canoe. it's an aluminum 19ft Grumman. probably made in the seventies. the cross brace is bent beyond repair. but the leaks are so far minimal.

will have pictures later.

i am flat out ignorant on all things canoe related. and am going off youtube videos for repair instructions. need tips on cleaning. patching etc.

Tishabet · 07-19-2015, 12:08 PM

An aluminum grumman is the canoe workhorse of every scout troop and summer camp I know... find someone who can legitimately weld aluminum and your grumman will live forever as long as you do not fill it partially or fully with water and allow it to bend arou d an obstacle via hydraulic force. My own canoes (a Dagger and an old town) are fiberglass which I prefer partially because it is not as loud on the water, but for $100 you done good.

Seahawk · 07-19-2015, 12:27 PM

Excellent!

You are of course going to spend a lot more on the stuff you need to be legit.

The guys around here that like to paddle and fish from their canoes buy float bags and stabilizers since the weather here can change in a second.

I paddled with a guy early this summer who added these (picture from the web):

Worked great.

varmint · 07-19-2015, 12:41 PM

"You are of course going to spend a lot more on the stuff you need to be legit."

was afraid of that.

not getting it home till tomorrow. pulled a photo online that looks sort of right.

thought the crossbar would be something i'd fix by buying a new one on eBay in ten seconds. am i looking in the wrong place?

the cracked plate in the bow will have to be re welded. there are a ****load of welders around here. so not much problem there.

now i realize how much it's going to cost to set up the XC90 to haul this thing on the roof.

hell. i live in the wilderness and work in front of a computer ten hours a day. this thing is my ticket out doors. i'm gonna make it work.

MBAtarga · 07-19-2015, 12:48 PM

To fix the crack - maybe you can use one of those repair rods that will mend aluminum.

porsche4life · porsche4life's Garage

Take it to a welding shop and let them
Weld the crack and see what they can do about the brace. They may be able to replace it with something the have on hand(aluminum angle would be fine). Bet another hundred will get it back into useable shape.

johnsjmc · 07-19-2015, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by porsche4life

Take it to a welding shop and let them
Weld the crack and see what they can do about the brace. They may be able to replace it with something the have on hand(aluminum angle would be fine). Bet another hundred will get it back into useable shape.

The cross bar (thwart) is a piece of aluminum pipe and can be spliced or copied by a welding shop. Same with the crack. If yours has as many ribs as the picture I think you scored a factory lightweight. Extra ribs but a thinner skin IIRC. 60 lb instead of 75 lb
I paddled over 1000 mi in a Grumman in the summer of 1975 in Quetico park (The Canadian side of the boundary waters wilderness area in Minnesota.
Very tough canoe. Well worth a proper fix .

Jerome74911S · 07-19-2015, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnsjmc

I paddled over 1000 mi in a Grumman in the summer of 1975 in Quetico park (The Canadian side of the boundary waters wilderness area in Minnesota.

Hey, so did I! Quetico rocks. I still have my 17' Grumman from those days.

johnsjmc · 06:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jerome74911S

Hey, so did I! Quetico rocks. I still have my 17' Grumman from those days.

I was a guide for the Voyageur Wilderness Programme run by Charlie Erickson out of Nym Lake. We used to bus loads of students up from the Chicago area for week long wilderness experiences
How did you end up there?

Jerome74911S · 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnsjmc

I was a guide for the Voyageur Wilderness Programme run by Charlie Erickson out of Nym Lake. We used to bus loads of students up from the Chicago area for week long wilderness experiences
How did you end up there?

I had been going there since the '60s, when I was a resident of Wisconsin and my first experience was on a family vacation with my folks. I liked it and kept going back well into the 80s, but then gasoline prices and demands on my time - I was living in Quebec by then - took their toll. So, since then I've only put my canoe into the water in the East, nearer to home. I miss Quetico, though, and yes, I know Nym Lake, although I spent more time on Pickerel and Batchewaung Lakes.

johnsjmc · 07-20-2015, 06:10 AM

I went back with my exwife (then GF) in the late 70,s and did the MacKenzie lake loop which was out of reach with novice students on a week long trip.(2500 yd portages etc)
I also worked in the Temagami area of northern Ont west of lake Nipissing near the Quebec border.
Last canoe trip I did was probably into Algonquin with one or both of my boys about 20 yrs ago.

Holger · 07-20-2015, 06:34 AM

LOL, we had a load of those aluminium canoes for renting to tourists.
Nobody in the club wanted to weld them, to much heat and you have a large hole. We always had to hire somebody for repairs.

Cool canoe!

Jerome74911S · 07-20-2015, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnsjmc

I went back with my exwife (then GF) in the late 70,s and did the MacKenzie lake loop which was out of reach with novice students on a week long trip.(2500 yd portages etc)
I also worked in the Temagami area of northern Ont west of lake Nipissing near the Quebec border.
Last canoe trip I did was probably into Algonquin with one or both of my boys about 20 yrs ago.

Those 2500 yard portages are probably the reason she's your ex-wife . . . That's a part of my life that I miss, but time marches on. It's been years for me, too, probably 10 since a trip in Maine.

intakexhaust · intakexhaust's Garage

Quetico / BWCA, now there's some serene memories!

When we lived on a lake, had the toys with motors but also a few canoes. The Grumman ally's could take a beating, noisy yes but light. The Old Towne glass are heavy but really nice. If given the choice as a camper, beater in low or rock, probably would take the aluminum. Patch with a tube of Goop, sheet stock and pop rivets. Don't worry about making it pretty. Upper bar is an easy replacement. If taking on a camping excursion and portage involved, add some shoulder pads.

Also, I don't get the pic's above with the outriggers. Been out in all sorts of water conditions. Sometimes the chop was fun. Two plus an 80 lbs. Labrador.

Jerome74911S · 07-20-2015, 10:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by intakexhaust

Quetico / BWCA, now there's some serene memories!

When we lived on a lake, had the toys with motors but also a few canoes. The Grumman ally's could take a beating, noisy yes but light. The Old Towne glass are heavy but really nice. If given the choice as a camper, beater in low or rock, probably would take the aluminum. Patch with a tube of Goop, sheet stock and pop rivets. Don't worry about making it pretty.

Also, I don't get the pic's above with the outriggers. Been out in all sorts of water conditions. Sometimes the chop was fun. Two plus an 80 lbs. Labrador.

Ditto, because a Grumman can be more efficient when paddled on a bit of a tilt while going solo. Flat like that is the only way to do it with two people.