Any experience with a 17' Coleman Canoe?
Diana
I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
experience with this type of canoe please post.
TIA
Diana
Froggie405
The Colemans are known for being low end recreational boats. The fill a big
need out there in the market place. However, if you are looking for performance
there are many other options. How much will you have to spend for the Coleman?
What are you looking to do with the boat? Lake paddling, day trips, week long
trips, fishing?
If you are anywhere near us, give us a call.
Ron and Nanette
Paint Island Canoe & Kayak
350 Farnsworth Ave
Bordentown, NJ 08505
609-324-8200
http://www.riversport.com/paintisland/
Capt' Salty
Alder Creek Kayak and Canoe
Portland, OR
<www.aldercreek.com>
--
Steve Scherrer
Reply to Flatpick<at>teleport<dot>com
__________________________________
Froggie405 wrote in message <19990414065802...@ng30.aol.com>...
Thomas Unger
> I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> experience with this type of canoe please post.
A couple years ago I paddled the Noatak river in red plastic coleman
canoes. You can read about the trip and look at some photos at
http://www.tumtum.com:4000/climbing/stories/96-07-21-Noatak
and
http://www.tumtum.com:4000/gallery
The guide who rented them to us said they are great: you can patch them
with duct tape and they don't get dented up on rocks as easy as the
alumanum canoes he used to use. I think he also liked them because they
were cheap, and could be broken down and stacked, making them easier to
fly into the bush.
I've since learned that serious paddlers have low oppinions of these
canoes, but they served us fine for our purpose.
tom.
Lloyd Bowles
Diana <Di...@tex.edu.com> wrote in message
news:3713C1FB...@tex.edu.com...
> Hi,
>
> I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> experience with this type of canoe please post.
Do a search of Deja News for opinions on the Coleman. It's characteristics
have been discussed many times on RBP & people are getting tired of
responding.
I would suggest that you look for a used canoe of almost any other make.
You should be able to get something much better for the same cost.
-------------
Lloyd Bowles
The Mad Canoeist
"Keep the open side up!"
http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/clearstreets/358/index.html
Lloyd Bowles
Thomas Unger <un...@tumtum.com> wrote in message
news:3714B137...@tumtum.com...
> Diana wrote:
> > I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> > experience with this type of canoe please post.
>
> with duct tape and they don't get dented up on rocks as easy as the
> alumanum canoes he used to use.
Did he also say that they paddle like barges? Or that they are too heavy to
portage?
>I think he also liked them because they
> were cheap, and could be broken down and stacked, making them easier to
> fly into the bush.
Of course. They were designed to stack to save shipping cost. They don't
appear to be designed with paddling in mind.
Jeff
Diana <Di...@tex.edu.com> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> experience with this type of canoe please post.
>
>
> Diana
Coleman canoes are terrible. They paddle badly, they're heavy, and are not a
terribly good value - all things considered.
Why not buy a nice used canoe for the same price? (!!!)
You'll do *much* better... Try posting a WTB (Wanted To Buy) message here.
I'd, personally, look for old cruisers from the likes of quality canoe
manufacturers like Old Town, Dagger, or Mohawk...
jm
--
"It is pleasant to have been to a place the way a river went."
---Henry David Thoreau
-----------== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==----------
http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Discuss, or Start Your Own
Al Rolle
reasonably proficient canoer and plan to actually paddle vice just float
down rivers, then I would get a much better boat.
I had a Grumman some 30 years back. A Grumman was a fine canoe in it's day
for heavy expedition loads, but it was slow, turned poorly, stuck on rocks,
and was turn-over prone if you drifted sideways in a current as the keel
would catch on a rock and it caught the wind like a sail. I hated to paddle
it.
I quit canoing until about 11 years ago when I got an Explorer. My wife and
I now own 9 canoes ( 6 different types; she has four solo boats, I only have
three). Each type paddles differently, but they all paddle well for the type
of paddling they were designed. The Coleman is designed to be cheap to
make..
Al
Lloyd Bowles wrote in message <9241208...@cindy.bmts.com>...
>
>Thomas Unger <un...@tumtum.com> wrote in message
>news:3714B137...@tumtum.com...
>> Diana wrote:
>> > I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
>> > experience with this type of canoe please post.
>>
Thomas Unger
> Coleman canoes are terrible. They paddle badly, they're heavy, and are not a
> terribly good value - all things considered.
See... Very low oppinions of Coleman canoes. And perhaps deservidly
so. Regardless of that, I did manage to have a great 3 week trip in
one. So, don't get too hung up on the boat, you can have fun in
anything.
And, regardless of _that_ if I were shopping for a canoe (which I'm not,
I'm shopping for a kayak) I'ld look for somethat that "performed"
better.
Tom.
Andrew Gooding
outlast it too. For whitewater, a used (though not abused) boat of
Royalex is far better than a new polyethylene boat (like a Coleman).
Coleman's bottoms are too flat, so if you roll them on an edge, they'll
flip very suddenly. They are also slow, overly flexible and don't track
(or turn) very well, due to the faux keel down the middle, combined with
the overly flat bottom.
-- Andrew
Clarence Bourque
Al Rolle wrote:
> It depends on your objectives. If you are interested in becoming a
> reasonably proficient canoer and plan to actually paddle vice just float
> down rivers, then I would get a much better boat.
>
> <snip>
> The Coleman is designed to be cheap to
> make..
> Al
>
> Lloyd Bowles wrote in message <9241208...@cindy.bmts.com>...
> >
> >Thomas Unger <un...@tumtum.com> wrote in message
> >news:3714B137...@tumtum.com...
> >> Diana wrote:
> >> > I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> >> > experience with this type of canoe please post.
> >>
> >> The guide who rented them to us said they are great: you can patch them
> >> with duct tape and they don't get dented up on rocks as easy as the
> >> alumanum canoes he used to use.
> <snip>
> >-------------
> >Lloyd Bowles
> >The Mad Canoeist
> >"Keep the open side up!"
> >http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/clearstreets/358/index.html
> >
> >
> >
> >
The biggest difference betwenn a Coleman 17' (I've found) is that it is designed
for beginners. They are flat bottomed and keeled, so they track straight, turn
relatively slowly, are rather difficult to side-slip and have most of their
stability as initial stability.
Beginners are often put off by the "feel" of more advanced craft, don't have the
paddling skills to take advantage of rocker, thumblehome and ease of lean. I
know several beginners who bought much more expensive boats and sold them after
a few uses, never to paddle again. :<((
Relatively cheap, the Coleman is quite ok for flatwater and gentle rivers. It
looks like crap, can be treated like crap and disposed of rather easily. Most
Scout groups and many rental places I know have a fleet of them. Many of the
better paddlers I know cut their milk teeth on them.
If you're a good to excellent paddler, want to do advanced runs, and want a
craft you'll be proud of forever, DON'T buy a Coleman. If you're looking for a
craft that's cheap, needs no maintainance whatsoever and which you can use, in
mild waters, to learn the basics and just have fun, don't pass up the Coleman
too fast.
That's my five cents worth, anyway...
Clarence Bourque
Scott Warnke
canoeing the only boat that was in our price range was a 17' Coleman. It
was a fantastic boat, all of the rapids that we felt comfortable going down
the boat could handle. When it came to a portage, if we where too exhausted
to carry it, we just dragged it along. The stories that I have listened to
about AU. boats like Grumman, is that when you hit a rock with one you don't
slide over it, you just stick, turn and flip. The other one is that on a
hot day, the AU can become quite hot and give you a good burn. Just my
thoughts.
Scott
Andrew Gooding wrote in message <37162C...@uiuc.edu>...
David and Kelly Perry
one. I see the same old generic laundry list of shortcomings every time,
but very few personal observations and experiences. Is it just "cool" to be
anti-Coleman, pro-specialized canoe vendor? Come on, dare to be different!
It's my observation that most people who own a Coleman actually say the boat
serves its purpose well. My wife's grandmother has a Coleman, and while I
like my Old Town a lot better, using the Coleman before I bought my own
canoe sure beat not canoeing at all.
Dave
Andrew Gooding wrote:
> For flatwater, a used Grumman is better than a new Coleman, and should
> outlast it too. For whitewater, a used (though not abused) boat of
> Royalex is far better than a new polyethylene boat (like a Coleman).
> Coleman's bottoms are too flat, so if you roll them on an edge, they'll
> flip very suddenly. They are also slow, overly flexible and don't track
> (or turn) very well, due to the faux keel down the middle, combined with
> the overly flat bottom.
>
> -- Andrew
--
David and Kelly Perry
"There is nothing-absolutely nothing-half so much worth doing as simply
messing about in boats."
-Kenneth Grahame, "The Wind in the Willows"
J. Michaels
"Hi, I'm Jim and I have a 17' Coleman."
Gosh, I feel better.
There's nothing like exposing a dirty little secret in public to cleanse
the soul. Actually, it's my mother's and she loaned it to my boat
menagerie so it wouldn't be lonely. Honest. I didn't buy it. Really!
Since it's the first & only canoe I've ever paddled, I didn't feel
qualified to make comparisons. I will say, however, that I was amazed
that there could be a boat that actually combines bad turning and bad
tracking. This is especially true when the wind is up. My S.O. and I
tried different combinations of weight and "windage" placement to no
avail. Even with the explanation given in a previous post, I can't
visualize how it fails both simultaneously.
But it's the only non sail boat I've got that can carry a gaggle, so it
gets used on calm days. It's everything bad that's been said on this NG
but it gets the job done. After all, a sunset in a Coleman is better
than no sunset at all. So I'm not complaining.
Especially now that I've been outed.
Jim
Jeff
DAVEAN...@prodigy.net wrote:
> I wonder how many people who trash Coleman canoes have actually ever paddled
> one. I see the same old generic laundry list of shortcomings every time,
> but very few personal observations and experiences. Is it just "cool" to be
> anti-Coleman, pro-specialized canoe vendor? Come on, dare to be different!
I trash Colemans from personal experience. They *suck*. You are MUCH BETTER
OFF finding a nice used canoe... which will also often times be *cheaper*
than a new Coleman.
Having paddle many - mostly as fishing barges, as it were...
Colemans are horrible pigs in the water, heavy, and difficult to paddle. Those
with internal frames can pinch clothing between the boat and the frame... not
something I'd like when tipped over. Will they float: Yes. Can you paddle one:
Yes. Are they the lowest quality *and* cheapest canoe you can buy: Yes.
jm
--
"I hurry amain to reach the plain;
Run the rapid and reach the fall..."
Sidney Lanier
Andrew Gooding
>
> In article <3717DD53...@prodigy.net>,
> DAVEAN...@prodigy.net wrote:
> > I wonder how many people who trash Coleman canoes have actually ever paddled
> > one. I see the same old generic laundry list of shortcomings every time,
> > but very few personal observations and experiences. Is it just "cool" to be
> > anti-Coleman, pro-specialized canoe vendor? Come on, dare to be different!
>
> I trash Colemans from personal experience. They *suck*. You are MUCH BETTER
> OFF finding a nice used canoe... which will also often times be *cheaper*
> than a new Coleman.
>
> Having paddle many - mostly as fishing barges, as it were...
>
> Colemans are horrible pigs in the water, heavy, and difficult to paddle. Those
> with internal frames can pinch clothing between the boat and the frame... not
> something I'd like when tipped over. Will they float: Yes. Can you paddle one:
> Yes. Are they the lowest quality *and* cheapest canoe you can buy: Yes.
>
> jm
I've paddled the 13', 15' and 17' versions, both solo and with a
partner. They are the worst performing canoe I've ever paddled. In
flatwater, they tend to tip very suddenly, something a 14 yr old found
out in the middle of a big Adirondack lake when he tried to kneel in the
bilge, ala Bill Mason. On whitewater, the Coleman's tended to broach
and tip more often than other boats (including Grumman's, Mad Rivers and
Old Town's). On one trip, a teenager foolishly left the tuna can lid
loose in his boat. Sure enough, while kneeling through the short rapids
on Beaver Creek, he slid forward, and the can lid had jammed itself
between the keel and the boat, slicing his knee open. Now I'm not
saying that it wasn't foolish, but give me anpother boat where that
would happen.
The reason some people think Coleman's are okay is because they haven't
paddled anything else. In terms of paddling pleasure, Coleman's are at
the bottom, Old Town Discovery's are next worst. For flatwater, a
Grumman or Alumacraft aluminum boat is far better (not sure about
Michicraft, as they weigh a million pounds), as is any Royalex boat, or
well made composite boat.
One advantage of the boat is that if you completely wrap it, you can get
a whole new set of hardware (gunnels, thwarts, frame etc.) for $35 or
so. While paddling a Coleman is better than nothing, it is only just
and would be my last choice in most every situation. This has nothing
to do with fashion and everything to do with function.
-- Andrew
Andrew Gooding
>
> I wonder how many people who trash Coleman canoes have actually ever paddled
> one. I see the same old generic laundry list of shortcomings every time,
> but very few personal observations and experiences. Is it just "cool" to be
> anti-Coleman, pro-specialized canoe vendor? Come on, dare to be different!
>
> serves its purpose well. My wife's grandmother has a Coleman, and while I
> like my Old Town a lot better, using the Coleman before I bought my own
> canoe sure beat not canoeing at all.
>
>
I've paddled Coleman's many times and I stand behind everything I said.
I've paddled the 13', 15' and 17' versions, both solo and tandem. The
observations I made of lack of final stability are from personal
expereince (like when a 14 year old tried to kneel in the bilge sol,
like Bill Mason, and almost went over in the middle of a large, cold
Adirondack lake). The people who own them think they're okay because
they haven't paddled anything else and don't realize that almost any
other boat would be better.
That said, I paddled a Coleman because that was better than not
paddling, but it would be my last choice for a boat.
-- Andrew
RivierRatt
>> DAVEAN...@prodigy.net wrote:
>> > I wonder how many people who trash Coleman canoes have actually
>> >ever paddled one. I see the same old generic laundry list of
>> >shortcomings every time, but very few personal observations and
>> >experiences. Is it just "cool" to be anti-Coleman, pro-specialized
>canoe vendor? Come on, dare to be different!
I haven't ever driven a Yugo...
>I've paddled the 13', 15' and 17' versions, both solo and with a
>partner. They are the worst performing canoe I've ever paddled.
(snip more testimony to the Coleman's "quality")
I owned a Coleman. Wrapped it around a tree and wound up giving it to a friend.
Actually, I gave it to *two* friends; the first one never came by to pick it
up, didn't consider it worth the 20-minute drive.
>One advantage of the boat is that if you completely wrap it, you can get
>a whole new set of hardware (gunnels, thwarts, frame etc.) for $35 or
>so.
I think it's way more than $35 bucks if you buy the hardware from the Coleman
factory. I put a set of hardware on my boat once, and it was more than $100
bucks, I'm quite sure. So even *that* is an advantage of questionable value!
Riviera Ratt # 77, Charter Member of PFA, 4/14/99
Still Clueless in '99!!!
Ratt Boy’s Click of The Week updated 3/31/99, fixed 4/6/99
For a good time, call http://members.aol.com/RivierRatt/ratthole.html
Jpmakar
scout camp this summer (as one of the Scoutmasters). For dinking around on
the local lake if you only paddle once or twice a summer.... Nah, buy a used
MRC or OldTown, forget the Coleman. They shouldn't be making crap like that.
They're dangerous.
ReedLB
with it and with the price. They're on the web.
Reed
Pete Dumbleton
HP) -- A Yugo looks pretty good by comparison!
On 18 Apr 1999, RivierRatt wrote:
> Andrew Gooding <agoo...@uiuc.edu> replied:
> snip...
> >canoe vendor? Come on, dare to be different!
> snip...
> I haven't ever driven a Yugo...
riverman
>
> I've owned and driven an East German Trabant (two-cycle, 6Volt, 24
> HP) -- A Yugo looks pretty good by comparison!
>
Heh, heh, heh. A COLEMAN looks good by comparison to a Trabant!
--
riverman
.........................
I think, therefore I thwim;
Carpe ropum.
rbp #2
amberd...@gmail.com
fsfraz...@yahoo.com
Still have 2 of them on the river in morehead Kentucky.....yee-Haw
Chicago Paddling-Fishing
>I used one for years down in Florida at juniper springs for scenic tours and search and rescue at 13 yrs old ,47 years ago . They are good and stable.
>Still have 2 of them on the river in morehead Kentucky.....yee-Haw
if its the steel frame with plastic one I'm thinking of.
A higher tech material might make you a happier canoeist.
--
John Nelson
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chicago Area Paddling/Fishing Page
http://www.chicagopaddling.org http://www.chicagofishing.org
(A Non-Commercial Web Site: No Sponsors, No Paid Ads and Nothing to Sell)
John Kuthe
> Hi,
> I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> experience with this type of canoe please post.
>
>
> Diana
ANY canoe is better than standing on the shore wishing! :-)
If the price is right and you want it, go for it! I still have the first kayak I purchased used from Bass Canoe rental, a Kiwi Kopapa, the first kayak I rented and paddled. I've owned several others since and retained two of those as well.
You know how many boats a boater needs? At least one more! ;-)
John Kuthe...
John Kuthe
John Kuthe...
tdelu...@gmail.com
> Hi,
>
> I'm contemplating purchasing a 17 foot Coleman canoe. If you have any
> experience with this type of canoe please post.
>
> TIA
>
> Diana
8i fish and crab
with my grand children ,its safe love my canoe
John Kuthe
> Diana,
>
> The Colemans are known for being low end recreational boats. The fill a big
Yeah, the "Better than no boat" market, or as I always said "better than standing on the shore wishing"! ;-)
John Kuthe...
Melissa
>> The Colemans are known for being low end recreational boats. The fill a
>> big need out there in the market place. ...
> Yeah, the "Better than no boat" market, or as I always said "better than
> standing on the shore wishing"! ;-)
here again! :)
I deleted all the non-RBP poster messages (next time they start showing up,
I'll be doing some targeted filtering), and now I'm only seeing these.
Perhaps we can retake/rebuild RBP back to something resembling itself
again? I know many people have migrated to website-based/Facebook type
forums, but I still prefer simple text-based news reader and email list
formats. When I can find them.
Probably just a pipe dream. That reminds me -- who's Bogarting the pipe? ;)
--
Melissa
John Kuthe
...
> Probably just a pipe dream. That reminds me -- who's Bogarting the pipe? ;)
>
> --
> Melissa
John Kuthe...