Re: Need some expert advice/help!
Jim;
I've never taken a "Loner" trip yet. I have Warren along to keep me out of trouble! No canoe liveries here so it's difficult to spot a vehicle without doing it yourself.
Warren and I have figured out that we can get his Hobi in his truck and get mine on top for a trip back to the start point.
I received an email from Phil Huewe that helped a lot. Ducksterman and Dixieangler have been more that a big help too.
I think one of my major problems has been afraid to pump that baby up! While puttering in the garage this evening (down here puttering is "Rat Killin'"!) I had to pump it up again as the temps droped.
My next outing will be in warm water to assure that I have everything put togather right and balanced!
Thanks to everone for thier help and keep it comming!!
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
Hey, Jack...Phil Huewe = Ducksterman....I'm waiting for those pictures :)
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
And Jack...does your toon have a swiveling seat?....if not it's well worth it to go to Wally World and pick up a swivel adapter and install it....
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
duckster (aka phil!!) Ya tricked me!! Swivel seat was the first thing installed! I raised it a bit by using the spring loaded mount and upside down base plate.
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
A couple of attempts to move the thread off course. (Avast there, matey! Stand by and prepare to by hi jacked!) :shock:
First off I have to admit that Jack is in pretty good shape for a guy pushing his 68th birthday (and dragging 67 behind). Where he floats, there is only one really easy access point for a 'toon and that is near the base of a dam that stands about 110 feet tall. He basically has to float down and row back up. Jack lived in the "hilly region" (pah! 8) ) of the Lower Penninsula of Michigan (a troll!) before he moved to Tennessee and has been getting used to seeing real hills and soils that are not composed of sand and gravel. (We wanted to introduce him to Summer, but this has been a pretty mild one so far.)
I still think that a small canoe is the way to go, but I have a lot more time in canoes than I do in infaltables, er, inflatables. But don't waste too much pity on him. If he doesn't get in at least 4 trips a week down to a river, it's only because he's being lazy. :) And that's pretty bad 'cause he lives only 10-15 minutes from trout.
take care,
Ed
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
Hey Jack,
Something to be mindful of with respect to the air pressure in your pontoon tanks is how hull rigidity affects speed and maneuverability.
Whether it be canoe, kayak, pontoon boat or what, if the hull flexes (called "oil canning") the craft will lose some or all function of its hydrodynamic design. This happens because water stops flowing across the hull in the correct fashion.
To illustrate, let's say another person is rowing your pontoon boat across a swimming pool, and you are swimming underwater beneath your boat looking straight up at the bottom of your pontoon tanks. If the pontoons are under-inflated, what exactly will you see? Easy: you'd notice that the bottom surface of the pontoon tanks are deformed. They are being squeezed upward, flattened out by water pressure. They may even take on a concave shape. The effect of such deformations is to create areas of differential turbulence that SLOW the movement of the pontoons through the water.
Whereas if the pontoon tanks (your boat's twin "hulls") are properly inflated their surfaces will be rigid, or very nearly rigid. This stiffness of surface is the only thing that gives them the hydrodynamic ability they are designed for. Correct air pressure is what lets them slide through the water with minimum paddling effort on your part. And especially when you are paddling upwind, rigid pontoon hulls will help you because the pontoon tanks are not being compressed (flattened) on the bottom by incoming wave action.
As for safety, I think an under-inflated pontoon boat is a definite hazard to your health. Again, this is due to the "sogginess" of the pontoon tanks. Anytime your weight shifts (which it does many times when you're fishing) the tank that is bearing the load will deform, get squeezed and flattened. This flattening allows MORE weight to get shifted to that tank than would normally occur, resulting in easier tip-over.
With rigid pontoon tanks you will notice a sharper, cleaner ride in waves. But just like with automobile tires, a pontoon tank that is properly inflated will be rigid, thus it suffers LESS physical damage because its "sidewalls" are not flexing near as much. That flexing motion under load is what generates internal heat and breaks down the material on a car tire's sidewall. The same thing will happen to the "sidewalls" of an under-inflated pontoon boat's tanks.
Joe
"Better small than not at all."
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
Thanks Joe. I went back and studied some pictures Warren had taken on my first river trip. Definatly underinflated, even the frame is in the water! No wonder I had trouble in the faster water. I've found that the re-chargable electric pump is ok to get it inflated fast but it takes 3 - 5 strokes on the hand pump to get it firm.
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
Jack...a little more on inflation.... it does depend on how much room you have to transport...but I have found that when broken down the individual pontoons handle a lot easier if fairly inflated....e.g. sliding into the back of a pickup....I have had a small compressor for years and almost always carry my pontoon and /or float tubes inflated and then top off with the double pump if necessay...also I keep[kept] the side frames attached to the pontoons...just the seat and motor mount separate....
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
Jack, One thing I noticed that you might take into consideration. If you're not ferrying with a partner consider paddling upstream when you first get on the water. You are fresher, stronger and you can scout the water on the way up. Then float back to your put in point. I just couldn't think of floating downriver then trying to paddle back after some time on the water. Maybe they don't do it that way in Tennesee, but that how we do it on the prairie -- if we're not ferrying. JGW
Re: Need some expert advice/help!
I'm not sure it's done anymore but for years folks out here would put in... drift to the take out then hitch hike back to the put in and drive back to the take out...I guess those were better times.