C-Forum

In the OC Rec Boats list on this site a Prelude is said to be 25" wide. Is this at the widest part or at the thwarts? Mine is 27" at its widest. Would it be easier or harder to paddle if I shortened the thwarts?

sandie

sandie,

I am not sure how wide my prelude is, but narrowing the thwarts gives the boat a rounder, narrower profile, generally reducing stability, while it should reduce rocker a bit, which together with the narrower beam should increase speed somewhat at the expense of maneuvrability.
My guess would be that the boat would be sligthly harder to bpaddle due to reduced stability, but II never tried it out myself.

martin

Narrowing a Prelude is not a good idea. Flattening out the bottom is. The boat is fairly squirelly as it is. Pulling it in will increase that. We used to pull in Ocoee's all the time... but they are a longer boat with a harder edge.

Craig

(check the search on C-boats using "prelude" and you can find info on flattening out the bottom)

Hi Sandie,

The Prelude should be 27inches wide, certainly that's what it says on the pyranha website, and is the width of mine. narrowing the boat would definately not be a good idea if you find the boat tippy at the moment, as it will only become more so.

Jon

Craig,

Do you have any tips about the best way to flatten out the bottom of the Prelude.

martin

I got my prelude as a chalenge. I was just a kayaker back then. I thought all open canoes were this tippy.

Over the years I have got used to the boat and like it. I was OK on grade III (like the Tryweryn in the UK). But after getting a new Mad River Freedom Solo I hadn't paddled my Prelude for six months. Big mistake. On easy grade II I was over in 90 seconds. I think to paddle a prelude you have to keep paddling it.

Anyway while hauling the prelude over a fence I managed to drop the thing on a rock and broke a gunwale and the thwart became detached. As it is a solid boat I manged to paddle the rest of the trip. Looking at the thwart later at home it looks like there was an older drill hole, as if the thwart was an inch or two wider. Thats is why I started questioning the design/actual width.

The bottom of my prelude is quite flat already. Or it was before I started paddling. Lots of rocks have made a mild dimpled effect on the bottom. But on the whole its tough as old boots. Wouldn't flattening the bottom make it tippy and edgy?

Sandie

well, there is a BIG difference in primary stability between the Freedom Solo and the Prelude. Totally different applications.
I would agree that the Prelude punishes a lazy paddler, you have to be active.
The prelude is not really a totally flat bottomed boat, it is slightly rounded. A Spanish Fly or Quake are boats with real flat bottoms.
Put them side by side and you'll see what I mean.
Flattening the bottom should give the boat more primary stability, but it should also make it a bit edgier. Everything is a compromise.

martin

My Prelude is 25 3/4" at the gunnels, but has been altered a lot. Having always paddled boats that I bought from and outfitted by Frankie, my prelude as it arrived new was just not what I was used to. I spent a lot of time flattening the bottom from end to end and making the chines sharper. After putting on wood gunnels I installed the stock outfitting. While I like this outfitting it takes a lot of altering to fit each paddler. A main point is to carve enough foam from the outboard pieces to get your knees all the way to the chines. Another point is to cut enough off the saddle at the thwarts so as not to push it back out round. Pulling it in narrower took some rocker out (whitch it had to much of) and made it faster, and to my suprise made the chines sharper I have been paddling this boat for two years now and love it. It is like a little Ocoee. I did one for a friend who was about to give up on hers due to the lack of primary stability and she loves it now. Sorry for going long. Dennis

DJ wrote:Sorry for going long. Dennis

Don't apologize for contributing relevant, valuable content! That's what keeps this board different from BoaterTalk! Talk about a low signal to noise ratio...

Dennis,

What did you do to the hull to flatten it and to sharpen the chines?

Thanks!

martin

Martin,

It is pretty easy to do and takes very little money, but takes a little time. You just heat up an area and apply down force, repeat, repeat, repeat.........

Tools needed are:

A flat work area
A cheap clamp on aluminum work light
Infared heat bulb like on a buffet table
6' of rope
A few lengths of 2 x 4

Send an email to drwassell@charter.net and I can send some pictures and more info. Dennis