C-Forum

finally I,v got prelude, but the stability is terrible. Its like sitting on the beam.
so qestion is , is it OK , and I just need more experience, or something wrong is with pedestal high?

The Preludes I know had a pretty high seat. There is nothing wrong with cutting some off. Experiment with the height. You can always cut and also glue back on...

Cheers, Jan

beereddy,

Yes, you can lower the saddle of your prelude to increse stability, just make sure you don't cut too much off and start whacking your elbows against the gunnels ...that hurts .
And yes, the Prelude does not have the best primary stability, but stability is pretty good when you have it on edge. You will get used to it.

martin a.k.a. The Great Gonzo!

If you are using the stock saddle the overall height is such that it pushes the bottom of the boat out round. Cut 1/2" off each end where it mounts under the thwart and this will let it flatten out and give more initial stability.

Cutting 1/2 inch of foam out under where the saddle mounts under the thwart does not lower your saddle height, all it does is loosen the saddle which is held in place mainly by compression through the thwart, unless the hull is flattened out by heating nd flattening. To lower the saddle height it is, IMHO, better to cut material off the actual seating area of the saddle.

martin a.k.a. the great gonzo!

Martin, I agree that it does not lower the height of the saddle. I have put together 4 Preludes for myself and friends and on all 4 the saddle ends were tall enough to push the bottom of the hull out noticably. By trimming the ends the hull would relaxe and still have compression on it, though that is not what holds it in place. For that you should rely on properly gluing the saddle to the hull and a minimum of at least two wood dowells installed under each tharwt with 3" screws going through the thwart into the dowells.
My boats have been heated and reshaped and are very much like a small Ocoee. I was trying to point out that an easier fix is to just let the hull relaxe, install the saddle like you mean for it to stay there, and always store a prelude flat on its botom, and initial stability will improve dramaticly. If you just lower the height where you sit you still have a very narrow, round bottom boat that is going to feel rolly polly whitch is not the way this boat was designed. I appologize if I did not make myself clear.

Dennis, thanks for the clarification, what you did to your Prelude sounds good. It's yoo late to try that on mine, as I don't want to rip alll the outfitting totally apart.
You can however adjust well to the way the boat handles as it is, at least I did, and I like the way the boat handles as is. I got used to the low primary and high secondary stability fairly quickly and love it as it is.

martin a.k.a. the great gonzo!

I had my first trip in my new Prelude on Cl 2 Lower Otter Brook in New Hampshire on Saturday. This is a narrow, rocky, shallow creek; not a place one would normally want to roll. It was a humbling experience, and before a large audience as well (most of the people I usually boat with were there). My other boat is a Nitro and in it I usually do OK in Cl 4. In the Prelude, I fell in twice in the first two minutes. But then I was able to go about an hour before falling in again, and during that time it did seem to get easier. I will say that during the few moments that I wasn't fully occupied trying to stay upright, it was incredibly responsive and ferried like a dream.

It was interesting to me that I seemed to do better with some water in the boat, which would be nice if it turns out to be true. I never have a problem with no water coming in.

I am fascinated by the idea that the pressure of the thwart on the saddle makes the bottom rounder than it should be. It makes sense, but it is too much to expect that Pyrhana took that into consideration when it designed the outfitting? After all, they did put a notch in the bulkheads.

And now I have a question or two. What has been folks' experience in the placement of the bulkheads? Should they be pretty much vertical, or perhaps angled toward the paddler for more comfort?

And do you carry a spare paddle? Where do you put it?

Ken

Keep paddling the Prelude, you will get used to it. I presonally loved my Prelude from the first time I paddled it (ran the Kipawa, a big water class 4 river in Quebec with it), and I am with 185-190lbs probably near the upper end of the weight range for the boat.
One big difference compared to the Nitro is that the Prelude does not want to sit flat on the water, it wants to be on edgeand is much more stable there. Don't try to keep it flat, always give it some edge.
It is definitely one boat that does not seem to be the least affected by the amount you take on.

As far as your bulkhead question is concerned, do you mean the angle of the kneeblocks? Don't put them vertical, but in a position that works for comfort, secure fit and ease of entry and exit.

I carry a 3-piece brakeapart spare paddle tucked underneath my front airbag.

martin a.k.a. the great gonzo!

Thank you. At least now I know what to call those things--kneeblocks. They certainly felt better on the angle.

Where did you get the breakdown paddle?

My breakapart paddle is an Aquabound, dealers usually don't have them in stock, but they can order them in. They are good paddles for the price, cost in Canada is ~140 can$ for the 3-piece C1 breakapart glass paddle.

http://www.aquabound.com/index.html

They are not listed on their website, but they are available.

martin a.k.a. the great gonzo!

Riverken, You want to set the angle of the bulkhead/kneeblocks to get the most contact with your thighs as possible. Look at the picture in the Foam Bulkhead Outfitting thread. This may require trimming or adding foam on the bottom to get it right. Don't be afraid to cut it as you can always glue it back. BUT, before you do this you must decide on your saddle hieght, and fore and aft placement as this will make a huge difference in the angle of your thighs. When you take your time and set it up right this is rock solid outfitting that you can just step into and out of at will without fiddling with any straps.
Martin is absolutly right that as the Prelude comes it wants to be on edge and you can get used to it. If you are an Outrage fan or other round bottom boat it is an easy transition. If you want it a little flatter you can relaxe the hull as I mentioned and gain some initial stability.
Myself, I am a flat bottom hard edge fan and with a little heat and some creative persuation (sp) you can turn a Prelude into a planning hull, carving machine. Thats the beauty of a plastic canoe, you can shape it anyway you want it.

I forgot to say don't give Pyrahna to much credit for design, they just bought the mold.

Hello,

I have just picked up my Prelude here from Pyrahna in Runcorn UK, the saddle was pre cut at 8.5 inches and so would instantly resoulve some peoples stability issues. I found it great out on the water today.

The quality is fantastic and it looks a really solid boat, I am guessing it is made in the same plastic as the kayaks, cant wait to get it down a few rivers here in the UK.

I think i went for the right boat as my other choice was a Robson Homes which looked sweet but at 1450 GBP as apposed to the 700 GBP i paid for the Prelude i got myself a bargain with the Pyrahna.