C-Forum

Sorry to be posting so soon after other air bag posts.

I could use a little advice re air bags:

Harmony OR Mohawk OR NRS?

I have read that people are having problems with NRS bags leaking.

O.K. I know that the new bags have a Lifetime Guarantee, but...

I think Harmony air bags have short stems (for air valves)
But.....I might deflate them for driving.

They all seem to make 60" airbags
(assuming everyone is measuring the same way).

Thanks everyone,

Open Boater

...

If Harmony is offering the yellow nylon, urethane resin bags, I would take them over NRS.

Short inflation stems may not be a problem if they are toward a rear outside corner, rather than in the center. Because I'm tall, I can lean over the front of the vehicle and get my mouth on the inflation valve. Others might want to consider extending the tube, which isn't difficult if you get the right tube stock. I think "Tygon" tubing at a hardware store might work.

I recently described a New Trick that makes bag retailers furious! Get a length of maybe 3/16" bungee cord and put it under tension between the rear center bag ring and up front under the deck plate. (Improvise.) The tension on the bungee, bearing down on the bag, will ensure that if the bag gets underinflated, it will not flop in the airstream. Brilliant, no?

suffer ye lambs to the slaughter...

You should use dunnage bags. You ll have to stick six in your boat and they won't really fit but they re WAY cheaper. Others use canoe specific bags but they cost almost as much as a pair of running shoes and they only last like 6 or 7 years. They re SOOO stupid.

What Ian said.

I have been really pleased with the harmony bags (nylon style). I would almost encourage the shorter stem if you are going to leave them in the boat while driving. I had a stem rip off of a gaia bag that was left in the boat. When comparing the two it looks like the longer, thicker stem puts way more stress on the bag. The long stem flaps around while the short stem just chills there.

ian123 wrote:You should use dunnage bags. You ll have to stick six in your boat and they won't really fit but they re WAY cheaper. Others use canoe specific bags but they cost almost as much as a pair of running shoes and they only last like 6 or 7 years. They re SOOO stupid.

I have multiple sets of urethane nylon bags previously branded "Voyager" (now made by Harmony) that are over 15 years old. Some have been patched and I have had to rebond the filler stems on a few but not one has failed.

Marjorie wrote:Sorry to be posting so soon after other air bag posts.

I could use a little advice re air bags:

Harmony OR Mohawk OR NRS?

I have read that people are having problems with NRS bags leaking.

O.K. I know that the new bags have a Lifetime Guarantee, but...

I think Harmony air bags have short stems (for air valves)
But.....I might deflate them for driving.

They all seem to make 60" airbags
(assuming everyone is measuring the same way).

Thanks everyone,



Open Boater

I have a pair of NRS bags that came with a boat I bought used. I have blown them up and they hold air but I have not used them on the water. They seem OK but I can't see that they offer any advantages over the bags sold by Mohawk. Like you, I have heard of a number of dissatisfied NRS bag customers.

I have used the bags sold by Mohawk. I think they are good, durable bags but a bit heavy in comparison with the urethane nylon bags which weigh half as much or less. For a pair of 60" bags this comes to more than a couple of pounds.

My favorite bags are the yellow urethane nylon bags previously sold by Voyager and now sold by Harmony Gear. I have found them to be quite durable and they are light weight. The sewn in nylon loops at the bag corners are much stronger than the grommets that come with vinyl-coated nylon bags. I have Voyager bags that are over 15 years old. The only complaints I have about them are they are more expensive, only come in yellow, and after 10 years or so the adhesive holding the flanges of the filler stems and dump valves to the bag material deteriorates and loosens. When that happens, I just glue them back down with Vynabond. Others use AquaSeal.

I am trying to figure out how to say this nicely but I am calling BS on the weights folks are putting out on the 60" bags. I weighed a few of them and the exact weight is 2.01 lbs per bag in the packaging. I am very confident in our scales they are high dollar certified scales so I dont think that they lie.

ian123 wrote:You should use dunnage bags. You ll have to stick six in your boat and they won't really fit but they re WAY cheaper. Others use canoe specific bags but they cost almost as much as a pair of running shoes and they only last like 6 or 7 years. They re SOOO stupid.

There are few things cheaper than a paddler.

You get what you pay for. Go with Harmony. They are worth it.

Neither long nor short inflation tubes should be allowed to just dangle loose. Mine are snubbed with light cord. I untie each if I need to get my mouth on the valve to add air.

Like Pblanc, I have yellow Voyageur bags going way, way back. There are some in my Phoenix c-1 that must have been installed about 1984.

I haven't had a Voyageur inflation tube base or dump valve fail. The leaks that have developed in my Voyageur bags were caused when I drove long distances with underinflated bags, so that they rumpled in the airstream. The leaks developed at the sharp end of the rumpled zone, where the fabric was repeatedly flexed up and down. Such leaks can often be fixed with a bit of Seamgrip, which soaks into the outer fabric more effectively than Aquaseal.