L'edge: is anyone keeping the decks?

busterblue · Post by **busterblue** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 8:13 pm

Has anyone bought a decked L'edge with the intention of keeping it that way (not cutting the decks off)?

If you have a decked L'edge, how do you store a dry bag, spare paddle, throw rope etc... Is there room to squeeze stuff past the bulkhead?

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:06 pm

busterblue wrote:Has anyone bought a decked L'edge with the intention of keeping it that way (not cutting the decks off)?

If you have a decked L'edge, how do you store a dry bag, spare paddle, throw rope etc... Is there room to squeeze stuff past the bulkhead?

You should easily be able to squeeze an average sized drybag behind the saddle and clip it in. Deflate the airbag... shove it in... clip it to the lacing and blow the bag back up. I clip (caribiner) my throwrope to the lacing on top so it's quick and easy to get to... same thing we've done for years with the SpanishFly. Regarding the paddle... get a breakdown or make your buddy carry one.

philcanoe · Post by **philcanoe** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:13 pm

Yep - welcome to a brave new world.

Once you have gone this short and outfitted in this manner, a break down spare becomes a necessity. In a S'Fly even a two piece takes a little rigging, and a three piece would be even nicer.

boathead · Post by **boathead** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:23 pm

PADDLE.....................ya don't need no stinking paddle! Do like I do when I lose mine...SWIM!...Come to think of it, I swim quite often even when I don't lose hold of the stick!
................."the Boathead"......................[/b][/i]

busterblue · Post by **busterblue** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 10:52 pm

You should easily be able to squeeze an average sized drybag behind the saddle and clip it in. Deflate the airbag... shove it in... clip it to the lacing and blow the bag back up. I clip (caribiner) my throwrope to the lacing on top so it's quick and easy to get to... same thing we've done for years with the SpanishFly

That makes sense, after looking more closely at online photos.

I've been revisiting old L'edge threads, and it seems that most people either opt of the open version or have plans for cutting the decks off themselves. I've never paddled a decked canoe, and the relative dryness seems appealing. My biggest concern is weight and how that will affect speed on the water. My secondary concern is convenience for storage and moving the boat around on land (no gunwales to grab).

Craig, were the decks part of your original design intent? Or do they have something to do with the manufacturing process?

Shep · Post by **Shep** » Wed Feb 23, 2011 11:40 pm

If you look at the very first prototype images, you can see the decks were always part of the plan. I don't think anyone is trimming the decks to improve on-water speed. If the boat loses 6 lb, that's still less than 10% of the total boat weight. Add the paddler's weight, and it's not going to change how it paddles much at all. You will really feel the difference when you are carrying it. I think people are trimming decks for that and aesthetic reasons only.

Shep

rcgalwa · Post by **rcgalwa** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 1:06 am

I know if I owned one I wouldn't trim the decks. I am sure other Taureau owners will agree it is a nice feature to have.

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:07 am

Because Esquif rotomolded the boat rather than thermoforming it we were able to get two boats from one mold "decked" and "open"... and if I'd have thought about one more little tiny thing... we could've had three... "open" without wood rails. I don't know how on earth I spaced that out... live and learn I guess. It's not the end of the world though.

As an example... Torre Vann did a real nice job opening his up.

The open model is drier than I ever imagined... but with that said... the decked version is just plain silly dry for an OC1

If I could go back right now in hindsight and change something quickly and easily we would've made the ends of the splash deflectors 1-2" shorter on the ends. Don't worry... I've already made better mental notes for "whatever comes next".

RodeoClown · Post by **RodeoClown** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:38 am

Craig Smerda wrote: Don't worry... I've already made better mental notes for "whatever comes next".

so did I

TonyB · Post by **TonyB** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:40 am

Ive left them on(so far) I did trim a little of the saddle , and put a narrower thwart in front of me to fit a bigger water bottle in. break down paddle fits fine in the stern.

had evil thoughts of cutting decks back a bit, was thinkin about welding the splash rail further forward.

was gonna wait till after ALF, make sure I was sure. but thats pushed back a little more.

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:49 am

RodeoClown wrote:
Craig Smerda wrote: Don't worry... I've already made better mental notes for "whatever comes next".
so did I

I know...

kimmieOC1 · Post by **kimmieOC1** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 2:59 am

I have a decked L'Edge and have no plans to remove the decks. Heck that's what makes the boat so dry! Water just sheds right off the deck. Yes it's heavy, but I think it's worth that extra 5 - 6lbs. to be able drop into big holes, blast through wave trains, etc. and then paddle on with only a couple of inches of water in the boat. Of course my other boat (which I still love) requires dumping if I even look at a wave train

.

Based on what I've observed, the people who cut the decks are doing so because they either 1. want a more traditional looking canoe (but don't want the full-on open version), or 2. are trying to loose some of the weight of the boat (not for on water performance, but for carrying and loading).

No problem storing a breakdown paddle and a dry bag. I clip my throw rope to the back lacing for easy access.

Wiggins · Post by **Wiggins** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 3:41 am

Does trimming back the deck void the warranty? I would prefer the semi decked version like the one in the pic, but don't want to risk the protection of the warranty to get it.

Kyle

dafriend · Post by **dafriend** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 5:43 am

Just got my decked L'Edge last week. Only open water around here is the pool so I have no first-hand knowledge about its dryness in combat conditions.

I have no plans to remove the deck. I was able to hop from mine to my buds open version in the pool and the weight difference was undetectable. After a long day that might be different. Or maybe not if, in the course of the day, you averaged a lower "water load" overall.

The open one isn't any easier to carry in terms of how you lift it, hold it or maneuver it on your head or shoulders. Both are heavier than I'd like to carry for any great distance or on a steep incline. I expect I'll be dragging it more than previous boats.

I'm thinking about gluing a D-ring patch to the back of the pedestal for clipping in a dry bag and/or water bottle.

Craig Smerda · Post by **Craig Smerda** » Thu Feb 24, 2011 1:11 pm

Lot's of personalization going on...
http://blog.jamesweir.net/2010/10/ledge ... on-in.html

James Weir

The decked L'Edge is noticeably drier than the open version, in fact the difference really surprised me. It is not that the open version takes on water easily it is just that the decked version is incredibly dry, even in crazy rapids the water just doesn't find its way in, it is simply stunning! I am hoping that my hybrid will be very nearly as dry as the decked L'Edge and not much heavier than the open L'Edge.

http://blog.jamesweir.net/2010/12/mexic ... -matt.html

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L'edge: is anyone keeping the decks?

L'edge: is anyone keeping the decks?

Re: L'edge: is anyone keeping the decks?

PADDLE!