Another "new boat" advice post

[Jeffrey Ward]

I am thinking about giving myself a new boat for my birthday this year, and I think that an Esquif Spark fits the bill. I live just outside of Washington, DC, and most of my paddling consists of slalom gates in the Feeder Canal and attainment in the Mather Gorge. My OC1 currently is a Mohawk Viper 12, which I like well enough, but I think that I would like something lighter, faster and nimbler, hence the Spark.

As an initial matter, if anyone is interested in selling a used Spark, please let me know.

If I purchase a new boat, the closest Esquif dealers to my knowledge are Appomattox River Company in Richmond, Va, and Blue Mountain Outfitters up near Harrisburg, Pa. Are there any other dealers that I should consider? I am aware of others, such as NOC or Millbrook Boats, that are farther away, but the cost of a new boat is hard enough to swallow without adding shipping.

[Jeffrey Ward]

Here is another question I forgot to ask. My boats tend to live outside, so I am wondering about cold-cracking due to the Spark's wooden gunwhales. Has anyone in the mid-Atlantic ever had a problem with cold-cracking with wooden gunwhales?

[milkman]

I can't say enough about my positive experiences in dealing with Appomattox. They're a great outfit. Unfortunately, I have no experience with Sparks.

[Mikey B]

Don't forget Kaz's Ignitor and Inferno...even faster, lighter, and better attainers And the Spark was based on the Ignitor.
If you slot the last 4 or 5 holes in the Royalite, you should no problem with cracking.
Mikey

[pblanc]

I have a lot of experience paddling Viper 12s, in both Royalex (Mohawk) and composite (Clipper) and it is one of my favorite designs, if not my absolute favorite.

I have only paddled a Spark once, an NOC demo boat, on the Nantahala. It was enormous good fun. Much faster than the Viper (due mainly to its narrower beam) but of course a bit less forgiving. I wound up swimming out of this boat at Class III "Lesser Wesser" and it was my first swim there for quite a few years, but it was my first (and only) time paddling that boat.

If you are very comfortable in the Viper, a Spark might be just the ticket. It will definitely be faster on any upstream move. Never paddled an Ignitor but I'm sure it would be faster still, due to a bit more length and its stiffer composite construction.

[Big Al]

If you slot the last 4 or 5 holes in the Royalite, you should no problem with cracking.


????

Can you explain for us non-techie types?


Big Al

[pblanc]

Cold cracks tend to occur in Royalex or Royalite boats with wooden gunwales because of differential expansion and contraction. The ABS material expands and shrinks much more than the wood. The cracks probably occur at times of dramatic temperature change, like when you take the boat out of your garage in early spring cold, and put it upside down on your car in the sun. They usually occur right near the stems, where the effect of differential expansion is greatest.

The manufacturers just clamp the wood gunwales to the hull and drill small pilot holes before screwing in the gunwale mounting screws. The holes are just big enough for the screws but don't allow any "wiggle room" for the screws when the ABS shrinks or expands.

To avoid cold cracks, unscrew the 5 or 6 gunwale screws nearest the ends of the boat and pull the outwales away from the boat a little. Use a drill or file to enlarge the screw holes in the hull longitudinally a bit, so that the holes are more like a slot, than a round hole. This will allow the ABS to change size a bit without the screw (going through the wood of the inwale and outwale) to stress the hull material.

[Peter K.]

Our club here in Ottawa owns a Spark and keeps it in an unheated shed over the winter. We usually get a couple of weeks -20C. To the best of my knowledge, the gunnels have never been loosened even though this would be prudent. So far, no cracks.

[KNeal]

Jeffrey, I'm going to go out on a limb here for you and offer my place for temporary storage if you decide to get the Spark through Appomattox. The Richmond store is a few miles from my house so I'd be happy to drive out there and bring your boat back here and "store" it until you arrive (as long as YOU already paid for the boat ). You can trust me--after all, I'm a moderator on this board.

[Mikey B]

Thanks Pete!

Kneal, I thought you only paddled decked boats So you would truly just be storing it for him eh?

[KNeal]

Oh yes, Mikey. That just goes to show just what a really "good" guy I really am.

[Big Al]

"a really "good" guy"


How come this really good guy doesn't come north anymore?



Big Al

[KNeal]

I gotta wait around to see if I can go get Jeffrey's boat.

[John Coraor]

If you are very comfortable in the Viper, a Spark might be just the ticket. It will definitely be faster on any upstream move. Never paddled an Ignitor but I'm sure it would be faster still, due to a bit more length and its stiffer composite construction.

Actually the Ignitor has enough rocker that its waterline length isn't much different than that of the Spark (which is basically a shortened Ignitor in Royalite). Other than any impact on speed that the difference in materials might have, the hull speeds should be very similar. On the same slalom course at the same Nationals Kaz has actually clocked faster runs in the Spark (OC-1 REC) than in the Ignitor (OC-1 Short, the regular race class for 4-meter OC-1s). Of course, that is due to the Spark being shorter, allowing quicker turns out of upstream gates, something that is unrelated to hull speed and thus won't impact speed on the river, but it does show that the hull speed of both is very similar.

John

[pblanc]

Interesting. Thanks for the info, John. The Spark is definitely fast for an ABS boat.