On Sat, 24 Jun 2006 19:13:12 GMT, John Fereira
wrote:

Steve Cramer wrote in news:VzZmg.440$M_7.289
:

I tried to find some info because I've never heard of the stuff. All the
sites Google pulled up were in the UK, and buying a plastic canoe from a
dealer in the UK if you live in the US can't be clever. Nothing about
Brits, but they're 3K miles from here and you can't even make it a road
trip.

That certainly hasn't seemed to influence the popularity of VCP (or whatever
they're called now), NDK, or P&H kayaks in the U.S.

Personally, I'm always a bit leary of new composite layups touted as the
latest thing since sliced bread since the technology has been proven. Given
that the lifespan of a kayak can easily surpass ten years (my glass VCP
Skerray is 17 years old and still paddles quite nicely) I'd be pretty ****ed
if I bought a new kayak only to find out that the hot new composite layup
delaminates after a couple of years.

Thanks for the input. The danger of delaminating hadn't occurred to
me. What I am mostly concerned about is that the outer skin of plastic
is quite thin, I'm told... (thinner than on a canoe made of solid
plastic) - so I am worried about that outer skin wearing through,
after beaching the canoe enough times on shingle. That polyethelene
plastic (if that's what it is) seems very prone to deep scratching.

I'm also concerned about the inner core of foam being crushable, say,
when a heavy person steps into the canoe while it's on dry land.

But it's a relief to hear that such laminates have been in use in the
US for years. That suggests to me they must be suitable and reliable.

Al D