Sliding front seat.

[Erik, Belgium]

I am planning to install a sliding front seat in my newly built canoe.
But it is not clear to me yet how the seat is attached to the rails, and how it stays in place where you want it to. Any ideas or experience out there?

I intend to mount both seats permanently in the canoe, using a small wooden block epoxyglued to the hull for additional support. Anyone had bad experiences with do it this way ? How large should I make the woodblocks ?

Your ideas, experiences and second thoughts are welcome,
Erik, Belgium.
http://users.pandora.be/kano-kayak/Winisk-1.htm

[Glen Smith]

Hi Erik, there is some info concerning a sliding bow seat on the Green Valley website: http://www.greenval.com/FAQbowsliderseat.html.
I believe the seat is held in position by the paddler's weight.

[Erik, Belgium]

thanks Glen, I had read the Greenval information already.

Unfortunately it only merely mentions what I am looking for. There sureIy are a number of ways to attach the seat to the sliders. I would like to see some pictures of those, but so far I haven't found any on the Internet.

Erik, Belgium.

[Glen Smith]

Hi Erik, someone used wooden "L" shaped blocks for theirs and another builder used those copper semi-circular things that hold plumbing pipes in place (can't remember what they are called!). I know I saw these two methods on the net and I will try to find them again, but no promises.

[Glen Smith]

This one uses the "L" shaped wooden brackets.

[Glen Smith]

Page 6 of this document shows another "homebuilt" method: http://www.smallboatforum.com/PDFfiles/ ... Canoes.pdf

[Erik, Belgium]

Thanks a lot Glen.

[tom in caledonia]

Glen, I've read somewhere that you shouldn't put a slider in a symmetrical canoe. Do you know what the reasoning is behind this? I'm building a Redbird. I'm 215lbs. and my wife is 115lbs. The trim of the canoe would likely benefit from an adjustable seat.

[tom in caledonia]

Glen, I've read somewhere that you shouldn't put a slider in a symmetrical canoe. Do you know what the reasoning is behind this? I'm building a Redbird. I'm 215lbs. and my wife is 115lbs. The trim of the canoe would likely benefit from an adjustable seat.

[Erik, Belgium]

I 'm not an expert, hence the question in the first place, but I think the reason why is reflected perfectly in the 1st paragraph of John winters' article on the Bow Sliding Seat (as referred to by Glen earlier in this thread). This is what it says:
>>
All of John Winters' tandem canoe designs including the Kipawa, Winisk, Mattawa and Quetico feature asymmetric hulls. With their narrower bow sections, these canoes are quite sensitive to fore and aft trim. One of the most effective means to adjust the trim on these boats is to shift the position of the bow paddler. In fact, a sliding bow seat is standard equipment on all of the production versions of of these canoes from Swift Canoe & Kayak. In most paddling pairs, the smaller of the two paddlers is usually in the bow, and the bow will then tend to ride high. A sliding bow seat not only allows the bow paddler to shift their position and weight forward bringing the craft back to level, but also as they move forward the distance between the gunwales is reduced as well, making it easier for the smaller person to reach the water with the paddle. In addition to compensating for different sized paddlers, it is also desirable to adjust the trim to better cope with varying wind and waves, lowering the bow a bit when going into the wind, raising it for a following wind, or somewhere in between to prevent unwanted turns in a cross wind. <<

Erik, Belgium.

[tom in caledonia]

This was the article that I had read earlier by Martin Step. I can understand why they would want sliders in asymmetic canoes. What I don't understand is why he is so adamant that they can't be placed in symmetrical canoes. He states at the end of the article " By the way, just so that we're clear, you NEVER put a slider in the stern, and never put a slider into a symmetrical hull like a Prospector style canoe.

[Erik, Belgium]

It is probably because a symmetrical hull is less prone to the bow coming out of the water when a smaller or lighter person is sitting in front ? I gues an asymmetrical canoe has less volume in the front, thus will be out of balance easier.

Erik, Belgium.

[Glen Smith]

This is the very last sentence of the article that Erik posted: "By the way, just so that we're clear, you NEVER put a slider in the stern, and never put a slider into a symmetrical hull like a Prospector style canoe."

I have contacted (email) Martin Step two or three times already asking him to explain WHY NOT but he has never answered. I even got someone else to email him the same question and he never got a response either. Anyone else wanna' try?

[jcolten]

A rationale I've heard/read is "You might choose to solo paddle a sym canoe by sitting in the bow seat facing the stern and the slider makes that difficult" ..... but that you'd never want to so that in an asym canoe.

Not sure I buy into that .... but you get to decide that for yourself.

[tom in caledonia]

Hey Glen, if you don't get an answer, then I'm not going to bother. I may just put a slider in and see what happens. Hopefully, the canoe cops don't write me up.[/i]