Matching Hull Construction to Usage Requirements
| Recommended Hull Constructions |
| Lakes |
Lakes or Rivers |
Rivers |
| FC, KL, RL |
KV, KH, RX |
RX |
| Hull constructions well-suited
to quieter waters are engineered for paddling efficiency. Impact resistance
is not a primary consideration. |
Hull constructions for moving
waters are engineered for all around use, but with more consideration to
impact and abrasion resistance. |
Hull constructions meant for
whitewater use are engineered for durability. They are designed for maximum
impact and abrasion resistance. |
Where you use your canoe should be
your guide to choosing a hull construction. Whether you canoe primarily
on quiet lakes and ponds, on both rivers and broad lakes, or on fast-moving
rivers, there's a Mad River hull construction right for each type of use.
Other canoe makers may use similar materials, but no other manufacturer
can match our ability to transform those materials into flawless hulls
with the ideal balance of performance and strength.
RX
(Royalex®)
Durable
and abrasion resistant
Quiet
and comfortable
Low-maintenance
Durability under brutal conditions, excellent insulating
properties, and quiet paddling. No wonder Royalex, has been the preferred
material for whitewater canoes since 1974. Today it's even better thanks
to a more abrasion-resistant skin.
The Royalex sandwich construction incorporates a vinyl
skin, ABS substrate layers beneath the vinyl skin, and a unicellular foam
core for rigidity and flotation. At Mad River, we vacuum-form each sheet
to create a seamless hull, building extra thickness into critical areas.
This extra material in the ends accounts for the distinctive Mad River
'smile.' These special measures, plus the inherent rigidity of the shallow
V hull, result in an exceptionally durable hull.
Because material thickness, amount of reinforcing, and molding
methods are determined by each manufacturer, all Royalex canoes are not
equal in strength.
Mad River specifies extra ABS and foam in the keel, bow,
and stern areas. The Guide, Explorer, and whitewater models are built with
generous amounts of Royalex. The Freedom and Revelation have even more
Royalex.
RL
(Royalex® Lightweight)
Weighs
less than RX
Better-suited
for flatwater use
Royalex Lightweight offers the optimal balance between
durability and weight savings. It is a lighter-weight construction of genuine
Royalex, not a derivative like R-84 which lacks a cross-linked alloy skin
for weatherability and color integrity. This construction is used in the
Tahoe, Intrigue and Eclipse, models intended for recreational rather than
whitewater use. The difference in our two Royalex constructions lies only
in the amount of reinforcing used, not in the material.
FC
(Fiberglass Cloth)
Weighs
less than RX and RL
Sleeker
and faster than RX and RL
Ideal
for flatwater use
Less
impact resistant than RX and RL
Mad River Canoe has been building hand-laminated, all
fabric, fiberglass canoes since 1971. These durable canoes, with their
sleek entry and exit lines, paddle swiftly. Fiberglass offers excellent
value and performance in cruising and recreational models that will not
be subjected to continual whitewater use.
Each hull is carefully laid up by hand, beginning with
an abrasion-resistant, flexible gel-coat which is applied to the inside
of the mold. The gel-coat becomes the outside of the canoe, giving it a
beautiful high-gloss finish that protects the underlying fiberglass cloth.
Look for the pattern of the cloth through the gel-coat, the hallmark of
a well-made, lightweight, flexible canoe. This is the hallmark of a well
made, lighter-weight and flexible canoe. Full layers of high-strength fabric
are used with additional reinforcement added in critical wear and impact
areas of the bow, stern, and belly of the canoe.
The selective use of Kevlar®
brand fiber and graphite reinforcement in the bow and stern areas make
Mad River canoes the most durable and impact-resistant fiberglass canoes
on the market. Individual layers of cloth are bonded together with a high
performance, isophthalic polyester resin to produce an affordable, lighter-weight
canoe offering a step up in performance from Royalex.
KV
(Kevlar® Brand
Fiber)
More
tear and puncture resistant than FC
20%
lighter than FC
Strong,
efficient-paddling hull
Back in 1974, Mad River introduced Kevlar®
brand fiber to the canoe industry, so no manufacturer has more experience
in building these long-lasting, extra-durable hulls than we do. Pound-for-pound,
today's Kevlar® brand fiber
is five times stronger than steel, yet its low density makes it stronger
than most other reinforcing fibers. It is 20% lighter than fiberglass,
but with greater tensile strength for increased tear and puncture resistance
— a real plus in the back country.
Our Kevlar®
brand fiber laminate varies from 3-11 layers thick, with the greatest number
of layers carefully positioned in areas where additional reinforcement
is important. This strategic reinforcement allows us to build a strong
hull that is extremely light. Internal graphite reinforcement offers added
impact protection at the canoe's ends. And like our fiberglass canoes,
our KV canoes have an abrasion-resistant, gel-coat skin.
The strength of a KV canoe is determined by how well the
resin bonds to the fabric of Kevlar®brand
fiber. Unlike most manufacturers, we don't use "off the shelf" fabric,
but specify a weave and surface finish matched precisely to our proprietary
vinylester resin system. This maximizes the elastic properties of the Kevlar®
brand fiber for added flexibility and increased strength in impact situations.
Engineered for high performance and superior durability,
a Mad River KV canoe is an excellent long-term investment.
KH
(Foam Core Version with Kevlar®
Brand Fiber)
Lightweight
and resilient
Excellent
impact resistance
Rigid;
high paddling efficiency
KH hulls weigh less and are more efficient to paddle than
KV hulls. Strength derives from the fabric of Kevlar®
brand fiber and rigidity from the Core-Cell®
foam core. This hybrid construction uses Kevlar®
brand fiber, S-Glass and Core-Cell so as to maximize the advantages of
each material while compensating for the limitations of each. Vacuum-bagging
produces superior bonding of foam core and reinforcing fabric using minimal
amounts of our highly elastic vinylester resin. The result is a durable,
lightweight laminate. An outer layer of S-Glass reinforced with graphite
improves abrasion and impact resistance.
Core-Cell is a rigid elastic, linear foam core which is
highly resistant to shattering and delamination. Core-Cell allows us to
tailor core density by model to achieve weight reductions previously attainable
only with less impact resistant foam cores. Mad River is the first and
only canoe manufacturer to use this superior foam in its hulls.
KL
(Lightweight Version with Kevlar®
Brand Fiber)
Our
lightest-weight hull
Extremely
efficient to paddle
Less
impact and abrasion resistant
This extremely lightweight hull construction features
the same Core-Cell foam used in our KH canoes. By eliminating the reinforcing
ribs and using a skin coat of pigmented resin rather than an exterior gel-coat,
we are able to reduce hull weights by approximately 10 lbs. This ultra-light,
rigid construction produces a canoe which is efficient to paddle and easy
to car-top and portage. It is an excellent choice where abrasion and impact
resistance are not primary considerations.
Royalex® is a registered trademark
of Royalite Thermoplastics. Kevlar® is a Dupont registered
trademark.
Texas
