Removable Decks for Canoe

I'm thinking of making removable casting/poling decks for the bow/stern of a squareback canoe. I have a couple of questions.<br /><br /> First, what would you use for the structural material, 1/2" plywood, or some other composite material?<br /><br /> Secondly, I was thinking of glassing in (its a fiberglass canoe) support rails for these platforms. What would you guys use for these rails? I figure doing it this way would enable me to take off the decks and leave them at home when I don't need them. They will need to be able to support at least 250-350 lbs. I have a fishing buddy that is around 240lbs. I plan on using the deck in the stern for pushpoling and the deck in the front for casting. They would sit around 2" below the height of the gunnels. <br /><br /> I'm totally new to the world of fiberglass. I just figured I could do it myself a little cheaper, make it just how I want it, learn some new skills, and have some mods to be proud of later. Thanks for any help or advice.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

Can both of you swim? I can't see you doing anything on a casting deck in a round-bottomed canoe but going overboard...fast. They're just not built for it. Now a pirogue on the other hand...

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

Yes we can both swim, and no, it is not a regular round bottom canoe. It is 15'10" long, and has a beam of 43". It is rather flat bottomed, and is (as I said) a squareback canoe that will have either a 3.5hp or a 5hp on it. In the future, I would probably be putting stabilizers on it. One person standing, even on a slightly elevated platform, would be no issue. With two people, sudden movements by both could possibly cause some unsteadiness. I stand and pole my 12'6" sit-on-top kayak, so I am used to balancing. It's 34" wide.<br /><br /> I'm going to try and post an image of the canoe, and possibly an image of the stabilizers I will probably install in the future. I plan on using it to pole areas that are far from ramps, difficult to reach in my flats boat, or in large no motor zones. By the way, I fish the Tampa Bay area of Florida and the Florida Keys.<br /><br /> Here is the canoe. The stern looks rounded on the bottom, but the bottom of the canoe is actually very wide and flat. <br /> Here are the stabilizers on a canoe. I would not be using the motor mount that's in the pic, but you can see how they work in conjunction with an elevated poling deck. <br /><br /> Hopefully they show.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

1/2" plywood would work. I'd screw a 2 x 2 wooden frame around the added deck so it fit just inside the top edge of the hull, and add a verticle support made from the same 1/2" plywood (running front to rear)under it going down to the hull*.<br /> <br />* <br />'Glass in a 2 x 2 block, a foot or so long to the bottom of the hull so you can secure the support to the hull floor with a couple nuts & bolts.<br />*<br /><br /> <br />To be able to remove it: Just bolt through the top of the hull into the 2 x 2 frame every 6-8 inches using 1/4" or even 3/16ths Stainless bolts & locknuts rather than 'glassing it in. <br /><br />The top framing of the hull & verticle support carries the weight, and the bolts just keep it from coming off or shifting around.<br /><br /><br />Without the center verticle support, you'd have to use at least 3/4 plywood for it to be sturdy.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

Winger Ed hit the nail on the head. Nice looking rig. Hope you didn't take offense at my earlier post. When we think of canoes in Tejas, its usually the long, skinny, round bottom rigs. Good luck and good fishing.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

Hey kempshark, this is Hook-A-Snook from the FSFF. Sell that thing and buy a Gheenoe HighSider with a 15HP motor (j/k). Seriously, I am doing the same thing (front removable deck) with my Gheenoe after adding a front hatch. For rails I am going to use square solid PVC stock that I had left over from some plantation shutters I installed. I have tested 1/2' plywood for the platform for my weight (185#) and it works fine, but 3/4" might be the ticket for 240+. Also, consider building the platform sections so that they drop down and become false flooring when placed in the bottom of your canoe. That's what I am going to do.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

Funny you should mention the Gheenoe......I sold my 22' center console back in February and I traded in my Scout 162 in August. I was originally going to have a Custom Gheenoe DH-C built. Was spending about $10,000-$12,000 on it. Wife decided I really needed to get something that could also fit her and a kid or two with us. So, I bought a 2004 Scout 17 Costa. I have an Ocean Kayaks Drifter that I yak fish out of, and the oldest son was looking to replace the Scupper Pro T/W he sold about 3 months ago.<br /><br /> Since I have the boat, I was leaning towards the squareback canoe with stabilizers, because I can carry it on my rack when I'm towing the boat. That way when I go down to the Keys (about 6 times a year) or anywhere else, I can take the flats boat, a couple of yaks, and a squareback canoe. I could cartop the gheenoe highsider if I needed to, but it outweighs the canoe by about 45 lbs. If I was going the gheenoe route, I would just buy a used 15'6" classic and modify it myself. If I was going to something like that, that would most likely be trailered, might as well go for the extra width (stability) and the ability to put a true poling platform on it. <br /><br /> Don't get me wrong, I love gheenoes, always have, and would love to have one. I'm just not sure its the best thing for my situation at the moment.<br /><br /> I like your concept of making the removable platform fit as a false floor when not in use. I'm not sure if that would be possible or not. Figure it must depend on the application (hull design of the canoe or gheenoe) on whether it would fit both locations well enough.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

That's funny, I own a 21' Chapparal Cuddy for family outings and overnight trips, two kayaks for quick trips to the creeks that feed the IRL around here, and just bought the Gheenoe w/7.5HP Merc ES for flats fishing on the IRL and ML. It is on a trailer, but I can fit it next to my house so I can be on the water here in less than 1/2 hour. I never thought of taking the whole "fleet" with me, but we are planning a week long Keys trip first of next year so I might have to work something out....<br />It looks to me like 3/4" ply, glassed with mat on both sides, would work with ledges just front and back to rest on in the platform position. If you cut it the size of the lowest ledges that are part of your canoe hull, it could rest there as a false floor. Look very doable to me.<br />H-A-S

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

if you are using a deck on your canoe you will need stabilizers for the canoe. look at these www.keywestpaddlesports.com they are great for the money $139.00 and the canoe brackets for hooking them up are only $15.00
check them out.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

i have a 17ft alumacraft canoe with the wishbone stern. it's supposed to paddle like a conoe but has about a 6in wide place for a motor. i used it for several years duck hunting before i got my little double ended boat made for poling. my canoe has a built in box in the back end to sit on to run the motor. i pushpoled off that all the time with a lab and decoys and never thought it was unstable. the problem was the weight too far back. it raised the bow so in the wind it was hard to steer a straight course. even in flat water it always wanted to swing back and forth with each push because so little of the keel was in the water. it also tended to squat down a little bit with each push so in less than 6in water i would occasionally bump the bottom. not pushing as hard usually solved that problem. i would consider just taking a piece of plywood cut just 4 in wider than the canoe. screw 2 pieces of 2x2 to it to follow the gunwale of the canoe and set it on top of the gunwale. put the canoe in the nearest water hop up and give it a try. then if you don't like it you can just lift it off. you don't sound like a person with a balance problem or afraid of the occasional getting wet so the 2 in differance in height isn't going to make you any more or less stable. i may not be the best person to take advice from because i sometimes put a 5 gal pail on the seat to get a better view above the reeds when i am poling or standing on the seat while running down the lake with the motor if i want to see better.

Re: Removable Decks for Canoe

Ummm......

Thats not a canoe......

Its a skinny boat.