Nova Craft Pal

[lowlander]

... and what if you put a green paddler in a red boat? would the shorter wavelength of green cancel out the effect of the longer wavelength of red, or would their effects get combined? i think we need some empirical research to verify all possibilities.

[MultiMark]

Congratulations on your new canoe Matt. Looks beautiful in white.

[mw-fox]

i think we need some empirical research to verify all possibilities.

Agree, there are too many variables - for instance are the paddlers made from tuffstuff, blue steel or... SP3? I'd like to think I was made from tuffstuff, but i'm probably fibreglass.

[cr500dom]

I took ownership of my TuffStuff Pal in desert white the other night - 10:30pm delivery from Norfolk to Devon... top service from Norfolk Marine there!

Waiting for the rain to stop, I took it out for a paddle this morning. Wow, its a fast boat! Well much faster than I have been able to shift in a plastic canoe that is. I also think the Pal is stunning in desert white



Chatting with Andy from NM, he tells me they only have two TS Pal's left in stock... so if any other SOTP folk are looking for a desert white Pal, then move quick. He also explained that 'if' they order more canoes from NC, the price will go up given the increased cost of shipping / exchange rates.

I'm really pleased with my Pal, and will now be looking for any excuse to taker her out!
Matt

Glad you finally got it, looks lovely !!

[mw-fox]

Glad you finally got it, looks lovely !!

Thank you

[georgeh]

Initial feelings n tuffstuff v royalex , glide seems better so suspect is quicker, rides through boat wake a bit better so less hull slap. Seems more responsive to paddle stroke so does show up any paddler flaws. You still feel right at home though as you know you are still paddling a pal. Did notice on serial plate the capacity is less at 360kg , still plenty even after Xmas dinner.

[Ranger0110]

Just wanted to jot down my thoughts after paddling my Royalite Pal since April this year in a variety of conditions including very windy club nights on a loch; a weekend trip down the Tay (taking in the Linn, dropping down the weir and the bouncy stuff down to Stanley Mills); loch weekends away carrying kit for 2 (teenager in kayak tagging along) and a training day on the Tay from the SCA put in at Edradynate down to Grandtully (getting out before the slalom course, I'm not that brave).

The only comparison I have is our club boats Old Town Discovery 14' and 16' boats

Kitting out is pretty normal in that I have fully laced it, Aiguille solid buoyancy at both ends and a kneeling thwart added. I have removed the 'rear' seat as a 60l barrel fits perfectly between the strengthening thwart and the buoyancy blocks.

Positives:
It is easy for me to carry and car top on my own despite suspect shoulders and even more suspect fitness
It is fast, sometimes a bit too fast (see negatives)
It can easily carry me at around 20st and kit for two, inc 15l of water and 2 tents, and remain easy to control and track even on windy lochs
It breaks in and out of eddies quite spectacularly if you get your weight forward and edge well. To the extent that on my first attempt I was catapulted straight out of the downstream side
It is very controllable in the strong winds we get in Scotland with just me in it. I was often sitting backwards on the 'front' seat and simply using the wind to "ferryglide" across the loch

Negatives:
In white water it takes on quite a lot of water, though I think that may be connected with it's speed and my need to keep paddling hard forwards when I should be slowing the boat down
It grounds out quite easily (the time I got stuck on a submerged rock just before the get out at Grandtully was a bit of a moment) though I do carry more ballast than most
My plastic version has scratched and dented a lot. This is connected to a very low water trip down the Tay loaded with kit, a stony beach at the club training site and me being less than careful with it

[Duck Feet]

First paddle today for a couple of hours, an up-and-downer on the Avon - strong current, no wind.

First impressions and some comparisons to Wenonah, as I was thinking of buying another 15ft Prospector and was worried that the PAL wouldn't be as nice. I also had in mind one of Lloyd's comments, that for the UK most people don't need a Prospector... in theory, for the paddling I want to do, I agreed. That was one of the reasons I decided to buy the PAL, but still wasn't 100% sure I was making the right choice.

I fitted a kneeling thwart, with much shortened wooden hangers, giving a gap of 8 1/2" under (fine for my size 9's) and 16" from the centre of the yoke to the centre of the thwart. I removed the rear thwart and put small blocks made from left-overs of kneeling thwart under the gunwales, so that I could put the screws back in and not leave any holes.

- Fitting out is better than Wenonah: I prefer the traditionally laced seats and the yoke is in a different class
- It's a LOT more manoeuvrable than I was expecting (from what I'd read) - I was worried it wouldn't feel as playful as the Wenonah Prospector... it does
- It looks and feels a lot narrower than 34" when in the boat, maybe because of the low freeboard, especially at the ends
- The inside finish is textured but smooth - it doesn't seem to mark as readily from black soled shoes as Wenonah's Tufweave and cleaned up easily afterwards
- It also feels softer under the knees than Tufweave and almost as soft as Royalex - I didn't have a kneeling mat with me and now I'm not even sure I need one
- There is zero oil canning - wasn't expecting any, but the standard TuffStuff has a foam diamond stiffener in the base and some double layer TuffStuff ribs, so it all feels nice and solid
- I might move the kneeling thwart closer to the yoke (and maybe move the yoke by one hole), but I'll ask someone to take pics of me paddling it first, so I can see what the trim looks like
- A small thing, but the gunwales are wider on the top than the Wenonah Prospector and the screw heads further inboard, so I don't catch my fingers on the screws for the kneeling thwart when steering off the gunwales
- Plenty light enough so that it feels lively on the water and for car-topping
- Glad I bought it in green - I can confirm beyond doubt that this is a very fast colour.

100% happy and looking forward to spending as much time as possible with my new PAL.

Will post some pictures next week.

[Mal Grey]

Glad you like it. Especially as I've recently persuaded a mate to buy one, which I look forward to stealing as often as I can get away with.

Good colour choice for paddling at speed too. Though the scratches will show a bit...

[mw-fox]

Well done on taking ownership of an excellent canoe. I look forward to seeing some photos of it!
Matt

[firedfromthecircus]

There's getting to be a few of us. Enjoy. ;-)