Sportspal Canoe

[sunfish]

Hello All,

 

Been a while since my last post. I know many of you have your own Sportspal canoe. It appears they come highly recommended. So I have been looking around for a used 14' Square Stern or Wide Transom. Tough!

 

Well, my questions are...I will be using the canoe for both fishing and taking the family around in local waters and I want to know if it would be better to get the Square stern for maneuverability? I also will be loading 2 children along with my wife, I think I should be ok with weight!

 

My next and final questions is, I have factory crossbars. Will I need to puchase 48" or even 58" bars or will the factory do? I know it is about 38" wide. I assume I should be fine, but would like to double check.

 

Thanks!

Edited June 5, 2009 by sunfish

[johnnyb]

I would just measure your crossbars and so long as you have a couple inches on either side, you should be fine. Other questions I will leave to the Sportspal Pals.

[Jonny]

I had a 14' square stern for over 25 years, used mainly for duck hunting and fishing speckles on kettle lakes and small rivers, pushed by a 3 HP. Couldn't beat it for portability and with a little care it lasted me a long time. I would not have put myself and wife and two kids in it except for anything but a short jaunt not too far from shore. For fishing you are definitely best with only two people in the canoe unless you're on a small lake --- just in my opinion, having had one. With two people in it, it's very safe, much more stable than most regular canoes.

 

Paddling is do-able but a little awkward with the wide beam and the side sponsons.

 

You NEVER run one of these up on a rock or gravel shore with anyone in it. It's a sure way to sooner or later slice open the thin-gauge aluminum bottom.

 

If you want your wife and kids with you, I would definitely recommend the wide stern. It would also be easier to handle a small motor as the reach backwards to steer with a square stern is awkward if you're sitting on the foam seat. For duck hunting, with a partner in the bow and with gear in the middle, I used to put a board across to sit on so I could steer more comfortably. It raised raised the center of gravity but not dangeously so.

 

If wide sterns would have been available at the time I bought mine, I would have gotten one of those.

 

I'm not sure what you mean by "crossbars" - roof racks? Measurement with a cou[ple inches extra on each side, like Johnnyb said, is what you'd have to do, unless you have good end pieces where it can't slip sideways. The canoe of course is very lightweight and can sit on almost any roof rack without a problem as far as the weight is concerned.

 

Hope this helps. It would be nice to know what you go with.

 

--

 

EDIT - I have seen some new ones around --- apparently someone bought the rights and the jigs, and they are still being made (up to a year or two ago anyway). If you buy a used one you won't know whether it leaks until you put it in the water. Some of the damage or cracks might be so fine that you can't see them.

Edited June 5, 2009 by Jocko Point Jonny

[Guest ThisPlaceSucks]

I mentioned this in another thread but my only complaint was that I found them to be awful in wind. A big gust seemed to be able to just about turn one of them sideways.

[solopaddler]

I wouldn't use my 16' flatback Sportspal with that many people let alone a 14' model, so yeah I think you'd better look at an alternative.

They're great for 2 people, iffy for 3 and no way for 4.

You'd likely be best off grabbing a 12' cartop aluminum boat.

[jediangler]

I used my old 14' transom model Sportspal with two adults and two children under 8yrs old. We were on a small lake and had no problem with the weight. They do get blown in the wind but I always had a drift sock along and that solved the problem nicely. The full transom is more stable than the squareback as it is wider all the way to the back. A bathtub would be easier to paddle so get a trolling motor. I always used foam blocks and put it directly on the roof of my car for travel. I had it for 14 years and just recently sold it to frozen-fire on this forum. Used ones sell quickly so keep an eye on Kijiji and Craigslist daily for them to come up. If you see one by someones cottage stop and ask them if they are willing to sell it. Good luck with the search.

[sunfish]

Thanks for everyones input. Extremely helpful! I can always count on OFC to pull through and help out.

 

I was able find a new one for fairly cheap. Not looking to put the entire family in it all the time, just on occasion for a small rides close to shore.

 

Thanks again for all the help!

Edited June 6, 2009 by sunfish

[Jonny]

Good for you! Square stern or wide stern?

[spinnerbaitking]

I had 2 kids with me for years, if you get right in to canoeing think about buying a second one for your wife and oldest & you take your youngest you won't regret it, at age 12 my daughter was experienced enough to start canoeing with a friend & had no problems she is now 24 & I get to start all over with my 3 yr old grand daughter this year, we planned canoe trip with up to 36 people on kids runs hopefully going to restart them this year again, most camped over night at the Saugeen Bluffs for 1 or 2 nights.

Best of luck enjoy teaching them how to canoe it will always be part of them & your great memories

Richard

[sunfish]

its a wide stern.

 

spinnerbaitking, yes i agree. great way to enjoy the outdoors and get the kids away from there tv and games too!

[jediangler]

My buddy has a 12' transom model he wants to sell because he just got laid off two weeks ago. Comes with a trailer, two quick release swivel seats, sailing kit as well as drink holders. I'm not sure if he intends to include a trolling motor and battery or not. When he gets it figured out I'll post something in Classifieds.

Edited June 6, 2009 by jediangler

[Moosebunk]

This comes at a convenient time as I was just looking at the Scott, Sportspal and a few boat sites today.

 

Good to know about their durability, how they paddle, how they are in wind and their horsepower. Was wondering about life down the road and the different options for getting into backlakes. So far an ATV and float tube should handle the more remote stuff and smaller lakes less than a kilometer long. I have a 16' canoe that just needs new gunnels too. Anyone know who does that???

 

It's the slightly bigger backroad lakes with small launches or put-ins that got me wondering though ??? 12 foot cartopper... small trailer (do have a 15HP Honda) ??? Scott Canoe with a little more muscle and weight? SportsPal with a 2 or 3 HP for any access?

 

Mike, I'll be stopping by to try yours out? Soon.

[solopaddler]

Mike, I'll be stopping by to try yours out? Soon.

 

It's at the lake bud. I'm there Jun 17-21, and again Jun 27-July 5.

 

If those dates work drop by and we'll hit a back lake or two.

[Jonny]

If you do some fishing by yourself, you can't beat a Sportspal for ease of getting on and off a vehicle, and avoiding the hassle of a trailer. But if that's not important and you want to fish medium size lakes with wide-open areas, you'd be better off with a cartopper 12', in my opinion. A 15 HP seems like a lot of motor for a 12, at least for many of them. But my brother has a deep, stable 12 with a 15 HP on it and he's happy with the combo. A regular 12 is definitely more comfortable to fish out of than a Sportspal.

 

It really boils down to what's convenient for you to handle, what the majority of the fishing you do requires, and what it takes to make you feel safe and comfortable. No one outfit can do it all. I know that's kind of a non-answer but those considerations about sum it up.

 

One other unusual thing. Something that REALLY improves any canoe for fishing out of is a detatchable outrigger, easy to make yourself out of laminated and carved blue SM styrofoam and wood. On a v-stern canoe, mount your motor on the same side as the outrigger, and you probably won't be able to tip the canoe even if you try.