How durable is a strip built canoe?

[Patrick Corry]

I just found this video over on wcha.org and watched it with my jaw dropped!! Why the heck would someone do this? But, I gotta say... anyone who doubts the durability of a strip built canoe should watch this. Granted, the guy destroys it, but in the process it takes a heck of a beating before it looks unusable. Certainly takes more abuse than any reasonable tripping use would dish out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nagWw0us1H0

 

[yellowcanoe]

They are durable because they are essentially fiberglass canoes with a wood core. He could have done something more productive to celebrate the end of his dark days like given it to a kids camp.

 

[PeteStaehling]

They are durable because they are essentially fiberglass canoes with a wood core. He could have done something more productive to celebrate the end of his dark days like given it to a kids camp.

Ah, but that wouldn't have gotten him 58,476 views and 57.3K subscribers. I don't know much about YouTube, but I am guessing he is probably making money on this stuff or at least trying to. I think I read somewhere that YouTube pays $5 per 1000 views once you reach a certain number plus he has ads that pay. I have no idea if he made enough to pay for the canoe and turn a profit, but I bet that was the goal. The story of celebrating the end of his dark days was likely BS. More likely it was about the search for the almighty dollar.

 

[yknpdlr]

Its got to be all about the $$. I have a very similar canoe that I cherish. 20 years without any significant visible scratches. Why would he wear a PFD when in the rope swing over land, but not bother when in white water?

 

[Jim Dodd]

I watched this video years ago. I was in tears !

 

[PeteStaehling]

I watched this video years ago. I was in tears !

I wasn't in tears, but it did strike me that he was a real a hole who would do anything for attention or for a buck.

 

[yknpdlr]

He's a guy I would never consider as a paddling partner.

 

[Jim Dodd]

I wasn't in tears, but it did strike me that he was a real a hole who would do anything for attention or for a buck.

He's a nice guy,as I was in contact with him during the build. I do suspect money was his motive ! After all that has been the motive of a lot of Youtubers.

 

[Zac]

Adam has made plenty of videos that were not of him destroying a canoe. This montage is one of the best on the web IMO. I think his videos are well made and provide good instruction albeit a little more fast paced than an enthusiast, like most of the members here, would desire. Whether you like the style of his videos or not, he created content about building canoes and made it free for the entire world to watch. I'm sure his videos have inspired at least a few others to build their own. Best of all, we all get to see what all a stripper can hold up to, in a way that no one has ever done before and probably ever will. So until one of you donates a stripper for Mike to drop stuff on in the name of science, enjoy the affirmation that your hand-made canoes are not as fragile as some would think.

He's also posted videos of a guitar build and one of a paddle, but it's been a couple years since he's added any content. He didn't 'make it' as a professional youtuber and probably never covered his expenses, let alone the time spent editing the videos. He does talk a bit somewhere (can't find it now) about how he took donations (#ripcanoe) to fund the building of his second canoe, on the auspices of destroying the first. His second build is the one he posted to YouTube. If we had all been sharing his videos like this 3 years ago we might have encouraged him to make more videos about canoes and perhaps he would still be making diy woodworking videos in his free time.

Adam if you ever read this we'd love to see a slower video about the destruction, something more detailed that shows where the canoe failed if you have the footage still. Maybe some good close-ups of the damage done by the sledge hammer and the road, and later where it looks like the football partially separated from the rest of the hull. It would be nice to know the exact layup of the first canoe too.

 

[Alan Gage]

We've all ruined/destroyed things that someone else put a lot of time and money into. If he wants to cut loose and have some fun and do some destruction I have no problem with that; as long as it's his own stuff he's destroying.

I didn't find the video very entertaining but it was interesting to see how the boat did.

Alan

 

[Guest]

until one of you donates a stripper for Mike to drop stuff on in the name of science, enjoy the affirmation that your hand-made canoes are not as fragile as some would think.

While I enjoy failure testing parts and materials to satisfy my own curiosity I have no desire to smash a stripper, and prefer repairing and outfitting canoes to destroying them. The sledge hammer and cliff ride were impressive though; the chainsaw, pistol and shotgun abuse less so.

Now if someone wants to buy me a used Black Gold Bell MorningStar I am willing to beat a hole in it with a sledge hammer, with the proviso that I get to fix it and keep it as a dedicated solo canoe.

 

[Gamma1214]

...if someone wants to buy me a used Black Gold Bell MorningStar...

I wouldn't intentionally damage it but I'd be willing to do some real-world durability testing by (potentially) rubbing some rocks while doing the whole 228 miles of the West Branch of the Susquehanna. I could even start a utube channel without any expectations of monetary returns...


I agree... The sledgehammer, cliff diving & tumbling off the truck were all pretty impressive. I would have liked to see more clearly how the hull fared during each of those events but I realize that wasn't really the point of the video.

 

[ppine]

Much more durable than most people believe. They are stich and glue boats with out the stitching. Synergy of materials.
Not nearly as durable as Royalex.

 

[memaquay]

Wow I thought that was pretty awesome, in some regards. I'm surprised no one was killed in the making of it, that chainsaw was way too much saw for a skinny boy with no protective gear on. Overall, I think it was a good testament to the ruggedness of strippers, something I've known for a long time. I really enjoyed seeing it come off the top of a vehicle on the road, that was a real life test for sure.