anyone ever make their own removable yoke?

[Mike McCrea]

Johnny, have you used the 3-point strap yoke yet? If so how did it perform?

We have strap yokes on every solo canoe, either a Mohawk strap yoke, now seemingly discontinued, or as on most of our boats, a DIY version.

PC230016 by Mike McCrea, on Flickr

PB260012 by Mike McCrea, on Flickr

Short length of 2” webbing and some connection on one side, left dangling.

PB260014 by Mike McCrea, on Flickr

Longer sheerline spanning length of 2” webbing on the other side, rolled up under the inwale and held by a Velcro strap.

PB260015 by Mike McCrea, on Flickr

Suitable for the Grand Portage? Hell no, but for rack to roof, roof to river, or short easy carries perfectly adequate, and always there, nothing to forget to bring.

 

[Johnny 5]

Deleted

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

We have strap yokes on every solo canoe

Mike, you would remember this better than I, but didn't we have a discussion a couple of years ago about the pluses and minuses of different attachment buckles for the strap. There were the double metal rings, which I think you found to be hard to undo if pulled too tight. Then there was the plastic buckle with pinch clips on both sides, which some felt might not be strong and fail safe enough. Then I think there was a roller buckle and maybe something else.

What's your current view as to the best clip or buckle, both for security and ease of use, for a strap yoke?

 

[Bill Fryer]

I installed the pictured removable yoke on my old Curtis Dragonfly about 10 years ago. It seems to be easy and solid. When I changed over to a kneeling paddling thwart I incorporated slots in the drops to accept the portage thwart. To avoid weakness in the drop at the weight bearing plane, the drop is made in two pieces split at that plane and epoxied back together. The drops have three stretcher screws from the gunwale each side. The yoke is held into the slot with a light strap round the paddling thwart.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

I installed the pictured removable yoke on my old Curtis Dragonfly about 10 years ago. It seems to be easy and solid. When I changed over to a kneeling paddling thwart I incorporated slots in the drops to accept the portage thwart.

Bill, welcome to your first post on the site!

I've never seen this type of carry yoke implementation; it's very clever. I'm curious why you switched from a seat (presumably) to a kneeling thwart, and would like to ask whether there is any reason this implementation couldn't work with a centralized seat, assuming the right shape of drop blocks were used.

 

[Bill Fryer]

Bill, welcome to your first post on the site!

I've never seen this type of carry yoke implementation; it's very clever. I'm curious why you switched from a seat (presumably) to a kneeling thwart, and would like to ask whether there is any reason this implementation couldn't work with a centralized seat, assuming the right shape of drop blocks were used.

Glenn, I've been reading this site for years, but just never had anything different to offer. However, I thought my removable yoke was simpler and easier than many. I hope the picture and explanation were clear enough. I could do better if desired. I don't see any reason this wouldn't work with a seat, especially if you could slide it back so the yoke can be located right at the balance point. I am working on a similar arrangement for putting in a Hemlock bucket seat. My biggest problem is getting my big feet under the seat - I'm getting stiff in my 70's. I also need the sliding paddling position to deal with quartering and tail winds.

I switched to a dedicated paddling thwart because I almost always kneel anyway and it was time to re-cane the original seat. It's much better for kneeling. Kneeling is much better for my back (old lower back strain), balance, reach and power.

 

[Mike McCrea]

“What's your current view as to the best clip or buckle, both for security and ease of use, for a strap yoke?”

I am back to using quality (ITW/Nexus) 2” side release buckles, or 2” double D-rings on heavier (70lb and up) canoes, which can be problematic to get released after tension.

The adjustable webbing slider, with the knurled bar, looked promising, but was largely a fail:

https://www.amazon.com/VGEBY1-Stain...justable+webbing+slider&qid=1606313860&sr=8-6

From this strap yoke discussion

https://www.canoetripping.net/threads/strap-yoke-variation.74927/

Those adjustable sliders work well with the canoe on my shoulders and the webbing under tension, but when roof racked, with the webbing connected across the hull through the knurled slider, invariably come loose, usually within a few miles. No matter how tightly the webbing was pulled, and I tried a variety of webbing, the knurled bar jiggles loose and a sudden whapwhapwhap sound of a loose strap hitting the cap roof makes me pull over. And “fix” then, with the canoe already on the roof racks become problematic.

Neither of the adjustable slider solutions I tried was agreeable. I could set the canoe / on the rear rack, undo the webbing strap I had use to carry it there, roll it up and hope the Velcro held it in place, or slide a ladder lock on the long length, run webbing through the slider and then (gotta leave enough slack) run the webbing through the ladder lock. That double-connection was a fussy process, and left a hard ladder lock near my neck area.

If someone can suggest a better way to secure the bitter end of the webbing, so the jiggle loose of the slider bar doesn’t matter in transport I’d like to use the ones I bought, installed and removed. So far they are a fail.

No doubt a strap yoke, positioned and tensioned horizontal at highway speeds, can produce harmonic vibration, but in (many) thousands of miles with a connected webbing yoke in place I have not had a side release buckle fail, even the cheap Chinese one that suddenly break while the canoe is over your head.

I did have one end of a side release buckle strap come loose on a long trip; the buckles held together, but there was enough harmonic vibration to unscrew the stainless hardware on one side. The much louder whapwhapwhap from the side release buckle flailing against the cap roof was “Oh-crap what’s that?” startling. That was yet another time I was glad to have extra machine screws hardware in the Spares & Repairs bag; there was a bit of a carry from racks to water, and I really needed a yoke.

The better than double D-ring solution for heavier canoes would be a 2” cam lock buckle, and I may have to search for one that size in stainless just to try. Or even 1 ½”; I don’t think I’d want a 1” wide strap yoke for neck/shoulder comfort reasons.

On a two-seater tandem canoe I’ll take a real, permanently installed yoke every time. A nice, deeply sculpted yoke, with a little vertebrae notch and wide, double hung ends.

Or, with three seats or a kneeling thwart or other outfitting in the way, some clamp on version. I get the clamp-on functionality on a portage trip, but have a how-do-you roof rack transport question using those.

Clamping the yoke in place, shouldering the canoe and putting it on the roof racks, does the clamped yoke remain in attached (yikes - lost on the highway), or is it removed once the canoe is on the roof (how?) and then reinstalled (also how) when it is time to take the canoe off the roof?

That question runs to my lack of desire (or ability) to lift a canoe high above my head and put it on tall truck or van racks working from the side. Instead I set the bow on the rear crossbar /with the stern deck tip on the ground, step out from the yoke, walk to the back and slide the boat onto the racks.

Of course any yoke system with pads or towers above the sheerline also precludes that oh-my-aching-back slide on solution.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

Clamping the yoke in place, shouldering the canoe and putting it on the roof racks, does the clamped yoke remain in attached (yikes - lost on the highway), or is it removed once the canoe is on the roof (how?) and then reinstalled (also how) when it is time to take the canoe off the roof?

I would not drive with a gunwale clamp removable yoke attached to the canoe. Much too likely to jiggle loose while driving. I always remove it before putting the canoe on the vehicle. The solo canoes on which I use my gunwale clamp yoke are all composites and easy enough to load atop, and remove from, even my high full size van. Nor do I need the yoke to carry my composite canoes to and from put-ins within, say, 50 yards of the vehicle. Shoulder or stiff-arm overhead carries work.

Even when I was using gunwale clamp yokes on my much heavier MR Explorer and OT OTCA, I would remove the yoke before van topping. In those days I could muscle even those heavy boats up on my van's back rack and then slide them forward. Don't know about now.

 

[Mike McCrea]

Johnny 5, I am impressed that the Y-strap configuration works satisfactorily. I am presuming that your head goes between the arms of the Y and, without the lateral tension of a strap run straight between the gunwales, the single strap “leg” provides the anti-sag tension.

“Also, the rear strap in the photo is wrapped around the rear kneeling thwart and the kneeling thwart is positioned 2 inches below the gunnels which would reduce head clearance by 2 inches. The angle, strap length and mounting location effect how the canoe carries and whether your head bounces off the deck of the canoe when you walk. Depending on your canoe design it my be necessary to add tower brackets at the mounting locations to increase head clearance.”

I guess it might be better with the Y leg attached to a regular thwart; even with a lateral webbing yoke tensioned tightly across the hull my head is close to the bottom on some of our shallower canoes. Adding tower brackets would negate the clip or buckle simplicity.

With a single webbing strap there is some sag, but even in shallower hulls enough clearance that the boat isn’t off my noggin. With the “leg” strap tensioned to the rear thwart how much sag involved?

 

[Johnny 5]

I guess it might be better with the Y leg attached to a regular thwart; even with a lateral webbing yoke tensioned tightly across the hull my head is close to the bottom on some of our shallower canoes. Adding tower brackets would negate the clip or buckle simplicity.

With a single webbing strap there is some sag, but even in shallower hulls enough clearance that the boat isn’t off my noggin. With the “leg” strap tensioned to the rear thwart how much sag involved?

When mounted below the gunnel sheer line on my tandem canoe my head was near the deck and unless I stepped carefully my head would bounce off the deck with each step. I tried adding lateral support across the hull under the strap yoke near the intersection of the 3 straps and found that I could comfortably carry the canoe without my head touching. I considered a lateral strap or solid thwart at this location but felt that a 4 strap design would be a simpler solution and I wanted to make the 3 strap design work. I was also concerned that this would not work on a solo because of the reduced hull deck height.

My solution is to add a tower bracket to one or more of the mounting locations as required for proper head clearance. Tower brackets do not negate quick release simplicity, they simply increase the mounting height similar to the way seat drops reduce the mounting height of seats. I plan to custom fit the yoke to the hull depth, hull width and thwart configuration of the canoe I purchase. A reshaped rear thwart or single tower bracket attached to the rear thwart is likely all that will be required for proper head clearance. I have the webbing, snap hooks, eye rings, roller cam and aluminum bracket material so that I can make and install a 3 point strap yoke but have yet to purchase a solo canoe.

 

[Mike McCrea]

“When mounted below the gunnel sheer line on my tandem canoe my head was near the deck and unless I stepped carefully my head would bounce off the deck with each step. I tried adding lateral support across the hull under the strap yoke near the intersection of the 3 straps and found that I could comfortably carry the canoe without my head touching. I considered a lateral strap or solid thwart at this location but felt that a 4 strap design would be a simpler solution and I wanted to make the 3 strap design work. I was also concerned that this would not work on a solo because of the reduced hull deck height.

My solution is to add a tower bracket to one or more of the mounting locations as required for proper head clearance. Tower brackets do not negate quick release simplicity, they simply increase the mounting height similar to the way seat drops reduce the mounting height of seats”

Your previous post was correct is surmising that I do not like outfitting that rises above the sheerline.

If you have already made the tower, or when you do, please post photos. I am intrigued with the concept, but still unclear about the advantages offered by using a Y strap, a Y strap with towers, or a four strap design incorporating a lateral strap over the simplicity of using a single lateral webbing strap across the hull at the balance point.

 

[Johnny 5]

Mike, my equipment preferences are motivated by my intended purpose. I stated before that I single portage and like smooth quick transitions form water to portages. I like to travel and camp efficiently and I make or modify equipment to meet my requirements. When considering a solo canoe I had concerns about the installing and stowing of a solid removable carry yoke. I considered carry yoke options and felt that a strap yoke may best meet my requirements. I chose the three strap configuration over the single strap because I wanted to be able to carry the canoe comfortably over long distance. I normally stow my PFD and paddles, don my backpack and food canister then place my canoe on my shoulders while standing in the water. This allows me to travel from water to water across portages quick and easily. The 3 point strap yoke remains attached to the rear thwart or rear thwart tower bracket with a sewn loop. This prevents it from being lost or misplaced, it lays attached to the thwart behind the seat while on the water and attached to the front gunnels and rear thwart while on the portage. The strap yoke is lightweight and quick and easy to deploy with quick release connections on the front straps and only one adjustable tension buckle on the rear strap.

You have done DIY projects and must understand the time consuming process involved in designing, testing and constructing. The simplicity of the finished design in no way indicates the time I spent constructing and testing.

During testing on my tandem I became confident that a rear riser may be all that is required but I could easily add front risers if needed. I would install a custom thwart with the appropriate rise built into it or attach a tower bracket with the appropriate rise. I considered wood, 3-D printed plastic, U-bots and flat aluminum bar to construct the tower bracket. The height and fit is dependent on the specific canoe and I do not have that information.

This is a custom made system that I designed and tested over a year ago to meet my requirements and I introduced it as an idea or inspiration for others to consider in part or whole. I am not promoting or endorsing the design or function.

 

[Mike McCrea]

I understand designing and constructing DIY gear for specific purposes, from custom sized/shaped dry bags to downwind sails and utility thwarts. I am working on a combination yoke/fishing thwart; my first design attempt at that, fortunately done as a template, was so unsatisfactory that I threw it in the trash. The second try, now in the wood cutting and shaping stage, is coming out much better. Mistakes were made, live and learn.

I’m unclear if you have built and tested a riser, and am curious about how it is (or is to be) attached to the thwart/kneeling thwart. If attached to a kneeling thwart it would need to be attachable/removable, for obvious reasons when seated on the thwart.

But is also need to be significantly weight bearing. How is the riser attached? Wing nuts, clamps or what?

 

[Johnny 5]

Mike, I have not built the riser because the dimensions and construction will be tailored to the specific canoe and I do not have the canoe yet. Solo canoe thwarts are often constructed of round aluminum tubing or flat laminated wood . I will most likely make the tower bracket by bending aluminum flat bar to the appropriate shape and height and attach it to the thwart with stainless steel bolts if the thwart is wood or weld it if the thwart is aluminum. I am also considering replacing the straight rear thwart with a custom shaped thwart that has the appropriate rise built into it for a cleaner look. Either way the rise will be a permanent feature once installed.

 

[Mike McCrea]

Johnny, I started to write a reply to your post and photos about using an aluminum yardstick as a spray cover arch, but it disappeared. I’m interested in part because, whadda ya know, I have two aluminum yardsticks. They are both so clearly and visibly demarcated that they are my favorites, but I could spare one of them.

But I am back to vacillating on an arched stay for multiple reasons:

The DIY raised drip baffles work well enough, and most of my day-gear is kept behind the seat; the stern covers are designed to end short of the seat, so select gear is accessible even with stern cover snapped in place.

An unattached arched stay will be one more thing to pack.

An attached stay, sewn in a sleeve, will make packing the covers a PITA. I have some IQ covers with permanently sewn-in arched stays. The operative word is “stay”; they are so packing awkward voluminous they often stay at home.

It may still experimentally happen, but would need the right boat to rebuild. Not a WW canoe or even a river tripper; some lake tripper solo or soloized tandem, unlikely to be capsized escaping inverted downriver or lodged deep in a strainer pile. Several stuck canoe rescue stories.

A solo lake tripper. With a utility sail thwart of course. That sail mount thwart, by necessity, is not covered by the bow portion of the skirt, precluding the idea of using a thwart tower. Which, if unforgiving rigid and protruding above the sheerline, kinda gives me the willies anyway.

At least the arched aluminum stay would be more likely to bend and flex if caught on something after a capsize.

 

[jffdejongh]

When mounted below the gunnel sheer line on my tandem canoe my head was near the deck and unless I stepped carefully my head would bounce off the deck with each step. I tried adding lateral support across the hull under the strap yoke near the intersection of the 3 straps and found that I could comfortably carry the canoe without my head touching. I considered a lateral strap or solid thwart at this location but felt that a 4 strap design would be a simpler solution and I wanted to make the 3 strap design work. I was also concerned that this would not work on a solo because of the reduced hull deck height.

My solution is to add a tower bracket to one or more of the mounting locations as required for proper head clearance. Tower brackets do not negate quick release simplicity, they simply increase the mounting height similar to the way seat drops reduce the mounting height of seats. I plan to custom fit the yoke to the hull depth, hull width and thwart configuration of the canoe I purchase. A reshaped rear thwart or single tower bracket attached to the rear thwart is likely all that will be required for proper head clearance. I have the webbing, snap hooks, eye rings, roller cam and aluminum bracket material so that I can make and install a 3 point strap yoke but have yet to purchase a solo canoe.

Johnny 5, do you have any pictures of your Y-yoke in action? I just took my Raven solo out yesterday using a cobbled together clamp on yoke but I couldn't easily get it back in the correct position to carry the canoe home. I know I can fix that with better measuring but the Y-yoke would certainly be lighter and easier to stow on a 60# canoe.

 

[Mike McCrea]

A Y-shaped yoke didn’t work for me, at least not with any of the increasingly complex adaptations I tried.

We have pad eyes and short webbing loops along on gunwales of most of our canoe, and I was curious about the Y-strap concept; keeping your neck in the crook of the Y might be more comfortable than the tried and true single strap.

I have lots of various webbing straps with attached clips. No matter how much (or, better, little) angle I put on the Y fork it sagged badly. I strapped some temporary riser towers (stack of 2x4’s) to the edge of the seat frame for the leg of the Y, but needed a 6” tall tower to keep my head off the floor of the boat to compensate for the inevitable sag.

At that point the assembly – a three strap yoke with three clips and a tower of some sort - had become so fiddly that any improvement over a single lateral quick-release strap made no sense. I guess a Y-strap yoke could employ three towers, two on the gunwales, one on a thwart or seat frame, but that is a some-assembly-required solution I’m not interested in attaching every time I need to carry a canoe.

We have strap yokes in all of solo our canoes, even the soloized 80lb Explorer and 75lb Penobscot. They work fine for short carries and, with the long strap part rolled up under an inwale I can’t forget and leave the strap yoke at home.

Quick, easy, simple, functional and always there. Post 21 above.

I guess a strap yoke could be made more comfortable for longer carry by slipping the webbing through a yoke-shaped chunk of minicel centered on the strap, but I’ve never tried. For a long portage with a heavier canoe I think a removable solid yoke is the way to go.

 

[jffdejongh]

A Y-shaped yoke didn’t work for me, at least not with any of the increasingly complex adaptations I tried.

We have pad eyes and short webbing loops along on gunwales of most of our canoe, and I was curious about the Y-strap concept; keeping your neck in the crook of the Y might be more comfortable than the tried and true single strap.

I have lots of various webbing straps with attached clips. No matter how much (or, better, little) angle I put on the Y fork it sagged badly. I strapped some temporary riser towers (stack of 2x4’s) to the edge of the seat frame for the leg of the Y, but needed a 6” tall tower to keep my head off the floor of the boat to compensate for the inevitable sag.

At that point the assembly – a three strap yoke with three clips and a tower of some sort - had become so fiddly that any improvement over a single lateral quick-release strap made no sense. I guess a Y-strap yoke could employ three towers, two on the gunwales, one on a thwart or seat frame, but that is a some-assembly-required solution I’m not interested in attaching every time I need to carry a canoe.

We have strap yokes in all of solo our canoes, even the soloized 80lb Explorer and 75lb Penobscot. They work fine for short carries and, with the long strap part rolled up under an inwale I can’t forget and leave the strap yoke at home.

Quick, easy, simple, functional and always there. Post 21 above.

I guess a strap yoke could be made more comfortable for longer carry by slipping the webbing through a yoke-shaped chunk of minicel centered on the strap, but I’ve never tried. For a long portage with a heavier canoe I think a removable solid yoke is the way to go.

This being the case, I might be better served to make my solid yoke better. I also like the hinge idea.