Odd question re: Center yoke

[Oldtyme]

So I went against Mr.Polings advice & got the Dagger Reflection 15.
Other than getting used to a narrow canoe I really liked it. My dog shifting his weight and leaning against the side when I wasn't ready for it led to a buttclenching moment for sure. I also didn't get any oil canning like he did (but he said his was RX-Lite)
I think I will enjoy this canoe. It's a manageable weight & performed nicely. For $375 it was a no brainer.
Anyways.. I had an odd question. The center carry yoke on this thing almost seems to be backwards (from the factory) When I'm underneath it it seems to be imbalanced. What do you think by looking at it?
Can I just turn it around ? Will it hold it's shape while I do? (Royalex) Any tips before I try it?

 

[Boatman53]

No problem turning it around but.... at each portage you will have to turn the boat around at each end.
Jim

 

[MrPoling]

I'm really glad it worked out for you, and doesn't oil can.

I wouldn't hesitate to move the yoke around. Flipping it over is fine. You could also drill new holes to adjust its position forward or backwards. My experience is little changes make a big difference.

 

[recped]

Just add a bit of a counterweight at whichever end you think needs it. Doesn't take much, if you have painter lines a little extra on one end or use a partially filled Nalgene adjusted to suit.

 

[Oldtyme]

Thanks everyone. It just felt unbalanced to me. I guess it was Day #1 with it. Time to make it my own.
I will probably end up doing what this guy did to his (minus the footrests)
Remove the seats & add one towards the middle-ish. I had no issue paddling from the stern seat but when I kneeled towards the middle I noticed it riding a bit better.
I need to go out & see exactly how much I can lean this thing without fear of going over. Doing it at the beach is fine, in the middle of the bay not so much : )

 

[Patrick Corry]

Just add a bit of a counterweight at whichever end you think needs it. Doesn't take much, if you have painter lines a little extra on one end or use a partially filled Nalgene adjusted to suit.

I tried that hanging Nalgene idea to balance my w/c canoe on a portage.... until a stumble stressed the plastic cap retainer and broke it! Was a functional idea though and can be accomplished by lashing paddles, pfds, etc. in to balance the canoe. I did reverse the orientation of my yoke on one canoe and it worked well. Is there a right/wrong way for the open side of the yoke to face with respect to bow/stern?

 

[recped]

If you have spacious takeouts and put-ins then there is no right or wrong way (except from nitpickers), the only issue is when these spaces are tiny in which case you might need to rotate the canoe at the take out and then again at the put-in. It's only a minor annoyance not a deal breaker.

 

[UCanoe_2]

If you are concerned about the canoe holding its shape when you remove the thwart, attach temporary thwarts fore and aft with C-clamps. Can be about any kind of scrap lumber.

 

[lowangle al]

Thanks everyone. It just felt unbalanced to me. I guess it was Day #1 with it. Time to make it my own.
I will probably end up doing what this guy did to his (minus the footrests)
Remove the seats & add one towards the middle-ish. I had no issue paddling from the stern seat but when I kneeled towards the middle I noticed it riding a bit better.
I need to go out & see exactly how much I can lean this thing without fear of going over. Doing it at the beach is fine, in the middle of the bay not so much : )

Assuming you are paddling solo, have you tried paddling from the bow seat facing the stern? That may eliminate the need to remove any seats and getting a new one for mounting further forward.

You may also want to experiment with how you're carrying the boat on your shoulders, to adjust how the boat balances. I can change the balance of the boat by changing its placement on my shoulders. Changing its placement also changes the pressure points that are creating discomfort so this is an added benefit. Getting portage pads may also make it easier to get it to be balanced. It is also possible that the placement of the yoke does need to be changed if adding weight , like paddles or pfd or moving it around on your shoulders doesn't work.

 

[Glenn MacGrady]

Virtually all canoes I've seen have the portage yoke facing the bow. If placed properly, that should make the canoe carry slightly bow light assuming nothing else is attached to the canoe. But, as others have discussed, there are many ways to change the balance with slight attachments or weight shifts.

 

[lowangle al]

That's true, but I had seen a boat on here made by Nova Craft or another big company that was a tandem, but advertised as a good moving water solo tripper that had the yoke facing the stern. It was surprising, but I thought practical.

 

[Oldtyme]

Well I read the Reflection was asymmetrical & could only be paddled one direction. ??
Anyways. I left the yoke alone, but made it a solo without much modification.
I should be more balanced towards the middle now & gave the dog more room as well.
I will take pictures tonight when I go out. I was lucky enough to find the plugs I needed for it local.

 

[scoutergriz]

Scott canoe used to have the yoke placement as optional and could install it "backwards" to allow a passenger to use it as a backrest without the "ears" digging in. we got ours set up that way so my daughter could sit in front of the yoke comfortably. you just needed to get used to landing stern first and turning around to exit.

 

[Tsuga8]

If you are concerned about the canoe holding its shape when you remove the thwart, attach temporary thwarts fore and aft with C-clamps. Can be about any kind of scrap lumber.

Perhaps too late to help the OP, but I've had success holding the hull shape on royalex boats while swapping yokes and seats just using a cam strap that I use to put the boat on the car. Cinch it up tight near the yoke before removing the old one, and it'll keep the hull from stretching out too far.