Tim J. wrote:
riverman wrote:
Hey, a thread with my name on it!

Yeah, you can replace the center THWART with a seat. But as others
have noted, you actualy don't want to be in the exact center of the
canoe when you paddle, as the boat will tend to pivot rather than
move
forward when you stroke.

Maybe my problem is that I bought a cheaper off-brand canoe and the
bow
seat is too far forward. It seemed a lot farther forward that I
thought
it should be when I got it based on others I'd used, and some folks
(including me) have complained about it when in two-paddler mode. If
that's the case, would it be a problem to remove the bow seat, get a
slightly wider seat, cut it to fit, and mount it about 8 inches to a
foot back?

Paddling on my knees isn't an option, even with the butt support. I
don't bend well anyway, and my knees have been known to give me
trouble.
Since they feel pretty good right now, I don't want to risk it. It
could
cut in to my wading trips.
--


Well , there really aren't any rules, so you can do whatever works for
you. I think you'd do fine to buy a standard, unfitted seat and place
it where you can sit in it for solo boating. Be sure to get one with
webbing straps, not cane, as they can poke through pretty quickly.
Also, experiment with seat height...the thwart is at gunwale height,
but the seat should be hung a few inches lower.

If you know who your bow paddler will be, I'd suggest going whole hog.
After you mount the front seat where it works for you solo, take out
the stern seat and then, with both of you in the boat, move yourself
fore and aft until you find the right place to remount a stern seat in
order to counterbalance the bow paddler, so that the hull sits almost
perfectly level. A good rule of thumb is for it to be down about an
inch or so in the bow when loaded. Once a boat (even an offbrand) is
fine-tuned this way, its a real joy to paddle, and you can load all
your gear in the center where it has the least impact on turning.

--riverman