Lightweight Sports Canoe Relies On Flax Fiber Reinforcement

Lightweight Canoe

Composites Evolution’s Biotex Flax materials have been successfully apply to Lake Constance’s Felcity freestyle canoe.

Composites Evolution (Chesterfield, U.K.) reports that its Biotex Flax materials have been used successfully by canoe designer Lake Constance (Baden-Württemberg, Germany) in its Felicity freestyle canoe.

Composites Evolution explains that the Biotex materials range of natural reinforcements provide a sustainable alternative to high-performance materials such as glass fiber. Its Biotex materials are designed by composites experts specifically for composites processes and are suitable for a wide range of applications such as automotive, sports and consumer products.

For its Felicity canoe, Lake Constance was looking for materials with excellent mechanical properties that could still maintain a natural look and feel to the final product. Composites Evolution explains that, with proven mechanical properties and easy processing, Biotex Flax helped Lake Constance stay true to the unique look and feel needed for its product.

The Felicity is described as a precise and agile solo freestyle/touring canoe. Lake Constance builds its canoes in-house, in a vacuum infused all-natural-fibre laminate.

Sebastian Stetter of Lake Constance Canoes commented, “Using Biotex Flax meant we took a huge step forward towards fulfilling our mission – building canoes which are as sustainable as possible. Working with it was such a pleasure that we want to use it everywhere. Once we made the switch to flax, we never looked back.”

Story courtesy of CompositesWorld.com

Related Articles


Nimbus 365 Coupe – A real long-stay cruising boat for exploring

By Andy Adams

There is no shortage of fun and exciting new boat designs hitting the market, but for the last few years these have been mainly outboard-powered day boats. Some are day cruisers; some are centre console fishing boats or designed for tow sports. A new live-aboard cabin boat has become a rare item these days.

So when I heard that Pride Marine in Orillia, Ontario, had a Nimbus 365 Coupe in the water, I jumped at the chance to get out on it.

Read More


Destinations

Tahiti—Updates from Paradise

By Zuzana Prochaska

I’ve been to Tahiti seven times—six on charter and once as crew for a couple of yachties. Over the 25 years that I’ve been visiting, it’s changed dramatically. Yet, inexplicably, it has also stayed the same.

Lounging on the flybridge of our Sunsail 454, I had time to think about this dichotomy as I toasted the nighttime skies of Bora Bora and specifically the Southern Cross, a constellation that never fails to hypnotize. As the Crosby, Stills & Nash (1982) tune reminds us:

…you understand now why you came this way.

Read More