# avon redcrest question



## CBrown (Oct 28, 2004)

Looks Fun!


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## avonraft (Sep 10, 2006)

JJ, 

If it's 10 feet long it may be an Avon Redseal. 

Those Avon dinghies are tough. I've used an Avon Redshank, the Redseal's big brother, to float class III rivers for several years with no problems. The only drawback is that it isn't self bailing, and the tube diameter is a bit small compared with a conventional raft so you ship in a lot of water sometimes. You might find the tube diameter of the Redseal to be more of an issue as it is smaller than the Redshank's. 

Not sure of the weight of the fabric, but it's very sturdy stuff. So far the boat has not punctured despite many encounters with eastern river rocks. The only other issue with these boats is they are only 2 air chambers vs. the 3 or 4 that would be in a whitewater raft.


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## jjjewett (Apr 1, 2009)

Great response. Thanks.

Im pretty certain it is a Redcrest, so I guess around 9' in length.

On thing that kind of sketches me out is the fact that there is no rear rocker, and it is not self-bailing. But Ill just make sure I have a lot of weight up front and try not to run waves backwards :shock:.

I will also likely put another layer of hypalon where the frame will rub on the top of the tubes. Oh and I have to add a bunch of D-rings so I can strap on the frame.

I got it cheap but eventually I will want to upgrade to a mini-me or one of those tiny NRS boats.









avonraft said:


> JJ,
> 
> If it's 10 feet long it may be an Avon Redseal.
> 
> ...


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## avonraft (Sep 10, 2006)

Forgot to ask, does it have Leafield valves, or the old black rubber volcano valves? If it has the volcano valves you may want to replace them as they are famous for leaking once they age. 

This thing may be a bit tippy with a frame on top, you may want to start small with it and see how it handles.


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## jjjewett (Apr 1, 2009)

The valves were replaced a couple years ago.

I will definitely do some runs on the Truckee to figure out how it will handle, how comfortable I feel bouncing it off rocks, how much water is going to get in, etc.

Thanks!
-JJ



avonraft said:


> Forgot to ask, does it have Leafield valves, or the old black rubber volcano valves? If it has the volcano valves you may want to replace them as they are famous for leaking once they age.
> 
> This thing may be a bit tippy with a frame on top, you may want to start small with it and see how it handles.


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