I'm new to canoes. I cought a Mad River Explorer serial MAD18939A20. It was originally purchsed in 2001 and, I believe is royalex. It has plastic gunwales. I was looking for flotation bags, but can't find something designated for this model online, and a way to tie them on as well as a way to tie down gear. I'm not sure if I can simply drill through the gunwales or what is the best way. Looking for advice or direction.

Welcome to the board. I'm sure someone here will have answers and guidance.

If the gunwales are riveted on i would drill though them and rivet a tie down loops. My Explorer has vinyl coated gunwales. I would assume the need for flotation bags is you plan on running class 3 whitewater or higher.
There also are glue on tie downs.
Royalex canoes don’t need flotation because foam is sandwiched between the outer layers.
I have no problem running Class 2 whitewater with mine.

Carl

The gunwales are riveted on. To mount tie downs on the inside I would need to drill through the whole gunwale to get to the inside of the boat. They are about 1.25" thick. Would these extra holes significantly weaken the gunwale, that is what I'm concerned about? There is not much to tie gear to as it sits.

Good to know Royalex floats well!

Many of the rivers out here that I think I want to run have class 3 sections. I'm confident in class 2. I've run 3, 4, and 5 as a raft guide. I'm pretty sure I will end up in some 3- in the canoe at one point or another, or, I would like to.

Thank you for your help.

I would drill though where the gunwales are riveted to the canoe. You could remove rivets add loops and install new rivets.

You could e-mail me and I will give you my phone number and we can talk.
I’ve got plenty of time to talk canoes.
Carl
Carlscanoes@gmail.com

will do!

fluese55: "I'm new to canoes. I cought a Mad River Explorer serial MAD18939A20. It was originally purchsed in 2001 and, I believe is royalex. It has plastic gunwales. I was looking for flotation bags, but can't find something designated for this model online, and a way to tie them on as well as a way to tie down gear. I'm not sure if I can simply drill through the gunwales or what is the best way. Looking for advice or direction."

Hi.
Welcome to the forum
I also have a MRE Royalex from the 80s.
But this isn't particular to the Explorer or to Royalex.
What I have done is glue on some PVC D-ring patches.
You can add these wherever you want. The base is a thick heavy-duty PVC disc, about 3" diameter, with a stainless D-ring.

To install, obtain some Gear Aid Aquaseal+FD.
This is a really heavy-duty cement for PVC with an included catylist to accelerate the curing process. It works extremely well. Don't believe the instructions for the patches which say to use rubber cement or HH-66. It doesn't work. The Aquaseal does. Both the patches and the Aquaseal are on Amazon.

Place the patch where you want it. Take a marker and lightly make a dashed line around the circumference in the canoe surface so you'll know where to place the patch. Skuff up the surface of the patch and the canoe in the patch area with something like 80 grit sandpaper. Clean both with alcohol. Mix the Aquaset cement with the catylist and mix thoroughly. Use a popsicle stick with a flattened end. Apply a coating to the patch and to the canoe surface. Don't overdo it but don't leave blank spots either.

Rub the patch around a little bit to make the two surfaces mate. Clean up any ugly drips.or over application with acetone and a rag. Tape the patch to the canoe to avoid it sliding while it cures. Check it in ten minutes or so. .make sure its not sliding. Pay attention to the edges as it cures over the next half hour to an hour. Press the edges down to make sure they adhere. You may actually have to hold your fingers on the edges for some time. Alternative is to have the canoe on its side so the patch is laying flat horizontally and take a ring-shaped item, such as a roll.of masking tape, that has the correct diameter to press on the circumference of the patch. Weight it down with a brick or something so it stays flat while it cures.

I assure you, you can hook up a truck to the D-ring and it will not come loose. This also works great for adding D-rings to PVC portage packs and dry bags..

I glued d-rings to the hull to attach float bags. Foam for kneeling gives grip on the slippery royalex surface.

I may have a float bag that I’ll probably never use again. Contact me if interested

What is the purpose of the float bags? Is it just to displace water in case you swamp the canoe? Or is it just to fill the canoe so it can't swamp? I've never seen anyone use something like this.

A1t2o: "What is the purpose of the float bags? Is it just to displace water in case you swamp the canoe? Or is it just to fill the canoe so it can't swamp? I've never seen anyone use something like this."

More of a whitewater thing.