Nick,I don't think you could break one if you tried,people have lost them at hwy.speeds and the only damage is scrapes and dents!!I have no idea what RAM-X is,I would think it is just there marketing word for the blend of plastic that they use.....I'd just call them and ask....Good Luck,Alan

 

possible, not probable.

 

Ram-X is a trade name for a specific kind of rotowelded plastic hull. As I understand it it's a laminate of three layers, welded under heat and pressure. that's off the top of my head, I had an early Ram-x canoe in the 90's and loved it. probably still floating around out there somewhere. Those things are pretty tough.

 

Ram-X is a trade name that Pelican aquired when it bought the Coleman boat business almost 10 years-ago. The raw material is polyethylene. Pelican boats are built in a vacuum-thermoform process, from two sheets of the polyethylene material. The sheets are heated, then slid between a "top" and "bottom" mold. The clam-shell type mold is "closed," and a vacuum "sucks" the material into the mold cavities. The mold presses the two sheets together along the perimeter, creating a seemless monolithic shell.

The description SpeySpaz used above is actually for RamXcel, used in the construction of some canoes, but not kayaks. It's a rigid, closed-cell "foam" encased with "Ram-X" on each side. Allows for the construction of a canoe with the entire structure in the hull, without the use of additional keelson bars, etc.

The Polyethylene material is damn tough. It may get dinged-up a bit, but I don't know how you'd break it.

Pelican's recreational boats are constructed of Ram-X, while their Elite boats are built with "Poly XR" which is a higher-density material, more rigid, with a nicer finish/gloss to the product.

Polyethylene is widely used in the kayak market. Pelican is different in the manufacturing process, utilizing vacuum thermoforming vs rotomolding. Roto is more expensive and more time-consuming, but it does result in a little (cosmetically) nicer product, in the opinion of some.

 

Peddler,

Hey, thanks dude. That was a great lesson! Wish more people took the time to give us lay-people the scoop on stuff.

 

Poly kayaks dont really break, they "fold". After seeing a whitewater guy hit a rock, flip, swim, and have his boat literally wrap around the rock, IM prett sure they dont break. IM not sure about the differences of sea kayaks and whitewater boats though. Sea kayaks are probably way more rigid. I dont think you can bake a sea kayak over a fire, then drive your car over its ends to take out air volume....

 

The biggest difference between white water, still water, and touring kayaks is length.

Touring kayaks are typically 14 feet or longer. The longer waterline allows for more speed and distance with less effort. Touring yaks are built in wood, poly, and fiberglass.

Still water boats are typically 10 to 14 feet long. They're usually a little wider than touring 'yaks. They're slower and a take a little more effort to paddle, but they're more stable. Most common build material in this category is poly.

White water boats are usually 10 and shorter. They're nimble and agile for quick manuevers in swift moving current. They're less stable than still water and touring boats. Most white water boats are poly, and are virtually indestructable.