Lightweight and durable, aluminum canoes quickly overcame the dominant prewar method of construction, wood and canvas. Though no longer dominant, aluminum canoes remain popular with casual users and liveries because of their ability to take abuse. They are relatively low in cost and easy to maintain. Plastic has been the more recent, dominant component for canoe makers, providing better and quieter performance and lighter weight in some designs. Oven-molded polyethylene is probably the most common canoe material produced today, used in a variety of the most popular models from Maine's Old Town Canoe, the world's leading canoe manufacturer.
Liveries love 'em because they are impervious to abuse from most casual paddlers.
Royalex is another plastic sandwich material used by numerous boatmakers. Because it is generally lighter than polyethylene but still very tough, Royalex is the preferred material for most whitewater canoeists. The biggest drawback for plastic-molded canoes is the limitations the manufacturing process places on design. You won't find the sharp lines and well-defined angles on composite boats, which can reduce performance under some conditions. Plastic prices cover a broad range.