Finishing Touches

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Canoe Outfitting Finishing touches Page 4*

SO far we've measured and marked, glued it up and we now have a boat with Saddle, knee pads, ankle blocks, foot pads, thigh strap and air bag D rings.

We need to build a cage for the air bags. Most WW boaters drill (they can be pushed through with a sharp punch) small holes every 4 to 6 inches just under the gunnel the length of the air bag. Through those holes they lace 3mm accessory cord from gunnel to gunnel from end to center. These cords terminate by passing through the the air bag d ring to form the top and end of the cage. There are many good systems that use small eyes that attach to the gunnels instead of punching holes in your hull. (see the blue boat on p 1)

Next attach a 1" to 1 1/2" adjustable strap from the bow, or bow thwart to the air bag d ring.

Go back to page 1 and look at the pictures of the grab loops, painters, ankle blocks, and foot pads

I'll keep adding to finishing touches as things come up.

SHAPING the SADDLE to fit YOU. Everyone fits in a saddle a little different(ly). As part of the initial outfitting you don't want to go cutting and rounding willy nilly. A saddle is a little like hair. Easy to get off tough to get back on.

Kneel in the saddle. Settle down on it. If you feel a sharp edge, trim it a little with a surform tool or coarse sand paper. Try it again and trim some more if necessary. Save the final shaping until after you've paddled a few times in flat as well as WW. As said its good to keep in mind wet suits, dry suits etc. since different clothing, shoes etc. changes the way you fit in the boat

If you think you may need to build up the seat don't round off any edges until you glue on the new layer. Since its tough to glue a layer of foam over a round edge.

These are thumbs of a wide Mohawk saddle that's been seriously modified to fit the way I like to paddle. Seat is cut down to about 7 1/2 inches, thigh scoops heavily cut away and rounded. White (so you can see the changes) foam has been added, shaped and sloped so that my entire thigh to knee is in full contact with the saddle. Front has been cut off to install a "knee bar" when I figure out how to do it.

STUFF TO ADD NEXT:
adding a bungee to secure painters
How to fasten and secure a bailer
secure your extra paddle
what about water bottles, throw bags, rescue/first aid kits
where does the dry bag go
putting on "grunge" pads bow & stern
General hull repairs with epoxy and "glass"

BACK to gluing up p3| BACK to measure & mark p2|BACK to outfitting p1

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