We took the kayak to Pine this weekend. Most of my tools are up in Pine and it will make it easier to work on it there. While we were in Pine another package arrived from Austin Canoe and Kayak (ACK). Those people sure ship fast.
Our friend Jean took the package in for us rather than leave it on the doorstep in Tempe. When she brought it over this morning she said that she and her son almost opened the box. She thought that it was a case of Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies! I had to tell her that ACK recycles boxes and packaging materials. I like that they do that. Everything I've ordered from them has arrived safe and intact without peanuts or other non-recyclable materials used.
I'll document adding the new parts to the kayak on the website.
One of the items that came in the package was water slippers. I hadn't thought about the need for these before, but when I saw the price from ACK I couldn't resist. I was VERY reluctant to spend $69.00 that they were advertised for at some stores, but $9.00 seemed more like it. It turns out that they were AquaLung brand which I had seen in other stores. Luckily ACK had them in my size too.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Picked up Two Open Base Cleats
The hull of the kayak is clean and smooth. One of the activities planned for the kayak is to paddle across and/or upstream whatever body of water I'm on and go ashore to do some exploring. Since the kayak is reasonably light in most cases it might be OK to pull the kayak onto the shore.
This might not be the best solution all of the time. Even pulling the kayak onto the bank can be problematic if the water level fluctuates. Tieing the boat off with a dock line would be good insurance. I recently picked up 25' of docking line, but where to attach it to the kayak could be a problem.
Although there are lifting handles at the ends of the kayak, these are basically out of reach when you are in the cockpit and seated. Once again, the fisherman's model of the Old Town Vapor 10 has cleats that are more accessible from the cockpit.
A quick trip to Bass Pro, the same place where I purchased a number of the other rigging accessories set me up with two 4" cleats. They are in the kayaking section of the store, not the larger boating portion.
Installation will follow after a little sitting and reaching from the kayak to determine a best placement.
This might not be the best solution all of the time. Even pulling the kayak onto the bank can be problematic if the water level fluctuates. Tieing the boat off with a dock line would be good insurance. I recently picked up 25' of docking line, but where to attach it to the kayak could be a problem.
Although there are lifting handles at the ends of the kayak, these are basically out of reach when you are in the cockpit and seated. Once again, the fisherman's model of the Old Town Vapor 10 has cleats that are more accessible from the cockpit.
A quick trip to Bass Pro, the same place where I purchased a number of the other rigging accessories set me up with two 4" cleats. They are in the kayaking section of the store, not the larger boating portion.
Installation will follow after a little sitting and reaching from the kayak to determine a best placement.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Cutting Holes in Boat
I was a little worried about cutting a hole in the hull of the kayak in order to mount the Fishing Rod Holder. Something about putting a 2" diameter hole in a new boat.
After looking at the rod holder it also dawned on me that although it was a cylinder it would be mounted at an angle. Thus the hole needed to be an ellipse rather than a plain circle. A little work on my CAD computer program, however, quickly solved the problem and produced an accurate cutting template. I'll add the template to the website (https://sites.google.com/site/herbskayak/).
Since I have a fly rod as well as a spin casting rod, I've decided to put only one flush rod holder on the kayak. I may add a fly rod holder to the other side later (fly rods use a different type of holder.)
After looking at the rod holder it also dawned on me that although it was a cylinder it would be mounted at an angle. Thus the hole needed to be an ellipse rather than a plain circle. A little work on my CAD computer program, however, quickly solved the problem and produced an accurate cutting template. I'll add the template to the website (https://sites.google.com/site/herbskayak/).
Since I have a fly rod as well as a spin casting rod, I've decided to put only one flush rod holder on the kayak. I may add a fly rod holder to the other side later (fly rods use a different type of holder.)
A Fun Day
Today is the day I got started doing mods to the kayak. First I added the Fishing Rod Holder. Took some pictures and will write up how it was done later tonight. Then I added the rear hatch cover that came via FedEx the other day.
Both projects went along OK. The poly material that the Old Town kayak is made of drills and cuts easily. The hatch cover came with some good tips for easy installation.
I think I'll do the paddle holder next followed by the bungee cord criss-cross hold-down for the front deck of the boat. This will take some thinking though since there are no direct instructions on this one.
Both projects went along OK. The poly material that the Old Town kayak is made of drills and cuts easily. The hatch cover came with some good tips for easy installation.
I think I'll do the paddle holder next followed by the bungee cord criss-cross hold-down for the front deck of the boat. This will take some thinking though since there are no direct instructions on this one.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Pictures
Started taking pictures of the kayak yesterday. Goal is to document progress on outfitting the boat. Also want to incorporate step-by-step to make the how-to's easier to follow.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Boat Sponge
Not the most high tech addition to the kayak, but even after spending just a little time on the water it looked like a sponge was a necessary addition. Approximately 3" x 4.5" x 7" this was an "official" boat sponge. Similar to what I use to wash the car, very thirsty and easy to wring out. Less than $4.00.
Kayak Cockpit Cover
The Seal brand cockpit cover arrived this afternoon via UPS. After shopping around online and in stores (few stores carry these) I settled on Campmor. Campmor had the best price by far, $19.95. Use the Seals Sizing Chart to find your brand and model of kayak.
Seal makes two lines of covers. A more heavy duty one (Seals Cockpit Seal) is intended for use when transporting the kayak on a vehicle and comes with an additional strap to secure it around the hull of the kayak. One reviewer said that it wasn't worth the extra $10.00. Campmor also sells this model, Seals Cockpit Seal.
My main reason for adding the Seals cockpit cover was to keep dirt, dust, and critters (hornets, bees, and other small four footed ones) out of the kayak when it is stored.
Comment: It takes quite an effort to stretch the cover and bungee cord over the cockpit, extra hands would be helpful, but eventually got it in place. Hint: After unpacking spread the cover out so that the bungee cord gets distributed evenly through the sewn in hem before trying to fit it to the cockpit. It will be a tight fit.
Seal makes two lines of covers. A more heavy duty one (Seals Cockpit Seal) is intended for use when transporting the kayak on a vehicle and comes with an additional strap to secure it around the hull of the kayak. One reviewer said that it wasn't worth the extra $10.00. Campmor also sells this model, Seals Cockpit Seal.
My main reason for adding the Seals cockpit cover was to keep dirt, dust, and critters (hornets, bees, and other small four footed ones) out of the kayak when it is stored.
Comment: It takes quite an effort to stretch the cover and bungee cord over the cockpit, extra hands would be helpful, but eventually got it in place. Hint: After unpacking spread the cover out so that the bungee cord gets distributed evenly through the sewn in hem before trying to fit it to the cockpit. It will be a tight fit.
Taking Pictures
Took some photos of the flat lands on the kayak. This is where the fishing rod holder will go. The basic Vapor 10 has the same hull as the more equipped XT and fisherman's models. This should make placement much easier, plus the flat area will make the gasket seal much better than if the surface was curved.
It Works
OK, the blog is linked from the Kayaking website, https://sites.google.com/site/herbskayak/
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