Thoughts on the Freedom

Oldsparkey · Post by **Oldsparkey** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 1:13 pm

tx river rat wrote:Just so everyone will know the point is not a big problem with plastic seat non at all.
Ron

I was talking to Matt about the same thing , lower the point in the back. Paddling down in the Glades my seat keep moving back and the point would get me in the center of my back. I keep adjusting my chair so I would miss it and then it would get me again , I keep sliding backwards and everytime I got to far back .... Ouch.

I ended up placing one of my water jugs ( one of the large Arizona Tea Jugs filled with drinking water) behind the seat and that corrected the problem. No more sliding back in the cockpit.
That tea jug filled with water made a good seat stop. Plus if I would of needed to refill my Nalgene Bottle there was a refill right behind me.

I was thinking of making a back board that would slip over the back of the cockpit and stop the point from digging in my back when I got to far back in the cockpit. Slide back and hit the flat board not the point.

Building boats is always a progressive adventure , there is always something to modify or think about.

It would be nice if that point was not there.

Chuck.

tx river rat · Post by **tx river rat** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 1:34 pm

Chuck
In my Freedom after I get my seat adjusted like I want , I am going to put a small runner sideways glassed to floor behind the seat for it to bump against wala no point.
Ron

Post by **jem** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:05 pm

If either of you are interested, I can send a method to modify the peak.

I'll also be contacting all other builders who bought the Freedom plans and advise them of the option to mod or offer them free copies of the Rev 2 version. Rev 2 will be the exact same except with the deck improvement.

Hearing it from 2 sources is enough for me to take action and give builders a choice on what to do.

tx river rat · Post by **tx river rat** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:12 pm

I would like to look at the revisions at your convenience
Ron

tx river rat · Post by **tx river rat** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:16 pm

Mat
Dangit you got me thinking and that is dangerous.
If you sloped the combing back two or three inches you could still keep angle on deck and never touch the point
Ron

Ron

Oldsparkey · Post by **Oldsparkey** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 2:44 pm

Matt

Thanks for the offer and if you don't mind I would like to keep it in the original configuration since it was the 1st one made. ( the prototype or "X" experimental model )

If I would of taken it on a longer paddling trip then the problem would of been noticed sooner , on short trips like the three day one down the Ocklawaha River there is no problem with it because we paddled short miles , only an couple of hours on the river drifting along with the current. A very relaxing river trip.

A 6 hour paddle against the tide , wind and the waves in the Glades (Gulf of Mexico) let me know about the point causing some problems. That was a paddle every foot or go backwards trip. There is a lot of difference between just playing on the water and working to gain every foot.

I can work around the point to make it comfortable for me without changing the design of the boat.

It would be nice if that was corrected for future builders , as you said and yes I am curious as to how you modified it.

Chuck.

Post by **jem** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 3:08 pm

Well I tried drawing it the way it was bouncing area in the vacuum between the ears but it didn't turn out so hot.

I change the entire deck to include the flat spot, but it would be very difficult to mod the deck as is. So scrap that idea.

But thinking about the coaming (thanks Ron for the inspiration), a person good glue a vertical piece of plywood that is rounded off to help your back not get poked. I'll have to draw it up.

tx river rat · Post by **tx river rat** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 3:29 pm

All It would take is another drawing of combing with lean back you would not hit the point just the sides which are smooth

Ron

Oldsparkey · Post by **Oldsparkey** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 4:40 pm

Just an idea..............

You could use a piece of flexible plastic , say about 4 inches wide and long enough to reach across the back of the coaming , attach it to the inside of the coaming and have it flex so it conforms to your back. A thin piece of plexaglass would work.

To mount it , drill a hole slightly larger then the screw or bolt you are going to use. Attach it with some washers on the inside (against the wood and out side at the head of the screw or bolt) That makes a larger contact area to help support it. Then when you lean back your back is against it and out away from that point.

I guess it would be called a back band. Looking at it from the top it would look like a large C with your back in it.

Chuck.

PS. I went out and checked something , that seat I made for the pirogue fits in there and with the back of the chair up the supports for the back fit up against the coaming and give me about 1/2 of an inch between the back boards and the point of the coaming.

Use the sit back on top of it like it was made to be used in a canoe , no problems and cushioned.

Conclusion ... add a back to the base I made for the sit backer since it is lower ( lower center of gravity) then the chair for the pirogue and deep six the problem of the point in the back.

Post by **jem** » Fri Jun 22, 2007 12:30 pm

Here's what I was thinking. Just a simple arched pice of wood glued to the inside of the back of the cockpit. Could shape it anyway that feels comfortable to the paddler. I'm going to add this to the notes in the plans.