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WD 12 need help placing foot braces
I did a search but could find no information re how to decide where to place foot braces. It is difficult to define my paddling postion while sitting in the kayak in my living room . I am 5' 9" and the foot braces have enough adjustments where I would like to be able to adjust them for someone 5'4" to 6' if possible.
My thought was to install the braces so when the pegs adjusted to the middle of the brace, my knees are bent approximately 45-50 degrees and resting against the sides.
Does this sound reasonable? Any other guidelines? Thanks.
2 replies:
RE: WD 12 need help placing foot braces
I guess my first reaction is: whose boat is it? Yours or someone else's? The person you are building for should be used for setting the locations.
As I recall, the standard sequence fo WD assembly is to put the footbraces in after the deck is on. I did mine differently since I used the stainless steel no-hole stud mounts which are a lot easier to install before the deck is attached. If the deck is already on then Grumpy's method is the way to go. Putting it on the lawn will let you assume the correct paddling position without tipping from side to side.
If you mount the adjustable braces so that when they are centered they are in your sweet spot there will be a fair bit of lattitude for adjusting for taller and shorter paddlers. But if it's your boat, always install them to fit you. The last thing you need is a boat that is comfortable for everyone else except the owner. That would be a real waste of time and money.
Laszlo
RE: WD 12 need help placing foot braces
» Submitted by Grumpy - Sun, 4/17/22 » 5:44 PM
Never done a Wood Duck. I just completed a Petrel Play, strip boat. Since the foot peg measurements are taken with deck off on most boats the angle of your knees needs to be verified with the position of an installed future deck. I get the boat out on the grass and place the paddler in the boat and place the pegs half way on the mid section to ball of the paddler's feet. Height is often half of the deck but below the part line.