R J Staebler wrote: > As a large 260 fellow I am using a Pachina because of larger cockpit... I > really need a high volume yak > for open water ... I cannot find a dealer on east coast for aquila, I also > am open to other suggestions I'm 220/230, with a wide butt and large thighs -- making the seat/forward part of the cockpit dimensions the most critical, especially when I am wearing a wet suit. I fit an Eddyline Wind Dancer well (http://eddyline.com/), and another pear-shaped paddler from Bellingham really likes the Solstice GTS HV (Current Designs: http://www.cdkayak.com/). Another boat which fits me is the Eddyline Sea Star, which I configured to accommodate me and my also generous SO, by moving the seat back 1 inch and carving away the underside of the seat to lower the seating position 1/4 - 1/2 inch. The Sea Star is narrower, slightly faster than the Wind Dancer, and with a tighter cockpit. It may be comparable to the Aquila. Unfortunately, Eddyline has discontinued the boat, though there are still a few at dealers out here, and I believe one or two warehoused at Eddyline. For comparison, I dry-fitted myself to a Pachena and found its cockpit quite roomy, but that was three years ago, and it could be my memory is not reliable. I suspect with some outfitting, any of the boats mentioned above should work for you. Depends somewhat how you carry that 260 -- if you are tall (6 - 3 or larger), some of the boats I favor would definitely demand the seat be moved back. Otherwise, you will struggle getting your legs into the cockpit! Don't be shy about moving the seat -- I paddled the modified Sea Star Saturday/Sunday on an overnight trip, and handling was just fine -- I put more of the heavier gear in the forward compartment to compensate for the seat position. The Eddyline seat is an easy move -- drill out three pop rivets on each side, reposition (after removing material on the bottom if you want that extra 1/2 inch of room), and redrill holes and reattach. I used blind nuts on the seat, fastened to the tangs coming down from the cockpit rim with finish washers and #6 stainless machine screws. Solid, and the screwheads do not bother me. Good luck in your search -- most mfrs design for the skinny butt crowd, for sure! P.S. The best euphemistic description I have come across for our mutual shapes is that we are: "... large guys in the cockpit area ...!" -- Dave Kruger Astoria, OR *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************Received on Mon Mar 16 1998 - 07:58:44 PST
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