>> My $200 tent and $150 backpack come with owner's manuals. My $8 pocket compass comes with an owner's manual. As for owner's manuals for kayaks, it would be nice to have suggestions for securing to roof racks, how to raise/lower the rudder, packing cargo, adjusting seats and foot pegs, gel coat/hull maintenance . . But too much "instruction" might open mfgs to liability. If your yak is packed according to the manual and then capsizes in heavy seas, is the mfg liable? ------------------------------------------------------- George Bergeron, Secretary OSWEGO HERITAGE COUNCIL P.O. Box 1041, Lake Oswego, Oregon 97034 Web Site: http://www.europa.com/~heritage/welcome.html Email: heritage_at_europa.com >> ****************************************************************** Here's a couple of questions for Paddlewise members: 1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual? 2. What would you like to see discussed in a kayak owner's manual? Chuck Holst ------ Message Header Follows ------ Received: from multitech.com by multitech.com (PostalUnion/SMTP(tm) v2.1.9c for Windows NT(tm)) id AA-1998Apr17.111409.1944.249013; Fri, 17 Apr 1998 11:14:09 -0500 Received: from mail.europa.com ([199.2.194.10]) by gateway.multitech.com with SMTP id <16132>; Fri, 17 Apr 1998 11:17:45 -0500 Received: from Default(dialup-B056.europa.com[204.202.55.56]) (1510 bytes) by mail.europa.com via sendmail with P:smtp/R:inet_hosts/T:smtp (sender: <heritage_at_europa.com>) id <m0yQDeI-001cISC_at_mail.europa.com> for <CHUCK_at_multitech.com>; Fri, 17 Apr 1998 09:05:58 -0700 (PDT) (Smail-3.2.0.98 1997-Oct-16 #12 built 1997-Oct-28) Message-Id: <m0yQDeI-001cISC_at_mail.europa.com> Date: Fri, 17 Apr 1998 11:05:58 -0500 X-Sender: heritage_at_mail.europa.com X-Mailer: Windows Eudora Light Version 1.5.2 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" To: CHUCK_at_multitech.com (Chuck Holst) From: "Geo. Bergeron" <heritage_at_europa.com> Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] FW: Question on poly kayaks *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Chuck Holst wrote: >1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual?< >2. What would you like to see discussed in a kayak owner's manual?< 1. Neither my Seaward Ascente nor my VCP Skerray came with an owner's manual. 2. I think that the appropriate information in an owner's manual would be specific to the particular boat. Being that kayaks are relatively simple objects that might be limited to such things as dimensions, weight, maintenance suggestions, storage instructions, operation of mechanisms such as rudder, skeg, integral pumps, etc, recommendations for weight distribution, recommended paddler weight range, repair recommendations (not step by step instructions). To be cost-effective a user manual should treat on subjects specific to the object and not step out into the wider arena of general usage. There are many third-party books that cover general kayaking quite well and it wouldn't seem to benefit the kayak manufacturer(s) to try to venture into this area. All too often, even software companies fail to see the economic benefit of _good_ documentation and settle for dry, hard to use, pedestrian documentation. While I'm biased as a part-time technical writer/on-line help developer, I'm having a bit of trouble seeing how a kayak manufacturer would benefit by providing owner's manuals - a reduced number of phone calls from owners asking questions? repeat customers? fewer returns or factory repairs? Here's a cynical thought - maybe dealers benefit from the _lack_ of owners manuals.... Dave David Seng / david_at_wainet.com Wostmann & Associates / phone - 907.586.6167 223 Seward St. / fax - 907.586.2996 Juneau, Alaska 99801 *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
>Chuck Holst wrote: >1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual? My Current Designs Solstice came with a manual. Or course, they forgot to include it with the boat so I didn't actually get it until about a year later. The manual includes basic info about storage, UV and even some basic paddling information. Actually, the neatest thing about it was that it came in drybag. On a completely unrelated note (except those of us here in the Midwest), four of us spent last weekend paddling in the Apostle's and the ice and out and the water's toasty (well, at least it's not frozen). -Patrick *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
> >Chuck Holst wrote: > >1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual? > > My Current Designs Solstice came with a manual. Or course, they forgot to include it My Current Designs Storm (Poly version of Solstice) came with a manual: Generic for both Poly and glass/Kevlar hulls. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
Mariner boats come with extensive owner's manuals. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
My Feathercraft K-Light came with a 13 page owner's manual and a repair kit, along with a sea sock, spray skirt and backpack. The manual talks about the hull, deck and frame materials along with the associated care recommendations. Seems like a reasonable format for any kayak owner's manual. Keith Kaste Chuck Holst wrote: > 1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual? > > 2. What would you like to see discussed in a kayak owner's manual? *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
-----Original Message----- From: Brian Heath <bheath_at_televar.com> To: Paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net <Paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net> Date: Saturday, April 18, 1998 12:18 PM Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Kayak Owner's Manual >> >Chuck Holst wrote: >> >1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual? >> >My Folbot came with a very brief manual covering care and, since it is a foldable, set-up intructions. >*************************************************************************** >PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List >Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net >Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ >*************************************************************************** > *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
At 16:16 4/17/98 -0700, Keith Kaste <kkaste_at_slip.net> wrote: > >My Feathercraft K-Light came with a 13 page owner's manual and a repair kit, along >with a sea sock, spray skirt and backpack. The manual talks about the hull, deck >and frame materials along with the associated care recommendations. Seems like a >reasonable format for any kayak owner's manual. > >Keith Kaste > > >Chuck Holst wrote: > >> 1. How many of your kayaks came with an owner's manual? >> >> 2. What would you like to see discussed in a kayak owner's manual? my we-no-nah canoe came with a nice "8" page manual [4 pages, front and back]. discussed how to do a minor gel-coat repair, a bit about canoe design, and maneuvering. nothing super detailed, and then references on where to get further info. well written as a guide. mark #------canoeist[at]netbox[dot]com-------------------------------------- mark zen o, o__ o_/| o_. po box 474 </ [\/ [\_| [\_\ ft. lupton, co 80621-0474 (`-/-------/----') (`----|-------\-') #~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~ http://www.diac.com/~zen/paddler [index of Paddling websites I manage] Rocky Mtn Canoe Club , Poudre Paddlers, Rocky Mtn Sea Kayak Club Colorado River Flows, Colorado Paddlers' Resource #--- A successful tool is one that was used to do something undreamed of by its author. -- S. C. Johnson *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************
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