Re: [Paddlewise] Bulkheads

>   - Scott 
> Sorry, but I have to disagree.  In my
> experience stock bulkheads can be pretty substantial in
> weight - especially in the British boats. 

Sorry, I was forgetting you were talking about British boats 
which seem to built like battleships. Here the seat is often 
the aft bulkhead so what ever weight that would be, it is 
doing two jobs. A thin foam-glass laminate (which is usually 
used by those who know) is very light and very strong and 
used for the forebulkhead.

> While it is true that the hatches are not that heavy, the bulkheads that
> go with them often are.  

See above, wrong if correctly done.

>   I truly believe that the non-hatches and bulkhead kayaks with airbags
> are substantially lighter.  I know that my Artic Hawk is!

OK, do you paddle with anything else like spare clothing, 
lunch, spare water and then if like my partner and me, a 
stove or thermos, a pair of sneakers, binoculars, camera, 
first aid etc., where do you put them - in a dry bag? Then just 
how tightly does the dry bag and air bag fit and fill the 
"hole"? A properly designed bulkheaded boat with decent 
sized hatches and properly fitting neoprene covers will be 
easy to load, light and have the very minimum of water in it 
if capsized. You can NEVER reduce the flooded volume of 
an airbagged boat to that of properly bulkheaded boat - and I 
don't mean one of those with the aft bulkhead a foot behind 
the seat either, very poor design.

And while we're talking of loading, how do you get things 
(that last tin of baked beans) into those little corners like the 
stern or between bags if you are loading from the cockpit? 
And unloading, either load specially or totally unload to find 
the peanut butter (or some such) for lunch (the item you 
though no one would want today).

I'll admit, if you are just going out for a paddle, like just a 
morning sprint down the river, round the harbour or some 
such, then an empty boat, a paddle, PFD and spray skirt is 
about all you'll want (but I don't call that SEA kayaking).

Alex
--
----------------------------------------------------
Alex Ferguson      a.ferguson_at_chem.canterbury.ac.nz
Electronics Workshop, Chem Dept, Univ of Canterbury
Christchurch, New Zealand
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