Re: [Paddlewise] Feathercraft K-Light Cockpit Coaming

The earlier fiberglass coamings were made of chopped strand mat and a good
number were getting cracked or broken. Almost all during air transport. The
newer ones use woven roving (I believe) a much stronger material. I don't
think I have ever seen one of the newer ones broken.
Matt Broze
http://www.marinerkayaks.com
-----Original Message-----
From: David Kosofsky <kosofsky_at_maincc.hufs.ac.kr>
To: PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net <PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net>
Date: Wednesday, September 08, 1999 7:06 PM
Subject: [Paddlewise] Feathercraft K-Light Cockpit Coaming


>An uninspiring subject-heading, I'm afraid, but something that's been on
>my mind for over a month now, so:
>
>I own a K-Light, and love it for, among other reasons, the two mentioned
>in recent threads: excellent tracking and sensuous feeling of being one
>with the water.  I spent this past summer in British Columbia, and
>while paddling around Salt Spring Island I noticed what looked like a
>serious crack in the cockpit coaming.  I wrapped it with multiple layers
>of duct tape and hoped for the best, but wasn't really surprised, given
>the inevitable flex that the coaming is subjected to, that the crack grew
>larger during my next paddling session, developing finally into a complete
>fracture.
>
>Fortunately I was heading into Vancouver the following day, so I stopped
>in immediately at the Feathercraft factory on Granville Island and showed
>the broken coaming to the person there. I asked him if such failures were
>common with K-Light cockpit coamings and he said, "They're not really
>common, but they're not unprecedented."   Needless to say, Feathercraft
>took full responsibility and handed me another coaming on the spot, but
>the incident left me with some questions.  The thought of a similar
>component-failure happening when I don't happen to be within a day's
>ferry-ride of Vancouver is pretty unappetizing.
>
>I've been told, and I believe that Feathercraft's literature mentions that
>the cockpit coaming is the most complex and difficult component to
>manufacture. Certainly it takes a great deal of strain, whether during
>portages, re-entries after wet-exits, or just the ordinary flexing
>associated with wave action.  And since the coaming serves as the `frame'
>of the backpack in which the disassembled boat is packed,
>there is probably the possibility of shock and damage when it is
>transported (like other K-Lights, mine gets taken on airplane trips as
>checked luggage).
>
>I'm wondering if other Feathercraft owners have experienced similar
>problems with cracked or broken cockpit coamings.  Also, is their any
>experienced-based wisdom out there regarding ways to minimize the strain
>placed on that component?
>
>David Kosofsky
>Seoul, Korea
>
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