Personally I don't see any good reason to hog a kayak 5 cm. Back in the late 70's or early 80's I recall seeing some relatively flat bottomed and heavy fiberglass kayaks that picked up quite a hog just being stored on a stores racks that were too close together. You might remember this Doug it was in your neighborhood. However, why don't your try to contact the designer of the Falco and have a discussion about keel lines and what they do and what is good and what is bad. If he doesn't bring up reverse rocker then you could broach the subject and ask what he thinks of that and what was his intent for putting it in the Falco your friend has. If he says it doesn't have reverse rocker then it was probably a manufacturing error that your friends kayak is hogged (even if it is in all kayaks of that model--for many reasons kayaks don't always end up in the shape the designer intended). If he explains why he did it that way, does the explanation make sense to you? If you do get an explanation please pass it along to me or paddlewise. I'd love to hear it. I know of a few short kayaks that were, I believe, intentionally hogged slightly in the stern keel area (not in the main buoyancy of the kayak though). This is one way of getting more fin in the water for better tracking in a short kayak. Essentially a drop skeg or rudder hogs the keel line too but we don't usually think of it that way. Looking at the picture of the Falco on the website http://www.debiesbosch.com/ it looks to have extreme rocker out at the ends. Maybe the reverse rocker more to the middle helps its tracking some if it is more in the keel line somewhere where it is well V'ed or fin like especially if it is behind the cockpit). Neil, if you can send me a picture of the kayaks bottom. I could probably tell if the hog was intentional or not. Matt Broze http://www.marinerkayaks.com *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Hi Matt, Your information was even more useful than you might think. I didn't know the Falco wasn't a brandname but a design, I didn't know the Biesbosch made boats of that design. Yesterday I've been searching the net for that boat, without any luck. Thanks for pointing me to the right site. According to the site you indicated, the hog is intentional. It is mentioned in the description. It says "Because the bow and stern are deeper in the water then the middle section, tracking is good despite of the short length". Since I was planning to visit the Biesbosch next friday with my friend, to buy a new sprayskirt, I'll see if the owner has anything more to say on the subject. Usually when you ask him any question, he offers you a cup of coffee, makes himself comfortable and gives you a quite entertaining lecture on kayak design, kayak modification, safety or anything you'd like to hear. I'll keep you posted. I can not send you a picture, I don't have a scanner or digital camera. As for anyone suggesting to heat and bend the boat: Since it is a composite boat (indicated as "polyesther" in my previous mail, my fault) I don't think that would do any good. Niels. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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