continuing from dwg 2/10:

INVISIBLE, WEIGHTLESS DECK FITTING :

After seeing a pathetic (aesthetic and structural) way of mounting webbing loops ( see Ed Valley's recent description), and after reading about other low relief fittings mounted from below, I realized that a combined approach might be employed. The result is one of my favourites as it is so strong, light and minimal. And because if you use exactly the same colour webbing as your deck lines, it will be nigh on invisible from a couple of feet away. If you weigh the wood you cut out and balance w/ the webbing you put in, and put the webbing base betw. the underdeck glass and the underdeck, the result ends up weighing close to zilch ( yah - I know - pushing it )! But you gotta like this guy.

If your boat is already completed, form it up outside the yak 1st. Take a pc of 1/4" ply & cut a bunch of 1/2"x1/8" slots in it. Cover w/ vaseline or saran wrap & vaseline. Cut a bunch of 4 1/2" long strips of 1/2" webbing, fold each in half, wrap 1/2" of the fold in masking tape, and push masked loop thru slot so all the masking tape shows on the bottom of the ply. Spread out webbing ends and wet out 2 @ 2 1/2" circles of cloth over the webbing ends - wet out webbing also - let set up. You now have a webbed fitting that you just pull up into place as described before for padeyes. Fairly simple.

Any way, back to a typical procedure. After stripping and before glassing, cut 1/2" long by 1/8" wide slots in kayak at the fitting locations. Either leave as is or make into a groove. Glass outside only. Take 4 1/2" of webbing, fold in half etc. as above. Flip over, spread out webbing ends, epoxy to u/s of deck, reinforce w/ a 2 1/2" circle of glass, and then glass the interior. Done.

Or if you preplan like crazy, you can put them in as you strip the yak. Just put them betw. the strips (small notch in ea.). When you lay down the cloth for the top, just cut slits for the fitting to pull thru. Then glass i/s as before.

A variation is to cut a wedge shaped plug from below, wrap wedge w/ the webbing you put in, jam plug back in hole and glass from below.

see dwg 3/10 below:

(next dwg 4/10 hopefully tomorrow or a week)