Just to sexy it up a bit and increase my on-the-water suffering, I've contemplated lowering the deck and installing an ocean cockpit on one of my two identical Point Bennett sea kayaks. The original PB built in 2004 was due for a paint job this winter. I thought that if I was going through the trouble of painting it, I might as well cut the deck off and install a new one 1 1/2 inches lower with an ocean cockpit.

I already had all the materials laying around, except for the fiberglass cloth and paint, so the project is rather inexpensive. I'm reusing the VCP hatches, and by the way, the 3M 5200 sealant used on the hatch rims is tenacious stuff, so I had to chisel off the fiberglass and plywood. This week I'll be attaching the new deck, which will have a height of 6 1/2 inches at the back of the cockpit. The ocean cockpit is 16 inches wide and 22 inches long. For a retro Brit boat look, the day hatch is centered rather than offset.

Below is a photo of the kayak right after the deck was cut off.