: Eric, I confess that I'm too lazy to drop the boat out of the
: ceiling and measure for you. Sorry about that.

: Keep in mind that this section serves the purpose of a Masik, or
: Aajaq Seeqqortarfik. That is to say, rather than thigh braces,
: this member is supposed to be tight to your thighs just behind
: the kneecap, to give you attitude control of the kayak.

: I weigh about 185 pounds at 5'9", and I find that my station 4
: is a bit high at times. If I plan to paddle where I may need a
: lot of control (for example rough conditions or surfing) I wedge
: a piece of 1/2" foam between my knees and station 4. It's
: still not tight (as some kayaks I've wiggled in to) but it does
: take up some space.

: I don't like the shape of the top of my station 4 either. I find
: that the semi-circular curve does not provide good contact for
: rolling - in fact, it allows my knees to move closer together,
: which will necessarily be at a higher point of the curve, and
: thus have even more room to have to brace up to. Therefore, next
: boat would be build about an inch lower, and fairly flat across
: the top, with curved radius at the sides.

: It is hard to decide how high to make this section. After my frame
: was complete, I sat in it, and found it was quite easy to get
: into. But that was because there was no skin on it.

: You should consider building up the top of that station, if you
: plan to use it as intended for a masik or aajaq seeqqortarfik.
: You want something at least 2" thicker. Make sure that you
: bevel the heck out of the edges - a sander is not good enough.
: With a very good radius on the aft side of this member, it will
: provide maybe 1/4" more room to get your kneecaps
: underneath, while trying to get in. I wish I had done this on
: mine, and I'm still trying to figure out a good tool to do this
: considering I have to work inside the boat and with the skin on.
: It will certainly be changed when I have to re-skin.

: Brian

You could also do what I'm doing on my current Yost boat. I'm eliminating the plywood at the top of this frame and substituting a carved piece that's both thinner in the vertical dimmension and much wider in the horrizontal. About the same strength but rounded on the inside instead of the flat sided plywood frame. Much easier on your knees in the boat and on the feet/legs getting in and out.
Also more work, nothing is free :)

Bill H.