I dunno about y'all but I have a hades of time trying to transport stuff in/on my L'Edge, or any other kind of small ww canoe. Emergency kit is fine, just stow under an airbag, blow it up and hopefully you will never need it.
Things like a camera are a nightmare, I want to be able to access and stash it quick and easy and I don't like having it riding on top of the airbags or deck like this because it moves and is really prone to damage or getting caught up. I choose to use a Watershed bag to carry cameras and kit in because I rate them over Peli cases.
So after a lot of head scratching I came up with this
It is just a cheap piece of red plastic from my local DIY store, formed and bolted in. After its first test run on the river yesterday everything has worked as planned : )
When the Watershed bag is in just bungee over the top and it is bomber, I even rolled in the middle of a rapid to test it ; )
I think I will add some foam in the sides to reduce water space and maybe carve a block of foam to fit in the cradle when I am not riding with my camera.
Comments, improvements and other ideas much appreciated
James that is awesome. I like it. I am considering a larger water shed bag with an inflate tube to use as storage/floatation in my vertige x
I think I will do something like yours to my L'edge
Are u going to Costa Rica?
nice.... i always thought it funny that you guys paddle those big heavy open boats and have no place to store a sandwich
that watershed is my favorite bag. absolutely bomber and always dry.
i might trade the bungee for a more solid strap though. just for the off chance of your boat being held in a hole, or going downstream for a prolonged period with you. maybe a fastex buckle for quick access. or cut some holes in the plastic so you can put the bag's clinch straps around the thwart..?
I notice your boat has no decks, but also no wood gunnels. Did you just cut out the decks? How did that work for you in terms of weight reduction and hull rigidity?
I like James' approach because it "reserves" the space for the gear, you aren't cramming the gear between bag and saddle. But, it adds the weight above the water line... Hmmm, might make a vertical "spacer" behind the saddle...
@Peter K, yep no decks and no gunwales. I like having an "open" open canoe and the difference in dryness is so little compared with the aesthetic improvement. The whole boat is for sure rigid enough without the wood and I don't have much time for caring for my wooden gunwales, I'd rather go paddling instead! I don't know how much lighter it is but it is for sure lighter : )
@Craig if you have a black one why can't I have a pink one...
Did you consider getting the dry bag down even further, and more protected in the event of a capsize? Something like lowering the rear of the addition (using front of saddle), and then pulling the front of your addition toward center a little. So that the bag and camera might be more upright or at a 45, just for some additional protection.
Looks really good...
^~^~^ different strokes ~ for different folks ^~^~^
Look in the yellow pages (or yellowpages.com, of course) under "Plastics-Rods, Tubes, Sheets, Etc-Supply Centers". We have a SABIC Polymer Shapes (formerly GE Polymer Shapes) branch that sells ABS, PE, coraplast, and lots of other handy materials.
Sign shops are all over, and they usually have plastic sheets in stock, including smaller cut offs. That way you won't have to buy a big sheet.
Ask if they have Sintra or Komatex. Those are brand names of expanded PVC sheet. It's fairly inexpensive stuff. It is lightweight due to its foamed core, which also makes it stiff. Thinner sheets can be bent to a large radius with no heat (it will spring back). If you want a sharp bend, or to make a large bend stay on its own, or to bend a thicker sheet, you'll need to use heat. It starts getting soft at about 150F, so that's not hard to do -- a good hair dryer or hot water will get you there. It is fairly soft, which means it will scratch, but that also means it won't shatter on impacts. I'm guessing a thickness of about 1/8" (or less) is about right, if you make something similar to what is pictured above. You can cut it with standard wood tools, and you can glue it with standard PVC pipe glue. Use a very thin layer so glue (solvent) does not get trapped between the pieces and leave a soft spot. I think it comes in 12 colors, so you can probably find something that will look good in your boat.
Polycarbonate is another sheet plastic that should have the right properties. It is fairly ductile, so it can be bent to a small radius without heat. A sheetmetal bending brake will work, or you can clamp it in a vice and bend it (for bending mounting tabs for example). It's much harder than Sintra, but it cuts well with standard tools, and is very impact resistant. You are most likely going to find polycarb in clear sheets, no color. You can use a thinner thickness than you would with Sintra, which is good because it's a lot more expensive.
Avoid acrylic, it's too brittle for this use. It would shatter on impacts.
If it were me, I'd try the PVC (Sintra) first. Hit up a few sign shops. They may not want to mess with you on the phone, so try dropping in on them. If you've got a good approach you'll probably walk away with a scrap piece for cheap. If their scrap bin is overflowing, and you're a good talker, you may get it for free.
that's a great idea, James. i'd like to see the addition of a locking biner, in case of bungee failure/pinned boat/boat stuck in a hole etc. just hate to trust all that $gear$ to a little shock cord, but i'm always paranoid about that stuff. excellent work, and nice pics!
Glad to read you guys are stoked with the idea, the thinking process started ages ago and it was only after hanging out with Jacques at KanuMesse in Germany did I get off my arse and make it happen.
A good way to get a bit of plastic for making the bag holster is to contact Esquif, they have loads of big bits of red plastic from the tops they cut off the open L'Edge's I am sure they would be more than happy to get rid of a few to a good cause.
I have been thinking about the idea of making the fixing system more secure, yeah I could just add a snap buckle and webbing instead or a safety leash, but lets see if it really needs it first, the bag is gonna float IF it rips out anyways...
The best thing is that I can take my camera on more creeks now and take more photos of people enjoying canoeing.
really good...