C-Forum

I had a brief conversation the other day with Bryan at Astral Buoyancy about the possibility of making some thighstraps a la the Dagger Pedestal. Every time I've bought a Dagger seat, there haven't been any straps, and the ones I do have and have seen are always worn out and the velcro tears immediately. So I was thinking about making some just for myself, but thought I'd check to see if there's any interest on here before I further persue it. I like these style of straps (although never use the velcro) mostly because of the large plastic buckles. Anyone want a pair? I'd sell them for the cost of the materials + shipping + whatever Astral charges for a few hours on their sewing machine. If there's interest I'll work out what the cost would be.

How about making the pedestals anymore? I am sure there MUST be an old mold hanging on a shelf somewhere

Sorry for screwing up the topic...

Nope, no pedestal mold. Many including myself has exhausted this topic. Not possible. Gone. Forget it. Dagger hates cboaters...

How hard would it be to make a new and *improved* mold? What kid of mold would be required? I'm thinking it would not need to be an expensive roto-mold...

Dan Burke is working on designing a saddle and getting it thermoformed.

Would there be interest in a composite pedestal? I have some thoughts. It's been a long time since I used one. How do the Dagger fans mount them?

That depends... what rough price range would it be? A premade pedastal would be easier but probably less comfortable than foam... if it wasn't quite a bit cheaper than minicell I'm not sure I'd be interested. If it is cheaper than I definitely would be... that said, personally I won't be outfitting a boat any time soon (low on funds for outfitting pieces and hulls).

Mike W. wrote:Would there be interest in a composite pedestal? I have some thoughts. It's been a long time since I used one. How do the Dagger fans mount them?

Heck Yeah! That has been on my mind for a few years. But I have too many other "projects" to do and my wife would kill me.

I think the only improvement that could be made to the Dagger is it could be a little longer in front (to catch the pillar better) and lighter. And If someone was a real engineering nerd... some adjustability could be built into it.

jrsh92- the beauty of those things is you can outfit an infinite number of boats with it, without buying ANY foam. Mine's been in service for probably fifteen years. so it's really really cheap and easy in the long run.

That guy here has done something that looks sweet...

http://playak.com/article.php?sid=1128

Not sure now if you can buy the seat alone from the same cited cies...

Anyone tried out this seat so far?

Hey Will-

I picked up a set of brand new straps (Just like / if not the same as the old dagger straps) at GAF for 2 bucks. I'll donate them to the cause if it'll help.

I think you might be able to get them at diamond brand for like 30 bucks each! Not sure if they are exactly the same but appear to be.

Will, if you have someone ready to sew get them to knock off the Buddy Brown pack straps. Easily the best ever quick release strap for canoes and especially C-1s. They are now made of unobtanium. I have two pairs ($75 bucks each 10-12 years ago). Those two and maybe some sbroam have are the only ones I know of in existence. I am sure there are more and I'm also sure there would be a great market for them if they could be made more affordable and more people knew of them.

Regarding the composite saddle idea: I bought a Drakkar saddle from Jack Ditty and have since traded it to Bill Reap (but I still have it). It has a few small cracks that need repairing, but I'm sure it could be used to make a mold from if anyone was interested.

A boater in Van Buren AR works for a sewing machine company makes throw bags with your name on it AND can make those Pack Brown style thigh straps using mil surplus clips. Just a small section in OD color. www.whitewatersolutions.net is his site

Mike W. wrote:Would there be interest in a composite pedestal? I have some thoughts. It's been a long time since I used one. How do the Dagger fans mount them?

C'mon man, you mentioned this this past summer at the wave. You can make a go of it in the garage...Check w/ the wifey first though...I would be a supporter...

sdbrassfield wrote:C'mon man, you mentioned this this past summer at the wave. You can make a go of it in the garage...Check w/ the wifey first though...I would be a supporter...

No permission needed. I've never used the Dagger deal to convert a boat. My first conversion was the ETC system which is pretty cool & extremely customizable. Since then I've done foam saddles & bulkheads w/ lapbelts. Are folks using that plastic strap in the front & putting holes in the boat? What are they doing in the back to secure it? What would work best?

I guess I need to see a couple of conversions w/ the Dagger or Perception saddles to see what folks are doing before I try to whip up a plug. It would not be an exact copy of someone else's work. I looked breifly at an Atom last weekend & noticed some sections that would be difficult to lay up so those sections would naturally be different. I think there are at least a couple of areas of the Dagger that could be improved.

i'd buy some for sure.