the Sith

[nam]

hello.

I just bought a used Sith and very excited. I just noticed that it does not have any hip pads. Does any one have the sith with hippads you can send or post it for me . Appreciated it. Also if you have a good strap set up to show it would be great.

Merci

nam

[cheajack]

I made hip pads for mine out of 1/4" ABS glued foam on the inside and bolted them in using existing hole for straps.

[PAC]

Just padded out around cockpit... the cockpit size and the knee spread make have hip pads a non-issue for me. Very easy boat to roll. You're gona love it! Enjoy!

[Sir Adam]

I've never used the L-brackets to mount the pads too - although I like hip pads in many of my boats I find them unnecessary for my paddling style in the Sith. Great boat - enjoy!

[nam]

Thanks Gentlemen.

I have not had a chance to paddle the sith yet. Have to find a pool session locally. It is coooldddd in Chicoutimi.

nam

[Mike W.]

I have the original hip pads. These are bolted to the underside of the deck w/ the same bolts that anchor the lap-belt. They're not exactly 90 degrees, they're make to fit the contour of the deck. I padded them out w/ mini-cell to keep me firmly in place. If you're making them from scratch & making them from composite material, you may want to add a rib to keep them from flexing.

[nam]

thanks a lot mike.

nam

ps nice colour, on your boat.

[Gwyn]

Hi Nam,

I do like hip pads in my Sith, but it does make the boat a lot more troublesome to put onto a roofrack with other boats.

The solution that we have come up with that seems to work OK is the composite pieces like in Mike's picture. It looks like my seat is lower than Mike has his, so I have cut down the hip pads. To further reduce flex, the composite pieces can be bonded in permanently - I used a mixture of epoxy and milled fibre (short strands of glass) to fill the gaps.

I am not in the workshop until April, but if you can wait that long I can get a set made and in the post to you. From Mike's feedback I think I need to make them a bit thicker! - give me a shout if you need an upgrade Mike.

If you cannot wait, then get a thick plastic kitchen chopping board, and bend pieces to shape with the aid of a heat gun.

As for straps, I make mine from old car seatbelts and 2 inch velcro strips (sew on, not glue!). Make sure that you double or triple the strap at the bolt to stop it pulling through.

Mike - what is that in the background of your image??

[Mike W.]

Gwyn, I'm good w/ the hip pads. I do think bonding them to the rim would stiffen them up a bit though. I probably wouldn't make that standard on new boats as everyone's tastes are different. My seat is 7.5", the lowest of any of my boats & super-comfortable. That height probably makes me put a lot of stress on the hip-pads, but they've lasted ever how many years I've had the boat & the Sith is my go to boat. I think a perfect design would have the pads matching the contour of the rim. That curve should make them stiffer, but will require a new mold. The curve would make adding foam a pain too, so that may not be a great idea.

The boat in the background is the Woodie. It's a wood strip C-1 squirt that Jim Gross designed & built. It's the only one ever built. It consitantly took me head under on the Cheat a couple years ago Here's a photo album comparing it to a master-cut Acrobat: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set ... 9a55708b54" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Here's a video of it at my local spot. Sorry for the lack of skill http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh6CIAYlg0w" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[nam]

Thanks Gwyn. I cutted a pipe of pvc and heated it down and seems to do job. Have not yet test it out on the river until it is warm.

nam

[Yukon]

Was that the one that was for Sale on MEC??
I really want to try one out this summer and hopefully they have a c-2 to try to

[KNeal]

Hi, nam. I've used pvc pipes before for hip pad mounts but they broke after about a season's worth of use. I am using cutting board plastic now in my Atom (plastic boat). In all my c'-1's, I use a fiberglass pad mount like Mike W's but epoxied mine into place.