Sweetest c1 conversion saddle on the planet! Who wants in?

[Larry Horne]

I'm willing to make a small batch of these for friends and family if anyone's interested.


The idea behind tackling this project was this:
First,
I wanted to make something that takes some of the guesswork, and a lot of the work work out of setting up a c1.
I wanted to make boat setup easy for the first timer and veterans alike. Those who've had to, after the first run, go home and glue two inches of foam to the seat back, then move strap anchors..etc. know what I'm talking about. With this setup you can take a screwdriver on your first run and have everything set by takeout.
If you were the traveling type, you could toss this setup in a duffel bag and fly to... say Cali, rent a local kayak and set up your boat in the parking lot!

Second,
I think we all need more adjustable outfitting so that we can get other people into our cboats and visa versa. Kayakers can just hop in any boat, so we should be able to do the same.
It needed to be adjustable without being gimmicky. It needed to be simple and tough.


It's not set up with bulkhead in mind, though I suppose one could be added. I've found that snowboard straps at the knee are comfortable, solid, adjustable, and allow easy access to the bow.. just unbeatable in my opinion.

It has multiple locations for thigh strap anchors and knee strap anchors. The seat is a seperate piece that is adjustable fore and aft (4" total). Since the saddle moves, the shin pads will also be moveable. Seat height is not field adjustable, but I will make it what you want. 5" is the lowest I can make it.
All inserts and hardware are stainless steel, and all epoxy, carbon and glass materials are top notch.


Price is going to be $475. Includes the setup as shown with knee pads, shin pads, plus (not shown) hip pads. Everything but the straps. Straps can be arranged as well though.

If you want to get on the list, don't do it here. Just PM me.

If you want to moan about the price.... well, I KNOW! But honestly there is a TON of work and cost in one of these..Less than minimum wage we're talking.
So it's a labor of love. Don't know really how much love I have, so this batch may be the first and last...

[karstmaninaboat]

Nice job. That looks sweet.

[cheajack]

Looks like somethng outa Star Wars! Great job. Lots of thinking time.

[Sir Adam]

Wow. Seriously. That is indeed the sweetest setup I think I've seen (though the Shaggy one is right up there:) ... but it's not meant for conversions). Thank you for all that hard work, and obviously a tremendous amount of thought / design work. If I paddled conversions I'd be right in line.

[PAC]

Darn Larry that is a thing of C1 beauty!

Have you figured out a process to migrate it to OC?

It nice to have options!

[oopsiflipped]

that is feaking awesome! and the price has left me, well, speechless.

[oopsiflipped]

that is feaking awesome! and the price has left me, well, speechless.

[Bruce Farrenkopf]

Larry,
How much does it weigh?
SYOTR,
Bruce

[oopsiflipped]

i have a hard time paying that much for a boat, but i'd buy two if i had the scratch. i 'may' have dreamed about it last night.

[markzak]

Just an idea... could you make them out of fiberglass, s-glass or even dynel cloth for cheaper? I'm not saying its not worth the price, I do composite work myself and totally understand. I just know that carbon cloth is unreasonably expensive, prohibitively expensive if you ask me.

And just curious... are you vacuum bagging?

[atcq]

god in heaven that is a beautiful piece of work, reminds me of echo paddle's

[mattr]

First "production" saddle (installed in a Jefe):

[Paddle Power]

This looks like a very user friendly design, simple but adjustable. I love it.

There has been a need for something like this for some time. I think the biggest issue always comes down to the cost b/c there is soo much work involved in such a C1 product. If you search this forum you'll come up with a couple of other similar plateforms/system that also were costly.

[Craig Smerda]

Wow Larry... now that is SLICK

[Larry Horne]

Marzak- It's S Glass and Carbon, with very little carbon. An all glass version would be a little bit less, but not much. At this point, I'm just doing it this way.
And no, the pictured saddles were not bagged, but the next batch probably will be, I'm scrounging the equipement as we speak.


Hey Bruce, it weighs 6.75 lbs. For comparison, my Dagger pedestal with the same padding weighs 6.25lbs.
The Dagger is 7 inches shorter and has way more deflection. The new saddle has the adjustable seat, which is another part, and adds a little weight.
I never intended to try and do a superlight saddle. It's meant to go into creekboats.. and not fail

Thanks for all the props!
And thank you, Gabe, for the restraint! I'm sure you had a heart attack over the price. I can't wait till Krikkit starts in...