Reg,

Thanks for clarifying the discussion regarding the structural aspect of the fiberglass hung seat.

You are of course, already well aware of the following concepts, but for the sake of the discussion, I'll expand further:

When I acquired the Phoenix Cascade it had the original walls made of white foam (ethafoam)? The foam walls had degraded, so I replaced them with 3" gray minicell. The walls are snug, and are held in place with split floatation bags.

The 13'-2" Phoenix Cascade weighs in at 27 lbs in fiberglass/nylon; the 14'-9" Phoenix Isere weighs in at 29 lbs in fiberglass/nylon. These are very lightweight kayaks, and have considerable flex in their deck and hull. In addition to their deck and hull design, these specs are much of what makes them fun to paddle, and of course easy to transport. Minimizing the possibility of the boat collapsing is part of the program of owning and paddling these old boats.

I'm sorry to hear that you lost friends in pinning accidents. I too lost a friend many years ago to a kayaking accident.

Chris

: You can put walls in if you block them in carefully. Otherwise it is just
: more debris pinning you in if and when it does collapse.

: Stick a Redfish seat in your ill fitting kayak and you will never regret it.
: Your legs will thank you.

: Best,

: Reg