: Hi Larry,
: Thanks for sharing. Great set-up. Nice work.

: I'd like to ask a couple of questions.

: It looks like your using a Sea Dog Foot Rail. Would you use the
: same rails again?
: What did you do to connect your custom foot pads to the rail? Use
: part of the 'ergonomic' foot pads that came with it?
: If you move the foot braces how do you work around the shape of the
: hull. Did you install the tracks parallel?
: Are the small carbon adjusters on the rails aesthetics or an
: upgrade to the plastic ends?

: Thanks,
: Will

Will,

To answer your questions:

1) "It looks like your using a Sea Dog Foot Rail. Would you use the
same rails again?"

Yes, they were cheap and after drilling lightening holes in the rails and removing the heavy foot braces, they are really light and strong. Plus, they came with glue on SS mounting studs at no extra charge.

2) "What did you do to connect your custom foot pads to the rail? Use
part of the 'ergonomic' foot pads that came with it?"

I cut the big foot pads off, leaving 2 plastic tabs that held the foot pad. I cut a small block of hardwood to fit between the tabs and bolted them on by drilling the tabs. I then mounted a flat piece of carbon to the wood block. This is a fully useable foot brace if I don't want to use the rudder control platform. My foot platform/rudder control is bolted to the pieces of carbon.

3) "If you move the foot braces how do you work around the shape of the
hull. Did you install the tracks parallel?"

The rear mounts are inline with front so the tracks are parallel. I had thought about slotting the foot platform mounting holes and leaving it slightly loose using lock nuts, so it would self align within the slot when moving back. This method would probably work as well and be easier to install.

4) "Are the small carbon adjusters on the rails aesthetics or an
upgrade to the plastic ends?"

The adjusters are functional. The original ones are about 3-4" long. Because my rear mounts are parallel with the front, and my boat is narrow, these adjuster would hit the outside of my leg. I just shortened them 3-4" and made them from carbon for aesthetics/weight

The system works very well, is strong and allows multiple foot positions on a large platform while still having rudder control from anywhere on the platform. Being able to move my feet around is great! Also, the rudder toe controls are adjustable forward or back depending on your preference. The complete rudder system is easily removeable, leaving only the carbon rudder mount (and cables) on the stern with fully functional adjustable foot braces in the cockpit.

Larry