: Hi Eric,

: I am building a Yost Sea Cruiser wood frame, non-folder and to
: avoid heel contact causing problems on the skin [which will be
: 9.8oz ballistic nylon with "Corey's Goop], I am running a
: couple of very light weight Western Red Cedar
: "floorboards" athwart ship from chine to chine. I am
: using three or four 5mm x 40mm timbers steam bent over a former
: to get the curve necessary allow the "heel boards" to
: be glued to chines and keel stringer.
: Used the same principle and made the bending former for 6 athwart
: ship cockpit floorboards of 7mm x 50mm x 480mm long WRC . This
: is a much lighter solution than the more usual 800mm long
: frame-to-frame plywood floorboards bolted to aluminium angles
: (which seems a bit out-of-place in a "greenlander"
: style kayak .

: For further details and pics see the Australian Sea Kayak Forum
: thread http://www.seakayakforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&t=1874

: Cheers from Martin B
: Mandurah, Western Australia.

You really don't want an athwartships frame in contact with the skin, will cause a huge amount of drag and wear on the skin too. The fabric pushes in between the stringers from water pressure, no matter how tight you get it.

Bill H.