nashwaak solo strap

I would like to buy a Nashwaak Solo Stap. My suggestions? Who sells them?

The designer/maker retired.
He never distributed to retailers that I know of, and only sold direct.



So you’d have to find someone who wants to sell theirs.



I’ve used mine some. Because of my weight, 220#, the strap support is rather narrow and becomes uncomfortable. I think a lighter person would manage better. I’m thinking of ways to add a wider support base that attaches neatly to the strap. Otherwise it has worked pretty well for me.



If you don’t find one, just see if you can improvise something for your canoe and your needs.

Similiar ?

– Last Updated: Feb-23-13 5:23 PM EST –

Is this along the lines of what you're looking for ?

http://www.azlandtraditions.com/leather_Saddleseat.html

Can you see how it is attached?
“adaptable to all open rail canoes”



Does that mean all canoes that have slotted inwales for draining?



It’s very likely to be more comfortable than the Solostrap, but perhaps not as adaptable. The Solostrap connects to the gunwales with slotted grey PVC tubing, and the strap goes through additional slots. Someone who can’t keep his knuckles away from the gunwales might not like hitting those PVC tubes.

The Azland is designed
mostly for wood canvas canoes that have open rails… Mine do not and hence I have not been interested.



However there may be a way to adapt some sort of metal fitting.



They always have a booth at the Wooden Canoe Heritage Association Assembly. Nice folk btw.

adapting to Azland seat
Come on Kim, you can solve this instillation dilemma.



How about cutting slots in the hull just under the gunnels and feeding the straps through to wrap around the gunnels. Through bolt large tie down loops into the top of the gunnels, screw them on, staple them on, epoxy on fittings, go for it!



Just don’t try any of this with your Rapidfire or Loon Works canoes.



Dave

solo seating for tandem canoes
I’ve always been a little worried about the physics of the Nashwaak strap. The tighter it’s installed the greater the force on the inwale. If the strap deflects 6", a 200 pound fanny generates almost a half ton of inward force in the two inwales. {Not really; most 200 lb derriers are not very pointy.]



A vastly superior solo seat is a kneeling thwart, permanently installed with four 10-12 SS machine screws.

Your first point is absolutely correct.
But because I position myself up close to the center of the boat, the center thwart resists the inner pull of the strap. I didn’t see visible distortion using the strap on my Bluewater (aluminum gunwales) though I’m sure there must have been some.



With my size 15 feet, I’ll probably never try a kneeling thwart.



I tried an old foam pedestal on the Bluewater, the same one I “invented” in '73, and it worked pretty well. But I didn’t keep it in the boat because it was shedding Ethafoam flecks from UV damage. I may make another.

Wow!
I’m willing to bet a kneeling thwart mounted kinda high in a deepish tandem would be less entangling than a nylon strap, but the cool thing is those 15s.



You’ll never need buy a SUP board. Just slip into a set of Crocs, step onto the pond; paddle away!

You could be right, but I regard the
Solostrap as a temporary solution to solo paddling. I wouldn’t use it in any situation where bailing out of the boat would be an issue.



Not many solo paddlers want to be as far forward as I do, and back where they might use a kneeling thwart or solo strap, they’ll have room enough to bail.



You’ve seen my c-1 with its 5.75" seat on myccr. (“Looks Slow Even Sitting Still.”) Those big feet are packed in there somewhere, and the pedestal is carefully dimensioned so that I can escape very easily. That boat is the 1st-out-of-the-mold Zealot, bought from one of our Olympic competitors, Adam Clawson. He had it rigged with a glassed in kneeling thwart, and as he probably has size 13 feet, I have no idea what would happen if he failed to roll. But he never failed to roll.

Size 15
Size 15, could waterski without skis! Makes my large size 13 seem small.



Dave

Various solutions
A simple leather strap gets you out of all this rigging



http://www.whitewaterdesigns.com/home/wd3/page_736_46/south_fork_whitewater_canoe_saddle_deluxe_kit.html



I like paddling a canoe with a saddle instead of sitting

Unfortunately, water skiing requires
balance and coordination. I have those from the hip joints up, but not below.

I prefer saddles also. The one shown
via the link, though, might have two problems. One is that the location tracks for knee cups and ankle supports do not conform to most anatomy. When the knees are spread, the lower legs want to slant toward the center of the canoe, not straight back toward the stern.



The other is that there is no support thwart for the saddle. Saddles just attached to the bottom of the boat don’t usually have enough stability, and contribute nothing to the rigidity of the hull. A thwart across the high part of that saddle, behind the paddler’s butt, will hold the saddle firmly in place and provide protection against the hull being folded in a mishap.

strap or kneeling thwart
I have a Solo Strap and it flexes quite a bit. If you are concerned about having room for your feet, you will probably be better off with a kneeling thwart. It you are set on a strap, you could probably work out your own arrangement.

Mine tightens up with adjustment to
leave plenty of foot room. Not sure what’s happening with yours. Is it pulling the gunwales in?