Hi, all – I just bought a Santee 116 Sport and although I LOVE IT, I’m not crazy about not having a “loop” of some kind to run a security cable through. I’ve been looping a cable through the seat back, but am wondering if it would be worth it to attach some kind of U-bolt to it (somewhere), instead.
The specs list the boat material as “Trylon” and I’m wondering if it would be a mistake to drill into it to add some kind of cable loop.
Any idea? Or other suggestions for security?
Thanks!
maybe bulkead?
the least obtrusive place to put the u-bolt on.
Trylon info
– Last Updated: Jun-28-10 8:53 PM EST –
"Trylon is a rigid, thermoformed abs plastic with thin acrylic outer cap. The plastic is formed at a much higher temperature than conventional rotationally molded polyethylene plastic. Swift Trylon kayaks offer tremendous benefts to the end consumer over Polyethylene kayaks due to the high heat process and molecular structure of the abs and acrylic plastic. The Trylon boats have a high gloss finish representative of composite kayaks.
The Trylon plastic has a much harder finish than softer Polyethylene plastic.................."
I would say "yes, you can". Use a new/sharp pilot-point drill bit and more importantly back up the area you are drilling with a piece of wood securely pressed against the underside.
When mounting the U-bolt you may wish to add rubber or silicone washers under the SS washers so as to distribute stress and reduce the possibility of cracking the finish.
Jim
edited fer splng
bulkhead u-bold
Good idea. I don’t want it just sticking out somewhere to mess up the lovely line of my new yak!
Drilling
Excellent, this is very helpful. I was afraid that if I drilled into it it might shatter or crack easily. Good advice all around!
u-bolt…
…prob with mounting a u-bolt is there is nothing from stopping a determined thief from taking the nuts off the bolt…better to buy a S/S hoop and secure that with security screws if they are available locally. If you have a Prijon dealer nearby, Prijon makes such a hoop for their boats, maybe you can order one up…don’t bother with Prijon’s mail order web page…its for dealers only.
Might consider a heavy yak lasso that
has loops that go around both ends of the yak and locks the yak to a bar or rack. Haven’t used one but seems a workable solution. R
No need for a thief to unbolt a U bolt.
A hacksaw with chromoly blade or a quality bolt cutter can render a U bolt scrap in a short time.
Your goal is to slow the thief, to make him spend more time at his nefarious craft than he would like. Multiple layers of security are always best.
Jim
kayak security
Run the cable thru the seat towers (sides)and twist them down to the bars of whatever rack system you’re using.
You can make your own lasso w. aircraft-grade multibraided cable avail by the foot at any bigbox hardware store. Add a quality hardened steel padlock, store a key in your PFD & another in your car.
Mainly, as pointed out above, it’s using common sense where you park, where you spend the night, etc. Chain the boat to your tent or nearby tree. Pick a motel room where you can see your vehicle/boat.
You should also have your name and location scratched into the boat somewhere (use an engraver or dremel tool for that) or make a waterproof label and stick it somewhere inside the boat. Register your boat online w. Hurricane where you can enter the boat’s serial number, and keep the same number written down elsewhere at home or in your car - all to prove ownership.
Small light boats, such rec boats like the Santee, and ww boats, are far easier to steal. They can just be tossed in the back of a truck. That’s the truth of it so just do whatever is logical and necessary to keep tabs on your boat.