Moving Fiberglass Bulkheads???

where fools fear to tread
I’ve seen enough production kayaks with design booboos and QC booboos that the person who was willing to modify their kayak to meet their needs is more likely to make the kayak safer and more functional as they would find these errors and correct for them.

hacksaw blade hand held
slow work but doable, took about 1/2 hr. then ground the edges down with 2" sanding drum on drill.

Q.E.D. option
Fabricate and install a new bulkhead at your desired location.



Then, using a hand-held saw or even a Roto-Zip (space permitting) saw out as much of the old bulkhead as you are able. Leave teh edges of teh original bulkhead in place.



Second option: Fabricate and install a new bulkhead at your desired location, then install beckson hatch in the old bulkhead for a super-secure compartment (F.A.Kit, wallet, meds, “meds”, etc…





Jim

Thinking outside the box, err, bulkhead.

Matt
listen to me…OK. Take the boat to a Pro and it will be an easy job, you will be happy, and no structural damage will occur. If only one bulkhead I’d guess $200. Well worth it.

Also wise advice
Like Fpick, I store stuff in front of my feet. For me it’s my tarps in a nylon bag. Pull up to camp, set up tarps, haul loaded boat under one tarp and change / unpach etc. Tarps can get wet and it’s no big deal. Great place to store them.

Agreed…
I agree with Salty and Flatpick about using the extra space inside the cockpit for dry bag storage. This is what I have done in the past.



Unfortunately though now that I have gone to using a foam bulkhead instead of pegs all this useable space is now filled with foam…about 12 inches of it!



Tradeoff though is that the cockpit is now lower volume in the unlikey even you ever had to take a swim.



It does sound like a PIA; however I like the idea above about just leaving the factory bulkhead and installing an additional bulkhead with hatch to give you an additional compartment. Cool idea and probably easier than having to cut out the old one.



If the new hatch were to leak…so what. You’d still have a dry front and rear.



In fact this may be the best solution for me since my boat does not have a day hatch.





Matt

If bulkhead is flat
install a 7" round in it and you could access the new compartment. But it should not be hard to remove the old one, especially for a pro. I would go for it.

how
much stuff do You actually plan to put up front?



Is that the way You tend to trim Your boat and desire more weight and gear up front?



I think that for re-sale to someone with longer legs You would be making a poor choice and a lot of work and some cash outlay…unless THIS is the boat of Your dreams



Might be a very good idea to think about this for a little While…and determine just exactly what You would need more cargo space for up there. (a kitchen sink maybe?)a better dollar might be spent buying smaller and more compact gear that would transfer from boat to boat as You buy and sell them (how many boat changes have You done in the last Year?)



I thought that an Explorer was the last boat You were going to buy…or was that the Nord LV or the explorer before that or …No …the Romany Surf…



Never mind It’s all so confusing…



Best wishes

Roy

Matt…
You have a child now. Maybe you should be talking about the pros and cons of moving the BH with someone who is more involved with your total life, namely your wife. If this were a boat you will definitely keep and use a long time, it would be one thing. But what if you decide to sell it within the next 6 months? You would have paid to modify the boat for someone else, and you might not get any of it back in increased sale price.



If you just bought this boat, maybe the thing to do for now is to just paddle it as is (including loaded with all your gear). You can always get the BH moved later if you really want to keep this boat and want to make it perfect for you.

Forward Air
will do it for free

True…
First off, good comment about Forward Air!



Next I can’t argue with Roy. I am pretty notorious for going through boats pretty quickly!



However (while my credibility for this statement is probably nill)I think I may have found exactly what I am looking for in both of my current boats (Viviane and Romany S).



Once again, Salty was right. There is no perfect boat and I can’t be happy with just one.



Better to have a boat for the application you intend to use it for…the Romany S is perfect as a play boat and the Viviane is one fast and smooth expedition boat.



Trying to get it all out of one boat will result in compromises, and I don’t like to compromise. Looking at boats that are too similar don’t truly allow you to cover the full spectrum. These two boats are quite different and cover both ends of the spectrum.



I don’t really need the bulkhead moved. Just would be nice.



So far it seems that the best idea would be to add another bulkhead and make a front day hatch.



If I were to do this though I would still make sure to leave enough room in the cockpit to make the boat capable of re-sale.



Right now though, Michael Jordon could paddle this boat with ease.



Matt

just curious
How fast do you go through girlfriends? Is this a trend?

here’s what I did
cut out the old bulkhead with hand held hack saw blade and put in a 3" minicell bulkhead with Lexcel. With a couple more minicell wedges I had perfect full foot footrests and an extra 10" in the front compartment. Took a few hours and very satisfying.

because…
there’s no practical reason for an extra foot of storage space in the cockpit and there’s more benefit to reducing the space that can take on water?


Just do it
I moved the front bulkhead back exactly 12 inches on one of my boats(Boreal Ellesmere) and eliminated the adjustable footpegs.

As the above posters have noted it’s a PITA and I wouldn’t want to make a career out of installing bulkheads but I have no regrets.It doesn’t weaken the hull or leak or cause any other problems and I now enjoy a lot more dry storage which is important to me as I do several kayak camping trips every summer.

If you’re blessed with a minimum of common sense you won’t screw up your boat.

I recommend doing it.



Cheers



Bert

No crawling required
Put the boat inverted on sawhorses with the cockpit between them. Sit on a stool or box that allows you to work comfortably. Set up like that, it’s really not a bad job and it makes it easier to do.

I disagree and I’ve done a few
I’ve moved bulkheads in several boats and have helped other people do it, too. If you exercise even a modicum of care, it causes NO damage to the boat and the replacement bulkhead will be as good or better than the manufacturer’s work.

The Fein Multimaster…
…is the ideal tool for this type of work, if you have one, can borrow one or can afford one. It’s very easy to control, reducing the likelihood of screw-ups. It’s nearly impossible to hurt yourself with it, as you can literally grab the blade or grinding attachment while it’s running without any damage to your skin (it’s amazing, but true). It also makes pretty fast work out of removing and reshaping bulkheads, buzzing right through fiberglass. The people who tried mine in the outfitting classes I ran raved about it. It’s also an incredibly useful tool for other types of work around the house.



Barring that, I typically recommend cutting out bulkheads using a hand-held hacksaw blade. It’s definitely a slow process, but it gives you great control and allows you to cut close to the hull, minimizing the amount of work you have to do later. Palm sanders work well for removing the remainder of the bulkhead material. I don’t recommend grinding off the flange that’s bonded to the hull. The slightly stiffer area it creates is really of no consequence and trying to remove it is the only part of the bulkhead removal process that I would consider risky. Unless an extra couple of ounces of weight really matters to you, I’d just leave it alone.

The front compartment is idea for…
…light weight, bulky items like sleeping bags and pads, clothing, etc. You can pack a lot of this stuff in the front without adversely affecting the trim of the boat since the heavier items in the rear will balance it out.

Try it at least twice …
After cutting out the bulkhead, gently slice through a section of the remaining ‘ring’ without touching the boat … Think DR. cutting a cast off …



Then there is a very good chance you can ‘pop’ the remaining bulkhead remnants right out in one/several big piece(s) by gently sliding a chisel between this and the hull … S l i i d e … NOT pry.



Warning: This is sort of EZ to mess up the hull if you are not careful … BUUUT it is fast and neat if done skillfully right …