Is there any good reason that rear bulkheads are not put almost flush with the rear coaming. That way you could drain ALL the water out by tipping it over and tilting up the bow. What is the thought on this one?
high end kayaks have them
while more recreational ones place the bulkhead further away from the seat to allow the user to store items behind the seat.
Higher end users tend to roll the kayak and having unsecured items behind the seat is not desirable.
It amuzes me when novices get tossed out of their kayak in the surf and they end up having a yard sale on the water (and at he bottom of the ocean too).
Experience will teach them that placing too much junk in the trunk (behind the seat) does not work.
The closer the bulkhead is to the rear of the coaming the more water you can empty from a flooded cockpit in a T rescue.
Gnarlydog
Inclined also
I’ve seen some boats where the rear bulkhead is almost flush with the bulkhead, and inclined also to help get the water out completely. You could do this with minicell foam in a cockpit with a big space behind the seat.
I disagree
It doesn’t matter where the bulkhead is if you roll a kayak. Intentional rolling a kayak is done with a skirt in place. Yard sales happen to either type of kayak w/o a skirt. I roll my rec kayak with a skirt and with bottles behind the seat and they stay in place.
Paddlin’ on
Richard
so your bottles are not secured?
maybe the bottles will have harder time to go past the back rest but smaller items will tend to work their way to your lap and rest of cockpit.
Skirt or no skirt loose items behind the seat make no sense. Then again, I have seen plenty of kayakers stuffing junk all over the place, behind the seat, on deck, on their PFD, inside cockpit between legs… you name it.
And eventually those items float away or reach the ocean floor 
Gnarlydog
Intentions
– Last Updated: Jul-23-08 2:25 AM EST –
Recreational kayaks were not intended to roll. As the name implies they are recreational. Some however decide to roll them and are proficient. Most recreational kayakers are just that and rolling on their part is accidental and only done 1/2 way.
BTW...Good rescuers can empty a kayak in a T-rescue regardless of bulkhead location.
Padlin' on
Richard