Anyone use these?
I am considering putting these on my Kajaksport Viviane. It currently has Keepers brand pegs which stink.
The Viviane has the rails for the Keepers installed with a fixed screw stud as opposed to being drilled throught the hull.
Do you know if the screw studs for the Keepers and Sea Dogs are identical in size and spacing? I think that they are but am not sure.
thanks
Matt
FootPegs
We evaluated Sea Dog pegs for our pack canoes. They were very strongly made, hence heavy, and would not deform to fit our hulls.
The position lock is very positive, but the paddler will need to move the peg itself with foot or hand.
We selected the lighter SmartTrack. If weight isn’t a factor, The full on SmartTrack seems to be the best foot peg system available.
Sea dogs
Like everything else in kayaking it boils down to personal preference. Nobody can tell you what boat is best for you, you’ve got to try them out yourself.
Same for foot braces I guess. I had a boat with Smart Track Rudder Controls and I now have a boat with Sea Dogs. I like the Sea Dogs better. To me they’re more comfortable, not so bulbess and I haven’t found them slippery. I don’t paddle barefooted, I wear a Keen Bootie. Try them both out somewhere if you can.
Sea Dogs Here
We’ve installed Sea Dog foot braces in both our VOLKSKAYAKs - so far, we’ve been pleased with them. Like the large foot pad - smaller ones can hurt after a few hours - and have never had a problem with the adjustment slipping in ‘chop’(but we don’t seek out real rough water). We wear crocs or dry suit boots, and haven’t had any problems with keeping our feet planted on the pedals.
Ruddered…
Well as much as I hate to admit it…I am making the conversion to put a …gulp…rudder on my Viviane.
I have never been a rudder guy but this boat weather cocks to the extreme and I use it for distance / speed paddling so I am looking to put a rudder on it. It is pre-equipped to accept one.
Sea dogs are a viable option that are available with the Kajaksport Navigator rudder. The other option is the KS proprietary pedals which I have heard are good too.
Matt
Bowler1, before you “deface” the
Viviane consider adding a little fixed skeg (fin) to the stern of your kayak.
I used to have a modified Nordkapp hull that was fitted with a rudder. I had to paddle it without a rudder in surf (folded on the deck and taped down) but the kayak would weathercock badly in wind.
I solved the problem with adding a little skeg to the rear of the hull. A simple 5" long, 2" tall fin out of two pieces of angle light aluminum (to make a T) to match the shape of the hull. I used Sikaflex (urethane goop) to affix it to the hull. It can be removed easily with a spatula.
The kayak from a total dog in wind, became very manageable.
Gnarlydog
Thought KajakSport had…
… those awesome big foot braces. Nrealy foot sized, thin plywood, with nonskid face? Worked with or without rudder. Pretty nice in the Viv I paddled.
http://www.kajaksport.com/eng/ks_steeringsystem.html
They also have new ones: http://www.kajaksport.com/eng/ks_footrest713210.html
well…
My Viviane came with standard Keepers brand foot pegs. Seems that the previous owner slid those on in place of the KS pedals. On that year model they mounted on standard Keepers brand tracks.
The proprietary KS pedals are another option. I can get them from Global Outfitters directly. Perhaps that is the best way to go.
One last thing I should mention…the skeg on my Viviane is not fully functional. I had to do some skeg repair on my boat when I got it that required me to shorten the skeg cable. It works now, but is limited in how far it will go down. Being such a dog in the wind, this boat may really need a skeg that goes down completely.
I have ordered a new skeg and cable for it as well. That may help the problem also.
Having both a skeg and a rudder might be nice though. It would give you a backup in the event that one failed on a multiday trip. Given that this boat is so skeg dependent, not having either a skeg or a rudder on a multiday trip could really stink.
Lastly, I am starting to dabble in the realm of “fast kayaks” so maybe I just need to get with the program and use the rudder. I already have a skegged play boat (Romany) which really never needs a skeg anyway.
Matt
Viviane Rudder
I read an article by the Chief of the Water Tribe about refitting his Viv with a large rudder for the Everglades Challenge. He chopped the stern off past the stock receiver and bolted on the rudder assembly to the flat surface. He also glassed in the rudder box. The Viv is a hot boat for the Everglades Challenge.
used both KS and Seadog pedals
– Last Updated: Aug-26-08 11:01 AM EST –
with a KS rudder on my Enlightened Kayaks T-16.
Began paddling the T-16 in May of 2006 and continue to use it fairly regularly as part of my fleet.
Though seldom needed, the Kajak-Sport Navigator rudder has performed well; however, the rudder housing appears “flimsy” looking in a space age plastic sort of way.
The reliability of the Kajak-Sport pivoting rudder pedals proved to be quite another matter. These large, foot-shaped, gas-pedal type rudder pedals had a poor angle of throw, and were crudely constructed of plywood.
At 2 months (in July 2006) one of the flexible rubber connectors that hold the pedals to the rail bracket failed. Mike Steines, owner of Enlightened Kayaks and always a delight to deal with, immediately replaced the pedal.
Over the winter of 2006, I retro-fitted a set of Sea Dog pivoting rudder control foot pedals.
Unfortunately I ended up being a beta test site for the just introduced Sea Dogs system’s teething
troubles (i.e. pedals not staying locked due to a design defect), and without the above-and-beyond-the-call-of-duty interventions of Chuck Leinweber of Duckworks Boat Builders with the manufacturer, I might still not have a foot pedal/rudder system that I could trust for my T-16.
My current Sea Dogs pedals with Kajak-Sport Navigator rudder set-up continues to work well for the 5% of the time that I deploy a rudder.
Mike
rudder control pedals
Ive used both the toe pilots and the sea dogs. I prefer the sea dogs.
My KS Artisan Millenium
has the original equipment footpedals in it that Greyak linked to.
http://www.kajaksport.com/eng/ks_steeringsystem.html
My boat has the adjustable drop-down skeg. I do not have a rudder on it. I find the pedals to be extremely comfortable and supportive.
Jeff