Boat Building Forum

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Foot Pump Installation
By:John Herr
Date: 3/28/1999, 4:30 pm

My wife is a genius (and good looking).

I have been building a Chesepeake 18 with the thought that I will sell it in the next year or two (used to be a couple of months!). I installed adjustable seats and footbraces so that the next owner will fit as long as they are on the large size. I was pondering how I could install the foot pump 3 inches aft of the bulkhead when she said "Why don't you use several blocks stacked on long bolts to make up the difference? That way it can be adjusted by removing or adding blocks."

That's right, she is helping me too.

I was about to give her the - you don't understand - speach when I realized what a great idea she had. I'm going to buy a 1" hole saw to cut the water outlet. I figure if I use that on some scrap plywood it will make "donuts" that I can seal with epoxy and stack on 4" bolts. She even suggested using wing nuts for quicker changes but I'm not to sure about that. I'd appreciate any input or experiences on this setup

Let's see ... smart, beautiful, and willing to work on kayaks.

That's an 11 out of 10 in my book!

Happy boatbuilding,

John