Product Description
These closed-cell foam knee pads form a solid, comfortable brace for your knees or thighs inside the cockpit of your kayak. Being able to brace your knees on the inside can improve your paddling efficiency as well as enabling greater control over your kayak.
Each of these pads measures at least 300 × 180 × 20 mm and should be trimmed and shaped to fit your boat.
To install the knee pads you will need:
- A handsaw or large knife
- Sandpaper: heavy-grit (40-60) and medium-grit (100-150)
- A marker pen
- Contact cement
- A brush or spreader for the glue
- The knee pads should be installed after your seat, backrest and footbraces. Sitting upright, your lower back should press gently against the backband. Adjust your footbraces so that your toes turn out and your heels are in, close together. With your legs slightly bent, spread your knees so they gently hug the underside of the deck near the coaming. A full-size knee brace offers a snug fit and increased control, needed for open or moving water. On the other hand, a thin or moderate knee brace may be all you need for touring or day-paddling.
- Place each knee brace pad between your knee and the deck, making sure that both your knee and inside thigh are making contact. Trace the pad onto the underside of the deck using a marker. It may be necessary to cut a corner of the brace to fit the shape of the sheer clamp. The corners of the thick side may also need to be trimmed after the brace has been glued into position. Sand the designated deck area and cover with one coat of glue. When both surfaces have dried, brush on second coats of glue. When the second coats have completely dried, carefully position each brace and press firmly into place. Once the cemented surfaces have come together, you will not be able to separate them without tearing one or both. You may want to position one edge first and roll the rest of the brace gently into place.
- Shape each brace to the shape of your knees, keeping in mind the amount of space you'll need to enter and exit the boat. Finish with sandpaper.
