New hiking strap rear mounting install

AJC6882

Member
I was just thinking that there has got to be a way to attach a hiking strap without using the rear cockpit lip. So after thinking and thinking and thinking. I have a way to attach a backing plate to the rear of the cockpit under the lip of the storage compartment.



How To (This is close to the same way I used stainless nuts, bolts, and lock washers to attach my eye straps to my boom, I posted these directions on the forum too.)

Here's what you'll need!
1)20ft of some sort of line, Fishing line would probably work best.
2) 4 Stainless Fender washers, 4 lock washers, 4 nut caps, and 4 nuts.
3) two eye straps with 4 stainless steel bolts 1" long.
4) a small piece of wire(3inches)to use as a weight.
5) 5" port
6) a drill and a bit the same size as the bolts.
7) Blue Thread locker
8) Sealant

1. You’ll be putting the eye straps about three inches a part, use your judgment. Place them about 2” above and parallel to the cockpit floor. Mark where you will be drilling your holes for the bolts and eye straps. Drill your holes.
2. Once they are drilled you can tie the fishing line around the wire (I used copper wire for my boom this is what I’ll use on my cockpit.) Push the wire through the hole and move the boat tilting forward it while you have someone push the line in the hole trying to get it toward the front of the cockpit.
hiking2.jpg

3. Reach for the wire through your access port near the dagger board trunk remove the wire. Put the lock washer and then the fender washer on a bolt, and then tie the line to the end of the threaded area. Pull the bolt through the hole you drilled earlier with the line and slide a eye strap over the bolt. You’ll need to put some sealant on the bolt now before you put the eye strap in place.
hiking1.jpg

4. Now this is going to be the trickiest part. Carefully remove the line from the bolt and hold it in place using some needle nose pliers. While holding it put a drop of blue thread locker on it and start the nut on the bolt. You’ll need to use the pliers to hold the bolt from spinning. Once you get some pressure on nut the lock washer will hold it in place. Don’t fully tighten till you get both bolts and nuts through the eye straps.
5. Repeat these steps on the last three holes and your hiking strap rear mount is ready to go!
6. Add nut caps over the end of the bolts for safety.

GOOD LUCK

HOPE THIS HELPS OUT!!!

~Andre C.~
 
Interesting idea, and it should work unless you find there is excess spray-in foam in the hull that blocks the wire from making its way to the inspection port. However, I don't see the advantage in this way vs. the much simpler "thru the lip" approach.

This way certainly makes sense if you have an old boat without the storage compartment (altho those boats tend to be stuffed with foam everywhere, which might make installation difficult.) But I am not clear on the advantage for boats with a storage area. What is your thinking?

BB
 
It looks really complicated, just reading it stressed me a little. (and I'm a former nuclear sub sailor). But if someone wants to do it, go for it!

I guess I am liking the sunfish because it IS simple.
 
Its better to have the hiking strap lower to the floor. and it looks better. So thats why im doing this. And its not very hard to do. Its just hard to explain with out pictures. Im going to do this when it gets warm out.. maybe this weekend. and ill take pictures to post. I ripped apart a sunfish I had that was beyond repair and there was some expansion foam oozing up around cockpit but not nearly enough to inhibit doing this.
 
Why have the strap be as low as possible? In fact, most folks use shock cord to keep the strap off the floor to make hooking in a bit easier. Ideally, I would want my strap to be positioned like the one in the Laser (~7" off the floor), but this isn't possible because of the cubby (a.k.a. storage space) on Sunfishes.
 
I feel more comfortable with it being lower because I have long legs and with the sunfish laying closer to the surface of the water more than the bigger hull of the laser I would sit in the water. but thats not my main reason for doing it this way... It just looks way better than attaching it to the lip.
 
if you wanted to mount it higher you could just fiberglass a wood block to the top of the cockpit storage area(bottom of the deck.) and attach two eyestraps to it with screws and do the same on the front area under the mainsheet block and that would make a strong mounting point and you can have it just like the laser about 7 inches off the cockpit floor. Try that out. Do you think that I would be okay with the strap being that high up off the cockpit floor? I have used the laser with no problem.. but i think that with my long legs i would end up hanging way to far off the sunfish.. Let me know your imput
 

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