• You should extend your vacation a few days and come to the 1st Canadian Packrafting Roundup at Mt. Robson… I’ll be there with my DIY V3 in hand!

  • I recommend against the 21st Century Iron altogether. Mine actually didn’t get hot enough and it lost its heat too quickly due to the shoe having less mass than the Black Baron iron. The 21st Century Iron looks good on paper and I’m sure it’s great for the thin fabrics that airplane modelers use, but for this application I don’t think it’s the right tool.

  • The site definitely seems faster to me. So far so good.

  • Mark replied to the topic Inaugural V3 trip in the forum DIY Packrafts 6 years, 2 months ago

    I’m interested to see your spray deck when it’s completed. I’d really like one on mine, but I don’t want to commit to the more permanent whitewater style spray deck since I will often just be paddling around flat lakes fishing with my children…

    I’d be fine with some sort of removeable cruiser deck, but I’m not sure what the best way will be to…[Read more]

  • I can’t speak from much experience since I just finished my raft, but I’d say that it’s not necessary. If I was building a second raft, I’d probably leave it off for now and decide later.

    That said, I did mount mine already and I extended it with some silicone hose so it can be used from the normal seating position. But if you aren’t going to…[Read more]

  • Mark replied to the topic Finished my V3! in the forum DIY Packrafts 6 years, 2 months ago

    I couldn’t find the right type of attachment loops for hooking the backband shock cord to the plate anchors… so I made some. Used some scrap 8AWG copper wire and a $13 wire bending tool from Lee Valley Tools. The nice thing about copper is it doesn’t rust, its malleable, and it’s easily solderable. I wouldn’t use it for some heavier duty…[Read more]

  • Mark replied to the topic Finished my V3! in the forum DIY Packrafts 6 years, 2 months ago

    More pictures of the refinements I’ve added over the past couple days…

    Finished grab lines on the stern, added thigh straps and a backband:

    The thigh straps and back band are simply some shoulder straps that came with my MEC duffel bags over the years:

     

    Had to name it of course…

    I’d like to introduc you to the Wavefaring…[Read more]

  • Mark replied to the topic Finished my V3! in the forum DIY Packrafts 6 years, 2 months ago

    Added a few tie down points:

    one inside on the floor with a paracord loop to clip a nalgene onto: It’s simply 2 – 2″ circles of 210D with a 1000D semicircle in between.

     

    Then 4 on the bow for a grab line (using the improved tie-down method posted here on the board):

     

    And then took it for a test drive in grandmas pool:

  • Mark replied to the topic Finished my V3! in the forum DIY Packrafts 6 years, 2 months ago

    Feel free to use anything I post here 🙂 I’ll take some good measurements of things tonight and post up more information and details. The measurements you provided for the TIzip location worked out beautifully.

  • Mark started the topic Finished my V3! in the forum DIY Packrafts 6 years, 2 months ago

    I say it’s finished… but I feel like a project like this is never done… it’ll continually change to meet my needs. But for now it holds air so I’m considering it finished enough until I actually get around to using it this summer and figuring out my first round of modifications.

    "completed" v3

    Things I learned:

    Don’t use the Coverite 21st Century Iron.…[Read more]

  • Mark became a registered member 6 years, 2 months ago