Padding for gunnel/gunwale?

Hello everyone,

I would like to add some sort of padding to the gunnel on 57868 to make hiking out a bit more comfortable. Scanning photos of Mirrors on the net, I see that some people seem to have some sort of padding attached to the gunnel/gunwale, but I can't find a sufficiently detailed photo that shows exactly what people use or how they attach it.

I am experimentally whittling away at a pool noodle without particularly impressive results so far. The noodle shows a strong inclination to pop off of its own accord, and I can see it jumping ship on the first tack.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks and best wishes,

Gary

PuffinInTegel's picture

Hi Gary,
I had the same problem ... right down to open sores after a two-hour stint beating upwind in a short chop.
Most people suggest dinghy shorts with padded backsides and a Mirrorist from the Philippines reported they made their own using flip-flop soles. I couldn't find suitable shorts that I liked and the second version sounded a bit too fiddly for me.
Two years ago I happened to be using some pipe insulation to pad a kayak storage rack and realized that foam insulation for 22 mm tubes ( about the same outer diameter as a pool noodle, sold quite cheaply at DIY stores) fits on Puffin's gunwales perfectly without any tacks or adhesives being needed. The advantage is that they are hollow inside so you simply clip them over the gunwale. In stormy weather I have lost some but as they are not an expensive item, they are easily replaced. Of course they are not designed to take abrasion and shifting loads, so they do wear out. Perhaps a more luxurious solution would be to cover them by gluing a textile onto the surfaces and using velcro to make sure they stay in place better. But without such fixation you can use shorter lengths and slide them to and fro as you shift your weight. They (grey thingies on the gunwales) can be seen on this picture, taken two and a half years ago.
Getting out of a dry suit
On the beach at Palmer Ort (54° 13' 20" N ; 13° 23' 29" E) after a stormy ride

Gary 57868's picture

Thanks Gernot,

I just tracked down some pipe insulation and it works very nicely. It is much more secure than my pool noodle attempt. I am looking forward to testing it in action.

I like the flip-flop soles sewn to the back of the shorts idea too. This is a good piece of lateral thinking.

Thanks again for the good advice, best wishes

Gary

wgsmith 20647's picture

Great advice, going to try both as soon as I can move my backside again........:)

PuffinInTegel's picture

Had a hard day out in strong wind ??
Hope you enjoyed it. As I wrote somewhere, I had no choice but to sail home in half a gale some years ago and ended up with a proper open wound on my posterior.
Cheers,
Gernot