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I know I can get the paddle drive to work. One option is to raise the shaft up about an inch to provide more clearance. I can also add spacers to push the pontoons further apart, and increase the width of the metal platform . This will also provide clearance for the foot paddles. I just haven't had time to finish that part and test it.

Thanks for the suggestion. I did try to use a modified auto mechanic's oil filter wrench to remove the nut. But I afraid if I apply too much force, other parts of joint may give, and this will create a bigger headache. Hence I decided to cut the nut instead. 🙂

Thanks for taking time to give me an update. This is very rewarding for me hearing people's success stories. Cheers!

Thanks for the question. I have considered a water cooled solution. This approach can be resulted in a very compact design. I want to prove this small motor can push the boat with a simple experiment first, as shown in this video, before I implement a water cooled solution. I prefer a more portable design and I want to embed the electronics in a fin like structure and allow the motor be mounted on the fin. I have other projects to work on so I probably will work on the water cooled solution during the winter,

Thanks for the excellent 👍 suggestions. I tend to use what I have on hand or recycle other materials for the projects. I did consider using a thin sheet of plywood ( which I have on hand) instead of the flattened PVC pipe. The important part is to use a non conductive material.

Great, the motor controller (ESC) is about $11 at Amazon, and it is easy to hook up all the components for an experiment. Worth a try. I will show you how I mounted it on a folding kayak in my next video.

Thanks for watching. I tested the motor on my folding kayak and it works even better than on my pontoon boat.😄 Will share that test video soon.

I have also tested the motor on my kayak. It works even better than on my pontoon boat. It would be easy to implement twin motors on the kayaks or pontoon boats. I use a 12A 12V battery and the size is small and I should be able to pack two batteries in the same battery container.

Thanks for your feedback. As usual, when I edit a video, I am always struggle on how much details to be included in the video. Very often, I don't want to bore the viewers with details. Glad you find that useful.😀

Thanks for watching, hope you enjoyed.😄

@@SolopsistSocionaut thanks for watching. I go there very often and may see you there too 😌

Thanks for watching and your support!

Thanks for watching and your support!

Thanks for watching, I don't want to set up IG, etc. social media options to promote my videos. I have other more important projects keeping me really busy at this moment. In the future, I may be more focus on the number of viewers. Thanks again.

@@DIYUSA Thanks ‍sir ! To reply to comments.❤

Thanks, I have built a newer/improved version a month ago. You can watch that here czcams.com/play/PL2ShZzOUu01smsfaDW-H480Q5vIHhs0se.html&si=5XvyXgx6IVCl8uzW

Thanks, hope you find this useful.

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for your question. I have built boats with 4 mm thick coroplast. Many commercial foldable boats use 5 mm. There are viewers built the Gen 23+ using 4 mm thick coroplast. 5 mm is easier to build than my 6 mm. If you use 4 mm thick coroplast, you may want to double up the coroplast to make the floor. My guess is if you have the 5 mm thick one, you don't need to double up the layers for the floor. Please note some 4 mm thick coroplast, with different plastic mix, can be as strong, or stronger than the 5 mm thick coroplast. So thicker coroplast doesn't always mean it is stronger.

​@@DIYUSAok thank you lets see how the build goes

Thanks for watching!

Thanks!

Thanks!

Thanks for your suggestion. I will take a look at this and see if there is an easy way to implement. thanks again.

Something similar to what you have suggested, you can watch the video here! facebook.com/john.vigour.7/videos/505952811364259

@@DIYUSA wow very nice !

You can see how I rigged up the boat with a sail in this video czcams.com/video/2AvOeDvYPbI/video.html I was able to sail the boat, but not as good as I would like it to be. The dagger board and the rudder are too small, need to change that and try again.

You are correct. It is not easy to imitate what a duck can do with its feet :-) I am still thinking of an easy way to make a fin drive but no luck yet. Cheers!

Good suggestion, the one on TEMU seemed to be the same one but without the brand name. It is about a dollar cheaper.

Thanks for watching.

@@DIYUSA Any interest in making kits for other kayak enthusiasts? I have a small fabrication shop and can help if you have interest.

@@tonyyeh3723 Thanks for the offer. Not sure you mean to make kits for modifying the chair, or a kit for building foldable boats or a modular foam boat. I worked for a few start-ups, I also formed my own company in the 90's. All these were very stressful, but rewarding. In 2017, after I retired, I did consider setting up a company to build emergency foldable boats. My wife talked me out of it. It would be a fun experience to get a crowd funding project going. We should chat off-line. My email is pdxboatmaker@gmail.com Cheers!

Thanks for watching. I am135 lbs hence I used 1/2" diameter schedule 40 PVC pipe. You may consider the 3/4" diameter pipe, which is much stronger.

Thanks for watching and your question. Yes, I have tried to build pontoon boats using coroplast. You can watch the videos of those boats. czcams.com/video/ILeIKBoxKZk/video.htmlsi=JqfxcoAMqFkz19_E czcams.com/video/KtjaziICe9E/video.htmlsi=wP1CnO0BpYDvEYEb czcams.com/video/HO-52Yays8o/video.htmlsi=6frmVlViKeNVEVGx czcams.com/video/8roMckSj-ws/video.htmlsi=GShlonmTxCK_BiuQ After I have used my latest pontoon boat a few times (modular with foam -which I built about a month ago) and I don’t like the weight of it (35 lbs). I am thinking of building a lighter one using mostly coroplast. It will be partially foldable and will still have the metal frame to hold the pontoons together. Since I am working on another design, I will not work on this project till next year. If the height of the pontoons are 7-8" tall, I think it can handle 10-15 knots wind and the water will not get inside the pontoon that easily. My modular paddle board is only 4" tall and I tried to made it totally water tight (it is not foldable). I used it at the Pacific Coast. Water still get in but it is so minimal that I don't really worry about that (a few oz after I used it for 4 hours - it could be condensation also). Therefore I feel if the height (or freeboard) is at 7-8", I don't really need to make the pontoons fully water tight. I still need it to stay afloat in case the boat flips over. Cheers!

Good suggestion. We need a 2 mm thick coroplast so it can be easily rolled up for storage. I guess I can set it up as a sail similar to those on the 'Chinese Junk Boats'

Thanks for taking time to share your input and ideas. Your input is very helpful. I have tried different designs with slightly better result. czcams.com/video/FJiuj0o3alQ/video.htmlsi=gtedMMYUoRroLFbT I still have one other idea but I have been busy and not able to work on that yet. Cheers!

Thanks for the kind words. I later found out if I do a standard tuning on the guitar, the tone is much more accurate. In the video, I tuned the guitar like an ukulele, which is higher and tuning is off. Cheers!😄

Glad you enjoyed it! There will still be a few minor updates to it. Another viewer has provided a few good tips in building this kayak also and I will share those ideas in the future video.

Thank you! Cheers!

Thanks for your input. Hope to watch the DIY Hack video to learn something new. I believe the commercial foldable kayaks have been using plastic rivets and now I can implement that with simple tools. The abs plastic doesn't stick to coroplast hence I don't think I can use it to protect the corners, instead I use multiple layers of gorilla tape for such purpose.

Ah, good to know it doesn't stick!

I have been thinking of using the plastic rivets for a long time. That day, I was at my friend's garage building this Gen 23-N and he has a large box of plastic rivets (different kinds and sizes). We decided to tried that. It works really well.

Thanks for watching and your comments. Yesterday, I tried the boat at the pacific coast. The wind was at around 15 knots, the boat performed very well even I don't have skegs on it. There will be more modifications to the boat. Will update you on future videos.

@@DIYUSA Do you visit San Francisco? Contact me the next time that you are here, love to meet up.

@@tonyyeh3723 I spent 3 days at San Francisco in 2013. I really like the city and the weather. I have been back to the bay area a few times since then. Will be glad to meetup with you. I have just finished a camping trip with a family I met thru CZcams also. Likewise, if you happen to be in Portland Oregon, please let me know! Cheers!

Glad you enjoyed it!

Thanks for your input. I always wonder if the glue I am using will last since it is labeled not for outdoor use. I will keep the pontoons dry between uses! Thanks again.

@@DIYUSA the waterproof paint will hopefully stop water from ingressing, but condensation will form inside. For what I know, PVA is never completely waterproof, I've if the label claims to be.

Thanks for your support!

@@SpitSharp yes, the weight of the boat is always a problem for me. But when I add many gears for fishing or for sailing the over all weight will increase. I plan to build a cart for it. Modularization will help.

I used this foam from HomeDepot www.homedepot.com/p/Owens-Corning-FOAMULAR-NGX-F-250-2-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-SSE-R-10-XPS-Rigid-Foam-Board-Insulation-52DDNGX/315197962

@@DIYUSA thanks!!

Thanks for your kind words and your offer. It would be nice to have more viewers, however, this is not my priority, hence I don't even bother setting up an Instagram or other social media account. I just like to share what I have tried, and helping those who are interested to build a similar boat. All these are, and will always be free. My priority is to focus on morning hours in Day Trading and the return is so much, much better than making a few dollars on my CZcams channel (much better than when I worked full time as an engineer). Cheers!

@@DIYUSA Thank you sir for your kind words.

Thanks for the suggestion. Yes it is not easy but it is a good experience. A kayaker nearby also told me to add floating bags and I will give that a try. Meanwhile, I am building a 12' modular pontoon boat and I expect it will be easier for re-entry :-)

@DIYUSA 12 what?

If 12 ft you're talking sea kayak nigs where the sun don't shine. Don't. Think.caledoscope. re-entry into the kayak but not anally.

@@prometheusboat 12 feet long pontoon boat.

@@DIYUSA wow! I see

When I built my Gen 18, I used a heat gun to heat up a metal plate, and use that heated plate to cut into the foam and that is very effective. I wanted to used the same method to cut a hole into the foam. Unfortunately, I don't have a suitable metal pipe. Therefore I sandwiched the PVC pipe into two layers of 2" foam. I will show more details on how I did that in my future video.