Thank Tyler. What's the size of the spring, everything else is self-explanatory. Yes, you can use the paddle to engage it, but have you thought of continuing your project to disengage the skeg? I would drill a hole a few inches from the spring attachment, and thread a rope through the hole, and extend the rope to the side of your seat. Then if you wanna retract the skeg, you just pull the rope up, Make a stop to the skeg so that it will not pull up vertically. Tie the rope to the side of the kayak to keep the skeg up. The 2 pieces of the aluminum will be at a straight line, but angled. Then, once you release the rope, the spring will pull the skeg back under water. Hurrah! I'll make a video once I got the job finished. Thanks for the inspiration!
I was "engineering" one of these in my head the last few days and this is almost exactly the idea I came up with. Only difference I want for my yak is a bungee in the place of the spring (I hate the sproing noises springs make) and to make the actual skeg out of HDPE vs the aluminum you used. I would like to hear how your skeg performed and if there are any changes you have made or want to make. Thanks!
Thank you, the answer to both your questions is yes. I added the rudder because when i got up any kind of speed in calm water the kayak would spin. It also is very handy when fishing from the kayak, making movements more predictable when drifting and keeping it in one place when using an anchor.
The rudder completely fixed the spin out problem and made my kayak much more enjoyable in all kinds of conditions and is easily disengaged with the paddle when I want maximum manuverabilty.
this is genius, what is stopping the skeg when you engage it, is it the spring itself when its compressed? is the hardware aluminum to prevent corrosion?
Great design; thankyou for posting this! How did you cut the metal straight edge and bore holes through the two pieces for the bolts? Also, are those simple steel 90 degree brackets that hold the metal to the kayak deck; and what type of screws did you use to fasten them to the deck? Do they show signs of wanting to come loose? Thanks for your time.
+RIVERKINGERIC The aluminum straight edge cut easily with a hack saw and a regular drill is all you need for the holes. I used 3/4 inch plastic screws and put a dab of Marine epoxy on each before screwing them in and they never moved.
Kayak rudders are not meant to turn a kayak, they are meant to compensate for drift. Unless you're trying to turn a long kayak in a short space. But if you use the rudder to make sharp turns, the kayak will stop. I stopped using my Aquaterra Spectrum( 28yr. old kayak) because it began to roundoff so much. Cutting a hole in the bottom for a skeg box is risky and if not completely trued, is useless. I don't care for the moving footbraces of a rudder, so this idea is perfect. Some of my other kayaks have skegs, one had a rudder. I like the skegs better. I gave you a thumbs up. I'm going to try it on my old yak and maybe put it back into use.
Uh well, you're halfway there...this rudder doesn't pivot. It does absolutely nothing for you unless you allow it to pivot. Nice attempt though...try again.
If you had read all thirteen words in the title you would notice certain key words like "fixed" "stationary" and "skeg".Reading AND Comprehension 101. The definitions of fixed and stationary mean it doesn't move. A skeg is a rudder that doesn't move and acts as a keel. You were halfway there, nice comment though...P.S. Don't start anything with "Uh" if you want to be taken seriously
