EASY Homemade Kayak Outriggers (Pontoons - Stabilizers -DIY) 

This is a great and practical design that I hope will help me with my "going swimming when I don't want to be going swimming" problem. Thanks for the tutorial. Happy kayaking and have a great summer.

Of all the plans for outriggers I've seen on RU-vid, this is the one that looks the least like something homemade. They look professionally made. I've seen similar types on the water, so I know they will work. I saw this design on a yak and thought it was purchased. I even went to a few stores asking for them, until I saw this video! Thanks a bunch for the sharing the info.

Great idea. Like all great ideas we build upon each others to make little improvements. While trying to find a more effective way to fit the 3/4 conduit into the Crab buoy I decided to try the direct approach. I ground a slight taper on one end of the conduit that goes into the buoy. Then lubed the hole in the buoy with dish washing liquid. Shoved it in fairly easily about half the way. Then used a rawhide hammer to drive the conduit the rest of the way through the buoy. Snug fit but did not damage the buoy. Make sure and prep the conduit before applying glue. I made a short video and I will try to give the link later. Thanks again for the very helpful video.

Just purchased a lifetime fishing kayak. This is a great solution to make it more stable.

That's great ~ It seems like people who want to make their outriggers are very interested in this video.

I have the same, exact model of kayak. Ah gotta give this a whirl. Many thanks.

Thank you for the video. It got me going on mine. I have the sun Dolph journey 10' as. This may help some of your viewers. If you have flush mount rod holders. I found two ways to get it done . 1. 1" PVC pipe with 2 -1" PVC coupling per side they will slide in with little love with. Coupling at the bottom and pipe between bottom coupling and the second one just below top of flush mount then go from there with your Elec 1" long bend 90. Working with 1" fittings and pipe is the way to go less fittings less problem s. 2. Or 1" 1/4 pipe with heat works great to not as strong and very big fittings . the pipe will go all the way in as well . hope it may help some kayak friends out. Thank you again for video. Hope to see in action. How far out from the yak are your outrigger s. Thanks will c

Very glad your video came up in my 'recommended' feed today. Probably one of the simplest and best outrigger designs I have come across. Looks great and will work really well on my kayak. Thanks for sharing. ATB Mac

Thank you for the well made demonstration, I had no idea about the measuring and leveling.

Great vid. Austin Kayak sells the same buoy for 6.99 each buoy plus shipping. Shipped by Fed Ex. They also carry a lot of kay merchandise.

The 3/4 inch pvc pipe is 3/4 in inside. The outside is closer to 1 in since the Pipe has thickness of about 1/8 that needs to be taken into consideration. The outriggers do look good.

Great video! I didn't know about the electrical conduit PVC.

Fantastic idea! Easy to add when you get there and very sturdy..

I like the beer holder.

You being "stealthy" on purpose is what I was afraid of. I can't think of a single kayak question. I gotta million more though. We gotta be neighbors. I live on the east shoreline of Lake Houston. Most of the questions I've got aren't ones I'd want to be answered in a public forum. Jay

I will make mine with a through hull pipe so I can extend the pontoon outward for ocean swell and large boat wake. Or tuck them in for streams. I want it through the hull and not on top because the forces of waves are tremendous considering the stresses will be applied about 5,000 times in a day. Repetitive load shocks equaling a few hundred pounds or more will destroy a rod holder. If you are a smooth lake and perfect weather; you might not ever really test this but...... keep in mind; leveraged forces are very very strong.

The 90 is an electrical fitting, schedule 40 and the elbow is a plumbers part usually schedule 20 (thinner) you can custom bend PVC (electrical schedule 40) with a heat gun or hot box. I think the riggers could be one piece. Don't exceed a 90 degree bend or make the bends with too tight a radius. Sometimes it is NOT sunlight resistant, it usually says so on the conduit. If not you can paint it with paint for plastic.

Great video and effort with lots of details and ideas. Never could find your future rudder mod video. A couple of tips/comments for kayak pontoons in general: 1.How about a spring loaded or similar mod, like a shock absorber, to the pontoons to keep them in constant contact with the water surface for super stability and minimal to no roll? You could place the proper tension springs inside the pvc at the tee at water level and extending up inside the pvc against a stop somewhere further up. 2. Instead of having a gap between the 2 pontoons on both sides creating more drag, either insert a 3rd piece of foam between the 2 making 1continuous smoother, longer single pontoon. Also I see many pontoons added to the extreme rear or front of the kayak leaving more chance for rolling over as part of the kayak is left unsupported. Instead how about 2 sets of pontoons on each side, 1 at the front and rear, providing better balance and support and leaving a large middle area to paddle unencumbered?

I liked your design approach to adding pontoons (training wheels) and followed your advice to do the same to my 2015 Ascend kayak from Bass Pro Shop. It turned out excellent with a few modifications on my part as I adapted a Minn Kola electric motor and added rod holders. I would like to send you a picture of the finished installation. How do I do that?

Great idea. Nice job. Gave me some ideas. Thanks.

FYI....When them PVC cutters get to wore out for the piping....they make real good limb cutters when y'all are hanging tree stands! They'll cut about any size limb ya need to cut....you can get pairs upwards of 2 - 2 1/2 inches!

Goog stuff for learn padling, I looking stuff for stabilizer kayak with outboatd engine ,or another idea join two kayaks platform ,engine at centre:)

Wrap the round part of 3L pop bottle around the Tee and put some props made out of PVC cut on a band saw cut on a band saw on the back side paint like a torpedo

old or new trolling motor bracket works real good

looks professional, nice work.

Nice details description DYI video! Thank you for sharing.

that's really smart! I was looking at some stand up kayaks and the prices were a little high for me. This is a great alternative!

Just plain good diy. Brilliant!!!!!!

Thank you so much for the detailed explanation on how to keep straight, chalk line etc etc...btw I get to buy a new tool! Never used a chalk line thingy

Conduit is also UV protected so it wont get brittle or chalky

Great idea. I used boat bumpers from Walmart for my floats. Could not find the crab floaters. Your design got me on the right path.

Just FYI you can paint PVC or any Of the plastic piping with just regular latex paint and it protects it from the sun Good video thank you

Great video; thanks for the detail as well as the process steps.

I retract the last negative comment I said. yes at the beginning .... BUT AMAZING VIDEO. I NEEDED THIS

That's why I ask , I'm 68 and right at 200 lbs. Thanks for the reply . JOE FROM TEMPLE , TEXAS

I’ve never flipped but the fear of is real.

I like to go skin diving (snorkeling) out of a kayak--this will make it easier to get in and out, especially to get back in.

I will be doing this to the exact replica! Thank you my brother

Amazing...Great job. I am going to try this with my sit-in fishing kayak. Thanks for your work in doing this video!!

Great idea and presentation! Thanks!

If I hear you say foty Fahv and Nonty piece a pop one more time, Imina start dancing to it. Sheeeesh, we heard you the 15th time!

I'll be a busy body.... I've made outriggers for a racing kayak (too tippy for me). The first thing to understand about pontoons, outriggers, etc ... is that once they are completely submerged you've reached maximum buoyancy--it's like walking off the edge. Once they are all under--they'll keep going. This seems to be not included in most information about outriggers. (I find that my outriggers alone won't support my weight, but attached to my kayak I can lean way over to either side without sinking them. For me this is a good 'test'. The longer your outrigger poles the more leverage you get. PVC is great stuff, however.... it's not structural (but I don't see any issues with how you're using them). Aluminum tubing 1/16" wall is great stuff. 1.5" diameter is almost twice as strong as 1.25 diameter and only 1/3rd more weight. Where you drill and attach aluminum tubing, just plane down a length of dowel rod and tap it in. Now you won't crush the tubing at a drill hole. (I could use straight aluminum tubing because I mounted them to the deck, and then carved foam floats to fit where the aluminum poles were above the waterline) I happened to have anodized aluminum, but I've also used uncoated aluminum. It's amazing how well aluminum holds up in salt water. Freshwater? I don't know.) And if you're still reading. I really like how you've attached to the plastic kayak, how they fold up. This is a critical connection to very soft material. Springiness in the outrigger helps keep a shock (caught in surf) from transferring the force to the deck connection. Of course the proof of any outrigger is how well they work for you. When I finish my next generation outriggers I'll post RU-vid video--so everyone can have a good laugh. The more I learn and the better I get the bigger the disasters I can put together.

Just got done building these for my kayak, following this guide. Thanks! I added some Great Stuff big gap filler to all of the pvc pipes to make the outriggers more buoyant and seem more solid. I haven't tried these out on the water yet... but my main concern is that the pvc pipes may come apart when pressure is applied to them. Has anyone tested these out on the water yet?

fantastic! thank you for making this very informative video. you gave me some great ideas!

Pretty neat, think I'm gonna make one similar

Good video I think I would use the crab floats seem stronger than coke bottle. I wish you showed a on the water test to show how it floats on the water.

Thanks for the info. I am trying to make some kind of platform I can stand on in front of my kayak and gig flounder. I will have to balance my weight distribution and if I have these near the front maybe that will work.

i have the same yak the 13 version the rear rodholders are in the same location. great job bud👍

Polynesians and austronesians after watching this; what can I say except you're welcome 🤣

Enjoyed the video and what you did was great! You made it difficult to follow your instructions by talking about other types of rod holders and boats. Thanks!

Great Idea !

Great video. I DO have a Pelican sit-in kayak. They have 2 flush mount rod holders. I'm gonna give this a try and let you know how it works out.

Thanks for the video. I am using the idea for my craft. How much of the float is actually in the water (below the water line) when the kayak is idle?

Need size of crab pot floats please... only ones we find in our area are 5" x 11". Thx

You should be making them out of PVC. It can be bent with a heat gun. The crab floats in Arizona cost $30.00 for four + shipping. I may try it if I can find cheaper floats!!!!!!!!!!!!

You kick ass. Thank you Randy Show Low Az

Btw, read the feed back AFTER I wrote my comment. People! Watch videos of a man getting OUTSIDE and doing ANYTHING, ya'll sit in Mom's basement (in your underwear) and slam this good man. He explains things so the stupid people can understand. Don't like it? Move on.

You should check out Expandacraft modular boats, as a photographer, I can sit up in a swivel chair spin around to get the shot and fit it in the back of a small hatchback car.

Good video! Thanks for posting it.

The crab Floats should face the same direction to reduce drag but otherwise this looks perfect

Great how to video but would have liked to see it working on the water.Thanks

Hopefully this will reinsure my parents I won't die while kayaking on the lake with the fishing pole

Well done! Thanks!

Nice job. Just wondering if the trailing one wouldn't be better pointed forward also. It wouldn't look as good, but if your going to have it in contact with the water full time it seems like the butt of the second one is would push a lot of water. Thanks for the video.

Interesting comments. Great video!! I understood all of it.

you do really neat work, thanks

Anyone know where I can find those buoys in green or blue??? Thanks.

Good idea, thanks

Ok... so I loved this project! You did an awesome clean looking job. Im all in myself now....now need some help pls!! Lol...so how about when your trying to attach to an inflatable kayak? Any ideas for mounting?

great idea - thanks

Great..! Thanks for your ideas!..

What if we use our rod holders .. where should we put them .. more in the back?

Perhaps. Put your crabfloats together and drill that 1 inch hole down the center where the two meet. Might have to cut a bit more our where there T coupler is will sit, but now you can have the crab floats flush with each other. Cut the down on drag and look a bit better imo. alternatively get a 3rd crabfloat, cut curved part off < = and do similar hole in center to fit in the middle.

What can you use to hold the pipe in a straight-up-and-down rod flush mount, one that is just molded in the body?

Har har har. You Texans speak funny! You should try turning the Annotation ON (close captioning) and see how your speech is interpreted. What a hoot!

I am wondering if these out riggers will interfere with the paddle motions..... I think they would.. Id hate to keep banging them... Thoughts?

4th try to make it to the end of this vid!

just starting out thinking of putting an electric outboard on .

Looks good!

Where do you drill the holes put in the keys if you have rod holder that are flush on the kayak?

Hey TP can you stand on your pelican now that you have the pontoons. I have the castaway 13ft and was gonna start the project so I can stand on mine

Thank you.

Send me updates! Great Vid, new to fishing/kayaking diy projects. Keep it up!

If you buy schedule 80 water pipe it will be very thick

Pretty nice! Thank you soo much! 👏🏾

Great video Do theses interfere with paddle stroke do you have to use a smaller stroke to avoid hitting them going to follow this design as new to kayak fishing in uk thanks

That rocks bro !

Hi bro, nice set up. I like it. The video show the mounting but the outriggers itself, what is the matetials made of ? do u made it or just bought it ? Thx from mauritius.

DOES IT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE IF THE OUTRIGGERS ARE MOUNTED IN THE FRONT OR BACK OF THE KAYAK ? DON'T REALLY HAVE ROOM IN THE BACK BECAUSE OF MILK CRATE , ROD HOLDERS ECT .

Great job!

It's not a real job until you've got bloody knuckles :D

There are tons of videos about adding stabilizers to kayaks - and several companies that sell the complete sets. This obviously means that there are thousands of kayak owners who need a more stable fishing platform. Sea Eagle just released the new SUPCat10. It's a hybrid paddle board that is virtually untippable! Plus, it includes a STANDARD motor mount! This may be what kayak anglers have been trying to cobble together by adding stabilizers and flimsy motor mounts. Read a full review here: bit.ly/2GE7fKz

great vid thanks.

Dang good job.

Great idea nicely done! Have you tested how difficult it is with the training wheels on to recover from a capsize?

love it ! thanks brother

Are you able to stand and fish after you put outriggers on you pelican , cause I too have one .

how do you pin the outriggers if you have a flush mount rod holders? I love the idea just don't know how to secure them in my flush mount rod holders.

where are you buy the crab floats?

nice set up. new sub.