homemade kayak rudder

billabong909 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 06, 2010 5:48 pm

Last week I read a post from VT87Hokies about a homemade kayak rudder(thanks man) :thumbleft:

. I decided I wanted one on my yak so I went to see my friend that owns a welding shop. I got the aluminum and the stainless bolts for 4 bucks (good to know people). I basically took the design from VT87Hokies and applied it to my yak. Mind took about 3 hours to make, paint, and install. Its fully functional and looks damn good for a $4 rudder. Cant wait to try it out...Heres a few pics..........

JohnYaksJax · **Posted:** Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:00 pm

Hey Aaron...WTG on the $4 rudder!!

That is awesome that you can visualize how to make that and then actually do it!!
Looks very good on those "finished" pix....Congrats!!
JYJ

billabong909 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:16 pm

Thanks John. It really wasn't that hard to do. Why spend $150 when you can spend $4 :smoke:

erniemx5 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:30 pm

Very nice job. Looks a little crowded in your "storage" area. I have 2 questions.
1. Does your Kayak sleep in your bed?
2. Does it snore?

billabong909 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:53 pm

erniemx5 wrote:

1. Does your Kayak sleep in your bed?
2. Does it snore?

1. only when the old lady says yes.
2. If i spoon with it the right way....

Dreads0518 · **Posted:** Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:23 pm

billabong909 wrote:

erniemx5 wrote:

1. Does your Kayak sleep in your bed?
2. Does it snore?

1. only when the old lady says yes.
2. If i spoon with it the right way....

Great job on the rudder Aaron!!

Rrdstarr · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 5:07 am

Looks like you can pull it up, have you figured out how to deploy it down?

Pretty nice job. You might consider powder coating, really durable and would only cost $10-$15.

billabong909 · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 10:13 am

Im still hunting for a strong stainless spring to pull the rudder down when I release it....Its hard to find things in a small town.

billabong909 · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 11:49 am

Didnt find a stainless spring here in chiefland so I had to go with zinc plated(ought to last about 2 weeks). Works like a charm deploying the rudder. Does anyone know where I can find a stainless spring? I took it out to the river today to try it out and it works great. Its a difference of night and day.

--VT87Hokies.....you should put a spring on yours...

--heres a pic with the spring attached.............

Rrdstarr · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 4:31 pm

billabong909 wrote:

Im still hunting for a strong stainless spring to pull the rudder down when I release it....Its hard to find things in a small town.

Tell me aboot it. Try living on an Island!

islandspeed2001 · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 5:06 pm

I'd rather live on an island. They bring stuff to the island but in a small town you gotta go get it

Great looking rudder you made Aaron :cheers:

You going to need it with those big drum pulling you around?

billabong909 · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 5:17 pm

[quote="islandspeed2001"]I'd rather live on an island. They bring stuff to the island but in a small town you gotta go get it

Very good point Jerry.

Dreads0518 · **Posted:** Wed Jul 07, 2010 5:52 pm

Aaron, check out,

http://www.leespring.com/index.asp

bnznet · **Posted:** Thu Jul 08, 2010 3:00 pm

billabong909 wrote:

Does anyone know where I can find a stainless spring?

Try a motorcycle shop. I got some stainless springs for a muffler for around $5.

VT87Hokies · **Posted:** Wed Aug 11, 2010 9:13 pm

Hey Aaron -- excellent job on the rudder!!! :thumbleft:

The paint and decal really give it a professional look! I have a few questions. Did you ever find a stainless spring? If so, where? Tell me about the line that attaches to the lower end of the bolt near the spring. What does it do? Have you made any changes to the setup after using it?

homemade kayak rudder

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