[Paddlewise] Hull Modification Photos and Skeg Issues

Sea Kayakers,





When I mentioned the modification I made to the hull of my kayak a while back,
some people requested to see photos. The photos can now be seen at:
www.rollordrown.com/hmod.html.





If you missed or forgot the post, a brief summary of the reason for the hull
modification is below. By the way, I've been asking a lot of skeg boaters if
they have problems with their skegs, and most have said that their skegs jam
frequently after surf launches and landings. I am surprised at how hush, hush
this issue has been and why so many paddlers tolerate their skegs jamming. I
guess that after dogging other kayakers for using "vulnerable" rudders, it is
a little embarrassing for skeg boaters to admit that there skegs are a piece
of junk.





--------------------------------------------------------





In the fall of 2002, I bought a new Boreal Design Ellesmere. It is a great sea
kayak, but its Achilles heel is the adjustable skeg. When the skeg can be
adjusted, it works great. The problem is that during surf landings and
launches on sandy beaches, sand is blasted into the skeg box by wave action
and causes the skeg to jam and become useless.





Adding to the problem is that the kayak is skeg dependant, due to about an
inch and a half of rocker that starts at the skeg box and extends to the
stern. This rocker allows the kayak to turn quickly, but it also prevents it
from tracking well and causes weathercocking.





I just couldn't have a kayak that is skeg dependant with a skeg that didn't
work about half the time after a surf launch. I resolved the problem by
removing the skeg, cutting out the skeg box (to add cargo space since I wasn't
using the skeg anymore), and modifying the hull with epoxy and fiberglass, so
that the inch and a half of rocker at the stern was gone. Now the stern end of
the hull follows the natural keel line of the hull rather than suddenly
sweeping upwards were the skeg box started. The kayak turns a little slower
now, but the tracking and weathercocking is much improved. Just as
importantly, I know exactly how my kayak is going to perform everytime I
paddle it.





The hull modification was finished with one-part polyurethane paint.





Duane Strosaker


Southern California





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