Rudder for Inflatable Kayak

thingiverse

Unless your inflatable kayak is designed for attaching a rudder, you'll find it challenging to rig one on your own due to lack of solid points to mount. This rudder, crafted for an Advanced Elements Convertible kayak, boasts rigid aluminum tubes anchored at three tiedown points. By pushing the rod fore and aft, you adjust the rudder angle. Meanwhile, rotating the handle upward tilts the rudder up out of the water, while detaching it easily from your kayak and breaking down quickly for storage. Be aware that this rudder is mainly for fine-tuning your tracking, as paddling and steering simultaneously isn't possible. All parts can be printed on a 6x6" print bed. You might also want to explore Better Rudder: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:820015 You'll need the following 3D printed parts, all printed with 0.2mm layer thickness, four perimeters, and 25% infill: 1. anchorpoint.stl 2. coupler.stl 3. handle.stl 4. midlink.stl 5. ringclamp.stl (x2) 6. rudder.stl 7. rudderpivot.stl 8. ruddertail.stl 9. tiedown.stl (x2) 10. tube_end.stl (x3) In addition, you'll require: * Two 36" long, 3/4" diameter aluminum tubes * One 12.5" long, 3/4" diameter aluminum tube * One 17.5" long, 3/4" diameter aluminum tube * Nineteen 8-32 x 1" stainless screws * Two 8-32 x 0.5" stainless screws * Twenty-one stainless nuts * Three 1/4-20 x 1" stainless hex bolts * One 1/4-20 x 3" stainless hex bolt * One 1/4-20 x 2" stainless hex bolt * Two 1/4-20 stainless nuts * Rudder blade fabricated as per rudderblade.pdf Insert the rudder blade into the rudder and secure it with the two short 8-32 screws and nuts. In the anchorpoint, midlink, rudder, and ruddertail parts, tap the holes using a 1/4-20 tap, leaving enough friction to hold bolts in place. Loosely assemble the 8-32 screws and nuts in all printed parts. Assemble as shown in the photos. Most printed parts get clamped tightly onto aluminum tubes, but the mid-link part only gets tightened enough for friction to keep the blade vertical during use. On the longest bolt used for the rudder pivot, secure the end with two nuts locked together. You might also need a strip of velcro along the kayak's side underneath the handle (and with mating velcro on the underside of the handle) to hold the pushbar in place after adjusting the steering angle. Note that this was designed for the Advanced Elements Convertible kayak, but it can likely be adapted for other inflatables by adjusting tube lengths, midlink location, and link part orientation.