Ocean Kayak Rudder Modifications

[Caleb]

I figured that I might want a rudder one day anyway so I went ahead and got one with my T13. Problem is that it is hard to adjust and the bungee cables are a bit loose at times. So here is my solution.

Effective Bungee Length Extension
I marked where to place the J hook in image (1). The marker is around 2 inches away from the rudder pedal slider and is level with its initial placement.

Then I drilled the hole and Riveted it in. Once placed the bungee simply loops around it to give a greater control over movement and reduce slack in itself.


Marking the straps
Before I started anything I put the rudder DOWN and CENTERED. This is very important as the rudder up position is not centered.

Next I placed the rudder foot pegs at an equal distance back from the max distance, I chose 3 inches. I used tape and marked the distance and with both pegs at that distance i pulled in the straps till the Rudder returned to center. at this point I knew the rudder was center and the straps where both pulled the same and the pegs where aligned with each other.

I marked on the strap in the gap of the adjuster with a sharpie (the mark is hard to see but is visible) on both straps. Then I pulled all the strap out that i could and with a ruler lined up and masked off 1/8 inch strips 1 inch apart from the initial mark 4 times.

You can see in image (3) then painted the masked area with white paint. Once the paint dries I painted the initial marked spot red sharpie, then cleaned up the other masked area with a black sharpie.

Looking all nice and neat and dried. I pulled the straps tight so the red marker was in the initial position. In the final image you can see the white markers just barely hidden on the other side of the strap and the red marker visible.

All done and much easier to manage!