Has anyone replaced the bungie with a second rope that would run parallel to the origional rope back to the cockpit area so the paddler could pull on one rope to lower the skeg and the other to raise it? If so how succesful of an idea did you consider the retrofit?
Try NDK site
– Last Updated: Nov-26-05 9:49 AM EST –
The forums on the NDK site might be the best place to post this question and get good detailed answer.
There is already good discussion of workings, adjustments, and mainteainence of skegs.
http://nigeldenniskayaks.com/forums/index.php
It’s possible to do that, but…
…the cord would need to be set up as more or less a continuous loop. You have to maintain tension on both ends in order to have any control over the skeg deployment. It’s not an “either on or off” situation.
Soapbox derby cars
I’ve always wondered why it hasn’t been done this way with the continuous loop making a couple wraps around a pully type of wheel mounted up by the cockpit. The set up would resemble the rope steering on the old soap box derby cars. One would just rotate the pulley in one direction to raise the skeg and the other way to lower it. I imagine the biggest problem would be what would happen if someone forgot to raise the skeg as they beached. Same problem that I quess can kink the cables in a slider skeg system.
rope skeg
I’ve thought about this as well. Perhaps putting a section of bungie in the loop would provide some forgiveness in the event one forgets to raise the skeg before landing? Please do let us know if you come up with anything!
pully…?
I would be worried about an entrapment with the rope and pully idea inside the cockpit. I’ve never had problems with the existing setup on my Explorers.
David
Run both lines
in tubes located immediately under the deck. They could wrap aroud a shaft that barely sticks below the deck whitch is attached to a spin dial (much like Boreal now has)that sits on top of the deck. This would keep the deck clean and the lines would be out of the way preventing entrapment.
under the deck…
of course with an under the deck run you would have to pop the spray skirt off to operate it. That does not sound like a good idea in wind/waves.
David
Wrong
The dial you spin (like the steering wheel on soap box derby car) is on the top side of the deck. The shaft, small pulley wheel and cords to the skeg are immediately flush and under the deck. Those could be encased if they interfered with someones leg exactly the way todays slider systems are encased. The shaft from the spin nob to the pulley would penetrate the deck the same way any other fitting does.
It also could have the cords come directly off of the spin nob’s bottom side as it is mounted ontop of the deck. These cords could run a very short distance back from the spin nob then go below the deck where they would be behind one’s seat hanger and out of the way of entrapment issues.
yes
check out the Valley Canoe Products Aleut Sea II tandem. It works quite well, actually.