Universal rudder on the new v10 goes great!

I have a new sport and a new v10. I'm not good enough to paddle the v10 in the bump so I use it for flat water. The sport I use for bump and squad.

The sport has the universal rudder and feels lively and well balanced. My 10 has the surf rudder and feels very different to the sport. It feels heavy and a bit unbalanced. Although on the flat it is faster than the sport according to the garmin. The other problem is that the surf rudder is a weed magnet.

I wondered what would happen if I tried the universal rudder on the v10. Given I'm only on the flat it shouldn't be an issue.

I tried it and voila! Totally different boat. It has more primary instability but it feels more like the sport. It seems to be lighter and easier to maintain speed. And no more weeds.

Over 9.5kms I averaged 11.1 kmhr, with a couple of slow Kms at the start slowing it down. The rest of the Kms were in the 11.3 to 11.9 range. For me this is my second fastest time ever only beaten by a downwind.

Obviously I need a few more runs but initial signs are that for paddlers who perhaps don't have the engine to push the big rudder a change down to the universal may yield results. I estimate the boat was about .2 kmhr faster for me with the smaller rudder.

For flat water you can get the smallest weedless rudder. I have it and the large elliptical surf rudder. I change b/w them occasionally. I only have the new V10 now (sold the Sport before I got the new 10). I don't measure precisely enough to see if the smaller rudder makes a difference in speed, but I usually keep the big rudder on - it has more bite for catching boat wakes, which interests me more than top speed on flat water

For the very occasional race I do on flat water, I may put the small rudder on as I'm sure it has a bit less resistance.

The V10 tracks good, almost too good IMO, so with the big rudder it is even less lively (though it is obviously more responsive to rudder input with it than with the smaller ones). I think it just feels dull to paddle (even though it is faster), compared to shorter and more maneuverable craft like your V10 Sport. I also have the Think Eze, and that is sooo much more lively and maneuverable! That's not necessarily always a good thing as it zigzags a lot for no good reason, but comes handy for maneuvering on small wind waves.

I wrote a blog a few weeks ago on different rudders, and the results of some testing I've been doing over the past while.

The general consensus is that the larger fins make skis more stable. Going from our 9" to 7", I've never noticed a difference, but down to a 5", I could feel it. Seems you've found the opposite going from a big to smaller fin, Love2Ski?



Anyway, here's what I found from playing with a few different sizes:

www.thinkkayak.com.au/2014/03/rudder-choice-for-performance/

Hi stew,

The 10 has less stability with the smaller rudder. However, for me it also seems to overcome the heavy feeling, and it showed in my speed. With the big rudder the boat seemed to keel over more and was harder to get upright again. With the small rudder it was more tippy but then felt easier to straighten up again.

I think for the expert paddler he/she would have the stability and power to push the boat around more. But for the intermediate paddlers who have stepped up to the v10 it can be hard to handle and I think the smaller rudder can ease the power needed a bit.

Ok, I must have read that backwards.

Certainly, a bigger fin has more effect on the rear of a ski, so if you drop the pedal, it will snap the back. The smaller fins have a more neutral feel so can work really well when used correctly. I'm really enjoying the smaller fins and how they feel. The extra little speed is a bonus.