Carbon V10 rudder Shafts

Just a question regarding the carbon shafts on the Epic v10 rudders.......has anyone else snapped theirs with hardly any force applied???

I knocked mine slightly on the weekend and it completely snapped off!

For me having a brittle & fragile shaft seems to be a little inferior????

I'm looking into a possible replacement, one with a steel/aluminium?? rod as I'm in 2 minds whether to replace it with an Epic carbon shaft rudder again.

Any thoughts on replacing rudders?

I've also had a thought to drill a hole through the old carbon rudder and insert a steel rod instead? Is this possible or is the carbon to brittle & will it shatter?

Cheers

Think you might have had a little bad luck. I had the opposite experience where I slammed into a submerged object with the rudder at about 13km/hr- and stopped the boat dead. I expected to see the entire tail ripped off. There was no damage at all to the rudder/post/or boat; I still can't quite believe it!

Maybe you got a dodgey post but I'd just replace it, I gather there's been a fair bit of thought put into the design and materials.

Cheers,
Mark

I agree that you should stick with the carbon shaft. I have had skis with solid (heavy) & hollow (bends) stainless and aluminum (corrodes)shafts and carbon has my vote.
As far as I can see the only downside is that they are strong enough to rip a hole in the hull if the impact is great enough.

Stick with the carbon, I had a aluminum shaft which became corroded and became very stiff to turn. I had to wash it with fresh water after each paddle and jiggle it before paddling to get it loose. With the carbon shaft the rudder action is as light as it was on day 1.

Hi thebigadski, Gibbons makes replacement rudders for the V10. They have a stainless steel shaft. www.gibbonssurfskis.com

Myself and another in our paddling group have had the same happen to our carbon shaft rudders. When we contacted the local rep we were told it was a regular occurrence? I have recently had some stainless steel shafts made for some new rudders. Wouldn't want to be in the middle of the channel and that happens! I think there are some things that shouldn't be compromised for weight! But I guess anything?s possible?!

I replaced the original alloy shaft/post rudder (because of the corrosion problem) with a carbon shafted one. This snapped when it hit a rock and the rudder punched a hole in the ski as it rocked back. I've currently got a replacement carbon post rudder in (and a patched boat) but would be interested in finding out where to get a steel post rudder for the V10.

I think I would prefer to have the rudder post snap and lose a rudder than have it strong enough to hold but damage the housing and cause expensive repairs. Rudder breakages are unlikely out at sea where rocks are rare so it would not be a likely safety risk.

Alain Jaques wrote:

I think I would prefer to have the rudder post snap and lose a rudder than have it strong enough to hold but damage the housing and cause expensive repairs. Rudder breakages are unlikely out at sea where rocks are rare so it would not be a likely safety risk.

Absolutely, any other damage is incidental, no less painful but not part of the ski's true repertiore. A steel shaft the size of Epic's specified for alu. shaft diameter must require vegemite power. Personally, I'd prefer a properly scaled stainless shaft.

Unfortunately in my case not only did I loose a rudder (snapped) but on its way off, it decided to leave a nasty gash in the hull.

So not only coughing up $$$$ for a new rudder, but also paying for a repair as well.