Hi all
Anyone have any brightideas on how to make an adjustable tiller extension for an A Class cat

I need the length for trapesing but when sailing in light winds it just becomes a pain and gets in the way

I thought of a folding set up with shock cord down the middle but whwn I tried it there was too much pull on the tube and it came apart.

I also wondered about the internal spring clips similar to
tent poles which may work but getting 2 lengths of fibretube to fit inside each other and still slide is a bit of a task.

All input welcome


Ron Heydon
New Zealand

Hi Ron

Might just be easier to buy a Ronstan adjustable tiller extension or buy a paint roller extendable handle. Thats my only suggestion, no gueesing which ones the cheapest, but don't know how strong the paint roller handle would be.

Regards

Or the carbon hot stick....

I use the Carbon FX-6 on my A-cat.

A boathook from West Marine is about $20 on sale. Not as light as carbon, but will hold up pretty well till you land on it hard.

dave

i worked really hard to find the cheap answer for a tiller extension. I had a 96" aluminum rod that came with my boat. i then went to a ronstan extendable that broke the first time out when the skipper forgot to clip in and just up and jumped off the boat and took the tiller out. I bought another one and found that with even the slightest amount of bending the extension action is useless. i broke down and bought a carbon 2 piece that i love. it has sustained a lot of abuse too. if you try aluminum 2 piecers you will be frustrated despite their lower price. good luck with your experimenting.

cc

Most of our guys use the fixed tiller extentions from AHPC. Yes, they are a pain in the but, but we havent found anything, regardless of cost, that works as well. I cursed mine for three years until I finally broke it. I tried some alternatives but in the end I couldn't wait to get another fixed extention, been happy ever since. I even put one on my F-16 when I got it. Good luck in your quest. Ed

After I broke my nice carbon extendable (by backing the cat over it, DOH!), a new spare became necessary. Found a nearly new gold-anodized 1/2 inch Shuffleboard stick, wrapped in carbon and epoxied into 2 ft of carbon tube, cost $4.

Nacra USA will soon be stocking the same carbon extensions used in the Nacra Europe boats.

they are the same weight as a marstrom extension and to my mind a bit stronger.

not sure on cost but they are for sure the best available.