DIY Leeboard Canoes

Adding a leeboard to your canoe helps prevent side slippage. Because a canoe's hull is round and lacks something to prevent side slippage, it is easily blown sideways. The problem compounds when you outfit the canoe with a sail. When positioned sideways to the wind, the increase in the canoe's area causes it to slip significantly. It may make tacking impossible. A leeboard creates lateral resistance to the wind's sideways blow, preventing slippage (See Reference 1).

Things You'll Need

  • Hardwood board, 1/2 by 10 by 36 inches
  • Drill
  • 1/2-inch drill bit
  • Hardwood board, 1/2 by 5 by 5 inches
  • Sail
  • Hinge
  • Stainless steel screws
  • Bolt, 1/2 by 2 inches
  • Nut, 1/2 inch
  • Rope
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Instructions

    • 1

      Drill a 1/2-inch hole centered and 8 inches from the top of 10- by 36-inch hardwood board, which becomes the leeboard. Drill another 1/2-inch hole centered and 1 1/2 inches from the top of a 5- by 5-inch hardwood board.

    • 2

      Lay the sail flat on the floor. Find the center of each side. Draw a line from the center of each side to the opposite corner. Where the lines cross is the sail's center of effort (See Reference 2). Install the sail in the canoe and mark where the center of effort falls.

    • 3

      Screw a hinge to the canoe's gunwales slightly forward of the sail's center of effort. The hinge must fold towards the outside of the canoe. You can fine tune the position using trail and error. You want a balance between the leeboard, which attaches to the hinge, and the sail's center of effort. You know you have the right balance when you can steer the canoe in a straight direction in a stable, controlled way with limited stress (See Reference 3).

    • 4

      Screw the 5- by 5-inch board to the hinge (See Reference 4 for hinge idea).

    • 5

      Bolt the 10- by 36-inch leeboard to the 5- by 5-inch board.

    • 6

      Tie a rope to the leeboard and the opposite gunwale. Adjust the length until the rope is tight when the leeboard is vertical.