Tillers and Tiller Bar

I had broken one of the tillers and decided to rebuild them both as I had noticed that the bend in the tillers was not as curved as the plans call for. I used some clear pine and DWX epoxy so that I could finish them clear. Using the instructions in the plans I used weights to bend the tillers while gluing. I wish now that I had used a jig screwed to a piece of ply. I also wish that I had overbent the tillers a little. There was some snapback that decreased the curvature in the tillers.

The end of the tiller that locks onto the rudder head is not built according to plans. The rudders had a triple thickness of 3/4” plywood at the head and the tillers are built to accommodate that instead of the single layer in the plans.

I plan to add an extension to the tiller bar at some point. And add some shock cord to hold the tiller amidships.

Note: After I built the new hulls, I rebuilt the tillers to fit the new rudders. The new rudders do not have a triple thickness of plywood at the top.