My DIY Outriggers

 

  Did you use the kayak several times before you added the outriggers?  If you are way over average weight/height or don't have much experience with kayaks or other small boats, I can see how at first you might make some moves to cause it to tip you, but at 33" wide, it should be pretty stable without outriggers, and after some experience, you might find it hard to make it tip when you want it to, for example, to practice self-rescue.   I've never used a crab trap, so I can see you might want some stability insurance for that, especially in some of the nasty conditions during the winter season. 
   My kayak is 30" wide, but 15 ft long, I'm heavier and taller than average, and I'm always sort of surprised at how well it handles even big wakes thrown by power boats  - it slews around and buries the nose and stern a bit, but it handles them, and can even be fun. 
    I like the paint job on the outriggers that matches the kayak's!

I weigh 158 lbs and 5'6".  No problem with stability on it's own.  Most of the time, the stabilizers did not engage.  If I feel comfortable enough after a few outings, I will remove them.

If I feel comfortable enough after a few outings, I will remove them.

They'll be handy when you're pulling in a fully loaded crab pot, too! 

Edit: I use the Hobie Sidekicks, which has a different attachment mechanism compared to yours

I fish my Revo 11 without outriggers all the time in the delta and sometimes in the bay but I always use them out in the ocean. For me it's just an extra layer of safety. Initially they can get in the way but like everything else, experience makes it a non-issue. Out on open water it's very hard to flip a kayak with pontoons. If it does flip, it's easy enough to unclip one of the arms, flip it over, retrieve the arm, and clip it back in.

The only time they can be a nuisance is when you are landing. If you flip shallow you can potentially snap off the arms. That happened to me once. The attachment point on the ama arm is made out of plastic and is designed to break before any of the other parts.  It's not that expensive to replace the arm (about $48). Some people remove the ama before landing. I don't. For a sketchy landing like Bolinas, I jump out of the kayak at about 3-4 feet of water, get behind, and ride the kayak in. I flip sometimes but only once did my ama arm break. But that is still something worth mentioning.

Do they work

Do they work

I did not went for a swim  .  Works great.  I couldn't flip it on purpose sitting down.  Maybe standing I can flip it, not sure.

excellenct

Nice job! The outrigger looks great. Is there any functional benefit for making the arm bent with a 45deg elbow? Will a straight arm works any different?  I am new to Ocean Kayak and also thinking to add a outrigger later. Thanks for sharing your experience. 

Eric

Nice job! The outrigger looks great. Is there any functional benefit for making the arm bent with a 45deg elbow? Will a straight arm works any different?  I am new to Ocean Kayak and also thinking to add a outrigger later. Thanks for sharing your experience. 

Eric

To make it more stylish, also make it less prone to flexing in the arms.

Looks good 👍.  They should work great for crabbing with the added stability.  I’ll be using my sidekicks attached to my outback this season as well...

I finally got a chance to test out crabbing today.  The stabilizers worked great.  There are plenty of power boats that zip by me and created a bunch of wakes.  It handles it well.  I have one trap in front and one trap in the back.  I have no trouble maneuvering and deploy it.  Around 12 PM today, the wind picks up and the water got really choppy.  I'm so glad that the stabilizers worked so well.  At no time did I felt unsafe.

Sound great

All these look sick! Found my next DIY project. Dope!