DIY crank arms v4.0

Each winter I make new crank arms for my Hobie. Weird hobby, I know...

Anyways, these are made from solid 6061-T6 aluminum and are longer than the standard Hobie crank arms (although slightly shorter than the ones I used last year). This pair came out pretty nice---definitely the best so far.

I've got some inexpensive stainless pedals, but I'm planning to use the Hobie platforms for now.

Let me know if you want any additional info.

Very nice! 

They look good. 6161 T6 is the same aluminum stock Hobie used for their solid arms before they switched to hollow. Never have heard of a break in the old style solid arms.

Those look great. Are you going to be selling these?  I'm interested in a pair.

Those look great. Are you going to be selling these?  I'm interested in a pair.

Hadn't really thought about that... The main reason I make these is because I want to customize the length---with the standard length, my big shoes (and fairly long legs) often hit the footwell in the kayak on the forward stroke. So, these are about 1.5" longer. If that's not an issue for you, and you're just worried about breakage, I've got a pair that fungunnin was selling a while back. There are many threads on that topic---here's one:

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=61417.msg689863#msg689863

Those are 7075-T6 aluminum (better than the 6061-T6 that I use, with the exception of corrosion-resistance). I'd want to keep the axles, however, so you'd have to use bike pedals. Let me know if you'd be interested in that, as I'm sure I'll never use them.

On the other hand, if you've got access to a drill press and a reasonable assortment of bits, I can give you all the details to make your own. The 6061-T6 bar stock is actually pretty cheap, so if you screw up one or 2, it's no great loss.