Many Wakeboat boats use the Roswell racks on their towers. I was asked to help fix some worn rubber inserts which were causing damage to the board edges where they no longer protected them from the metal of the rack. In the past we had tried a variety of replacement tubing (we couldn't get the OEM rubber easily near us), but none of the fixes worked well enough. This $10 fix looks to be the best I’ve tried yet.
The problem:
The rubber insert in these racks are a hard compound that keeps the board up off the metal rack itself.
Unfortunately over time, the edge of the board deforms the rubber at the point where it exerts most pressure (where the board rail meets the deepest part of the rack).
This means the rubber no longer holds the board off the metal and you start to see dings, chips and then board delamination.
One solution:
While I had tried a few different tubing types , the difficulty was always to find something stiff enough to prevent it crimping where the board edge touched the rubber. I found some clear tubing which would be a perfect fit, then realised that if i could insert a stiffening piece inside the tube at the bend it would keep its shape and last longer. I used some short lengths of electrical wire as the stiffening peice but it could also be wire or smaller tubing to prevent it deforming. The steps below describe how i fixed my racks.
You will need a length of 5/16 diameter PVC or similar tubing (8mm might do at a pinch) for each board position to be fixed. Each fork tine will need 42-45cm (so enough for 1 rack to take 2 boards would be 4 x 45cm = 180cm or 71″. A short length of stiff electrical wire that slides into the PVC, a length of coat-hanger wire to push the electric wire, and some silicon to stick the PVC tubing to the rack.
Using the coat-hanger wire, push the electrical wire into the middle of the length of tubing so that when it is bent this is centered on the curve of the rack.
Make a diagonal slice on the outside edge of the tubing at each end (so that when bent in half the cut edges will slot into the metal rack channel).
Add a bead of silicone all the way down the tube where it will sit in the slot. then working from one end push the tube into the slot and firmly press it into place for a snug fit.
The electric wire or stiffener should be centered at the bottom of the bend.
Add extra silicone at the ends to hold the cut ends flush and then use tape to keep it in place while the silicone dries.
Once dried test it with your board in case the tubing shifted while drying, then re-install on the boat.
"A recent commission for a solid iroko paddle board rack for a local beach. designed it with two free standing columns so they could easily move it around, and bring it inside at night, as well as making it more versatile for shorter and longer boards. was a really nice project, got to get my chisels out and make something for the local area!…."
Engineering is a trial and error process, which is why after many fixes, the first longboard rack is now finished! Pictures will be up tomorrow when it's actually light out.
Some of these boards were made by us, including the nemmy Copy, that pool deck that seems kind of plain and several others. Not to mention the board rack itself 8]
do you guys know where i can buy a board rack? or if making one myself is a bit cheaper?
Use pvc pipe. It'll only cost around 10-15.
-sack
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Silverfish member, Augusto Lage wrote up instructions for a DIY Board rack using only 2x4s and wooden dowels. You could replace the dowels with PVC pipes if you want, but the dowels would look a little nicer.
