I am building a new keel for an Aquacraft Paradise. The original keel has about .7 taper ratio. It seems to me that having even more of the area up near the hull will tend to give better "lift" with less "roll" (sorry, I am an airplane guy, but don't hold it against me, I am trying!) Does anyone have some input on ideal keel shapes? Is most of the lateral resistance from the hull, and the keel need only be structurally sound? Or is it's shape important?

I have a 1 lb. torpedo shape fishing weight for the ballast, and the keel will have a core of 1/4" 5-ply spruce with balsa for shape fore and aft. Glass covering, nice fillets of Bondo, and an epoxy finish.

I will post photos as I go, but need to find some 4mm Stainless rod for the keel attachment and the new rudder (per the other Paradise thread, probably 2x the area of the original).

It would be helpful if anyone can point me in the right direction for the 4mm diameter rod material. I expect it would have to be from a "Metric" country, as all I can find are inch sizes.

Thanks, Larry