[C38] Rudder Drop Woes

[Steve.Ribble at gmail.com]

Jon;

While the rudder is out you should take a good look at the fiberglass where  
the rudder post goes through the hull for cracks. A hit like that could  
have done more than bent the post.

Steve Ribble
Tittravate #64

On , Jon Whitney <jonwhit23 at aol.com> wrote:


> Hey David,



> Dont cut the quadrant off the rudder just yet! I just went through a  
> multiple day epic trying to remove the steering quadrant so I could pull  
> the rudder after we had a run-in with a whale a few weeks ago. Believe it  
> or not, we got nudged by female humpback while rounding the SE corner of  
> Oahu during a circumnavigation of the island. She hit us broadside and  
> clipped the bottom of the rudder, bending the bottom about 6" to the  
> starboard side. The whale was fine (prop not on) and she barely skimmed  
> the bottom of the rudder). The boat won't turn right at all, but she  
> turned left enough to get us home safely and spend the night out sailing  
> on that Tsunami day a few weeks ago.



> So to pull the rudder out (while in the water), I had to remove the  
> steering assembly, and those 5 bolts holding the quadrant to the rudder  
> post were an incredible pain to break free. I eventually had to borrow an  
> 3/8"-drive impact gun and large compressor from a mechanic friend.  
> Although the gun eventually did break them free, it still took the  
> combination blow torch, PB blaster, and cranking on each bolt with the  
> gun for about 40 minutes each to break them free. It was amazing how  
> stuck they were in there (and how much space you dont have working down  
> there!). There are also the two little machine head screws (with nuts)  
> that hold the edges of the two quadrants together (the ones Steve had  
> mentioned), that I hadn't noticed at first and discovered when I couldn't  
> pry the two freed-halves apart.



> After finally getting the steering assembly off, and removing the  
> stainless cap that the rudder attaches to in the helm (which came off  
> almost without the need for a wrench), I could see that the rudder post  
> is in fact hollow (sides are about 1/4" thick) and inside is filled with  
> foam. Because the rudder post was bent, the rudder did not come out very  
> easily. I had to pound on it with a rubber mallet (for about 20 minutes)  
> pour in penetrating oil, while my buddy turned the rudder manually in the  
> water. After it was unseized, we pulled the rudder post out of the bottom  
> of the boat and did the best we could to control the rudders ascent. Once  
> the rudder post is all the way out, it becomes very evident that its  
> positively bouyant, and how tricky it is to control even with two bodies  
> holding it.



> After it was out of the water, we could assess the damage. The rudder  
> post was bent about 3" off center over the 32" it sticks out (not too  
> bad) and the fiberglass around the upper portion of the post as cracked.  
> I took it to a local metal fabrication shop in Honolulu, and they  
> straightened it back out no problem using a 120,000lb press (took about  
> 40 minutes and $80). Next is taking it to a glass-guy who can patch the  
> crack and resurface the fiberglass. Paint it and pop it back in.



> Jon Whitney

> "Eye Whitness"

> 1979, Hull 54

> Honolulu

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://catalina38.org/pipermail/listserve_catalina38.org/attachments/20110405/779dc838/attachment-0001.htm>