On my 1982 Catalina 30 when I am standing behind the wheel the backs of my legs get beat up from the steering nuckle from the emergency tiller any suggestions such as a guard or can you remove this nuckle or will the rudder fall through ?
bruised legs
- Thread starter Lost Parent
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I agree with Alan's suggestion to stand, or sit to the side when sailing.... but, of course, the question is where do you stand/sit when motoring? I certainly wouldn't start removing parts from the rudder. Why don't you cover it with a cushion?
Except for sailing downwind wing on wing in a stiff breeze, I am rarely directly behind the wheel. I can stand off to the side and hold onto both the wheel and the pushpit rail. Try it if you have the room.
The rudder is not held in place by that piece. Look behind the teak plywood in the back of the rear berth for confirmation. The steering quadrant would have to be ripped off to lose the rudder from it slipping through. You may break the rudder post off but it won't slip through.
Those rubber washers beneath that head you are talking about leak seriously bad on my C30. I was looking at my quadrant in a rain storm and water was pouring down the rudder from the top underneath those rubber seals.
Everything else I sealed with butyl tape. For that thing I am not sure what to do.
Those rubber washers beneath that head you are talking about leak seriously bad on my C30. I was looking at my quadrant in a rain storm and water was pouring down the rudder from the top underneath those rubber seals.
Everything else I sealed with butyl tape. For that thing I am not sure what to do.
Hi Hermit,
Try this site and look for rudder shaft repair, I found it useful.
http://www.catalina30.com/
http://www.catalina30.com/TechLib/Rudder Shaft/rudder-repair.pdf
All U Get
Try this site and look for rudder shaft repair, I found it useful.
http://www.catalina30.com/
http://www.catalina30.com/TechLib/Rudder Shaft/rudder-repair.pdf
All U Get
That is some good stuff. I didn't see anything specifically about the rudder post leaking at the top. But they talked about using the post as a mold to make the rudder tube fit tighter.
The drainage for the back seat area gets directed to drain into the cockpit around the top of the rudder post. I could probably mold around the post like they instructed in the repair instructions but make the rudder tube taller so the deluge of water rushing by won't pour down into the rudder tube.
I thought of glassing in a cap over it but that would require me to not be able to have an emergency tiller.
Lost parent, I just thought of an ok fix for your problem as well as mine. I may make a piece that fits down into the rudder shaft where my e-tiller will fit into that like a winch handle does on a winch, instead of having a head sticking out that far.
When I remove the pedastal to powder coat it, I am going to reinstall it forward 9" to a 12". I don't like the backstay hitting me in the head. I'm 5'3", I can't imagine how uncomfortable standing behind the wheel on my boat was for a 6' tall guy. Most of these guys say they don't stand behind the wheel though, probably because they have an autopilot that they use while sailing as a third hand. I like being behind the wheel. I think I would like the wheel forward, the winches back some.
Hermit, do you have a split backstay or a single? One thing to consider is to install a split backstay and raise the split high enough to avoid the head knocking. That's what I did.
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I have a split backstay. I thought of moving the split up and putting a spreader to give a little more room. I see other boats with a single backstay going to one side. I would be fine with that. But I don't think one of those chain plates in the current configuration are designed to hold that load. my other option is to run two back stays all the way to the mast head.
I broke my backstay last year and have replaced the top part with a 1/4" high density polyethelyne winch rope. It has a cowhitch (or larks head) at the top and a double buntline hitch at the bottom. IT has worked OK but I find the split backstay tensioner has been creeping lower and lower. The knot is slipping or the rope is stretching so it's time to fix it for real.
I have been flirting with disaster for a while, time to replace all standing rigging except the forestay which I just did a few years ago.
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