26S Rudder Questions

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OnTheBayou

OnTheBayou

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Mar 30, 2010
24
Macgregor 26S Pointe Aux Chenes, LA
I have a 26S and I got a new rudder from Blue Water Yachts to install. Any pointers on where to drill the holes? My old rudder hit the ground and was destroyed on the highway. One other question how do I keep the rudder from hitting the outboard motor? That I had problems with in tight turns in the bayou.
Bill and Sum you may remember me from a year ago. After last year I quit working on the boat as I was laid up with heart surgery and the boat sat on the trailer for a year. I hope to get it in the water now that health is better and the BP oil spill is behind us.
 
Sumner

Sumner

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Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country
Glad you are back and feeling better.

Walt bought a prop guard and we bought the same one....

http://www.propsavers.com/Prop Saver Prices.htmla's

...model number 4 above. Got it from Cabela's...

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Boat...sories/_/N-1100536&WTz_l=Unknown;cat104517180

I'd started making one from aluminum last spring and didn't get it done and then we had left the boat in Florida. I bought the one above and took it back and installed it in about 10 minutes.

We really like it. Haven't hit the rudder once with it and it has also kept the dinghy and it's tow line out of the prop while backing. It wasn't cheap, but well worth it in my mind.

I can't help with the hole placement, but I pull the rudder while towing. It takes maybe 3-4 minutes to put on or off and the chance of it getting damage is now about zero.

Just curious what was the difference in cost of an Ida Sailor rudder vs. BWY? We love the Ida Sailor one, but the boat came with it, so we no nothing different.

One last thing is that if we do into anchor or dock or any place else I put the connector.....



.... I made that connects the rudder tiller and the outboard tiller. It makes manuvering much easier and almost always keeps the prop out of the rudder.

Here are three Youtube videos of it....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UYc2ZHehS8&feature=channel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COMAPYd5WTg&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sWbLBGc1Is&NR=1

....and here is a link to building it....

http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor2/outside-29.html

As you can see from the videos it goes on or off in about 10 seconds. Ruth really likes it as she is on the tiller most of the time while we are anchoring and such and she doesn't have to turn two different tillers at the same time.

Have fun,

Sum

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Our MacGregor S Pages

Mac-Venture Links
 
R

Robspan

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Apr 30, 2006
610
Macgregor 26s Kemah, TX
That tiller connector makes me say Wow! once again when I see one of your mods, Sum.
Have you noticed any improvement in fuel economy with the prop guard?
 
OnTheBayou

OnTheBayou

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Mar 30, 2010
24
Macgregor 26S Pointe Aux Chenes, LA
Sum and Mike thanks. I have the old rudder, I can get the bolt hole pattern but I am not sure if it was the stock on as it was VERY heavy with a wood core. The new one from BWY was $120 plus $20.00 for the shipping crate a shipping. It is hollow fiberglass but was on drilled for to let the water enter. It was a lot cheaper than the Ida one. I appreciate the links. Sum I like the mod and may just do that with or without the prop guard.
 
Sumner

Sumner

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Jan 31, 2009
5,254
Macgregor & Endeavour 26S and 37 Utah's Canyon Country
Robspan said:
....Have you noticed any improvement in fuel economy with the prop guard?
Click to expand
I don't really know for sure, but would say not if pressed. The first trip with the new motor was in the fall without the guard and now this one with it. The fall trip was about 130 miles if I remember right and think it was 9-10 mpg and that is the range it has been in on this trip. We are just shy of 300 miles for this trip so far at 293 according to the GPS.

I can say that we have been way happy with the inboard...



http://purplesagetradingpost.com/sumner/macgregor2/outside-35.html

... 19 gallon fuel tank. No more carrying a bunch of containers of gas. Well after running into the piling at Marco and destroying a solar panel and bending up the supporting framework we bought a 5 gallon container. We used it once a week ago to go get gas with the dinghy and then again today to go get 5 gallons and will get 5 gallons again on Monday just before leaving Marathon and heading SW. We dump from the 5 gallon into the inboard tank and then hang the empty 5 gallon off the solar array.

Where we got gas today and will again Monday is a dock that looks like it is only used by crab boats and the way it is laid out I wouldn't want to try and go in with the Mac, so the one container is working good.

We are on the Gulf side at Marthon as we didn't want to go around and get in all the mess we read about in Boot Harbor on the Atlantic side. It has been hard to find gas and a place to tie up the dinghy on this side, but we finally got that all figured out. Tomorrow we will dinghy over to the Keys Fishery for lunch. They said we can leave the dinghy there even though they usually don't do that. Then we will taxi a mile or two to Home Depot, K-Mart and Publix for supplies. Time to buy some food again. Today we walked from the commercial marina at Keys Fishery where we got gas about 3/4 of a mile to West Marine and back. The weather here is great,

Sum

Our Trips to Utah, Idaho, Canada, Florida

Our MacGregor S Pages

Mac-Venture Links
 
C

Cruiser1

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Oct 21, 2010
350
Macgregor 26S, "Myuna" Brisbane, Australia
Hi OnTheBayou,
Well this has spurred me on to make a record of my 26S blade dimensions. Mine is just the standard rudder, I think, but I have had it off the boat and on my back verandah all week - took the photo a few days ago but have not gotten around to recording the dimensions until tonight. Hope the picture loads up OK.

Just for the future record it seems to be about 45mm thick at the thickest point, that is about 60mm in from the leading edge near the uphaul rope connection hole. It tapers into a maximum of about 40mm just near the pivot bolt at the top and near the drain hole at the bottom.

Whilst I am at it would anyone know the dimensions of the bolt that holds the SS rudder cheeks in at the front edge?
 

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walt

walt

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Jun 1, 2007
3,511
Macgregor 26S Hobie TI Ridgway Colorado
Sumner,

Something to possibly watch on your trip (which sound like a really good thing to be doing at the moment)..

I "think" I had more corrosion on my outboard zinc after installing the SS prop guard. In theory, you are creating a nice little battery circuit with the SS prop guard electrically connected to the zinc (through the outboard) and then immersed in an electrolyte such as salt water.

I wonder if you have noticed any difference in the zinc corrosion after installing the prop guard.

I also wonder about either simply spray painting the guard or getting it powder coated to reduce the conductor area exposed to water. Would this cut down on the zinc corrosion??

Or.. you can simply keep the outboard out of the water as much as possible.

FYI, I like the prop guard.. no more issues with rudder munching and it saved the prop from damage one time last year.
 
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