Leaking-rudder problem
The water is NOT necessarily coming in from the top of the rudder. Since the whole rudder is in the water, the water could be coming in anywhere. The foam will wick the water up as far as the foam goes and you'll have water at the top from a hole in the bottom. We recently took a rudder off a 27-year-old Cherubini 44 and found plenty of Gulf-of-Mexico salt water still sloshing round inside it, complete with mold and fungus and all good stuff. We gave up and chopped the rudder tube out and installed it in a new rudder. ANY small hole (in our case probably the ones securing the wooden carving on the top) will fill it with water if not properly looked after. What problems is the rudder giving you now? From where is it seeping water? Is there any softness, hollowness, cracking, etc.? Yes-- I am inclined to not worry about it till the bad stuff starts showing up. You might want to assure yourself of two things: 1. That the rudder is NOT separated from the tube, which is the worst case because it will necessitate taking the rudder apart (as we did). But it is highly unlikely if it's not obvious now. 2. That the water is not coming from above the rudder itself, like from the deck or cockpit sole (which will make this worry into a funny joke). Let's hope for that one! J Cherubini II email: cherubiniyachts@aol.com * * *
